Russian invasion of Ukraine

Are you Sid Waddell?

I did almost include that Sid quote, tbh!

Wind of change

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If that car was queuing to get into Georgia, it would be just perfect.

https://twitter.com/NeilPHauer/status/1573287737137979392?s=20&t=hqhfEH6JDKziQxePmIGeNw

Odessa earlier today

Everyone supports the war until they have to go to the front! The same assholes who say “We should go kick their ass” but they mean someone else as long so they don’t have to get off their fat lazy ass.

Russian conscripts deploying with pre-WW1 rifles. I’m sure this will all go swimmingly.

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Fuck.

My family was just forced to vote at gunpoint in russian cosplay of a “referendum” in southern ukraine:

• they come to your house
  
• you have to openly tick the box for being annexed by russia (or for staying with ukraine if you feel suicidal)
  
• all while armed gunmen watch you
  https://twitter.com/maksymeristavi/status/1573356436091969536
  

Top pic is old, rehearsal for Victory Day parade.

Didn’t know that. But there are certainly conscripts fighting in Ukraine with Mosin-Nagant rifles. Astonishing how many AK-47s there are in the world, and Russia doesn’t have any.

I had a few of those belt buckles in the 90s. Ironic souvenirs you'd buy in former East Bloc countries. In terms of functionality they were shite.

Astonishing how many AK-47s there are in the world, and Russia doesn’t have any.

corruption is great

there are certainly conscripts fighting in Ukraine with Mosin-Nagant rifles

Are they Russian or people from the occupied areas? Something I read that was linked here earlier this week suggested you had people in old uniforms wearing trainers and using old rifles and they were always local conscripts, not regular army.

Seeing photos of the queues at the finnish border made me think; what if everyone/finland lifted some of the visa sanctions to allow russians who would otherwise face conscription to leave the country?

Might be better in the long run if the people had to stay and do something about their shitty government rather than run away from the problem though.

Might be better in the long run if the people had to stay and do something about their shitty government rather than run away from the problem though.

Do you extend that to all asylum seekers?

Seeing Russians that have been comfortably living abroad for decades, yet march with soviet flags to support Russia and abuse Ukrainian refugees i'd think otherwise - close all the borders and force them face their own shitty government and their own shitty decision to do nothing about it.

There are around 3.5M people Russian speakers in Germany and around 2M of ethnic Russians. I haven't seen big anti war protests there but i've seen parades to support Russia.

asylum seekers

Visa does not equal asylum and vice versa.

It doesn't but the premise is the same, people threatened with political persecution or threat of harm being told go home and change your regime, don't run away

Ultimately, if everyone who doesn't approve of Putin leaves the country, who is left to change the country? Threat of conscription is not the same as the political enemies who are being killed or imprisoned. That said, I agree broadly.

I guess, I haven't read a single commentator since or before this started suggest that public uprising or democratic process will be how Putin is removed, most seem to point to it coming from people in positions of power acting out of self preservation, be that oligarch's, other political figures or military/ intelligence agency members

I appreciate having an open door for visa's will allow a bunch of wealthy or apathetic people who have been happy to turn a blind eye to what Putin does while it doesn't impact them directly but it also allows those who will be needed to rebuild the country in the future a chance to escape and those that have opposed him. The current brain drain from Russia can't be understated and that will have implications in the future.

I think people leaving Russia is hugely problematic for the government. Brain drain for sure, but also the signals it sends to other nations.

Pro war Russians have been really obnoxious in many countries.

Pro war people are generally quite obnoxious in my experience, regardless of nationality or the war in question.

Being a pacifist doesn't work out very well when dealing with Russia.

related: picture of not obnoxious pro peace protesters

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