34 sats \ 3 replies \ @petertodd 8 Jul \ parent \ on: Lessons From the Cold War: Now Is the Time for De-Escalation - Antiwar.com history
Who cares what justifications Bin Laden used? He's was a terrorist who hated the west, and we eventually killed him for it.
Russians on average know full well what their government is doing and they clearly, on average, support it. Russia is only now, after 10 years of invading Ukraine, finally getting around to trying to clamp down on VPNs and the like. The Russian governments problem is not the Russian people supporting Ukraine. The Russian people are just angry they're not winning.
You might as well say, "Who cares about logic".
Bin Laden justified the killing of innocents because their government invaded the lands of his people, placed military bases in them, and propped up secular dictators.
Russians are just as guilty and it's ethical to do whatever is needed to make them pay for their crimes.
Of course he is evil. You just used the same logic to justify killing Russians for the actions of their dictator. Or am I misunderstanding you? In the US we supposedly have the "consent of the governed". I reject Bin Laden's justifications. I'm just surprised to hear you espouse that same logic. Its a slippery slope that leads to endless war and escalation.
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The US was never fighting total war against any of it's enemies (at least, since WW2). US citizens just aren't that responsible for the small things the US government has done, as not many tax dollars actually go to any of it.
A double digit % of the entire Russian GDP is going to invading Ukraine. Every working Russian is personally responsible in a significant way to this war. No different than WW2 Germany or Japan.
If Russians want to have a country, the onus is on them to revolt against their government. They don't, because the average Russian supports what their government is doing.
Hell, even the anti-Putin Navalny did not campaign against the invasion of Ukraine. Quite the opposite: his supporters were busy undercovering military corruption that was preventing the war from being won faster.
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I think I understand your position. I am not comfortable reading the minds and intentions of plebs on the other side of the globe that were indoctrinated for generations to hate America just as I was to hate Russia.
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