Alexander Borodai honestly explains the goals of the war
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Alexander Borodai is a member of Russian Duma and one of the founding fathers of the "DPR" (Donetsk People Republic) under FSB control. Commentary by Maksim Borodin: First, he admits that any cease...

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Alexander Borodai is a member of Russian Duma and one of the founding fathers of the “DPR” (Donetsk People Republic) under FSB control.

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  • First, he admits that any ceasefire for Russia will only be a temporary freeze in the war, because Putin’s main goal will not be achieved - taking control of all of Ukraine and establishing a puppet Russian regime. Any independent Ukraine for Russians is “Western weapon”.

  • Second, he admits that Russia has been waging war with the help of people like him in Ukraine since 2014, and in 2022 it only continued with a full-scale invasion.

  • And most importantly, third, he directly says that the problem is not that Ukraine can be in NATO. The problem for Russians is that they consider all of Ukraine to be their “historical territory” and that Ukrainians “do not exist as a nation at all”, and that Ukraine is inhabited by “divided Russians”.

  • SkilurosEnglish
    11·
    5 days ago

    This is too much essentialism for me.

    Everything the russians do is explained by cultural context. Any and all alternatives are not viable because of the cultural context. We shouldn’t judge russian for being proud of putin because of the cultural context.

    This is not a viable approach. At the end of the day, all positive social/cultural change is driven going against the grain. If the russians don’t want to do anything, we should take it face value and not come up with excuses.

    • barsoap@lemm.eeEnglish
      1·
      5 days ago

      If the russians don’t want to do anything, we should take it face value and not come up with excuses.

      I’m not excusing, I’m explaining because without understanding there’s even less chance of changing anything. There’s a reason Russians don’t want to do anything, and it’s not because they would be comfortable within their culture. They don’t see a way out, they’re trapped in there, if you even try to get out you get beaten up so many decide that as you can’t change anything anyways, you can just as well acquiesce, that’s less mental load. That’s taking the big picture at face value.

      At the end of the day, all positive social/cultural change is driven going against the grain.

      …no. Because locking in something good, making sure it sticks around, means going with the grain that is just growing. Or are you a Maoist.

      • SkilurosEnglish
        11·
        2 days ago

        I’m not excusing, I’m explaining because without understanding there’s even less chance of changing anything. There’s a reason Russians don’t want to do anything, and it’s not because they would be comfortable within their culture. They don’t see a way out, they’re trapped in there, if you even try to get out you get beaten up so many decide that as you can’t change anything anyways, you can just as well acquiesce, that’s less mental load. That’s taking the big picture at face value.

        You’re playing into their victim-hood narrative that the russians openly use for misinformation and promotion of their imperialist goals. Who is responsible for the current state of affairs in russia? The people of Botswana? The people of Uruguay?

        No, it’s the russians who voted Putin into power in 2000 (even though they knew the nature of the KGB) and then elected him again in 2004 when he shut down most mass scale independent media. And the elections of 2000 and 2004 are generally seen to be fair.

        It’s the russians who went with the comical Medvedev seat warming exercise and supported the invasion of Georgia in 2008.

        Yet you keep trying to sweep this all under the rug, with claims such as “they are trapped there” to try and position them as innocent victims. When in reality they only have themselves to blame for the state of affairs in their country.

        • barsoap@lemm.eeEnglish
          1·
          2 days ago

          Who is responsible for the current state of affairs in russia?

          Who is responsible when a junkie rips copper pipes out of their shower to sell to buy drugs?

          • SkilurosEnglish
            11·
            1 day ago

            This is enablement of russian genocidal imperialism.

            Rather than taking a sober and realistic look at their actions and attitudes, we get this bullshit.

            If you actually had to deal with russians, you would never in a million years behave in such a manner.

            Be thankful you don’t have to deal with them.

            • barsoap@lemm.eeEnglish
              1·
              1 day ago

              I’m all for locking the junkie up in a psych ward and using their trust fund to pay for it.

              There is no rational interpretation of what Russia is doing but considering them irrational actors. They, just like the junkie, aren’t acting in their own self-interest, not even close to it. They’re mad. All I’m doing is giving some psychoanalysis.

              • SkilurosEnglish
                11·
                1 day ago

                Shitpost all you want, just don’t act like you’re actually being legit.

                At the very least a strong majority of russian are genocidal imperialists (if not an overwhelming majority). The victim/junkie positioning merely provides cover for their actions.

                They know what they are doing. They know what they are doing is bad and they will keep on doing it until they think they can get away with it.

                • barsoap@lemm.eeEnglish
                  1·
                  1 day ago

                  At the very least a strong majority of russian are genocidal imperialists (if not an overwhelming majority). The victim/junkie positioning merely provides cover for their actions.

                  That doesn’t make sense. Pretending to be mad, to take actions that are to your own detriment, is mad in itself.

                  They know what they are doing.

                  And so do a fuckton of junkies.

                  I don’t think we’re getting anywhere here. How about this:

                  If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.

                  That’s Sun Tzu. Know the enemy. “They are genocidal maniacs” is not knowing them, it’s judging them, it’s defining your own relationship to them. You cannot lead them by the nose with that, you cannot manipulate them, you cannot outflank them. Judgement is not understanding, one cannot replace the other.

                  Might it thus, with that in mind, and if the goal is to defeat them, be helpful to understand why Russia is the kind of country that it is.