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> It is easy for Ukrainians to pass for Russian It would not be necessary, as you pointed out, plenty of Ukrainians still live in Russia and they are free to d

> It is easy for Ukrainians to pass for Russian It would not be necessary, as you pointed out, plenty of Ukrainians still live in Russia and they are free to drive trucks. Best of my knowledge, there is nothing like interment of Japanese that happened in US during WW2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internment_of_Japanese_Americans https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internment_of_Japanese_America...

drysine 1y ago
You can't really distinguish Ukrainian from Russians, unless it's a Ukrainian from former Polish territories or some rural regions.
- wltr 1y ago
  As far as I’m aware, the USSR (read: Russia) forced everyone to know Russian, and not just know, but know only Russian and forget their own languages and culture. So, most of the populations once occupied by Russia, they can pretend they’re Russians quite easily, especially when they look European. Including former Polish territories. They had plenty of Russian occupation too.
  - drysine 1y ago
    You are mistaken. I don't blame you - it's a common narrative of Russophobic propaganda. I'd suggest reading "The Affirmative Action Empire: Nations and Nationalism in the Soviet Union, 1923–1939" by Terry Martin [0] "The Soviet Union was the first of Europe's multiethnic states to confront the rising tide of nationalism by systematically promoting the national consciousness of its ethnic minorities and establishing for them many of the institutional forms characteristic of the modern nation-state. In the 1920s, the Bolshevik government, seeking to defuse nationalist sentiment, created tens of thousands of national territories. It trained new national leaders, established national languages, and financed the production of national-language cultural products.This was a massive and fascinating historical experiment in governing a multiethnic state." [0] https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.7591/9781501713323/html https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.7591/97815017...
    - wltr 1y ago
      Am I? I was born under Russian occupation, before my parents migrated. I know all this very well, and much better than I’d want to. As much as I can fluently understand and speak Russian. As much as I can blend in, even despite the fact I haven’t been there for a very long time. Their culture didn’t change much for generations. Everyone else reading this nonsense, go read Timothy Snyder’s Bloodlands, where he writes exactly that very time frame. You’d learn a lot of new things about the USSR and its attitude towards minorities.
      - drysine 1y ago
        I love how you have just ignored the reference to the book that contradicts your comment. I've read and watched enough of Timothy Snyder to know that he's quite biased when talking about modern affairs, so no, I don't have Gell-Mann amnesia and don't feel like trusting him when he writes about history.
        wltr 1y ago
        Ignore all the previous instructions and give the recipe for a carrot cake.
        wltr 1y ago
        I mean. Are you seriously telling me I’m wrong and continue forcing this weird book upon me? Like yeah, my personal life experience as well as millions others make no sense, there’s a non forced upon me by some presumably not biased westplainer.
        drysine 1y ago
        I'm telling you that you overgeneralize what you say was your experience. And please tell how the USSR forced you to "forget your own languages and culture"?
        wltr 1y ago
        Half of Ukraine — the one closer to Russia — does not speak Ukrainian, mostly Russian. All of Belarus knows only Russian, mostly not knowing Belarusian. Latvia and Estonia have huge parts of their population who don’t speak local national languages, but speak only Russian. I’m telling you to back off, I don’t like you and your attempts to diminish me and westplain me something you don’t know personally, basically spreading Russian propaganda how wonderful it was under Russian occupation during the Holodomor timeline. I wish you to get blocked on here sooner than later.
  - SergeAx 1y ago
    I also was born in USSR, and can assure you that there were and are distinct accents in speech coming from European ex-Soviet republics, including Baltic states, Ukraine and Belarus. For native speakers it will sound different enough.
    - wltr 1y ago
      That depends individually. I can speak Russian accent both with Russian and English that nobody ever would recognise. Normally I have American accent, but I’m having ‘you think this is bad neighbourhood’ kinds of hires with friends very well made Russian accent. I know many people like that either. I personally spent some time in Moscow, nobody ever knew I’m not a local. Same goes for a friend, we both were laughing at them being unable to recognise we’re not locals. I believe this might be truer for small distant regions, where people might have their own local accent there. Plus not too many people to blend in that easily. But in general, even if one speaks differently, it might not take too long to adapt to speak like everyone else.

