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KGB spying on people
I know people with family in Russia who tell me that their relatives have been told their phones and internet use were being monitored by the FSB to ensure they're not anti-government. The name of a lot of the instruments of oppression have changed, but the methods haven't; they've just modernised.
atz-
Yep, pretty sure it's easier these days with machine learning and voice recognition. Back in the day it was loads of manual labour.
There's old and story that when my grandfather was being watched, they returned home one day, earlier than they should've and found somebody sniffing around in their apartment. The person escaped climbing to a balcony of another flat. Then they knew the KGB was on to them.
I've got a friend from Belarus who is advised not to return just in case they've got something on him. He hasn't been home for more than 3 years even though his family lives 100 km from Vilnius.
It's funny we have memes about FBI spying on us through our front cams but there's slight difference - we don't risk going to jail even if we're actively anti government.
The beauty of democracy. Which is also a double edged sword when freedom of speech is absolute but it's another issue.
dau
I notice quite a lot of this narrative, especially from "woke" Americans - not sure if they don't know anything about the absolute evil Russia is or they just want to make everything about themselves.
When my country Lithuania was occupied by the soviets they essentially eradicated intelligentsia - or anybody who were "anti soviet element". They've put 150000 political prisoners to gulags in Siberia and deported another 130000 people to other places in Siberia.
After the occupation, oppression continued with KGB spying on people so they don't get any democratic ideas in their heads. My grandfather was in jail for participating in underground press & political activities.
I could go on on but it's nothing new to most of you, I guess - and my country is not unique, we share the same destiny with rest of Eastern Europe.
That's why we're so mad crazy, even "anti Russian / russophobic" regarding this - it's history repeating. The deportation part of occupied territories has already started.
And you will never convince me US is as evil as Russia.