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Re: on sanctions

I was trying to wait to talk about the war in Ukraine, especially here on Geminispace, but I wanted to reply to a recent gemlog.

I am by no means an expert in anything political, nor am I particularly knowledgable about the ongoign conflict. So grab some salt before you start reading.

neil's post on sanctions

I read neil's post with sympathy, but also with disbelief.

i think, believe, that european nations, nato members, concerned others must now impose total economic sanctions on RU and BY; total! including but not limited to:

* trade of any sort

* internet access to rest of the world

* media communication

* financial transactions

* transport links (direct)

All of these strongly disporportionately (and sometimes only) affect those who are also afflicted by Putin's rule. Putin may claim that his imperialism is done for Russia's sake, but are they really? The protests in Russian streets seem to indicate otherwise.

From a practical standpoint, breaking off all communications with Russian citizens is probably simply counterproductive. Putin just blocked Russians from accessing Twitter so that he could control the narrative surrounding Ukraine. Blocking internet access strengthens Putin's control over the popular narrative.

The Russian people need access to reliable information regarding their own government's actions if they wish to oppose it. They are not being given the truth by their own government, and thus rely on outside sources to tease out what's really happening.

What Russia is doing is horrendous, and must be stopped. Couldn't we empower Russians to political action rather than disempower them by taking away any outside support?

~ Josias, 2022-02-27 (CC-BY-NC-SA)