Russia - threadbanned users in OP

Whatever you are smoking is not doing you any good. "Strong intel" 🙄

Okay will bother with a response giving more detail of my thoughts on it, despite speed of flow of thread probably means it is somewhat irrelevant now.

A few logical statements based around the ideas in your posts which should illustrate problems with your emotional argument.

Revoking Western visas != "ethnic cleansing" of Russians (was per another poster, not you in fairness and what started these discussions)

Revoking a Western visa != "destroying" a life in every case per your own hyperbole (at least not "ethnic cleansing" levels of hyperbole).

There would obviously need to be discretion & consideration about step of actively removing people, e.g. do you expel someone who has lived here quite a long time (long enough for a citizenship perhaps?), has embedded entire work & their life here? Do you expel someone who is known to be "wanted" by the govt./would on their lists for some reason? I would say no, that would indeed be ruining a life. The far easier choice perhaps is to first stop the granting such visas to Russians any more until there is a policy change (retreat from Ukraine) or better until the current regime under Putin is gone from power for good.

Revoking a visa != imprisonment or internment.

IRA != Irish govt. or Irish people. Now maybe if the Irish state had been backing up the IRA, the UK govt. might have been justified taking a collective action against Irish citizens.

Please do remember, this is the Russian govt. here, launching this war in the Russian people's name. Though Russia is not a democracy like Ireland, Putin has been quite popular in the past. I believe this has been waning in more recent years (hence his need to repress any opposition alot more, use propaganda & to fix "elections" more blatently). I don't know how much support this action has in Russia, probably few posting here do and we'll have to wait and see how it all turns out.

It's funny, some of the harsh and getting harsher sanctions being dished out now are definitely a collective economic punishment of Russia and all its citzens for the Putin/Regime/govt. actions. They are actually going to disrupt lives, cause suffering and cost the Russians alot of money, perhaps their jobs, livelyhood, and ability to holiday in/easily travel to the EU/US given the extensive airline and flight path bans today, as we'll see in coming days/weeks.

The weapons the West is supplying to Ukraine are likely killing Russian conscripts with no say who've been packed off to wage a nasty and stupid war by Putin. You should also be opposed to these actions, as they will definitely hurt ordinary Russians, just not those ones comfortably living in the West on a visa or intending to come here soon on a visa for study/business/pleasure.

I'm just simply so embarrassed by that. Sorry Ukraine. ☹️☹️

Why can there not be a neutral Ukraine? Why choose positions? Siding with an unfriendly military alliance and this was going to cause a war. Need both sides to pull back from the brink here and NATO and US and West to have a meaningful debate with Russia. Russia and Ukraine can get along in peace just accept some dashes of realism that there is a large group of people in Ukraine who prefer to be ruled by Russia. It's a breakup of the country but a far better alternative than nuclear armageddon. 

C'mon! Is there really "strong intel" of this, and has it been shared with you? The whole situation is fckued up, but there's no need to lose the run of ourselves with exaggeration.

Why should their country be broken up??

There cant be a neutral Ukraine when Russia only respects military force in its recognition of the rights and boundaries of other nations.

A neutral Ukraine is just at Russias mercy.

Had the Baltic States stayed neutral after the cold war ended there is no doubt in my mind they would now have been reabsorbed into the Russian empire. That was the thrust of Putins speech and all former Russian or Soviet territory being still Russian in his mind.

Neutral Finland is now more likely to join NATO not less when you see Russias true colours.

The intel was correct until now. No reason to doubt it now. Of course, I hope sincerely that I am wrong. But the old Soviet Empire did not just consist of the Ukraine and Russia. Why would Putin stop with the Ukraine. What does he have to lose? Only time will tell.

It is not an exaggeration to say that this is the most precarious political conflict that anybody amongst us has witnessed in our lifetime. And I cannot see an easy resolution

This. Some people just love to have to opportunity to get outraged.

Can't help themselves, want to look relevant.