• halfempty
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    1699 months ago

    Why must every faction of Progressives attack each other. Bernie Sanders is the most solid progressive I know of, but Code Pink wants to attack him because his Ukraine support isn’t anti-war? I’m anti war. In particular I’m anti the war that Russia started by invading Ukraine. Anti war doesn’t mean just letting the bad guy do whatever they want. If so, then anti-war is pro tyranny, because they always let the aggressor invade.

    • Walt J. Rimmer
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      699 months ago

      One of the things that made me really like Sanders when he was first campaigning for president was when I looked up his record on American war and he had a voting record that tended to follow a quote from him that amounted to something like (paraphrasing), “War should be the last resort, but if a war is started, we need to see it fully see it through.”

      It’s not like siding with Ukraine and getting into that conflict is supporting warfare. It’s seeking to prevent warmongers from profiting off a senseless war. The idea that abandoning Ukraine to just be invaded and allowing Russia to get whatever they want by force is an, “Anti-war,” stance is fucking absurd.

    • @flossdaily@lemmy.world
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      139 months ago

      The left has always had its share of morons.

      Well-meaning morons, but morons nonetheless.

      The issue is that the centrist and right wing media latch on to the narrative of these fringe weirdos and pretend that they represent the entirety of the left wing, even though there are WAY MORE lefties who find them disdainful.

      • @flossdaily@lemmy.world
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        9 months ago

        False narrative.

        We have less than a dozen morons here. They don’t represent anyone but themselves.

        Meanwhile we have entire factions of the Republican party at war with themselves from the Lincoln Project to the infighting in the House just this week.

        • @yumcake@lemmy.one
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          29 months ago

          All of them intend to vote for Trump in November, regardless of legal court findings, if they have any chance to vote form him, through legal means or otherwise they will all do it.

      • Dr. Bluefall
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        99 months ago

        The issue with any negotiated settlement is that how do you trust Russia to hold up its end of the bargain after 2014? They’ve shown that international agreements mean sweet F.A. to them if it gets in the way of their goals.

        The only way we get out of this in the long term to push Russia out of Ukraine, and force an unconditional Russian surrender. That means taking back the Donbas region; that means taking back Crimea.

      • @kent_eh@lemmy.ca
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        39 months ago

        but he should also be calling for a negotiated end to this brutal war

        Bernie is smart enough to know that you can’t reliably negotiate with someone as untrustworthy as Putin.

        Putin has lied to the world more than enough times that nobody should trust any potential negotiation he is involved in.

    • @TheAnonymouseJoker@lemmy.ml
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      -89 months ago

      I am anti the war that “USA started by attempting a coup in 2003, and succeeding with another coup in 2013, to manufacture a war against Russia”. I support Russia defending itself from NATO’s genocidal biochemical warfare attempts and Ukrainian militia Nazis killing thousands of ethnic Russians for 8 years.

    • @zephyreks@lemmy.mlM
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      9 months ago

      Because Bernie’s a lukewarm progressive at best nowadays and he’s incapable of actually influencing policy. The Democratic party is stuck in a rut caused by decades of neoliberal policy (which, for example, is why Clinton got so many resources during the Democrat primaries) and refuses to even consider a more radical alternative.

      Voting isn’t working to actually institute change in America. Either the country needs to push more power down to the states, or it needs complete electoral reform to remove the FPTP system that got America into this mess.

      • Lucky
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        679 months ago

        Yugoslavia was invading Kosovo and commiting ethnic cleansing of Albanians at the time. Agree or disagree with how it was executed, it fits with the idea that he opposes the aggressors in war

        • @OurToothbrush@lemmy.mlM
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          -489 months ago

          Most of the ethnic cleansing happened as a result of the war. The intervention lead to an intensification of ethnic conflict.

          • Lucky
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            469 months ago

            The intervention was a key reason the war ended after multiple years of conflict and ethnic cleansing. Are you saying that ending the war caused more ethnic cleansing afterwards than was already happening? That ending war made things less stable?

            • @zephyreks@lemmy.mlM
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              9 months ago

              The war itself made things less stable and, arguably, more people died as a byproduct of the war than if the war had never happened.

              The fact that things recovered (ish) is a convenient coincidence and not the expectation. If you look at other times the US or NATO intervened, you’ll see why it’s not a given that things will be more stable afterwards.

              • Lucky
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                279 months ago

                Well we can play “what if” all we want, but bringing it back to the main point of Sanders, you can argue all you want about if it was the correct course of action but his vote was to stop an invading force.

                • @zephyreks@lemmy.mlM
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                  -149 months ago

                  Sure, but that’s a perfectly valid reason for anti-war protestors to dislike him. There’s a belief out there that diplomacy can resolve most conflicts and that military force should only be used after diplomacy is exhausted.

