General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Do political pundits who deny the Russian invasion of Crimea deserve to be taken seriously at DU? [View all]guillaumeb
(42,641 posts)The original post started:
Do political pundits who deny the Russian invasion of Crimea deserve to be taken seriously at DU?
By all reported accounts, several days after the departure of former Ukrainian President Victor Yanukovych from Kiev in February 2014, well-armed and organized military units began appearing throughout the Crimean peninsula in Ukraine. These units seized the local parliament, airports, harbors and other government installations in the run-up to a hastily organized March 16, 2014 plebiscite asking Crimeans to accept Crimea's annexation into the Russian Federation.
My original response was:
Why exactly did Yanukovych leave? He was elected in 2010 and was pushing for closer ties with Russia. His policies provoked opposition that turned to armed revolt, leading to him fleeing the country. Was there any foreign support for these right wing militias that overthrew Yanukovych? Careful readers of history know that the US has frequently funded front groups to effect regime change. Think Nicaragua, Cuba, Haiti, Chile, Italy, Greece, Honduras, Venezuela, the list could continue.
Tommy Carcetti writes:
But honestly--should we take these people seriously? Would we take someone who denies the moon landing or the Holocaust seriously? Would we take people who claim we weren't attacked by hijacked airliners on 9-11 seriously? Those types of opinions typically are sent off to creative speculation.
My response:
Interesting verbal trickery here by positing several common denialist scenarios and then implying that the people who disagree with the poster must share them, thus making anyone who disagrees with the poster easy to categorize. I expect this sort of thing from Fox News or the GOP but it has no place in a serious discussion.
Finally I continue:
The US has been accused many times of secretly interfering in other countries. Remember Mohammed Mossadegh in Iran? The plots against Castro? Interference in Nicaragua, in Venezuela? Salvador Allende in Chile anyone? Greece and Italy after WW II anyone? I could continue but the evidence is abundant that the US intervenes constantly in the affairs of many countries as it strives to control the world.
I am not demanding anything other than to ask that people be open to more evidence regarding the whole situation and not accept prima facie the story that the US government has put out. The US government has lied to its citizens before. Tonkin Gulf anyone?