• freagle@lemmy.ml
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      3 days ago

      Read the official statements of the Russian government. Compare them to the official statements of the Ukraine government. Compare them to the official statements of the US government. That’s a pretty good start.

      Then you can read about WW2, and compare the difference between the Russian invasion of Ukraine with the Third Reich invasion of the Rhineland and then compare the Russian invasion of Ukraine with the Third Reich invasion of Poland. You’ll note that the invasion of the Rhineland was met with no real resistance, much like the Russian invasion of Crimea. Then you’ll note that the invasion of Poland was met with much resistance and kicked off major combat operations, much like the Russian invasion of the Donbas. But then you’ll note that there is a HUGE difference between what happened after the invasion of Poland and what has happened since the launch of the Russian “SMO”. And that should give you a pretty good understanding of what it looks like when someone is a fascist and hell bent on dominating all of its neighbors, and that should give you a pretty solid footing for assessing whether Russia is proceeding along a similar path.

        • freagle@lemmy.ml
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          3 days ago

          It’s not about playbook. It’s not about being an invader. It’s about capabilities and strategies. You should be able to see that if Russia is struggling so hard against Ukraine, that it really has no ability to go open a whole bunch of new fronts. Hell, if you analyze JUST Ukraine, Russia doesn’t have what it takes to occupy the Western half of Ukraine because it can’t protect its supply lines out that far.

          • mrbutterscotch@feddit.org
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            3 days ago

            You’re rationalising a dictator. Hitler was overstretched in the West and it didn’t stop him from invading the Soviets. If Putin was rational he wouldn’t have invaded Ukraine in the first place. Russia not being able to handle Ukraine is no basis to think he won’t invade the Baltics.

            Considering the proposed law about “Protection of Russian Citizens abroad”, which gives Russia justification to invade other countries for “the sake of its citizens”, I don’t believe he won’t try and invade Europe.

            • freagle@lemmy.ml
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              2 days ago

              Imagine accusing me of using reason to explain someone’s behavior and saying that this is not allowed because that person is politically immoral. Like, it’s astounding that you would even say this. Get it through your propagandized brain - even dictators behave rationally. Hitler was behaving rationally given a small set of key assumptions. As has pretty much every leader in the history of the world save a very very few who were given power when they didn’t earn it and it turned out they were quite literally insane.

              Putin invaded Ukraine for rational reasons. Doesn’t mean he was right. But if you’re going to demand everyone you engage with literally abandon all of reality in favor of childish villain stories in order to be considered morally good, you’re just going to remain a rabid know-nothing.

              Considering the proposed law about “Protection of Russian Citizens abroad”, which gives Russia justification to invade other countries for “the sake of its citizens”, I don’t believe he won’t try and invade Europe.

              Yes, because what matters in invasions is paper and not logistics, arsenals, strategy, etc.

              If Russia invaded Europe, it will leave itself so exposed to counter-attack that it won’t exist anymore.

              And I don’t even know why I responded, honestly. You have zero grasp of reality and you literally opened with a demand that I should also stop examining reality because of the dominant Western narrative. Like, you don’t even care about truth, about reality, about reason. Your requirement for discourse starts at “must believe the comic book moral allegory of the dominant narrative in my culture”.

          • MousePotatoDoesStuff@lemmy.world
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            3 days ago

            Well, I certainly hope you’re right about that, and that Putin’s “SMO” can soon come to a close and his remaining soldiers go back home to their families.