No yeah I didn’t mean to imply that this is something that is particular to Russia, or any other entity for that matter. I think the functions and methods must be analyzed independently of who they concern on either side of the equation

Indeed, different approaches lead to different conclusions. Which isn’t to say either or is exclusively valid. As I always like to say - two things can true at the same time.

Also, I get what you’re saying and didn’t mean to imply you were making a normative statement. I also didn’t mean to imply that the aspect of understanding is not important. It’s fundamental, including from a practical standpoint. In fact, in the past I used to be so much into figuring out the why that I ended up underestimating the what . Then I noticed that different whys can lead to the same or very similar whats, regardless of the content of the whys and I thought that was very interesting. And yet, trying to seperate them beyond the conceptual has tunred out to be nigh impossible.

Anyway, confusing internal monologue over.

Edit: Basically, I am sorta halfway retracting the “distinction without a difference” and going with the always safe “it’s complicated”

Thing is, that’s a distinction without a difference, at least in the eyes of analysts in the IC, the people charged with making a formal assessment. From that perspective, what you do is more important than why you do it because the effects aland the fallout are all the same.

… so he is an asset?

Stop projecting and it’ll be fine

Sounds smart and reasonable. Worked out great last time.

For anyone wondering how bad brain rot can get, even here on Lemmy.

This. This is how bad it can get

The passive aggresive small d**k energy this person is showcasing is part and parcel of the normalization of authoritarianism and idiocracy in modern times. This is the type of acute mental darkness that awaits all of us if we don’t resist and organize against fascism and the rise of Big Stupid.

Tell me you have no expertise in political science without telling me you have no expertise in political science

Me reminding you that a hypothesis needs to be disprovable through observation in order to be valid and that the burden of proof is with the one making the claim, not the one trying to disprove it, is the exact opposite of arguing in bad faith.

Exactly! You can’t just assume that the situation in Ukraine is equivalent to the genocide in former Yugoslavia. As with any claim originating from an authroitarian regime, it must be evaluated critically.

Have a nice day.

Care to explain where I did that? How is the pro-NATO narrative not by an authoritarian regime?

Yep, let me refreshen your memory. You equated NATO’s justification (stopping a genocide) to Russia’s justification for a full scale invasion of Ukraine and are acting (or pretending) like we don’t have an abundance of information showing otherwise. This is called a false equivalency.

Next you’re gonna ask me how we know they’re not equivalent. And at some point down the line, you’re gonna ask how we know that 2 + 2 = 4. Ask me how I know.

You can call yourself a potato for all I care. It matters not what you call yourself. I judge you based on your claims and actions, not your self-reported internal monologue or the way you want others to see you.

With that out of the way, why don’t follow your own suggestion and scram.

Have a nice day tho

Indeed, giving up intellectual responsibility and promoting the propaganda of authroritarian regimes (I couldn’t care less which ones you fancy in particular) should be named and shamed and ridiculed within the confines of the law.

Feel free to engage or disengage in whichver which way you want friend, couldn’t care less, my messages are not directed at you

You don’t need to buy anything, you just need information literacy and critical thinking. Which is not to say you shouldn’t be critical of US foreign policy - god knows there’s lots to criticize. But comparing the genocide in Yugoslavia to the War in Ukraine is a clear sign of acute mental darkness or you intentionally amplifying authoritarian propaganda.

You’re a loser either way because of your utter failure to take intellectual responsibility. You might be just one in a sea of millions of ignoramuses but that’s not excuse

Indeed, it’s not something that can be disproven, as in it’s nonsense that shouldn’t be entertained in rational discourse.

“This imaginary thing created this other imaginary thing”

This is what this argument boils down to. It isnindeed difficult to believe how little ideational progress we’ve made since the dawn of “man in the sky”.

Pity for you and your poor soul

Thank you - well explained.

It’s also interesting to think of the stocks that the various oligarchs and politicians control or own as a backdoor for institutional capture. You want Trump on your side and his administration making decisions that benefit you and your companies? Easy - just buy some of his BS stock and use it as leverage. You won’t even have to push it - he’ll do what you want because that’s how his underdeveloped brain perceives existence - as a series of quid pro quo agreements.

Of course, it’s not just stocks. He’s created so many other avenues to bribe him. It’s bonkers.

Huh? You mean Catalonia in 1936-1937?

Fan of Chomsky I presume?

I mean, let’s be real.

It’s gonna get a whole lot worse.