3 ms·

> their state went full totalitarian in the last couple weeks I’m sorry but a state does not go full totalitarian in a week. Putin has been in control for 20 y

> their state went full totalitarian in the last couple weeks I’m sorry but a state does not go full totalitarian in a week. Putin has been in control for 20 years. This, was predictable and many had been predicting it for a long time. What happened over the last couple weeks is that “authoritarianism” has lost its sheen. Russian-style strongman authoritarianism has bee a twinkle in the eye of a certain strain of American and Western politician for some years now (I’m looking at you Peter “Democracy and freedom are incompatible” Thiel and Fox News), and people who previously called Putin a strong and capable leader are now either having to get on board with a genocidal war, or eat crow. A lot of people (on this site and elsewhere) are still even pushing the lines coming straight out of the kremlin (but biolabs! But nato aggression! Think of the poor oligarchs’ seized yachts! Can we really call the invasion and slaughter of Ukrainian people and cultural identity a a genocide?). It’s really quite sad how self proclaimed free thinkers on this site so obviously push the Russian propaganda being circulated in their conservative newsfeeds. These talking points go from the Kremlin, to Fox News, then back to Russia to be aired on RT, and at some point they make a stop here on HN by avid “free thinking“ consumers of this media.

baq 5y ago
you're contradicting yourself here: > I’m sorry but a state does not go full totalitarian in a week. Putin has been in control for 20 years. the point is that it has happened suddenly in the past couple of weeks; let arrests of top FSB officials speak for it. > This, was predictable and many had been predicting it for a long time. oh that is absolutely true. every child in eastern europe knows this. the point is, when it happens matters - and it just has.
- ModernMech 5y ago
  > the point is that it has happened suddenly My point is that invasions don’t happen suddenly. Even if the spark happened in the last few weeks, the preconditions to make this war possible had been laid for years. People pretending that they never saw this coming are the very same who have been cheering Putin and Russia on for years.
  - baq 5y ago
    oh, there must've been a misunderstanding. yes, this particular invasion has been under preparation for at least months if not years; i'm talking about the country going full totalitarian oppressive basically overnight with a few new hastily introduced laws. this botched war has been the catalyst. note that if not for these laws and arresting people holding blank pieces of paper, there would be a full-blown revolution in moscow now.

baq 5y ago

you're contradicting yourself here: > I’m sorry but a state does not go full totalitarian in a week. Putin has been in control for 20 years. the point is that it has happened suddenly in the past couple of weeks; let arrests of top FSB officials speak for it. > This, was predictable and many had been predicting it for a long time. oh that is absolutely true. every child in eastern europe knows this. the point is, when it happens matters - and it just has.

ModernMech 5y ago
> the point is that it has happened suddenly My point is that invasions don’t happen suddenly. Even if the spark happened in the last few weeks, the preconditions to make this war possible had been laid for years. People pretending that they never saw this coming are the very same who have been cheering Putin and Russia on for years.
- baq 5y ago
  oh, there must've been a misunderstanding. yes, this particular invasion has been under preparation for at least months if not years; i'm talking about the country going full totalitarian oppressive basically overnight with a few new hastily introduced laws. this botched war has been the catalyst. note that if not for these laws and arresting people holding blank pieces of paper, there would be a full-blown revolution in moscow now.