Hacker News Reader

Comment by haerra | Hacker News Reader

As a side note, I find the language you are using strange. I do not know if it's my perspective of the world being different than yours, but I'll try to explain.

In my perspective, genocide is a very, very strong word. Hitler killed 6 million Jews, as he literally wanted them exterminated.

Now, crime is a crime, none should be defended nor downsized. But the primary goal behind that genocide was extermination. Do you claim that Russia is trying to exterminate Ukrainians? Or you are using it just to point out the war crimes that the Russian army is did?

View on HN

Not who you replied to, but yes, I am claiming that Russia is trying to exterminate Ukrainians.

From the (admittedly, rambling) speeches of their top command about how Ukraine is not a real country and intentional shelling of civilian structures, to mass murder of civilians being uncovered after russian forces are pushed back and abduction of children, there is no way you can call the goal of russian forces anything but extermination of a nation.

Of course, the official body count is not yet past 6 million, and UN paperwork calling it genocide is not yet signed. So yeah, you're right, it's not genocide, just murder on industrial scale.

For the sake of disclosure, I'm from Latvia, a country that shook off the russian yoke in 90s, and my own mother has chilling memories of red army acting the same animalistic way as what we hear from Ukraine today. "Bias" or "experience" - choose your own label.

Yes, russia is engaged in many actions that make clear that they are perpetrating a genocide, such as:

- literally saying Ukraine should not exist

- saying Ukrainians aren't a real people, just russians

- planning to solve "The Ukraine Question" (yes, phrased by the Kremlin just as another dictator phrased "The Jewish Question")

- planning to end Ukraine as a country and split up the land between themselves and other countries (maps have even been found among russian forces in Ukraine illustrating this)

- mass executions to rid Ukrainian land of Ukrainians (see Bucha for just 1 example)

- mass shelling of civilian targets (homes, etc.) in cities to rid Ukrainian land of Ukrainians

- destroying and stealing grain from Ukraine to starve Ukrainians (russia has a history of doing this in Ukraine, see: Holodomor)

- refusing and attacking international food aid, mefical aid, and rescue to Ukrainian civilians

- announcing Ukrainians who fled the fighting will have their property and homes given to pro-russian fighters in territory russia controls

- shooting and shelling civilians who try to evacuate

- sending Ukrainians in areas russia controls to "filtration camps" where those who show support for Ukraine are executed or forcibly deported to russia or russian controlled land

- destroying Ukrainian cultural landmarks

- forcing Ukrainians in russian controlled territory to not speak Ukrainian

the list goes longer, but russia has not at all tried to hide it, simply watch what the state propagandists and putin himself say and have said of Ukraine as a sovereign state

I am sure You have your rightful reasons for this anger, I am sure a lot of people do. I mean, even when You write 'Russia', 'Putin', You purposefully write without capital letters.

Maybe time will tell that, despite your anger, You are right. But I sure pray to God that You are not, and that it hasn't/won't come to that.

Heya, since HN is a worldwide website, I think language or locale differences may have led you to misunderstand my post.

The post actually does not contain anger, and is a well researched list of things russia actually has done and is doing.

As well, since they are facts, and not emotion, and since those facts together (even 2 or 3 of them alone, much less all of them taken together) constitute genocide, my own rightness or wrongness is irrelevant to the fact that russia is engaging in genocide.

Though Ukrainians are no doubt thankful of prayers for them in the face of russia's genocide, and your sympathy for them is no doubt appreciated, so thank you <3

Reply on news.ycombinator.com