4 ms·

> Russia is bad Putin's Russia is bad.

by smanuel 11y ago

nraynaud 11y ago
Yeah, Putin, Andropov, Chernenko, same stuff.
- yc1010 11y ago
  Not really. I was born and lived during the dying days of the USSR in 80s (left in mid 90s) Under communism everyone knew the system was a failure and everything was a sham, hell the jokes being made were hilarious. Now on the other hand in last few years everything in Russia under Tsar Putin went full retard mode with people actually believing the unashamed propaganda that the state controlled media puts out. Many Russians do not speak anything but Russian and can not afford to leave the country to get a look from outside the box in, this means they buy into the nationalistic bullshit being doled out on tv. People there now actually believe the evil Western boogeyman is out to get them. Which in itself is incredibly scary. Talking to some of my relatives I know understand how some Germans must have felt in the 30s in run up to WW2. In the 80s the KGB was kept out of politics for most part and the Russian military was there to keep in check any ambitions they had. Now the State was taken over by a mix of KGB / criminal mafia elements and the military had its balls cut off. Nationalism and borderline fascism is the order of the day 70 years after the war. My grandfather must be spinning in his grave.
  - varjag 11y ago
    Indeed, in late USSR, the power rested on subtle balance between Party, KGB and Army elites. Now the Party has been eliminated, and KGB subjugated the Army. If you follow the developments of Russian WW2 themed motion pictures you'll notice the corresponding shift. Nearly every movie now features an NKVD or covert ops protagonist. Action TV series are also largely about cloak and dagger types.
    - drzaiusapelord 11y ago
      This is a little much. Putin has great PR, but the reality is that he's in an ugly position considering the level of corruption he's encouraged and the dismal economy he now leads (2% shrink this quarter alone with many large firms unable for find financing due to sanctions). His foreign policy has only emboldened a previously declining NATO and set strict sanctions on Russia that no one wants to lift. Russians aren't stupid, they know this guy can't deliver the gravy train any longer and just like 1991 caught us by surprise we'll probably see a surprise change of leadership when enough parties are fed up. Putin's move towards a North Korean style government isn't from a position of strength, but a position of weakness. Its a desperate move from a desperate regime.
  - shit_parade2 11y ago
    doesn't sound different from the US. People believe the unashamed media propaganda, few speak anything besides English, many can't afford to leave, people believe the evil east is out to get them. In the 80s the NSA kept out of politics for most part... But now the state is taken over by a miz of NSA and criminal corporate-military-financial entities. Nationalism and borderline Fascism is the order of the day. We've been at continuous war for over 14 years.
    - soperj 11y ago
      Not to mention the whole "Greatest country on earth".
    - simonh 11y ago
      Comments like this depress me. It's like saying a matchstick is the same as a tree because they are both made of wood. Theres no real way to engage with a comment like that.
      - yc1010 11y ago
        "The US is no different or infact worse" is a typical argument used to justify various Putinite wrongdoings and deflect discussion. Just go to /r/worldnews for a taste on reddit. * Russia aggressively annexing its neighbors? Hey look over there at the US and Middle East * Russia curbing various freedoms and opposition? Sure the US is a 2 party system where there is no hope for change. * Putin gaining complete control of the media? Sure in the US the media is all run by same companies. And so on, the best lies are those sprinkled with a small grain of truth as the saying goes...
        shit_parade2 11y ago
        >* Russia curbing various freedoms and opposition? Sure the US is a 2 party system where there is no hope for change. Now this comment depresses me. Why not compare the us patriot act or civil forfeiture, or the wide spread illegal 4th amendment breaking mass surveillance program a whistle blower had to reveal (who incidentally lives in Russia now). Then you use the phrase hope and change, is that satire, a man became president lying with that platform slogan. How about including torture, indefinite imprisonment without trial, or kill lists to show how the US also has erroded civil liberties? How much more comic book evil does the American empire need to become before people stop defending it with 'Russia and China are worse', maybe they are, but its a sad pissing match to ask if Mao or Hilter was the worst 20th dictator, both men caused tremendous amounts of Human misery. Why do people want to defend a military that has killed hundreds if thousands of civilians? How morally bankrupt are the techies of hacker news.
  - foobarqux 11y ago
    > People there now actually believe the evil Western boogeyman is out to get them. Even Henry Kissinger believes their fears to be well-founded.
    - samstave 11y ago
      To be fair, Kissenger is a notorious warmonger and his whole goal is fomenting tensions.
  - stcredzero 11y ago
    Now on the other hand in last few years everything in Russia under Tsar Putin went full retard mode with people actually believing the unashamed propaganda that the state controlled media puts out. Nationalism > Communism Solidarity with the working man is nothing compared to the integrity of the Russian nation and her borders. Nationalism and borderline fascism is the order of the day 70 years after the war. My grandfather must be spinning in his grave. The core of the "Great Patriotic War" was nationalism. No one really fights for an idea. Everyone starts fighting to protect their home, and keeps fighting for the sake of their brothers in arms.
- smanuel 11y ago
  Same stuff in 21st century is not ok.

