this post was submitted on 07 Oct 2023
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Political Memes

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[–] [email protected] 272 points 1 year ago (6 children)

If only people could understand the basic concept that hating a government is possible without hating the people living there.

[–] [email protected] 109 points 1 year ago (4 children)

Exactly. Hamas is a monstrous organization based on the most corrupted religious fundamentalism, but I have nothing but love for the people of Gaza.

[–] [email protected] 32 points 1 year ago (3 children)

Reminder that Hamas is widely supported by most Palestinians

53% of Palestinians believe Hamas is "most deserving of representing and leading the Palestinian people"

https://apnews.com/article/hamas-middle-east-science-32095d8e1323fc1cad819c34da08fd87

[–] [email protected] 41 points 1 year ago (2 children)

First of all I really wouldn't put much weight on the voting results in an area where Hamas uses violence for decades to keep in power. Especially if there isn't any semblance of a modern democratic state such as regular(!!) elections, freedom of speech and a free press. A 1-2 generation long youth indoctrination like the Nazis did also really doesn't create an educated and politically mature population.

And of course 53% still leaves a huge amount of people who aren't in favour. Not to mention that there is a 70+ year long ongoing conflict which has left pretty much no one in Gaza (or Israel for that matter) who doesn't know someone getting hurt or killed by the opposing side's actions. It's hardly surprising that there's hard feeling (major understatement) in a lot of people.

And lastly we certainly wouldn't want to use public opinion as justification for killing civilians. That's the reasoning the likes of Osama bin Laden do to justify shit like 9/11.

TL;DR: This conflict is complicated as hell and basically a self fueling cycle of hatred where even the good side is acting very shitty a lot of times.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago (1 children)

whatever do you mean by "the good side"? there is no good side.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 10 months ago
[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

maybe it's not complicated. All groups who fight oppressors have been labelled as violent extremists. so perhaps it's actually quite simple.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

This conflict is anything but simple. Nearly a century of bloody violence by both sides seldom makes for a clear good vs evil conflict. The fact that Hamas still is the worse autocratic despotic ruler when compared to the hardliner wanna be authoritarians of Netanyahu's party proves that. Fighting back against oppression doesn't absolve you from the human duty of compassion and when you indiscriminately kill civilians your fight isn't justice anymore but just another crime against humanity!

Maybe back when the Zionist militants/terrorist first started to wage their war to get their own country one could have pointed at one side as the good one. But since then both sides have committed countless atrocities. The only thing for sure is that neither kids deserve to grow up in such an environment and to be raised to continue the fight for another generation.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago

Seems like the Palestinians want the right to return to their homes and communities and Israel just can't find a way to give a damn.

[–] [email protected] 15 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Because they feel that trying to reason with Israel has zero effect.

[–] [email protected] -1 points 1 year ago

Statistics without context are worse than lies.

[–] [email protected] 24 points 1 year ago (2 children)

I think he was referring to Israel?

[–] [email protected] 42 points 1 year ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 14 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Hold my pita and hamas, I'm goin in!

[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 year ago

Yes, exactly. It's worth noting though, that many good people are brought into these regimes, and are folded into the hate by their leaders, and the hate they receive from the extremists that oppose them. Not only do terrorists and gangs harm those they seek to harm, but they also grow and root their evil into the normal and healthy communities they base themselves in. Both Hamas and Israel are poisoning their own people more than those they directly kill.

[–] [email protected] 62 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

Yes, but also that hating a government (or even just decisions of a government) doesn't extend to hating people across the globe who identify with the same religion that government is using to oppress people.

(American Jew who hates what Israel is doing)

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Is being a Jew more being a people or being a part of a religion?

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago

I think that's a question that every Jewish person would have a different answer to. For me, I'm an Atheist Jew; but religion is more than blind faith, it contains culture, values, and yes peoplehood. I like being part of a small and tight community, sharing ethical discussions and rituals with those in it.

Like most similar questions, yours comes down to semantics. How do you define religion? A people? My concern with questions like that is it can be interpreted by some maliciously. E.g. They're not a religion like us, they're a race and we must exterminate them.

[–] [email protected] 23 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

One of my favorite quotes:

If I have one message to give to the secular American people, it’s that the world is not divided into countries. The world is not divided between East and West. You are American, I am Iranian, we don’t know each other, but we talk together and we understand each other perfectly. The difference between you and your government is much bigger than the difference between you and me. And the difference between me and my government is much bigger than the difference between me and you. And our governments are very much the same.  - Marjane Satrapi 

Different situation, same idea.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 year ago

I mean, look at the United States

[–] [email protected] 0 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Israel claims to be a democracy and also commits genocide.

[–] [email protected] -1 points 1 year ago
  1. Democracy and genocide are separate

  2. Israel is by definition obviously not committing genocide, the Palestinians population is only going up

[–] [email protected] -2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Russians understand. Belorusians too.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago

Original comment has 3 downvotes, mine 9. "It's different" it seems.