• Squizzy@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    They have strengthened their ability to pull from prisons too which opens up hundreds of thousands of more bodies for the front lines.

    The west needs to double down and double down again in support of Ukraine.

      • zalgotext@sh.itjust.works
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        1 year ago

        Not… really. The cost of pulling out of Ukraine isn’t just a silly little failed investment or something, it means Russia gains a stronger foothold into Europe

      • crackajack@reddthat.com
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        1 year ago

        As opposed to letting an authoritarian state gain more power and influence? Methinks people in other parts of the world must have thought it is a sunk cost fallacy as well to support Britain when they were left standing alone when France fell to the Nazis. But I have to admit as to why some would be reluctant to provide more support for Ukraine considering much of the world is experiencing cost of living crisis. Although many countries, including the US, at the start of World War II were just reeling from the Great Depression either and yet still provided support for Britain.

        Ukraine today and Britain then received billions of dollars of support, which is a lot for the common folks, but the truth is that they’re chump change relative to entire budget of the US government back then and now. Though again, I recognise that these are chump change in billions of dollars could make a massive difference to the lives of people on the domestic front. However, I would like to remind others that a lot more billions of dollars will be lost if Russia is allowed to win and if the Nazis back then had won. The Russian invasion of Ukraine is a direct violation of UN Charter to respect national sovereignty and borders. What we have built in the past 70 years or so to maintain peace will be for nothing and we’d be back to the more Wild West-style international relations that led to the Second World War. Letting Russia could collapse the UN and lead to World War III.

        • drathvedro@lemm.ee
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          1 year ago

          …letting an authoritarian state gain more power and influence?..

          That’s one weird argument. Are you implying that meddling with other state’s affairs is justified if it’s to keep it from gaining power and influence?

          • ammonium@lemmy.world
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            1 year ago

            That’s one weird argument. Are you implying morality stops at borders?

            And it’s not even meddling, they are asking for help.

            • drathvedro@lemm.ee
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              1 year ago

              Are you implying morality stops at borders?

              Kind of, yeah. A moral cause in one country can be an evil wrongdoing in other. Case in point - Al-Qaeda was formed because US troops were deployed in some country in the middle east to defend someone.

              And it’s not even meddling, they are asking for help.

              I’m okay with helping Ukraine. I’m not okay if it’s helping only to fuck with Russia.

              • ammonium@lemmy.world
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                1 year ago

                A moral cause in one country can be an evil wrongdoing in other. Case in point - Al-Qaeda was formed because US troops were deployed in some country in the middle east to defend someone.

                Uhm, where did you get that from?

                Anyway, I get your point, but your example only shows that morality doesn’t really stop at borders for most people.

                I’m okay with helping Ukraine. I’m not okay if it’s helping only to fuck with Russia.

                If it’s to stop an authoritarian state from taking over a democratic state it’s good for me. If it’s because of other less ulterior motives (and let’s not kid ourselves, it’s at least partly because of that), I don’t mind. Is it bad when a doctor only saves lives because it pays well?

                • drathvedro@lemm.ee
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                  1 year ago

                  Uhm, where did you get that from?

                  Actually, I messed up. I thought al-Quaeda was created in response to US’s invasion of Iraq, but it was actually formed a couple years earlier in response to Soviet-Afghan war. Still, the point stands as the guys got very offended by western forces presence on what they considered holy land

                  Is it bad when a doctor only saves lives because it pays well?

                  It would be very bad if the doctor is some kind of pervert who is only treating patients as a cover up for his obsession

                  Anyway, I get your point, but your example only shows that morality doesn’t really stop at borders for most people.