> Russia is bad Putin's Russia is bad.

by smanuel 11y ago

> Russia is bad Putin's Russia is bad.

nraynaud 11y ago

Yeah, Putin, Andropov, Chernenko, same stuff.

yc1010 11y ago
Not really. I was born and lived during the dying days of the USSR in 80s (left in mid 90s) Under communism everyone knew the system was a failure and everything was a sham, hell the jokes being made were hilarious. Now on the other hand in last few years everything in Russia under Tsar Putin went full retard mode with people actually believing the unashamed propaganda that the state controlled media puts out. Many Russians do not speak anything but Russian and can not afford to leave the country to get a look from outside the box in, this means they buy into the nationalistic bullshit being doled out on tv. People there now actually believe the evil Western boogeyman is out to get them. Which in itself is incredibly scary. Talking to some of my relatives I know understand how some Germans must have felt in the 30s in run up to WW2. In the 80s the KGB was kept out of politics for most part and the Russian military was there to keep in check any ambitions they had. Now the State was taken over by a mix of KGB / criminal mafia elements and the military had its balls cut off. Nationalism and borderline fascism is the order of the day 70 years after the war. My grandfather must be spinning in his grave.
- varjag 11y ago
  Indeed, in late USSR, the power rested on subtle balance between Party, KGB and Army elites. Now the Party has been eliminated, and KGB subjugated the Army. If you follow the developments of Russian WW2 themed motion pictures you'll notice the corresponding shift. Nearly every movie now features an NKVD or covert ops protagonist. Action TV series are also largely about cloak and dagger types.
  - drzaiusapelord 11y ago
    This is a little much. Putin has great PR, but the reality is that he's in an ugly position considering the level of corruption he's encouraged and the dismal economy he now leads (2% shrink this quarter alone with many large firms unable for find financing due to sanctions). His foreign policy has only emboldened a previously declining NATO and set strict sanctions on Russia that no one wants to lift. Russians aren't stupid, they know this guy can't deliver the gravy train any longer and just like 1991 caught us by surprise we'll probably see a surprise change of leadership when enough parties are fed up. Putin's move towards a North Korean style government isn't from a position of strength, but a position of weakness. Its a desperate move from a desperate regime.
- shit_parade2 11y ago
  doesn't sound different from the US. People believe the unashamed media propaganda, few speak anything besides English, many can't afford to leave, people believe the evil east is out to get them. In the 80s the NSA kept out of politics for most part... But now the state is taken over by a miz of NSA and criminal corporate-military-financial entities. Nationalism and borderline Fascism is the order of the day. We've been at continuous war for over 14 years.
  - soperj 11y ago
    Not to mention the whole "Greatest country on earth".
  - simonh 11y ago
    Comments like this depress me. It's like saying a matchstick is the same as a tree because they are both made of wood. Theres no real way to engage with a comment like that.
    - yc1010 11y ago
      "The US is no different or infact worse" is a typical argument used to justify various Putinite wrongdoings and deflect discussion. Just go to /r/worldnews for a taste on reddit. * Russia aggressively annexing its neighbors? Hey look over there at the US and Middle East * Russia curbing various freedoms and opposition? Sure the US is a 2 party system where there is no hope for change. * Putin gaining complete control of the media? Sure in the US the media is all run by same companies. And so on, the best lies are those sprinkled with a small grain of truth as the saying goes...
      - shit_parade2 11y ago
        >* Russia curbing various freedoms and opposition? Sure the US is a 2 party system where there is no hope for change. Now this comment depresses me. Why not compare the us patriot act or civil forfeiture, or the wide spread illegal 4th amendment breaking mass surveillance program a whistle blower had to reveal (who incidentally lives in Russia now). Then you use the phrase hope and change, is that satire, a man became president lying with that platform slogan. How about including torture, indefinite imprisonment without trial, or kill lists to show how the US also has erroded civil liberties? How much more comic book evil does the American empire need to become before people stop defending it with 'Russia and China are worse', maybe they are, but its a sad pissing match to ask if Mao or Hilter was the worst 20th dictator, both men caused tremendous amounts of Human misery. Why do people want to defend a military that has killed hundreds if thousands of civilians? How morally bankrupt are the techies of hacker news.
- foobarqux 11y ago
  > People there now actually believe the evil Western boogeyman is out to get them. Even Henry Kissinger believes their fears to be well-founded.
  - samstave 11y ago
    To be fair, Kissenger is a notorious warmonger and his whole goal is fomenting tensions.
- stcredzero 11y ago
  Now on the other hand in last few years everything in Russia under Tsar Putin went full retard mode with people actually believing the unashamed propaganda that the state controlled media puts out. Nationalism > Communism Solidarity with the working man is nothing compared to the integrity of the Russian nation and her borders. Nationalism and borderline fascism is the order of the day 70 years after the war. My grandfather must be spinning in his grave. The core of the "Great Patriotic War" was nationalism. No one really fights for an idea. Everyone starts fighting to protect their home, and keeps fighting for the sake of their brothers in arms.
smanuel 11y ago
Same stuff in 21st century is not ok.