3 ms·

Ah the good old whataboutism. Here's some counter-whataboutism: what about the Korean and Vietnam wars (the Soviet Union even sent their own pilots with the je

Ah the good old whataboutism. Here's some counter-whataboutism: what about the Korean and Vietnam wars (the Soviet Union even sent their own pilots with the jets), and countless other smaller conflicts in Africa? The Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc were pumping weapons into those conflicts or have been invading themselves to support "their side". Same with Russia in Syria btw. At least the free west is upfront and open about the weapon deliveries down to the last helmet: https://www.bundesregierung.de/breg-de/schwerpunkte/krieg-in-der-ukraine/lieferungen-ukraine-2054514 https://www.bundesregierung.de/breg-de/schwerpunkte/krieg-in...

somenameforme 3y ago
The main reason that propaganda and dehumanization are such a typical part of war, is that it helps prevent people from considering the weight of their own actions, let alone the perspective of the enemy. What I described is not a whataboutism, it's a hypothetical illustrating exactly what's happening today, except flipping the roles of the participants. Yet of course it feels alien enough that you instinctively want to fight against it - I must be tricking you or engaging in some sort of deceptive rhetorical device. I am not.
- flohofwoe 3y ago
  [flagged]
  - cpursley 3y ago
    Can you try a better developed argument than the extremely lazy Reddit-level “whataboutism” one? And look up the history of that word. It’s a Soviet propaganda term and a logical fallacy.
- cpursley 3y ago
  Careful, many people on HN (as smart as they are) have little tolerance for nuance and empathy. And they like to respond with “whataboutism!” - which is ironically, a Soviet propaganda term. Americans are particularly myopic and view the world though a post-history lens.
  - flohofwoe 3y ago
    Whataboutism is an old Soviet propaganda technique, but AFAIK they didn't come up with the term (they must have had an internal name for it of course, but somehow I doubt they called it whataboutism)

somenameforme 3y ago

The main reason that propaganda and dehumanization are such a typical part of war, is that it helps prevent people from considering the weight of their own actions, let alone the perspective of the enemy. What I described is not a whataboutism, it's a hypothetical illustrating exactly what's happening today, except flipping the roles of the participants. Yet of course it feels alien enough that you instinctively want to fight against it - I must be tricking you or engaging in some sort of deceptive rhetorical device. I am not.

flohofwoe 3y ago
[flagged]
- cpursley 3y ago
  Can you try a better developed argument than the extremely lazy Reddit-level “whataboutism” one? And look up the history of that word. It’s a Soviet propaganda term and a logical fallacy.
cpursley 3y ago
Careful, many people on HN (as smart as they are) have little tolerance for nuance and empathy. And they like to respond with “whataboutism!” - which is ironically, a Soviet propaganda term. Americans are particularly myopic and view the world though a post-history lens.
- flohofwoe 3y ago
  Whataboutism is an old Soviet propaganda technique, but AFAIK they didn't come up with the term (they must have had an internal name for it of course, but somehow I doubt they called it whataboutism)