Russia and Ukraine

[Thumpalumpacus]

How very dare the ukranians fight against genocidal invaders.

Bel's got to be a bot, seriously.

The atonal interactions reveal quite a bit.

[Belacqua]

Good detailed history here:

https://www.compactmag.com/article/how-d...n-ukraine/

[The Grand Nudger]

TLDR version "russia wanted it really bad, and it's america's fault that it has to be destroyed by russia"

For anyone wondering why Bel searches out the most ludicrous takes on russias wholly elective war of extermination in ukraine - this is it. Anti american sentiment is his north star. Nothing to do with russia. Nothing to do with ukraine. If ukraine and their helpful idiots were the ones spitting hot anti-american fire he'd be on the boards every day shouting slava ukraini.

[Mister Agenda]

That's so unkind, I will immediately switch my support from Ukraine to the Russian Federation! /s

If both sides are bad you don't have to support either.

Whether a side is supportive of atheists doesn't enter into my calculations at all. Do you think it should?

[The Grand Nudger]

Bananapants isn't it. The ukranian people are deeply and conservatively religious. Certainly more religious than the russian people.

Are we supposed to side with the russian aggressor in it's aim to destroy every ukranian person....and apparently every ukranian brick too while they're at it.... because there are more ukranians than russians who think christmas attacks on market squares is some particularly godless shit?

I mean...I agree with them...it is. And?

[Thumpalumpacus]

Just how widespread is domestic support for Russia’s war on Ukraine, really? Conventional wisdom has long held that the war of choice launched by the regime of President Vladimir Putin in February of 2022 is backed by most Russians. European officials have long interpreted polling results and Putin’s consistently high popularity ratings as proof that the war is popular at home. They have responded accordingly, with measures such as travel restrictions that have curtailed the ability of ordinary Russians to access the Eurozone.


Perhaps Putin’s war of choice was indeed once a widely-accepted enterprise. But there are now clear signs that domestic support for Russia’s “special military operation” against Ukraine is softening, as its material, human and reputational costs continue to mount.


Thus, in the most recent poll carried out by Moscow’s Levada Center, just 25 percent of respondents supported a continuation of hostilities rather than a negotiated settlement – the lowest number since the start of Russia’s war of aggression nearly four years ago. At the same time, two-thirds of Russians polled (66%) backed the idea of commencing peace negotiations now to end what has become a grinding, protracted conflict.


Of course, the usual caveats apply. Assessing public sentiment in Russia has become increasingly difficult in recent years, as the increasingly authoritarian nature of Putin’s regime has cast a pall over pollsters and respondents alike. No one is immune from this trend, and even presumably independent institutions like Levada must operate within the Russian government’s (largely unwritten) parameters or face outright closure. Even so, the mid-December nationwide poll of some 1,600 respondents is telling – precisely because it reflects opinion that’s widespread enough to be undeniable and because, to be published in the first place, the results invariably reflect the sentiments of at least some in Putin’s inner circle.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/ilanberman/...r-at-home/

[Belacqua]

If both sides are bad you don't have to support either.

Whether a side is supportive of atheists doesn't enter into my calculations at all. Do you think it should?

I just thought it was amusing that Zelensky would use "atheist" as an insult, given the fact that atheism is very important to some people's self-image on this forum. 

Also here's a thing about the economy:

https://x.com/ricwe123/status/2005637965645578505?s=20

[Fake Messiah]

I just thought it was amusing that Zelensky would use "atheist" as an insult

I'm so glad that you find war in Ukraine amusing. At least someone is having fun from that atrocity.

Also here's a thing about the economy

Economy in Russia is dreadful, you can't deny that. The unruly inflation, a ballooning budget deficit, shrinking revenues from oil and natural gas, a large increase in corporate and income tax rates, as well as a hike in the value-added tax, to help fund record levels of military spending. Russian consumers are also grappling with sharp price rises, especially for imported goods.

Now, that would have broken many nations. You are right that Russians have gotten used to living like animals and they will endure, even if they have to eat their own children to survive.

[Thumpalumpacus]

Whether a side is supportive of atheists doesn't enter into my calculations at all. Do you think it should?

I just thought it was amusing that Zelensky would use "atheist" as an insult, given the fact that atheism is very important to some people's self-image on this forum. 

So I was correct: it was a lame-assed attempt at trollery. You're as lousy a troll as you are a Russian shill.

[The Grand Nudger]

Something tells me zelensky doesn't give a single solitary shit about peoples self image on this forum.  Probably busy with all those goddamned russian terror attacks.

Just a hunch.