All that beautiful farmland tied up to be ruined by war.
WTF is wrong with the Russian people?
One nut-ball gains power and the whole country falls down prostrate in obedience. Perhaps Lenin, Stalin, et al killed off all the independent thinkers and ended their bloodlines. Perhaps the Russian people are incapable of rising from serfdom.
What's the average IQ of Russians today? Are they smarter for going thru the war and communism or dumber? Does crisis (war, turmoil) kill off the dumb ones faster than idiotic ideologies (e.g., anti-semitism) kill off the smart ones?
A Russian joke illustrates this sad state of affairs in the fantastic land of Mussorgsky, Tchaikovsky, Stravinsky, Prokofiev, Mendeleev, Perelman, Korolev, Sakharov, Dostoevsky and Tolstoy...
A man finds an old oil lamp, rubs it, and out pops a genie. The genie offers to grant him one wish, with the caveat: whatever he wishes for, his neighbor will get double.
The man thinks for a moment, then says:
"Take out one of my eyes."
I am not entirely sure what any of this has to do with the situation in Russia. Is IQ correlated with a desire for personal risk? Is independent thinking correlated with the collective action needed to over turn an entrenched power?
Putting aside the questionable simplification that IQ correlates with desirable political behavior, can you provide an example of when heavily oppressed people successfully overthrew their oppressors? If you examine history carefully, you will find that such cases are exceedingly rare.
As a Russian citizen, I'd like to mention two things. First, the Communist revolution disrupted the continuity of tradition in Russia. The knowledge, heritage and legacy that many people cherished was wiped out through killings and forced exile. Second, there is an esoteric aspect rooted deeply in Eastern Orthodoxy that cannot be easily explained.
Currently, many of the most intelligent Russian citizens are attempting to relinquish their Russian citizenship, seeing it as the best path forward for themselves as individuals. The opportunity to fight for a better collective future faded away long ago.
I empathize with the Russian people in the same way I empathize with Indians forced to get their news from Modi. They are good people, fed a falsified narrative that preys on their insecurities more than it helps them. Putin "won" by fabricating multiple attacks on Russian soil and then politically positioning himself as a strong-willed savior that would do anything to protect Russia. This narrative has since been warped and evolved into a general opposition to all globalist influence and the demonetization of liberal thought. To many Russians, it's all one big conspiracy between NATO to prevent Russia from modernizing, so they (in theory) are willing to accept almost any level of suffering if it means Russia is safe and threatening their perceived enemies.
When you actually see this brainwashed rhetoric in the wild, it sticks out like a sore thumb. They will always blame NATO for things they aren't involved in or situations where consequences are justified. They reach for nonsense strawmen like Jewish conspirators, underground CIA bunkers or homosexual subliminal messaging. Anything can be responsible for Russia's collapse, as long as it's not the Russians.
Based on the numerous atrocities committed by the Russian army on a massive scale, the narrative that absolves a portion of the Russian people and culture from responsibility, while placing the blame solely on their dictators, is no longer seen as credible...
Look - if you earnestly believe this, then you are racist. I harbor no love for the Russian Federation, and am not blind to "Russian lawlessness" that pervades in accounts of their governance. Neither of those are rational justifications to hate a person's race, any more than blaming Syrian citizens for the chemical attacks their government does. It exposes the lack of depth in your character and the immaturity of your judgement to unfairly slight so many people like that.
If every Russian person and every Russian culture is intrinsically evil, why would the world help defend Ukraine? Because the people aren't the problem, doofus. Either get off your high horse or tell us which country you come from so we can proportionally criticize your own "responsibility".
Your accusation of racism confuses criticizing immutable characteristics with analyzing societal choices. This is a fundamental logical error. :-)
If we discuss German society role in enabling the Third Reich, it is not racism against Germans. If we analyze Japanese society's role in WWII atrocities and unit 731, it is not racist against Japanese people.
These discussions led to positive cultural changes precisely because they focused on changeable behaviors, not ethnicity.
Your Syria comparison actually proves my point. Syrians demonstrated massive resistance to their government - millions chose exile, fought back, or actively protested. In contrast, we see 80%+ support for the war in Russia, limited internal resistance relative to population size, and widespread diaspora support.
The "racist" counterargument appears to be a rhetorical device on your part to shut down legitimate discussion of societal responsibility. It's particularly telling that instead of addressing the evidence (documented support for rapes, patterns of behavior, cultural acceptance of authoritarianism), you jump to accusations of racism.
Each society must face its choices. Germany did. Japan did. Many others have. This isn't about inherent characteristics - it's about changeable behaviors and cultural patterns that enable specific outcomes.
As a final example: In the USA a majority of the actual voters, just a few week ago, elected as president an individual convicted of rape in civil procedure, convicted of business fraud in a court by a jury of it's peers, that refused to rent to people of color, mocked a disabled reporter, simulated oral sex with a microphone in front of children, and tried 44 times to remove a law that protected health care patients with pre-existing conditions.
Do you say these millions do not have any collective responsibility on their decisions, on what was a free election? :-)
I mean at least Oligarchs do not pretend anymore! They directly elect themselves, how convenient for their class. But nah, I'm not one of those people, I wish the USA were to transition to Socialismm. That would probably usher a century of world peace, if not more.
All that beautiful farmland tied up to be ruined by war.
WTF is wrong with the Russian people?
One nut-ball gains power and the whole country falls down prostrate in obedience. Perhaps Lenin, Stalin, et al killed off all the independent thinkers and ended their bloodlines. Perhaps the Russian people are incapable of rising from serfdom.