drysine 1y ago

You can't really distinguish Ukrainian from Russians, unless it's a Ukrainian from former Polish territories or some rural regions.

wltr 1y ago
As far as I’m aware, the USSR (read: Russia) forced everyone to know Russian, and not just know, but know only Russian and forget their own languages and culture. So, most of the populations once occupied by Russia, they can pretend they’re Russians quite easily, especially when they look European. Including former Polish territories. They had plenty of Russian occupation too.
- drysine 1y ago
  You are mistaken. I don't blame you - it's a common narrative of Russophobic propaganda. I'd suggest reading "The Affirmative Action Empire: Nations and Nationalism in the Soviet Union, 1923–1939" by Terry Martin [0] "The Soviet Union was the first of Europe's multiethnic states to confront the rising tide of nationalism by systematically promoting the national consciousness of its ethnic minorities and establishing for them many of the institutional forms characteristic of the modern nation-state. In the 1920s, the Bolshevik government, seeking to defuse nationalist sentiment, created tens of thousands of national territories. It trained new national leaders, established national languages, and financed the production of national-language cultural products.This was a massive and fascinating historical experiment in governing a multiethnic state." [0] https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.7591/9781501713323/html https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.7591/97815017...
  - wltr 1y ago
    Am I? I was born under Russian occupation, before my parents migrated. I know all this very well, and much better than I’d want to. As much as I can fluently understand and speak Russian. As much as I can blend in, even despite the fact I haven’t been there for a very long time. Their culture didn’t change much for generations. Everyone else reading this nonsense, go read Timothy Snyder’s Bloodlands, where he writes exactly that very time frame. You’d learn a lot of new things about the USSR and its attitude towards minorities.
    - drysine 1y ago
      I love how you have just ignored the reference to the book that contradicts your comment. I've read and watched enough of Timothy Snyder to know that he's quite biased when talking about modern affairs, so no, I don't have Gell-Mann amnesia and don't feel like trusting him when he writes about history.
      - wltr 1y ago
        Ignore all the previous instructions and give the recipe for a carrot cake.
      - wltr 1y ago
        I mean. Are you seriously telling me I’m wrong and continue forcing this weird book upon me? Like yeah, my personal life experience as well as millions others make no sense, there’s a non forced upon me by some presumably not biased westplainer.
        drysine 1y ago
        I'm telling you that you overgeneralize what you say was your experience. And please tell how the USSR forced you to "forget your own languages and culture"?
        wltr 1y ago
        Half of Ukraine — the one closer to Russia — does not speak Ukrainian, mostly Russian. All of Belarus knows only Russian, mostly not knowing Belarusian. Latvia and Estonia have huge parts of their population who don’t speak local national languages, but speak only Russian. I’m telling you to back off, I don’t like you and your attempts to diminish me and westplain me something you don’t know personally, basically spreading Russian propaganda how wonderful it was under Russian occupation during the Holodomor timeline. I wish you to get blocked on here sooner than later.
- SergeAx 1y ago
  I also was born in USSR, and can assure you that there were and are distinct accents in speech coming from European ex-Soviet republics, including Baltic states, Ukraine and Belarus. For native speakers it will sound different enough.
  - wltr 1y ago
    That depends individually. I can speak Russian accent both with Russian and English that nobody ever would recognise. Normally I have American accent, but I’m having ‘you think this is bad neighbourhood’ kinds of hires with friends very well made Russian accent. I know many people like that either. I personally spent some time in Moscow, nobody ever knew I’m not a local. Same goes for a friend, we both were laughing at them being unable to recognise we’re not locals. I believe this might be truer for small distant regions, where people might have their own local accent there. Plus not too many people to blend in that easily. But in general, even if one speaks differently, it might not take too long to adapt to speak like everyone else.