For example, people in the middle recognise that Ukraine was the victim of an invasion, but people on the far-right and far-left both insist that Russia is the real victim for some reason
Maybe it’s because both the far-right and far-left envy the state power that Putin has?
IMO the conspiracy theory culture is to the point where some folks will believe anything but what is presented as mainstream truth. It’s the “I’m smarter than that” mentality that started with right wing AM radio in the 80’s. It’s reached into all parts of the political spectrum
Nearly everyone outside of the enlightened rational centrists has soured on this whole idea of “benevolent interventionism,” with very good reason. We’ve seen how our leaders used lies and deception time and time again to get involved in pointless, destructive wars for their own interests. People look back at Iraq and Afghanistan, and Vietnam, etc, and say they were obviously unjustified, but at the time people supported them, and everyone was immersed in propaganda. Of course, in every war, those who push back for any reason are always accused of treason and supporting the other side, whether the specific term is pinko, terrorist sympathizer, or tankie.
It’s really no mystery why a bunch of disparate political groups oppose a conflict halfway around the world under the same leadership and media that led us into Iraq and Afghanistan, the mystery is why liberals are so willing to trust them again.
I’m not saying I support western intervention in Ukraine necessarily. I wish there was no war at all over there. I’m just saying that between Ukraine and Russia, Russia has been the aggressor. Also I’ve definitely seen some Lemmy leftists (but definitely not all leftists out there) who are in favour of Putin’s regime, for unknown reasons.
It’s really no mystery why a bunch of disparate political groups oppose a conflict halfway around the world
You’re basically proving my point by admitting that you do have a very similar view to the far-right.
I just think it’s interesting that the people who get referred to as “tankies” claim to be on the left, but they often support the regime of Putin, a regime which is arguably fascist. I guess that’s one reason why I think the far-left and far-right are pretty similar.
But are we engaging with political ideas in good faith if we evaluate them based on the behaviour of specific people whose actions don’t really line up with those ideas?
I’m not dismissing all of leftism, I’m just referring to so-called “tankies”: e.g. people from Hexbear who themselves absolutely do not engage with political ideas “in good faith”.
In my view, horseshoe theory is pretty accurate
For example, people in the middle recognise that Ukraine was the victim of an invasion, but people on the far-right and far-left both insist that Russia is the real victim for some reason
Maybe it’s because both the far-right and far-left envy the state power that Putin has?
It actually looks more like this
IMO the conspiracy theory culture is to the point where some folks will believe anything but what is presented as mainstream truth. It’s the “I’m smarter than that” mentality that started with right wing AM radio in the 80’s. It’s reached into all parts of the political spectrum
Maybe reality is just too depressing so people invent narratives that they prefer.
Nearly everyone outside of the enlightened rational centrists has soured on this whole idea of “benevolent interventionism,” with very good reason. We’ve seen how our leaders used lies and deception time and time again to get involved in pointless, destructive wars for their own interests. People look back at Iraq and Afghanistan, and Vietnam, etc, and say they were obviously unjustified, but at the time people supported them, and everyone was immersed in propaganda. Of course, in every war, those who push back for any reason are always accused of treason and supporting the other side, whether the specific term is pinko, terrorist sympathizer, or tankie.
It’s really no mystery why a bunch of disparate political groups oppose a conflict halfway around the world under the same leadership and media that led us into Iraq and Afghanistan, the mystery is why liberals are so willing to trust them again.
I’m not saying I support western intervention in Ukraine necessarily. I wish there was no war at all over there. I’m just saying that between Ukraine and Russia, Russia has been the aggressor. Also I’ve definitely seen some Lemmy leftists (but definitely not all leftists out there) who are in favour of Putin’s regime, for unknown reasons.
You’re basically proving my point by admitting that you do have a very similar view to the far-right.
It’s not a horseshoe, it’s merely authoritarianism
I just think it’s interesting that the people who get referred to as “tankies” claim to be on the left, but they often support the regime of Putin, a regime which is arguably fascist. I guess that’s one reason why I think the far-left and far-right are pretty similar.
But are we engaging with political ideas in good faith if we evaluate them based on the behaviour of specific people whose actions don’t really line up with those ideas?
I’m not dismissing all of leftism, I’m just referring to so-called “tankies”: e.g. people from Hexbear who themselves absolutely do not engage with political ideas “in good faith”.