                  There’s a reason the UN hadn’t yet approved an intervention.

    • @zephyreks@lemmy.mlM
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      159 months ago

      Presumably, antiwar protestors protest every war. Basically, a return to WW2 America’s policy of non-intervention.

    • @bdonvr@thelemmy.club
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      99 months ago

      Turns out being anti-war protesters means they’re ANTI WAR.

      What do you want them to do? Raise funds to send some missles over?

      • Zorque
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        599 months ago

        I guess Ukraine could just use hopes and prayers to get Putin out of their front yard.

        • @Grimpen@lemmy.ca
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          269 months ago

          I’m pretty sure that most of the solid anti-war protestors would expect Ukraine to just accept Russian territorial demands, up to and including complete annexation.

          It turns into a reductio ad absurdum pretty quickly though. Putin didn’t seem to return Crimea or the occupied regions of Donbass and Luhansk when asked politely. Not even when asked sternly. Indeed, it would seem that when all he faced was stern disapproval he decided to come back for more.

          There is no doubt in my mind that supporting Ukraine now is stopping more Russian aggression later. Besides, Putin can end this war any time. Just go back to the original borders. The only reason not to is his yearning for Imperial glory. The irony being that many of these anti-war protestors would probably proclaim themselves anti-colonialists.

          • @kent_eh@lemmy.ca
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            39 months ago

            Putin can end this war any time. Just go back to the original borders.

            Exactly.

            If these anti-war protesters want to yell at the people who can stop the war, they need to protest at the Russian embassy.

            • davel [he/him]
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              -19 months ago

              You didn’t tell me what action will end the war faster, other going to the negotiating table. Ukraine is running out of bodies to throw into the meat grinder. This is a war of attrition, and the numbers are not in their favor.

        • @OurToothbrush@lemmy.mlM
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          -269 months ago

          Wouldn’t providing Ukraine with more weapons extend the war? Their latest offensive shows they’re running on fumes.

          • Zorque
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            109 months ago

            You’re right, they should just roll over and accept Russian domination.

            Their comment, of course, was overly simplistic. I’m sure what they meant was “then why are they protesting action that will end the war in Ukraine’s favor faster”.

            If you only care about blindly ending war as soon as possible by any means necessary, you definitely have two major options. Either let the aggressor do whatever they want, or use overwhelming force to utterly destroy them.

            Which is your preference?

            • @OurToothbrush@lemmy.mlM
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              -119 months ago

              If you only care about blindly ending war as soon as possible by any means necessary, you definitely have two major options. Either let the aggressor do whatever they want, or use overwhelming force to utterly destroy them.

              Except this is assuming that the US is omnipotent. The US cannot use overwhelming force to defeat Russia in the conflict. That leaves only not supplying arms to reduce the length of the war and casualties.

              • Zorque
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                59 months ago

                So you prefer just letting aggressors do whatever they want, got it.

                As anti-war as you or I may be, there’s more than enough petty dictators who are more than happy to be pro-war and fuck up the world.

                • @OurToothbrush@lemmy.mlM
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                  9 months ago

                  So you prefer just letting aggressors do whatever they want

                  I dont have that principle, I think there are cases when you should and when you shouldn’t.

                  there’s more than enough petty dictators who are more than happy to be pro-war and fuck up the world.

                  I’m more concerned about the US. Why is biggest kid on the block when it comes to genocide and war so enthusiastic to supply Ukraine with arms?

                  Especially given operation AERODYNAMIC by the cia…

              • @kent_eh@lemmy.ca
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                9 months ago

                Except this is assuming that the US is omnipotent. The US cannot use overwhelming force to defeat Russia in the conflict.

                Good thing pretty much every western country is supporting Ukraine’s defensive war effort.

                Nobody expects the US to be the sole support for Ukraine.

                • @OurToothbrush@lemmy.mlM
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                  -59 months ago

                  Good thing pretty much every western country is supporting Ukraine’s defensive war effort.

                  How is that going?

          • @thantik@lemmy.world
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            9 months ago

            So I’m gonna come over to your house and commandeer 2 bedrooms. You can’t do anything about it, because that would be violent and non-productive. Thanks for the 2 bedrooms. I’m gonna shit on the carpet and in 10 years send my children to take the rest of your house. But again, you can’t do anything because that would be violent and non-progressive.

            Because you know, wouldn’t want there to be any conflict or anything.

            • @bdonvr@thelemmy.club
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              -409 months ago

              Stop trying to simplify geopolitics into interpersonal metaphors.

              In your metaphor what is the billions in human killing machines that NATO et al supply to Ukraine? Who would be the thousands dead and families destroyed?

