this post was submitted on 12 Aug 2023
532 points (78.6% liked)
NonCredibleDefense
3503 readers
7 users here now
Rules:
- Posts must abide by lemmy.world terms and conditions
- No spam or soliciting for money.
- No racism or other bigotry allowed.
- Obviously nothing illegal.
If you see these please report them.
Related communities:
founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
... have you spoken to any Eastern Europeans from the former Warsaw Pact? Like, personally?
Yeah. A number of migrants to the US fleeing the downturn.
I've spoken to a few, and their opinion has been, to a man, overwhelmingly negative towards the old Soviet-supported societies. Economic and health data supports their opinion that the Warsaw Pact era was significantly worse for their countries than the modern day.
Then you're talking to a rarefied group of people. Possibly just the circle you run in.
I'm friends with a couple of engineers and other techies out of Poland and Belarus. They were educated out there and started their careers in the mid-90s, when the economy went into freefall. They did not consider what became of those countries an improvement, and that's before guys like Duda and Lukashenko took office.
Admittedly, I also know a Russian guy who is absolutely ride-or-die for Putin. Loves him. Thinks he saved Russia from collapse. But he's also a big Trump guy who thinks Joe Biden is a communist, so...
'Rarefied'
You sure about that?
This doesn't seem to square with the Orban, Duda, and Iohannis regimes, as they are all fiercely anti-democratic.
Hell, it doesn't square with the current Italian government or with the rising tide of German fascists.
Ah, so you're just ignoring the evidence. Wish I could say I was surprised. We're done here.
I'm presenting ample countervailing evidence.