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Trunkage

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I mean, it worked for a few centuries in Rome, with the dictator voluntarily stepping down as soon as a crisis passed, so obviously it can work again.

Nevermind that some asshole eventually figured out you could just...not give it back. I hope he got stabbed
I'd point to how many countries dealt with Covid-19 as an example of what would normally seen as overreach.

I understood what Anti-maskers were saying, that much of the precautions government 'enforced' to combat covid was very dictatorial. It was also temporary. If the government kept being dictatorial now, I would have changed sides, at least on this topic
 

Trunkage

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Azerbaijan is taking advantage of russia's weakness. European nations made an oil deal Azerbaijan which is put them in a tight position. I've heard Iran could help them but their military is made for defense and China does not do defense operations like this. and if the United States tries to stop it they could cut off the oil deal with Europe.

and this has been a daily reminder,

FUCK OIL!
It Yemen all over again
 

Elijin

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We've been over this. Any (non surrendering) action that Ukraine takes is prolonging and exacerbating the war and loss of lives. Any action that widdle ol' Russia takes is beyond their control and the fault of the West for existing, and Ukraine for not rolling over and taking it.
 

PsychedelicDiamond

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I'm still wondering if all those deaths are orchestrated by the government, or by oligarchs who are unhappy with the government.
 

Hades

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I'm still wondering if all those deaths are orchestrated by the government, or by oligarchs who are unhappy with the government.
Or some oligarchs smell blood in the water and want to move themselves up on the line of succession in case Putin suddenly gets removed from his position.
 

Hawki

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Silvanus

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More survivor testimony (from a field medic) of torture at the hands of the Russian and DPR forces.
 
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Terminal Blue

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We've been over this. Any (non surrendering) action that Ukraine takes is prolonging and exacerbating the war and loss of lives.
This is something that seems to be coming from the Russian infowar side (the actual Russian state media infowars side, not a bunch of Western tankies who have turned Russia into a fantasy proxy hero in the face of their own political impotence but who occasionally parrot lines from Russian state media because they uncritically accept every sentiment shared in their own twitter echo chamber) who have been pushing the narrative that Russian victory is inevitable. Russia is a global military power with the biggest and strongest military on the planet and Ukraine is an illegal regime whose military consists exclusively of a handful of neo-Nazi militias. By this logic, any material support provided to Ukraine and any resistance that support enables just prolongs the inevitable Russian victory and thus causes more suffering.

The problem is that it's not true. Russian victory is not remotely inevitable at this point, there is a very real possibility that this conflict either ends in a decisive victory for Ukraine or a long and costly stalemate that Ukraine's government and population are more willing to tolerate than Russia's. As non-existent as the stakes may be for Americans sitting half a world away imagining that all their problems would magically go away if only they lived in the glorious (former) Soviet Union, the stakes are very real for people living in Ukraine itself. And as inconvenient as it may be that the Ukrainian population don't share the belief that the Russian military occupying their country and replacing the government with a Russian puppet regieme would be a heroic victory against Western Imperialism, they don't.

Seanchaidh posting a picture of a bunch of far-right volunteer militias near recently retaken city of Izium becomes comical when you realise Izium was defended by elements of the 1st Guards Tank Army. It's a sad little admission of the cognitive dissonance of their position. Russian victory is inevitable, yet this bunch of neo-Nazi LARPers (the only people in the Ukranian military, other than covert NATO operators of course) was apparently able to rout one of the most prestigious and fully modernized parts of the Russian army and destroy or capture about half their vehicles.

If the units who were supposed to be the breakthrough force in the event of a war with NATO can't win this conflict for Russia, who is supposed to do it? Where are these mysterious reinforcements Russian state media kept telling us were coming (before changing its mind and deciding the entire thing was a well planned tactical maneuver which just happened to involve some of the most elite army units leaving their equipment behind)?

But no, don't worry. The Russian victory will happen any day now. Putin will reveal his secret plan to restore the Soviet Union and Trotsky himself will rise from the grave (after denouncing himself as a fascist agitator and swearing undying loyalty to comrade Stalin, of course) and lead the glorious red army to sweep aside all the reactionary NATO forces and reach the Rhine in six days, and then it will all be worth it. Everything is fine. Everything is fine. Go back to sleep.
 
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The Rogue Wolf

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Seanchaidh posting a picture of a bunch of far-right volunteer militias near recently retaken city of Izium becomes comical when you realise Izium was defended by elements of the 1st Guards Tank Army. It's a sad little admission of the cognitive dissonance of their position. Russian victory is inevitable, yet this bunch of neo-Nazi LARPers (the only people in the Ukranian military, other than covert NATO operators of course) was apparently able to rout one of the most prestigious and fully modernized parts of the Russian army and destroy or capture about half their vehicles.
"It wasn't a rout! It was a beautiful feint by glorious leader Putin! He's so far ahead of you imperialist pigs that you could never catch up! He will restore the glorious USSR and bring back a beacon of communism that will inspire downtrodden workers everywhere to rise up and kill their corporate oppressors!"
 

Dalisclock

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But no, don't worry. The Russian victory will happen any day now. Putin will reveal his secret plan to restore the Soviet Union and the glorious people's red army will sweep aside all the reactionary NATO forces and reach the Rhine in six days, and then it will all be worth it. Everything is fine. Everything is fine. Go back to sleep.
I feel like this clip is strangely relevant except with Russian names and Putin's face.

 

Dalisclock

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"It wasn't a rout! It was a beautiful feint by glorious leader Putin! He's so far ahead of you imperialist pigs that you could never catch up! He will restore the glorious USSR and bring back a beacon of communism that will inspire downtrodden workers everywhere to rise up and kill their corporate oppressors!"
 
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CM156

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But no, don't worry. The Russian victory will happen any day now. Putin will reveal his secret plan to restore the Soviet Union and Trotsky himself will rise from the grave (after denouncing himself as a fascist agitator and swearing undying loyalty to comrade Stalin, of course) and lead the glorious red army to sweep aside all the reactionary NATO forces and reach the Rhine in six days, and then it will all be worth it. Everything is fine. Everything is fine. Go back to sleep.
So basically the Russian version of Ԛ-Anon.
 
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Terminal Blue

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So basically the Russian version of Ԛ-Anon.
Oh, I don't think Russians are that dumb. Russian state media knows they're lying, and the Russian people know state media lies. Russians who do manage to make it onto social media, even those who are very partisan supporters of the special military operation, generally seem to be quite aware that the situation isn't going very well even if they're obliged to pretend its only a temporary setback.

I'm mostly talking about people in the west who don't let the actual situation get in the way of the imaginary conflict against the shadowy cabal of US government officials they believe is responsible for all global events they don't like.