What's the average IQ of Russians today? Are they smarter for going thru the war and communism or dumber? Does crisis (war, turmoil) kill off the dumb ones faster than idiotic ideologies (e.g., anti-semitism) kill off the smart ones?
A Russian joke illustrates this sad state of affairs in the fantastic land of Mussorgsky, Tchaikovsky, Stravinsky, Prokofiev, Mendeleev, Perelman, Korolev, Sakharov, Dostoevsky and Tolstoy...
A man finds an old oil lamp, rubs it, and out pops a genie. The genie offers to grant him one wish, with the caveat: whatever he wishes for, his neighbor will get double.
The man thinks for a moment, then says: "Take out one of my eyes."
I am not entirely sure what any of this has to do with the situation in Russia. Is IQ correlated with a desire for personal risk? Is independent thinking correlated with the collective action needed to over turn an entrenched power?
Putting aside the questionable simplification that IQ correlates with desirable political behavior, can you provide an example of when heavily oppressed people successfully overthrew their oppressors? If you examine history carefully, you will find that such cases are exceedingly rare.
As a Russian citizen, I'd like to mention two things. First, the Communist revolution disrupted the continuity of tradition in Russia. The knowledge, heritage and legacy that many people cherished was wiped out through killings and forced exile. Second, there is an esoteric aspect rooted deeply in Eastern Orthodoxy that cannot be easily explained.
Currently, many of the most intelligent Russian citizens are attempting to relinquish their Russian citizenship, seeing it as the best path forward for themselves as individuals. The opportunity to fight for a better collective future faded away long ago.
I empathize with the Russian people in the same way I empathize with Indians forced to get their news from Modi. They are good people, fed a falsified narrative that preys on their insecurities more than it helps them. Putin "won" by fabricating multiple attacks on Russian soil and then politically positioning himself as a strong-willed savior that would do anything to protect Russia. This narrative has since been warped and evolved into a general opposition to all globalist influence and the demonetization of liberal thought. To many Russians, it's all one big conspiracy between NATO to prevent Russia from modernizing, so they (in theory) are willing to accept almost any level of suffering if it means Russia is safe and threatening their perceived enemies.
When you actually see this brainwashed rhetoric in the wild, it sticks out like a sore thumb. They will always blame NATO for things they aren't involved in or situations where consequences are justified. They reach for nonsense strawmen like Jewish conspirators, underground CIA bunkers or homosexual subliminal messaging. Anything can be responsible for Russia's collapse, as long as it's not the Russians.
Based on the numerous atrocities committed by the Russian army on a massive scale, the narrative that absolves a portion of the Russian people and culture from responsibility, while placing the blame solely on their dictators, is no longer seen as credible...
Look - if you earnestly believe this, then you are racist. I harbor no love for the Russian Federation, and am not blind to "Russian lawlessness" that pervades in accounts of their governance. Neither of those are rational justifications to hate a person's race, any more than blaming Syrian citizens for the chemical attacks their government does. It exposes the lack of depth in your character and the immaturity of your judgement to unfairly slight so many people like that.
If every Russian person and every Russian culture is intrinsically evil, why would the world help defend Ukraine? Because the people aren't the problem, doofus. Either get off your high horse or tell us which country you come from so we can proportionally criticize your own "responsibility".
Your accusation of racism confuses criticizing immutable characteristics with analyzing societal choices. This is a fundamental logical error. :-)
If we discuss German society role in enabling the Third Reich, it is not racism against Germans. If we analyze Japanese society's role in WWII atrocities and unit 731, it is not racist against Japanese people.
These discussions led to positive cultural changes precisely because they focused on changeable behaviors, not ethnicity.
Your Syria comparison actually proves my point. Syrians demonstrated massive resistance to their government - millions chose exile, fought back, or actively protested. In contrast, we see 80%+ support for the war in Russia, limited internal resistance relative to population size, and widespread diaspora support.
The "racist" counterargument appears to be a rhetorical device on your part to shut down legitimate discussion of societal responsibility. It's particularly telling that instead of addressing the evidence (documented support for rapes, patterns of behavior, cultural acceptance of authoritarianism), you jump to accusations of racism.
Each society must face its choices. Germany did. Japan did. Many others have. This isn't about inherent characteristics - it's about changeable behaviors and cultural patterns that enable specific outcomes.
As a final example: In the USA a majority of the actual voters, just a few week ago, elected as president an individual convicted of rape in civil procedure, convicted of business fraud in a court by a jury of it's peers, that refused to rent to people of color, mocked a disabled reporter, simulated oral sex with a microphone in front of children, and tried 44 times to remove a law that protected health care patients with pre-existing conditions.
Do you say these millions do not have any collective responsibility on their decisions, on what was a free election? :-)
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The ICC is not recognized by the USA :-) I am just out in the Asteroid belt,waiting to take over after you Inners nuke each other out...
Europe won't have to defend itself if it ceases its strategic encerclement on Russia.
Why as a Turkey, are you voting for Christmas?
You will find very funny I don't believe in "voting", at least not in a liberal democracy.
A government of high status males perhaps? - https://www.yahoo.com/news/elon-musk-suggests-support-replac...
I mean at least Oligarchs do not pretend anymore! They directly elect themselves, how convenient for their class. But nah, I'm not one of those people, I wish the USA were to transition to Socialismm. That would probably usher a century of world peace, if not more.