Is it just me, or I thought it’s a general consensus long ago that voters have the memory of a goldfish? Why would forgetting the worst of the Trump presidency be any different? Even people have somehow rehabilitated George W. Bush in spite of deliberate lying by his administration, and dragging the United States into a needless conflict for 23 years that cost $1 trillion.
Not to justify any bigotry, but the key point here is whether or not it’s systemic, which the UN reported on one of the links I presented. The UN report stated there are prejudices on individual basis, which they do not nor anyone should condone, but there is no Ukrainian state-sponsored discrimination on Russian-speakers.
You’re just really trying to shoe-horn obvious Kremlin propaganda.
The economic and political infrastructures between Russia and Central Asian states are already well established thanks to history, which makes both parties still rely on each other. But the connection between Central Asia and China and India is not well established, which makes more immediate realignment difficult for Central Asians. The Belt and Road Initiative is still in its infancy in Central Asia. But even then, many analysts say the BRI infrastructures in Central Asia has not been profitable for China. Many say the real purpose of BRI in Asia is to provide back up trading route for China, if South China Sea ever becomes a war zone too dangerous for shipment towards the country.
I have said this before, the issue of political and economic alignment among Ukrainians, and the separatist conflict on Eastern Ukraine is an internal one. And there is no evidence of persecution of Russia-speakers. Much of the separatist sentiment had been stoked, more than likely by Kremlin. And Zelensky is a Russian-speaking Ukrainian Jew; meanwhile the Ukrainian defense chief, Oleksandr Syrsky, is a Russian himself who have come to call Ukraine his home. Therefore, it doesn’t make sense to accuse Ukraine as Nazis or Russophobe.
With all that said, the supposed systemic persecution of Russian-speakers is made up, and the divide between Russian and Ukrainian-speakers on whether to align with the West or Russia is internal issue that does not justify invading another sovereign country. I always make the analogy that it is like the Republic of Ireland invading Northern Ireland, which the latter is legally part of UK, after making the justification to defend Catholics (and the Irish government did draw up a plan for an invasion but they did not go ahead because they know it’s illegal). Or Turkey invading the entirety of Cyprus after already occupying the northern part. Invading another country which everyone knows are flimsy pretexts is illegal.
Just like any countries that put their economies on war footing, it is creating a bubble that would eventually burst. The Russian economy is booming because of increased government spending. But how long will it last especially with Russia being heavily sanctioned than before, and will continue to do so even if Russia wins? Even as we speak, 98% of Chinese banks refuse to lend to Russia since Chinese banks are more afraid from secondary sanctions by the more lucrative market of the United States.
Yup. I argued to a Russian troll before that the “similar culture” is not good reason to violate national sovereignty. Like, UK could not forcefully retake New York simply because New York once belonged to the UK and both speak English. The troll responded that if the people want to join another richer country, then just let that happen. Which is a farcical argument, even for a Russian soaked in Putin’s propaganda, that the US is ten times richer than the UK, and of course New York would wish to remain with the former, if economy is the arbitrator on where one should side with. It did not also occur to the troll that he/she should apply the same logic to Ukraine as to why they want to align with the EU/West. Because the West the way richer and even ordinary Russians know it.
Sorry Vlady, the West could afford a bigger wedding ring.
Only if you’re a landlocked Central Asian country with no other avenues for more trading opportunities with the wider world.
Attacking Ukraine to prevent them joining NATO would have worked had Ukrainians been as weak as Putin thought. But nope, what does Putin expect from a group of people, whom his country had subjected to Holodomor before? Somehow happily rejoin Russia for another round of persecution? That’s like UK invading Ireland again, and expecting Ireland to give up and happily rejoin the UK despite the previous 800 years of atrocities.
Putin had also thought the Ukrainian military are still the same Ukrainian forces who were doing badly in 2015. But the fact that Ukraine was on the verge of defeating separatists in Luhansk and Donbas, before the Russian invasion of Ukraine, would have hinted to him that the UFA have matured. Former Ukrainian defense chief, Valerii Zaluzhny, attributed the eight years of fighting in Eastern Ukraine for allowing UFA to gain valuable combat experience that has been indispensable in the current war. In hindsight, the Russian meddling in Eastern Ukraine only helped Ukraine to gain more experience! Thank you Putin!
This reminds me of the current French politics. After the previous legislative elections were won by the left, neoliberal president Macron nonetheless appointed a conservative as his prime minister.
At the end of the day, it’s all about the bottomline.
Too many are accusing them already. Where there is smoke, there is fire.
Oh man. The OG Rainbow Six was the most complex game I ever played as a child! Fun times repeating the first mission multiple times after all my agents or the hostages you’re meant to rescue keep getting killed.
While my parents aren’t bad, they’re just products of their environment that doesn’t teach or encourage critical thinking and being honest to one’s self. They are also bad with communication. They don’t have an iota of self-reflection or even if they do, they do not even attempt to change. But even if they change, it’s too late. My parents said and taught me a lot of things when I was growing up, which in hindsight doesn’t make sense and negatively affected my formative years.
My parents said they’ll be happy to take care of any of my future children; but I gave a disgusted no face and I reckon my parents did not even get the hint.
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In fairness, it isn’t like banning one social media website (and a purveyor of misinformation and disinformation at that) will have either national security concern or threatening fundamental freedoms in Brazil. It could be why Brazil had been so bold.
I grew up with religious parents. Looking back, they restricted me from doing things, even innocuous, without explicitly stating we to why. But I know that it’s because they are afraid I “might get ideas”. Fortunately, I have been to good schools and got taught about basic sex education. Ironically, my parents sending me to good school taught me better than being “taught” by my parents who don’t want me to “get bad ideas”.
I didn’t even know Mastodon has an exclusive club streak lol.
If she gets a moderate Republican (Liz Cheney for example) then it’s not an issue.
Franklin Roosevelt appointed a Republican as secretary of navy. Granted, back then the Democrat/Republican divide wasn’t as polarised as today. But if Harris could appoint a moderate Republican and willing to work with Democrats, then that just might work and soothe the current political polarisation.
Having spent my childhood in Asia, child abuse is more or less normalised there. The social expectation is that adults are infallible authority figures and children are meant to be obedient at all times (i.e. absolutely quiet).
I also wonder if 20th century social and political turmoil caused many Asian parents to have anger issues and in turn, cause generational trauma. One reason I dislike the idea that Boomers were handed everything to them on a silver platter is because it neglects the fact that much of the world were former colonies. And the post-colonial status of many countries had been very rough-- experiencing inter-ethnic and international wars, proxy wars (Vietnam War and Soviet-Afghan War comes to mind) and corrupt dictatorships that do not invest well in their people causing poverty.
These turmoils and trauma caused many unresolved psychological issues. The victims of these strifes then become parents, who take out their issues to their children. And in turn, these children become parents who believe that hitting their own children constitutes as good parenting, because that was how they were raised.
We’re not in 1950s American and pretty sure there isn’t one. And since you insist there is one at present and brought it up, you should present it. The burden of proof is on you.