Comments by "Plato\x27s Cave alum" (@platoscavealum902) on "How Russia Sowed 900 Miles of Ukrainian Frontline With Mines | WSJ" video.
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πΊπΈβ π·πΊ Β @JohnJones-k9dΒ , American mistakes do not cancel Russian mistakes. If Putin was smart, he would learn from the mistakes of others, not repeat them.
The notion behind your comment is classic Russian propaganda:
Whataboutism, also known as whataboutery, is a variant of the 'tu quoque' logical fallacy that attempts to discredit an opponent's position by charging them with hypocrisy without directly refuting or disproving their argument.
Whataboutism is particularly associated with Soviet and Russian propaganda. When criticisms were leveled at the Soviet Union during the Cold War, the Soviet response would often be "What about ..." followed by instancing of an event or situation in the Western world.
According to Russian writer and political activist Garry Kasparov, it is a word that was coined to describe the frequent use of a rhetorical diversion by Soviet apologists and dictators, who would counter charges of their oppression, massacres, gulags, and forced deportations by invoking American slavery, racism, lynchings, etc.
β source: Wikipedia: Whataboutism
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