• Evilsandwichman [none/use name]@hexbear.net
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    2 days ago

    But I thought Maduro was a dictator; wouldn’t giving his people guns and training them to use it mean he’s creating a militia hostile to him in his own country?

    If only there was a lib who could finagle an explanation for me for why this still tracks.

    • I think if the libs had a frame of comparison, it’d be like that time Ukraine gave off weapons to civvies during such conflict.

      Albeit, unlike Ukraine, hopefully this time, the Venezuelan gov’t gave their people gun training and discipline.

      • Evilsandwichman [none/use name]@hexbear.net
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        2 days ago

        Libs would first have to understand that ‘dictator’ is a nonsense term and that they’re being lied to about Maduro, but any visit to reddit indicates it’ll never happen (and I don’t recommend visiting reddit; it hurts my brain reading the nonsense they spout over there, let alone the unabashed racism)

      • GiorgioPerlasca@lemmy.mlOP
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        2 days ago

        Ukraine problem is different.

        After the collapse of the USSR, Ukraine inherited significant stocks of Soviet weaponry, and Ukrainian military personnel were trained to operate this equipment.

        Regarding the transition to NATO standards, this process requires time and resources. Mastering new weapon systems, changing supply chains, and adapting tactics are complex challenges for any army. Many countries transitioning to the Alliance’s standards face similar challenges.

        The Russian defense industry continues to produce equipment compatible with Soviet standards, which creates certain difficulties in the current conditions.

        Also, not being able to buy cheap and effective Chinese dual usage drones to not offend the USA is a huge limit.

    • Cyphierre@lemmy.ml
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      2 days ago

      It would be like if Trump created a national police force just to recruit his regime loyalists and used government money to fund their weapons and salaries. It’s a crazy idea, I know, but it’s a valid analogy.

      • Evilsandwichman [none/use name]@hexbear.net
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        2 days ago

        but it’s a valid analogy

        Almost; the added context that unfortunately breaks it is that this would have to be on the eve of a war with a comparative superpower that is leagues superior to America and having to hope that you aren’t arming subversive forces who’ll turn on you in this one sided war; then there’s also that this superpower would have crafted a rival political group that both it and the superpower accept as the legitimate government (so like if Democrats said the election was rigged and they were the real winners, and the superpower treated it as fact). Trump isn’t stupid enough to do that; basically no one is; for example this national police force would also need to number high enough to be of any value in war, and this many people easily allows for subversive forces.

        Heck, in the real world you have leftist youtubers infiltrating these groups all the time.

        The idea is too crazy for the analogy to be valid; you’d have to dumb everything way too down for it to work.

        Edit: actually for that matter, there’s no one in America that seriously wants to actually militarily overthrow Trump, which is the ludicrous claims about Maduro.