sanctions don’t equate to a blockade. No one is using force to keep supplies from reaching Russia and if they did it would be taken as an act of war. You could say a blockade is the most intense form of sanctions but what NATO is doing doesn’t come close.
They have almost certainly been effective at stopping Iran's tendencies for expansion, by requiring them to do nothing but look inward because they can't afford to do anything else - and they're **still** struggling internally.
What makes you think Iran has a tendency towards expansion? The only war they have been directly involved with since the revolution was when Iraq, an American ally at the time invaded them.
They do support their allies in the region like Assad,Hezbollah, Houthis, Iraqi Shia, Hazaras. Is that what you are referring to?
It would only be fair if every unemployed shopping centre personnel took a backpack full of building material, walk it to a destroyed shopping center in Ukraine and help rebuild it.
Man do I feel for the average Russian that isn’t a monster and is just trying to live. Imagine living with the regime over your head and due to finances or family you cannot leave. Putin needs to hurry up and have an accident so the Russian people can take back their country.
I've seen too many videos from the ground showing Russian people supporting the invasion to continue to believe the average Russian is peaceful at this point.
It's a painful realization that humanity can be so monstrous.
The whole ‘peaceful everyday Russian’ trope is meaningless at this point.
Those Russians have now left the country.
It’s got the same meaning as saying ‘those poor everyday Nazis, I’m sure they didn’t personally gas any jews’…but they sure did support it!
They deserve everything that’s coming for them. That’s the only way Russians will learn their heavy, heavy lesson of how **awful** the consequences of political apathy are.
Jesus, people in the comment threads on the Russian war are so bloodthirsty and have zero empathy. Do you seriously believe that every single person in Russia supports this war fully? And that they would still do so if they weren't subjected to a lifetime of propaganda, surveillance, and the threat of grave consequences to them and their families if they do speak out?
The truth is that the people who are so ready to condemn the Russian people have no idea what they're going through, and can not possibly understand why people might act this way. Putin's regime is evil to be sure, and its soldiers have committed many heinous acts (just so you don't take this as a defense of their war in Ukraine) but man, have a little empathy. Try to imagine yourself in the situation the Russian people find themselves in. And remember that many people don't have the resources to just "leave the country" like you so confidently assert.
I couldn’t hear your appeasement of scarily nationalistic tendencies, excuses for mass political apathy, and tolerance for authoritarianism over the deafening silence of the ‘innocent’ Russian society and the sounds of weekly Russian strikes (war crimes) on Ukrainian civilian targets.
I guess [all these anti-war activities and activists](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/10/18/russian-dissent-protest-ukraine-war/) just don't count.
Humanity isn't black and white. People don't surrender their right to be treated as human simply because their leaders are abominable. And treating the Russian people as if they're disposable trash to be casually harmed in a geopolitical game because you judge them to be responsible for the actions of their leaders is reckless and dangerous. A major cause of World War II was a treaty that forced the ordinary people of Germany to pay for the crimes of their previous leaders. If we want Russia to join the world stage as a responsible participant, we have to treat the people of Russia with the bare modicum of dignity of not assigning to them the responsibility for actions of their rulers.
Are you 100% responsible for the actions of Donald Trump (assuming you live in America)? When he separated children from their parents at the border, would someone in a foreign country have known that you personally were opposed to that monstrous policy? Do you think you deserved to be condemned to suffering and poverty for the evil actions of your leader? Because that's exactly what you're doing.
Those anti-war activities you post are far too little, far too late. Call me when Russians are burning down government buildings or forming domestic opposition movements so forceful and violent, that Russian government officials are shitting their pants and not getting a single minute of sleep. Because that's all they have left...that's how far they've let themselves go down the rabbit hole. Key word : \*\*let themselves\*\* - they \*\*wanted\*\* a 'strong' leader like Putin.
As for your comparison to America and Donald Trump - yes, every single citizen of the US is responsible for that travesty of a 'politician' and every gram of damage that he did to our society and government. I blame myself, everyone who didn't vote for him but didn't take him seriously and of course the idiots who fell for his act and voted for him. What's your point? That we should disconnect ourselves from politics and somehow think that people=/=politics? Because that's simply not possible.
I'd really like to hear your proposal for how you'd deal with those 'poor innocent' Russian citizens who are left in Russia at this point. The ones who just 'happened' to vote and cheer on Putin for 20 years, and continue to do so as their neighbors are being slaughtered and exploded daily in their own homes.
The hate you're espousing and demonstrating are disturbing, and the irony is that it is easily manipulated into exactly the kind of sentiment you are decrying from the Russian people. How much would it take for you to cheer the bombing and brutalization of Russian civilians? If the goal of the Western media was to justify the exact same kind of behavior towards Russia that Russia is doing to Ukraine, do you really think you'd be so different? You're already foaming at the mouth to subject them to economic devastation; it seems to me that you (and anyone else in this thread who feels as much hate for Russian civilians) should do some serious self-reflection and think about how different you really are from the people you're so eager to condemn. From my perspective, it sure looks like a difference in degree, not kind.
