Engaging in total war has never broken a nation's moral before,... but maybe it'll work for us
~ Ukraine
I don't think there is anything wrong with attacking corporations that supply the war effort, I just think Ukraine is kidding itself if they think you can bomb morale out of people.
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It should be stressed that Ukraine isn't attacking WB instead of attacking refineries, logistics, and shipping. They're doing it in addition.
Warehouses are a soft, easy target. And, like oil facilities, you're counting on the goods themselves to do most of the destruction with a little incendiary help. Ukraine has a large supply of slow, cheap suicide drones and this is a good use for them. You force Russia to move air defenses away from the front, absorb economic and financial losses, and remind regular "non-political" Russians that they're at war. Also, you minimize collateral damage because unless workers are killed in the initial attack, they're likely to escape the conflagration that accounts for most of the damage.
Not mentioning that wildberries sold military equipment to soldiers. It's a valid military targets.
I keep reading this claim, but rarely see specifics discussed. As far as i can tell, it’s electronic equipment that could be used for things like drones, and some light arms related equipment that could, of course, be used in combat, but is probably not designed specifically for that. If theres other stuff, please let us know.
That being said, can we please just be honest? Even if wildberries is a military supplier, if intention of the attacks is to sow civilian fear and unrest, then this is terrorism. I’m so tired of the US (and more generally the “west”) pretending that we don’t engage in terrorism, or endorse and facilitate terrorism. We do, a lot.
Camouflage nets, rifle scopes, body armor, trench candles... Just to name a few.
Are the people downvoting this claiming that the US/the west don’t engage in terrorism? If so, I would love to hear the argument for that claim. Otherwise, I’m going to just assume that y’all are just engaging in the team sport moralism that is so common here in the US whereby things are bad when the “bad guys” do it, but good and righteous when us “good guys” do the same thing.
Here’s a thought exercise for us US folks:
If Iran blew up the Walmart in Bloomington Indiana, would you consider that terrorism? Walmart supplies* tons of stuff that can be used for military action including firearms directly.
I strongly suspect that Americans would be outraged at the inhuman, terroristic barbarism of such an act and use it to argue moral high ground and justify the violence their own nation initiated.
I upvoted you becasue I think it's respectfully written and a valid thought experiment.
I think the experiment fails, or has a negative result:
So it's a matter of degree. This isn't like an American buying boots and sending them to their soldier somewhere. The scale of operations is wildly different.
I do think there would also be a contributory factor of "But... but this is us, not them!", but I think the difference is very clear, and Wilberries is a valid target, whereas Walmart would not be.
Nope, doing a community service. Walmart is a parasite.
If Walmart was displaying a special category “for use in the war with Iran” with tactical clothing and gear, then I would have been less sympathetic to be honest. In this scenario Walmart promote items to send to the soldiers that kill the victims of a military invasion.
They are creating a new marketplace for dual-use goods that were previously, albeit with limitations, traded on WB: https://theins.press/en/news/296020
This is dangerously borderline. I mean, the next step is hitting malls or universities. Thoughts for the civilian killed by this war and their families.
But when a russian missile hits an appartment building, that's somehow fine because reasons, right?
No that's obviously not fine and worse.
Do Ukraine use thermobaric bombs (ones that make your lungs implode)? Or cluster mines? or MOABs Or many things that go against the geneva convention.
Because that's that Russia does. IRL Mordor
Yes, we precisely agree. Russia is doing awful things and Ukraine borderline ones.
Then, that line was already crossed broadly by Russia a good while ago, so there's no borderline anymore. THEY started an invasion, THEY started bombing houses, THEY kidnapped kids to brainwash them. But now that Ukraine is finally fighting back and hitting where it hurts, it's suddenly "a dangerous borderline"?
Wtf friend, it's not suddenly a dangerous borderline, it always has been a borderline, which Russia crossed long ago, it's not the point. Russia is bad, Russia is the aggressor, but it doesnt mean Ukraine can do borderline things without me calling it borderline.
Oh well.
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