                  The point is, morality doesn’t stop, but can be different across (abeit, blurry) cultural, religious, political or ideological lines. The US and allies cross a little more of those than Russia in this conflict, but that’s a topic I’d rather not dive into. What I’m arguing here is against Putin’s rhetoric which tells that “The only thing the collective west wants is to destroy Russia”, so…

                  let’s not kid ourselves, it’s at least partly because of that

                  I’d advise at least pretending that it’s not and it’s just being “the good guys”. Fuckers like RT, Z-bots and other scum often take such comments and blow them into loudhailers to rally the support for the war. Trust me, “these guys just want to fuck you over” is quite a convincing argument. Besides, there’s plenty of other reasons to support Ukraine

                  • crackajack@reddthat.com
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                    1 year ago

                    Trust me, “these guys just want to fuck you over” is quite a convincing argument. Besides, there’s plenty of other reasons to support Ukraine

                    Because Russians are highly nationalistic and have an exceptional sense of…exceptionalism. They have a siege mentality that any outsiders are out to get them (they have been invaded multiple times after all), and that a firm hand ruling them is the only one who could save them from external threats. This leads to the ruling class by easily manipulating the public to support them by stoking nationalism. This stoking of nationalism leads to them craving to carve their own sphere of influence, both avoiding and scapegoating the West.

                    There are couple of comprehensive and well detailed video explanation of the Russian mindset, which I think is a blindspot for Westerners in understanding their worldview.

                    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f8ZqBLcIvw0

                    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdFtqa54TuM

                    To summarise the videos in two words, basically say the Russians believe their country is “eternal” and “innocent”. This idea stems all the way back from the 19th century with many prominent Russians holding the belief including Leo Tolstoy. This in turn influenced the post-Soviet Russian mindset that is fascistic. Many people cite Dugin as being Putin’s influence, as a matter of fact, it was Ivan Ilyich. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivan_Ilyin?wprov=sfla1

          • crackajack@reddthat.com
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            1 year ago

            That’s one weird argument to say that supporting a defender, unprovoked, from an aggressor is “meddling”. It’s meddling for your side, amirite?

            • drathvedro@lemm.ee
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              1 year ago

              The reason I’m said this because it sounds like “preventing Russia from prospering is a good cause”, as if we’re still at cold war or something. Probably not what you’ve meant, just pointing at possible confusion in interpretation. Helping a little guy, sure, but helping only to fuck the big guy is what Putin was rambling about in his justifications about war.

              • crackajack@reddthat.com
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                1 year ago

                Lol, nowhere between the lines does my comment alludes to “preventing Russia to prosper”. Russia is already prosperous if they want to without having to invade Ukraine. Corruption prevents them from being so.

        • stella@lemm.ee
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          1 year ago

          You don’t know what the sunk cost fallacy is.

          You seem to have this idea that Ukraine can win the war if the US gives enough support.

          Do you think it’s possible for Ukraine to lose even if they got all the information and equipment the US was able to give?

          • crackajack@reddthat.com
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            1 year ago

            Did people back then think Britain would lose to Nazis?

            Well, Ukraine proved more than capable and Russia proved to be less so despite the huge manpower and military advantages. Even if Russia win, it will be a Pyrrhic one as they already have significantly reduced international image and have become reliant on China to keep them going due to sanctions. After the war, Russia might even be beholden to China. Future generations of Russians will be paying for the cost of war, both financially and on personal level, just as now the Russians have paid then and still today for the cost of Afghan war in the 1970s. The Russian/Soviet intervention in Afghanistan contributed to the collapse of the Soviet Union, and arguably life in the Soviet Union might even be better than the current kleptocratic regime of Putin. More people have emigrated post-Soviet Russia than they did during the Soviet Union. As a consequence of this, even before the invasion of Ukraine, Russia is facing a demographic crisis. Russia have had to mobilise just for the current war, taking people away from work. Many Russian factories have also complained of staff shortages. Hundreds of thousands of Russians fled the draft. And more importantly, more Russians died in the war in Ukraine than during the Afghan war. So, even if Russia win, or get some concessions, or the war led to a stalemate they have already lost a great deal too. After the war, Russia will be facing an economic hardship from financial and human cost. Somehow, you did not think that sunk cost fallacy applies to Russia too.