Before the American Civil War there was slavery in some form, everywhere. The Egyptians used it and the story of the Jewish people is closely tied to that.
Then came the industrial revolution, products made with replaceable parts, engines run on oil products, an end to plowing with a person or animal pulling the implement. Agriculture improved tremendously.
We've used carbon-based fuels a long time, and Russia depends on selling natural gas and oil. Economically, Russia is in the 20th century.
But, in terms of their national view of the world, they're still in the "conquer and enslave" 19th century. The Soviet Union continued that in the years after World War II. It didn't work very well. Even now, after having a chance to begin with Capitalism, Vladimir Putin is trying to conquer Ukraine in a very 19th century fashion. It isn't working very well. The Ukrainians are using some tools of the 21st century to stay free.
I think it's safe to say that Russia, or perhaps more specifically, Putin, hasn't found his way into the 20th or 21st century, except where it has been exceptionally advantageous. He still uses blackmail of western Europe, threatening to withhold natural gas, to get what he wants.
Putin is a very backward man, and by today's standards, immoral. He must be stopped.
