Memes

Can't really say much more than I disagree with you on the fundamentals. I don't think I'm going to convince you otherwise and I don't think you'll convince me. I don't think the US or NATO are some perfect entities, but I also think your blaming of NATO for the situation in Ukraine is disingenuous at best. If you really think Russia is operating in good faith and that Putin's motivation for his invasion of Ukraine out of nowhere is because he felt threatened by NATO then I have a bridge to sell you. I agree that the US has benefitted greatly from NATO and has worked hard politically to bring NATO to where it is, but to act as though NATO members are just puppets being pulled by the US's strings is to severely misunderstand their positions in the world. This is especially the case for the people of Ukraine. You seem quite ready to dismiss what their people want for their country and to act as though the US is behind it all. You can tow the Russian line about Azov or whatever "Nazi" propaganda they've served to justify Russia's actions, but it's all a twisting of reality to justify Putin invading another nation, just as you would so readily dump on the US for.

And you can criticize the west's coverage of China all you want. I'm glad to hear it. I disagree with you, but I happily welcome opposing viewpoints. The same goes for Russia. I disagree with you and I'll say it, but disagreement and censorship are two different things. And at the end of the day this entire conversation was triggered because I disagree with mods banning people for unclear rules they've arbitrarily decided on the spot. If you think "Orientalism" is a good reason to ban every western article about China without establishing a clear community rule about that, then that's the only real line between your views and mine that matters to me. If you think censoring viewpoints that aren't in line with yours in general is okay, then we're not going to get past that impasse.

I never claimed the US was good on censorship. That's the difference between your arguments and mine. I am perfectly willing to shit on how terrible the US has been. I only think China and Russia have been worse. I've had coworkers from both the USSR and China. I've heard their horror stories about being forced to live in Siberia or being unable to get information freely or speak out freely. But even so, I don't think the US should be the world's solo superpower. I agree that the US has been the epitome of greed in the past century and has positioned themselves financially and militarily in a way that benefits them first and foremost. I think a world where nations cooperate on an even playing field is a much better world. But I'm not so foolish as to delude myself into thinking that Russia or China aren't similarly motivated by power. At the end of the day, global politics is a poker game where everybody is cheating. I don't support any one country, but rather I support ideals. Countries will always fail you, but knowing where you stand on issues like censorship or democracy won't.