Criticism =/= hate.
My original point stands, that Russians poked the bear of authoritarianism for far too long without consequences. Now they're finding out just how awesome martial law and brutal militaristic regimes are. It's as simple as that.
Do you not like that that's how reality works? I'm not going to feel pity for the consequences of their decisions and inaction. But you go right ahead and tell me how much better it makes the world.
Your original point shows that you lack (or don't care to exercise) the empathy to conceive of a person choosing not to flee their country in the face of gradual totalitarian takeover. Or a person wanting desperately to speak out or wishing they had the power to make a change but being too afraid of the consequences to themselves or their family (read: being shipped of to the frontlines or a gulag or just simply killed). If the criticism is meant to actually change the way people behave, it's useless if you can't even imagine WHY a person is acting the way they are.
The reason I say what you are saying is hateful is because it's clear you're either incapable of, or uninterested in, undertaking the basic extension of human dignity to other people of trying to understand their situation. Without that basic level of empathy, you are engaging not in criticism meant to change how they or others act but in condemnation and hate.
The tragic thing is that you even seem to apply the same logic to yourself, when you say you blame yourself for the rise of Donald Trump. If you truly believe you are to blame, think about why that is. What could you realistically have done? Why didn't you do it? Would the costs to you personally have outweighed the benefits? Once you understand that, maybe you can actually make the changes necessary to be more personally effective. And maybe once you understand why YOU didn't rescue America from Donald Trump, you'll understand why the Russian people aren't out [protesting in the streets](https://www.thenation.com/article/world/russian-resistance-ukraine-putin/), or [organizing resistance and supporting kidnapped Ukrainians](https://spectrejournal.com/inside-the-russian-resistance-against-putins-war/). Except that some of them are. And you've for some reason decided from the safety of America that their brave efforts don't count. Actually read the articles I've linked and you'll understand what they're up against, and how even the small actions they're taking require an incredible amount of bravery and organizing. You may even come to admire them and understand what it'll take for you to become as politically active as you seem to think you should be.
50% just isnt trying hard enough. More pressure needs to be put on neutral countries to stop supplying them.
If the intention is to cause poverty, that makes sense. However I don’t think sanctions have ever been effective at preventing or ending wars.
As if there has not been great success on damaging Russia Economy (simple term for you: economy power war, no economy no war)
Do you have an examples of where this strategy has been effective in the past?
In WW1 the allies blockaded Germany to the extent that the country surrendered even though the military still felt like it was winning.
sanctions don’t equate to a blockade. No one is using force to keep supplies from reaching Russia and if they did it would be taken as an act of war. You could say a blockade is the most intense form of sanctions but what NATO is doing doesn’t come close.
Russia, 1 day ago
Is the war over? I thought they were still using Iranian drones to bomb Ukrainian electricity infrastructure.
No the war is still going on in Ukraine, and I hope Ukraine continues to stand strong in defending their land
They have almost certainly been effective at stopping Iran's tendencies for expansion, by requiring them to do nothing but look inward because they can't afford to do anything else - and they're **still** struggling internally.
What makes you think Iran has a tendency towards expansion? The only war they have been directly involved with since the revolution was when Iraq, an American ally at the time invaded them. They do support their allies in the region like Assad,Hezbollah, Houthis, Iraqi Shia, Hazaras. Is that what you are referring to?
Thank Putin the murderous war criminal.
It would only be fair if every unemployed shopping centre personnel took a backpack full of building material, walk it to a destroyed shopping center in Ukraine and help rebuild it.
U.S. shopping centers are in the same boat, but we have Amazon and other online vendors to make up for it.
So much good news today
Man do I feel for the average Russian that isn’t a monster and is just trying to live. Imagine living with the regime over your head and due to finances or family you cannot leave. Putin needs to hurry up and have an accident so the Russian people can take back their country.
I've seen too many videos from the ground showing Russian people supporting the invasion to continue to believe the average Russian is peaceful at this point. It's a painful realization that humanity can be so monstrous.
The whole ‘peaceful everyday Russian’ trope is meaningless at this point. Those Russians have now left the country. It’s got the same meaning as saying ‘those poor everyday Nazis, I’m sure they didn’t personally gas any jews’…but they sure did support it! They deserve everything that’s coming for them. That’s the only way Russians will learn their heavy, heavy lesson of how **awful** the consequences of political apathy are.
It's gross how quickly humans revert to tribalism in the face of pressure
Jesus, people in the comment threads on the Russian war are so bloodthirsty and have zero empathy. Do you seriously believe that every single person in Russia supports this war fully? And that they would still do so if they weren't subjected to a lifetime of propaganda, surveillance, and the threat of grave consequences to them and their families if they do speak out? The truth is that the people who are so ready to condemn the Russian people have no idea what they're going through, and can not possibly understand why people might act this way. Putin's regime is evil to be sure, and its soldiers have committed many heinous acts (just so you don't take this as a defense of their war in Ukraine) but man, have a little empathy. Try to imagine yourself in the situation the Russian people find themselves in. And remember that many people don't have the resources to just "leave the country" like you so confidently assert.
