Quote (ferdia @ 11 Mar 2022 16:59)
I stand by the benign dictator statement. The fact that you are taking this out of context is on you, not me. In terms of different cultures/nations having different ways of governance I would say that it is you that is misreading. to summarize my position: the form of government in any country, whether democratically elected or not, is not the determining factor as to whether that government framework would work in another country or not, or that another country needed a democratically elected government to work as well. In terms of nifty quotes in signatures, I dont have same but you do. regardless of whether another user has misquoted or w/e, if the quote or signature is determined (by me) as nice, i will say it, but dont then do a Cathy Newman on me and read further into that then face value.
finally, i agree with all of this: talking about putin is not the narrow-minded gossiping you probably imagine when reading the (likely misattributed) quote in santara's sig. he's an important statesman, has been a major influence in world politics for several decades, the single most influential person of a major military power. discussing his decisions and character, the consequences of his actions, is legitimate and important discourse. the "person" inextricably linked with "ideas" and ideals he represents and "events" that he causes and influences. you can't just disregard one element that's uncomfortable, and try to rationalise away current events (a full blown war, a hostile invasion, war crimes, lies, miscalculations, tragedy, suffering, death, propaganda...) by imagining an "idea" he ideally could stand for in an alternative universe. we're all living in a timeline where he's a murderer, war-monger, and dictator.
you doubling down on your fallacious talking points doesn't make them any more right or credible, especially if done without providing any further context or substance. it also doesn't make your random tangent about different forms of government and democratic legitimacy any more relevant to the original discussion. as predicted, you can't even back up your claim of the alleged "
general acceptance" of the "
benign dictatorship" as ideal government claim, so i don't even have to explain how acceptance doesn't necessarily imply acceptability. so maybe let's agree to focus on actual events, not idealised fantasies of what putin could stand for in a different universe.