I’ve been following this story of the Russian submarine that has been trapped under water with limited oxygen and power. One headline spells out the reason for my sentiments: “World unites to save Russian submarine crew.” I felt a tinge of pride/hope/euphoria reading that headline, that we are still able to put our differences aside and unite together to save lives.

One thing that does disappoint me is that almost every single article on this topic mentions an accident that happened back in 2000 when Russia refused international aid, and their sub sank as a result, killing 118 people. The articles mention these past few days events as a “sharp contrast” to the events of 2000, reminding everyone that Russia was stupid and foolish in not asking for international aid in 2000 until it was too late. And oh yeah, Russia’s naval power should also be questioned because they really aren’t what they used to …

Now my question is … are these jabs really necessary? Why can’t we just stop at a happy story about the world coming together? It’s almost as if it’s too much to have a completely happy story involving Russia. Some depressing things must be added in to tone down the otherwise positive tone the article used toward Russia, just to remind us all that the west and Russia are still having issues with each other.