this post was submitted on 23 Sep 2023
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I think a material difference between Iraq (v2 anyway) and Ukraine is that they can keep doing the "well Russia was the aggressor" thing indefinitely even if the reality is more complicated.

also yes obviously some libs are still stubborn about Iraq, the worst ones, but for the most part its generally agreed that the Iraq War was a bad thing.

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[–] RION@hexbear.net 75 points 2 years ago (5 children)

Key difference: there's no US boots on the ground in Ukraine. Like with Vietnam, a lot of the Iraq rhetoric is centered on the american soldiers who were killed and maimed. Notice how US/NATO intervention in Libya and Kosovo, which was accomplished primarily through air power and without significant losses, has not had any critical reexamination—I would think the lack of american corpses has a good deal to do with that

disclaimer: this is not financial advice, i am just a small worm blob-no-thoughts

[–] duderium@hexbear.net 40 points 2 years ago

At first I thought that this was the one comment here I agreed with the most, and I might still think that, but the difference is that Libya/Kosovo were "over" much faster than Ukraine. The boogeymen were quickly taken out, while Russia just refuses to collapse, at least so far.

In my extremely limited experience, outside of the internet, libs don't really care about Ukraine anymore and won't push back if you criticize Biden giving tens of billions of dollars to Nazis. This in itself may be kind of a re-examination on their part? They also feel the same way about covid, though. It just doesn't matter at all to them, even though it's actually still extremely important (as is Ukraine). I do have to kind of wonder what they care about at the moment? They were so happy when Biden won the election, but I think most of us strongly suspected that this was going to be as good as it got for them for quite some time. Who knows, it might even be their last major victory.

[–] Awoo@hexbear.net 17 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Like with Vietnam, a lot of the Iraq rhetoric is centered on the american soldiers who were killed and maimed.

Even when they oppose war, it's backed by nationalist reasons.

[–] readmore@hexbear.net 10 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

It's the same with the "forgotten war" (Korea). The tragedy there isn't the slaughter in Korea but the fact that US vets don't get the same societal admiration that WW2 or Vietnam vets do 😢 .

[–] WhatDoYouMeanPodcast@hexbear.net 10 points 2 years ago (1 children)

i am just a small worm

Does your SO still love you?

[–] RION@hexbear.net 9 points 2 years ago

I'll let you know when she exists :')

[–] ProxyTheAwesome@hexbear.net 8 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (1 children)

There’s definitely US boots on the ground, just like there are in Syria, Yemen, Kenya, Pakistan and all the other nations we don’t officially invade. There are literally US soldiers, spec ops and bases and officers stationed there coordinating raids, launching drones, doing spec ops.

Americans think there is this hard solid line between invasion with boots and other activities, but in reality there’s no discrete border it just slowly becomes a full invasion

[–] ZapataCadabra@hexbear.net 3 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Advisors and intelligence guys are not the same as the US occupying in force.

[–] ProxyTheAwesome@hexbear.net 7 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

It's a gradient and blurred line that further blurs over time as "intelligence guys" start doing special operations and assassinations of political and military targets, and the "advisors" are launching recon drones and coordinating the Ukrainian military. Oh, not to mention all the "recently retired" military "mercenaries" driving the tanks.

Eventually US soldiers do occupy held positions as well, as seen in Syria where there are thousands of literal US troops occupying the country yet almost every American would say we never invaded Syria if you ask them. Huh weird, if you never invaded how did thousands of your troops set up bases in a nation you were not invited into? If you never invaded, why are you launching cruise missiles and drone strikes into Syrian territory? This American fiction about "boots on the ground" is a Liberal delusion to assuage the cognitive dissonance they have about being a bloodthirsty world-conquering military empire.

Then after the fact, if Liberals ever acknowledge their complicity in an invasion, it's framed as "the US got pulled, unwilling, into a quagmire" as if that wasn't the full intention the entire time and they didn't get pulled but were pushed in by the US government and MIC - first as advisors, then as intel guys, then as mercenaries, then the drone strikes as "anti-terrorism" operations, then as "peace-keepers" in a coalition force. It's a smooth gradient, there is no wall.

