it's generally held that any press is good press, and considering the profound tininess and obscurity of estonia, the fact that she gets mentioned so often in the press and in the media, particularly by the venerable economist, is a very good and positive thing. if estonia wants to be taken more seriously, then do more serious things. otherwise, be glad that colbert wished you a happy birthday. p.s. i love estonia and wish her only well.

With all due respect, and Laas Leivat deserves respect, I would say that about quarter or more of the content that reaches the West and the rest of the world about Estonia (and Latvia) is Russian disinformation stuff couched in the trope or "plot device" of: "Balts - the nasty little unrepentant (supposedly) Waffen SS states on the Eastern shore of the Baltic Sea." This is obviously not what the Edmonton Journal or the Times Picayune is writing about Estonia, but it does crop up all too often on Russia Today, and other sites where the hand of the Russian intelligence and propaganda services is less obvious to the casual reader. Unfortunately, Google News and random searches produce all too many of these "unrepentant Nazi cultures in the Baltic region" items that are designed primarily to sow confusion in the minds of media users in various distant corners of the world. If you tell a lie audaciously enough and often enough, people will begin to think "where there's smoke, there's fire". This "tune", repeated over and over again by the Russian propaganda apparat, is essentially a security threat to our countries. If an American or a Canadian has doubt planted in his or her head about the "niceness" of Estonia or Latvia, this weakens the nature of our NATO alliance and feelings of reciprocal respect and sympathy. If you don't have a copy of "Nazi/Soviet Disinformation about the Holocaust in Latvia: Daugavas Vanagi: Who are they?" by Ezergailis, I suggest you get a copy. It should open the eyes of many people about warmed up old (false) Nazi propaganda messages about Latvia and the other Baltic States that the Kremlin gladly perpetuates to this day. "Mõnuga", or disseminates with pleasure, as the Estonian saying goes.

The snippets Laas Leivat finds about Estonians from history reflect quite accurately the perceptions about us over time, bu I must take issue with his own observation: "In contrast, the predictable bad review originates only from one source." The remark that "bad review originates only from one source (we know, of course, what he refers to) is itself propagandist and casts dispersions on those Estonians who are genuinely concerned about the developmental direction of Estonia and who offer constructive criticism.