this post was submitted on 15 Jan 2026
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Ye Power Trippin' Bastards
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This is a community in the spirit of "Am I The Asshole" where people can post their own bans from lemmy or reddit or whatever and get some feedback from others whether the ban was justified or not.
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YDI. Iran is being threatened with imperial violence more than ever. Now is not the time to be promoting imperial propaganda. Nobody cares about your "but akshualllyyy". Save it for the libs who completely support zionism, colonialism, etc. If the imperial "revolution" succeeds, the leftist groups that you supposedly support will be the first to be attacked.
Show me where I "promot[ed] imperial propaganda". Did you read the article which clearly condemns the imperialist actors?
Edit: also, the comm actually doesn't have any rules and the instance rules shouldn't apply, either, afaik.
You promote imperial propaganda by giving voice to opposition one week before a US invasion of a country. The only reason why you happen to care about Iranian protestors is because of the constant western-manufactured atrocity propaganda, which doesn't need to be fake to serve its purpose of defeatism and of making opposition to armed invasion of Iran less unpalatable among progressives. It's the same tactic of western media overfocusing on Hamas violence in Palestine during a period of literal genocide by Israel.
What? How is citing lefitist protestors "imperialist propaganda"? Spare me your campist drivel.
That's a lot of assumptions you make about strangers on the internet, homie.
You ignored the second half of my comment, could you respond to that part? I'm not questioning that you have good intentions, I know you do, that's not my point. I just want you to understand that directing the conversation towards where you're directing it right before a military attack on Iran creates an easier atmosphere for the Empire to defend its invasion. It's almost the definition of atrocity propaganda:
"Atrocity propaganda is the spreading of information about the crimes committed by an enemy, which can be factual, but often includes or features deliberate fabrications or exaggerations. This can involve photographs, videos, illustrations, interviews, and other forms of information presentation or reporting".
With good intentions, undoubtedly, you're presenting information on the repression of progressives in Iran, which is a bad thing which is happening, but doing so right before the invasion amounts to atrocity propaganda by definition.
How does that apply to the crimethinc article?
Edit:
So, tell me if I got that right: You maynever criticize an enemy government of the US, or you'd be spreading "imperialist propaganda". No matter how valid the criticism is. Otherwise, you're enabling the US to invade.
... I didn't know the pentagon listened to randos on lemmy. /s
The word "never" is the key point here. You may very well criticize the Iranian government and defend the progressives in the country, but I would bet 100€ that if we go 1 year back on any of your social media, you have never made this criticism before. Why now particularly, during the military buildup by the US before the imminent attack on Iran? Why specifically Iran too? Clue: it's because the imperial propaganda apparatus has decided that discussing the repression in Iran right now is the agenda, as part of a larger atrocity propaganda campaign.
You'd lose that bet. as I said: that's a bunch of assumptions you just *make about strangers on the internet.
Because there are protests in Iran right now. Read the fucking article, if you want to know "why now". It wasn't because I thought "hmm, the US could use another invasion right now.
Yeah, it's definetly not because of the protests in Iran. Those are completely not happening. /s
You linked a wikipedia article, did you write it yourself?
And why exactly are those protests happening now, I wonder? Maybe because the US+EU imposed a sanction regime on Iran that has destroyed the national currency's exchange value and massively impoverished the vast majority of the population? I'm sure that's also coincidental and has nothing to do with attempts at regime change in the country. It's not like the US has ever explicitly said that it applies economic sanctions to create hunger, desperation and overthrow of governments. Oh, wait...
You said that now is the first time I'd be interested in iranian protests. The article describes a time when I showed solidarity for iranian protest movements before.
Yes. The article mentions (and condemns) this, as well. Read the fucking article, you troll.
I talked about your social media activity, not about you thinking something to yourself.
That's irrelevant to my point. "Nuanced criticism" of the Iranian government the week before it's invaded is bad strategy for socialists in the west, there's already plenty of criticism in all media due to the anti-Iranian government atrocity propaganda. The entire thing circles down to you having good intentions by posting about progressives in Iran being repressed, but doing so during a period of extreme duress in the country which has been caused by the US+EU governments sanctions, and at a time when the country is about to be invaded by the US.
Your intentions are noble and commendable, and I respect them, but you're unintentionally carrying water for the US invasion by replicating atrocity propaganda at this particular moment.
I'm trying to be polite here and have a conversation, why are you unwilling to listen and instead engage in such behavior?
No, you're not. You're needlessly contrarian and an annoying campist.
Well, I'm sorry you can't be bothered to have a conversation, I don't think I've been disrespectful to you.