[–] nilloc@discuss.tchncs.de 3 points 2 years ago (19 children)

I and a lot of others protested the Iraq invasion before it took place, and predicted the somewhat obvious quagmire that resulted. I would have protested the Russian invasion as well if I were a Russian citizen and if it would have been safe enough to do so (Putin’s dictatorship makes that purely hypothetical though).

[–] duderium@hexbear.net 47 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Did you also protest the NATO coup in Ukraine in 2014?

[–] nilloc@discuss.tchncs.de 2 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (12 children)

I think we may disagree on the origins of the Maidan Protests, the Crimea annexation, and at this point probably even the end of WW2 and Soviet Union.

Edit: aw shit, I just realized where I am.

[–] flan@hexbear.net 40 points 2 years ago

youre on the history channel motherfucker

[–] FrogFractions@hexbear.net 39 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (1 children)

Did you protest arming Nazi militias like Azov that posted videos of themselves crucifying people and burning them alive or giving them electric shocks while making them dig a grave?

[–] TheLepidopterists@hexbear.net 35 points 2 years ago (2 children)

That's a lot of words for "no."

Just say you supported the Maidan coup.

[–] doublepepperoni@hexbear.net 22 points 2 years ago

Most Westerners who watched the news did shrug-outta-hecks

At the time my impression was "brave Ukrainian students ousting their corrupt Russian minion of a president so they can join the EU and become a proper European country instead of a depressing Soviet hellhole"

That's still the level most people are operating on

[–] autismdragon@hexbear.net 14 points 2 years ago (1 children)

I think a lot of people naivly-as-opposed-to-maliciously believe what doublepepperoni said.

[–] doublepepperoni@hexbear.net 7 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (1 children)

I think people on Hexbear often forget how different the world looks to the average person in the West

[–] TheLepidopterists@hexbear.net 3 points 2 years ago

I mean, I exist in the West, I'm well aware of how bad the typical person's politics regarding foreign countries are.

[–] TheCaconym@hexbear.net 31 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Edit: aw shit, I just realized where I am.

sicko-hexbear

[–] RollaD20@hexbear.net 30 points 2 years ago

even the end of WW2 and the Soviet Union

Average Operation Unthinkable supporter

[–] duderium@hexbear.net 28 points 2 years ago

One of us lives on Earth, the other lives on Planet CIA.

[–] immuredanchorite@hexbear.net 28 points 2 years ago (1 children)

even the end of WW2 and Soviet Union.

ain’t that some shit. please enlighten us all what you meant by this? Do you think the wrong side won the war? Are you saying you think the world would have been a better place if Nazi Germany hadn’t been defeated by the Soviet Union? We are all ears.

[–] autismdragon@hexbear.net 14 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

Based on their other opinions, I dont think they would (openly) go that far which is why I'm kind of baffled by the statement and want to know what the hell they DID mean. Like maybe they dont think the USSR won the war alone. Or they believe Double Genocide Theory? Idk.

ETA: Oh maybe its that they think Operation Unthinkable was a good idea like another poster suggested.

[–] autismdragon@hexbear.net 25 points 2 years ago (1 children)

probably even the end of WW2 and Soviet Union.

?????????????

[–] AOCapitulator@hexbear.net 14 points 2 years ago

The nazis were talked into defeat, it was the power of love obviously

[–] SkingradGuard@hexbear.net 20 points 2 years ago

Edit: aw shit, I just realized where I am.

What do you mean by this?

[–] Farman@hexbear.net 19 points 2 years ago
[–] GarbageShoot@hexbear.net 17 points 2 years ago (2 children)
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[–] readmore@hexbear.net 16 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (5 children)

Answer all the questions, dipshit.

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[–] emizeko@hexbear.net 18 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

remember after Ferguson when Putin had the US police murder several BLM leaders in separate incidents and then light their cars on fire?

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