              • @thantik@lemmy.world
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                329 months ago

                I’ll stop simplifying geopolitics as soon as you recognize the right of the Ukrainian people to defend their land by whatever means is necessary. Every nation in the history of mankind has conscripted its citizens to aid in its defense. Russia will continue to take, and take, and take until someone shows them they cannot take freely any more. This anti-war absolutism is Russian propaganda designed to further their goals of illegal annexation of territory belonging to Ukraine.

              • SanguinePar
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                149 months ago

                You know what would have prevented that? Russia not invading Ukraine.

              • Semi-Hemi-Demigod
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                119 months ago

                Yes, only Russia should send billions of dollars worth of human killing machines to Ukraine.

          • @OurToothbrush@lemmy.mlM
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            9 months ago

            Is it actually reducing harm to fight to the last Ukrainian though? There were multiple attempts at peace that were sabotaged by either nazi paramilitaries or nato-member politicians. Remember when Zelensky traveled to the front to tell them to respect the ceasefire during Minsk 2 and they didn’t? Maybe the people sabotaging peace would be less bold knowing the US isn’t going to keep supplying arms.

            • Walt J. Rimmer
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              279 months ago

              Is it actually reducing harm to fight to the last Ukrainian though?

              When Russia is trying to commit genocide against Ukraine? Yes.

                • Lucky
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                  179 months ago

                  It’s been widely reported by numerous nations and organizations. Search for “Russian genocide Ukraine” and you’ll see plenty of credible sources

            • Feste the Mad
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              -49 months ago

              multiple attempts at peace

              What were the terms of this peace? Do you have sources to back up your claims?

                • Feste the Mad
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                  09 months ago

                  No I am not. Would you kindly explain and provide sources for this and all your other claims?

        • @panchzila@lemmy.world
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          89 months ago

          I have never thought of the usa helping ukraine because they are interested in ukranian peoples lives. I see them fighting because gaining an ally with great resources and an excellent geographic position is important to maintain power.

          They are also testing the new way of running a war between first world armies.

          Perhaps I’m wrong but this war benefits american interests beyond being world police.

          • phillaholic
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            89 months ago

            Or, and stay with me here, we have a blueprint from about a hundred years ago of what happens when you just let a powerful county annex surrounding countries. Spoiler Alert, they don’t just stop at 1.

  • @Wahots@pawb.social
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    9 months ago

    Peace in Ukraine? Tell that to all the civilians in Bucha and other places that have bullets in their back, got executed against buildings, or were tied up and shot in the back of the head.

    The russians even execute their own men with sledgehammers for being POWs. It’s like walking in to Sandy Hook mid-massacre and asking “Why can’t we all just be friends?” until you catch some 5.56 like an idiot.

    Ukraine should invite these people out to the front to see what it’s like, and talk to the civilians in recently liberated areas. Have them talk to the survivors and families of Bucha.

      • @Wahots@pawb.social
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        29 months ago

        Telling the Ukrainans to compromise will never work. The russians will continue to kidnap their children and push Ukrainans into the sea unless they secure all of their land. And even then, they’ll be forced into an Israel-like state of constant bombardment from their neighbors.

        It’s a shitty fucking deal. But the russian army and government are monsters. And the peace protestors that MTG cheers on aren’t on the side of the Ukrainians. Surrendering is not peace to the Russians. It’s capitulation.

  • AutoTL;DRB
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    99 months ago

    This is the best summary I could come up with:


    Eleven antiwar protesters were arrested Wednesday after they occupied the office of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) on Capitol Hill to demand the senator support efforts at diplomacy over sending further U.S. aid, such as weapons, to Ukraine.

    Capitol Police arrested the 11 people inside the Dirksen Senate Office Building under a D.C. code that prohibits crowding, obstructing or incommoding, a Capitol Police spokesperson said.

    The code is often cited when arresting protesters during peaceful planned acts of civil disobedience.

    “Yes, Bernie should condemn the Russian invasion, but he should also be calling for a negotiated end to this brutal war,” Crystal Zevon, from Barnet, Vt., said in the news release.

    A spokesperson for Sanders said the senator’s chief of staff, foreign policy adviser and Vermont state director met with Vermonters who were concerned about the war.

    “The U.S. should support a just peace in Ukraine, based on the principles of territorial integrity, sovereignty, and international law,” Sanders wrote in the letter.


    The original article contains 244 words, the summary contains 161 words. Saved 34%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!

  • @yumcake@lemmy.one
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    99 months ago

    Supporting Ukraine IS anti-war.

    It’s a war of aggression and the fastest and ONLY way to stop such a war is to stop the aggressor. Appeasement simply allows the aggressor to continue perpetuating or expanding their war aims.

    The waste is trickling arms to them instead of surging it. We need decisive Ukrainian victory to spare the lives of Ukrainians and Russians from Putin’s war.