You've inserted yourself into a discussion that's 2.5 weeks old to tell meh that I'm "spreading imperialist propaganda" when I was complaining about an unjust and arbitrary ban for sharing an article with a leftist analysis about the protests in Iran, which you refuse to read.
Then, you're needlessly contrarian, making bold claims that I've never before supported Iranian protests and implicitly demanding useless proof.
Read the fucking article, before you make claims about it, you fucking campist troll.
Am I not allowed to discuss a comment I saw browsing a community?
Yes, I'm telling you that you're spreading imperialist propaganda, but after browsing through your profile and seeing that you're a German "Anarchist", I've decided to give up. Good luck defending Israel's right to exist or something, enjoy the upcoming compulsory military conscription in your country! Rosa Luxembourg and Liebknecht would be proud /s
Your country will not have a meaningful anticapitalist movement until you start treating the Soviet Union as the heroes who saved your asses from Nazism.
How would you know? You haven't read what I shared.
So much for "trying to have a polite conversation".
You just want to project whatever weird excuse to make you feel superior to me. First it was by claiming that something I posted was propaganda (without reading it). Now it's assuming my political view on European imperialism and genocide, basedon where I happen to live.
Wow, what a very materialist analysis from you. I've accepted daddy Stalin as my personal savior. /s
God, you fucking ML cultists are aggravating. 🙄
I dropped the politeness when you started insulting me :) enjoy your compulsory recruitment! Go kill some Ruzzianz, buddy!
So, what exactly makes you think that I'm pro Israeli genocide or pro war with Russia, if not your rampant urge to put strangers into boxes to satisfy your hate-boner?
Even after finding out that I consider myself an anarchist (who are famous for being war-mongers and genocide-lovers /s).
The fact that you're unwilling to maintain a normal conversation on why you're engaging in US-aligned atrocity propaganda.
So no reason at all, since (as I've pointed out several times now) you don't know what the article I shared actually contains.
I'm very willing to have a normal converation, given that the other person isn't a bad-faith troll.
Also: what does that have anything to do with being German? I thought there was a reason why you're treating me like Friedrich Fudking Merz.
Your original banned comment includes the words: "I'd like to point out that there is indeed quite massive repression going on against protestors in Iran". You're unwilling to accept that this IS, by definition, atrocity propaganda, and it means you're carrying water for the US, however good your intentions are. I tried to discuss this politely with you but you started swearing at me. That's my reason, you got defensive and started insulting me when I started showing the flaws of your political stance.
So, are you claiming that there weren't protests going on and those weren't answered with massive repression? Were's the exaggeration? Where's the fabrication? The original post was stating that everything's fine in Iran, while massive protests were going on (which you acknowledged yourself)
And why are you afraid to read the article if it's not because you're not interested in engaging in anything that contradicts your already made-up mind?
I started insulting you, because you were trolling (and frankly - never stopped). Tellme where you are from so that I can insult you for things out of your control.
Those protests were going on, and massive repression has occurred. Atrocity propaganda can be (and is in fact most effective when it is) real. I didn't claim you lied, I didn't claim the article was false. You misunderstand that the word "propaganda" necessarily means that it's false, it doesn't necessarily imply falseness. Atrocity propaganda simply means you're focusing part of the discourse on crimes of the opposing side, and you're actively engaging this. You literally made it a point to write a comment pointing out to the repression in a post about Iran that wasn't discussing this: you CHOSE to bring it up and deviate the conversation of the post towards crimes of the Iranian government. This is a textbook example of atrocity propaganda.
Again: I don't doubt that you're doing this coming from a good place and with the good intention of supporting progressive comrades in Iran. I'm just reminding you that doing this during an ongoing military buildup against Iran in the context of protests generated by western sanctions killing Iranians through poverty IS atrocity propaganda.
You're in no position to criticize my post if you didn't engage with it's content, i.e. the article. You continue to refuse reading it and throw around baseless campist accusations, instead (e.g. that this was the first time I'd be in open solidarity with leftist protestors in Iran). Instead of listening to leftists in Iran, you accuse anyone who dares to mention that Iran isn't an egalitarian paradise as an Israeli asset.
You can tell yourself whatever you want: If you were seriously trying to engage in a good-faith argument, you did a horrible job at doing so.
stop acting as if you're reasonable, if you can't even read a fucking article by leftists, just because they don't pass your socialist™️ purity test.
EDIT:
Look, it's even talking about the likes of you.
While this has been an interesting read, I think it's probably time to call it quits on the slap fighting.
SYBAU 👎
Typical technocrit, always trying to stir the pot. Yawwwwwwn.