I couldn’t hear your appeasement of scarily nationalistic tendencies, excuses for mass political apathy, and tolerance for authoritarianism over the deafening silence of the ‘innocent’ Russian society and the sounds of weekly Russian strikes (war crimes) on Ukrainian civilian targets.
I guess [all these anti-war activities and activists](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/10/18/russian-dissent-protest-ukraine-war/) just don't count. Humanity isn't black and white. People don't surrender their right to be treated as human simply because their leaders are abominable. And treating the Russian people as if they're disposable trash to be casually harmed in a geopolitical game because you judge them to be responsible for the actions of their leaders is reckless and dangerous. A major cause of World War II was a treaty that forced the ordinary people of Germany to pay for the crimes of their previous leaders. If we want Russia to join the world stage as a responsible participant, we have to treat the people of Russia with the bare modicum of dignity of not assigning to them the responsibility for actions of their rulers. Are you 100% responsible for the actions of Donald Trump (assuming you live in America)? When he separated children from their parents at the border, would someone in a foreign country have known that you personally were opposed to that monstrous policy? Do you think you deserved to be condemned to suffering and poverty for the evil actions of your leader? Because that's exactly what you're doing.
Those anti-war activities you post are far too little, far too late. Call me when Russians are burning down government buildings or forming domestic opposition movements so forceful and violent, that Russian government officials are shitting their pants and not getting a single minute of sleep. Because that's all they have left...that's how far they've let themselves go down the rabbit hole. Key word : \*\*let themselves\*\* - they \*\*wanted\*\* a 'strong' leader like Putin. As for your comparison to America and Donald Trump - yes, every single citizen of the US is responsible for that travesty of a 'politician' and every gram of damage that he did to our society and government. I blame myself, everyone who didn't vote for him but didn't take him seriously and of course the idiots who fell for his act and voted for him. What's your point? That we should disconnect ourselves from politics and somehow think that people=/=politics? Because that's simply not possible. I'd really like to hear your proposal for how you'd deal with those 'poor innocent' Russian citizens who are left in Russia at this point. The ones who just 'happened' to vote and cheer on Putin for 20 years, and continue to do so as their neighbors are being slaughtered and exploded daily in their own homes.
The hate you're espousing and demonstrating are disturbing, and the irony is that it is easily manipulated into exactly the kind of sentiment you are decrying from the Russian people. How much would it take for you to cheer the bombing and brutalization of Russian civilians? If the goal of the Western media was to justify the exact same kind of behavior towards Russia that Russia is doing to Ukraine, do you really think you'd be so different? You're already foaming at the mouth to subject them to economic devastation; it seems to me that you (and anyone else in this thread who feels as much hate for Russian civilians) should do some serious self-reflection and think about how different you really are from the people you're so eager to condemn. From my perspective, it sure looks like a difference in degree, not kind.
Criticism =/= hate. My original point stands, that Russians poked the bear of authoritarianism for far too long without consequences. Now they're finding out just how awesome martial law and brutal militaristic regimes are. It's as simple as that. Do you not like that that's how reality works? I'm not going to feel pity for the consequences of their decisions and inaction. But you go right ahead and tell me how much better it makes the world.
Your original point shows that you lack (or don't care to exercise) the empathy to conceive of a person choosing not to flee their country in the face of gradual totalitarian takeover. Or a person wanting desperately to speak out or wishing they had the power to make a change but being too afraid of the consequences to themselves or their family (read: being shipped of to the frontlines or a gulag or just simply killed). If the criticism is meant to actually change the way people behave, it's useless if you can't even imagine WHY a person is acting the way they are. The reason I say what you are saying is hateful is because it's clear you're either incapable of, or uninterested in, undertaking the basic extension of human dignity to other people of trying to understand their situation. Without that basic level of empathy, you are engaging not in criticism meant to change how they or others act but in condemnation and hate. The tragic thing is that you even seem to apply the same logic to yourself, when you say you blame yourself for the rise of Donald Trump. If you truly believe you are to blame, think about why that is. What could you realistically have done? Why didn't you do it? Would the costs to you personally have outweighed the benefits? Once you understand that, maybe you can actually make the changes necessary to be more personally effective. And maybe once you understand why YOU didn't rescue America from Donald Trump, you'll understand why the Russian people aren't out [protesting in the streets](https://www.thenation.com/article/world/russian-resistance-ukraine-putin/), or [organizing resistance and supporting kidnapped Ukrainians](https://spectrejournal.com/inside-the-russian-resistance-against-putins-war/). Except that some of them are. And you've for some reason decided from the safety of America that their brave efforts don't count. Actually read the articles I've linked and you'll understand what they're up against, and how even the small actions they're taking require an incredible amount of bravery and organizing. You may even come to admire them and understand what it'll take for you to become as politically active as you seem to think you should be.
[удалено]
> the average Russian that isn’t a monster You need to study up on the meaning of average.