LT42 This is what you said. Now you’re saying footage would be at least restricted to Russian people anyway.
I genuinely don’t know what point you’re trying to make here? Your wording doesn’t seem very good.
LT42 To your point about Vietnam, images and footage did sway public opinion and that was the 1st time in history where journalists and news channels were actively squeezed to show less because of that very fact, but we live in 2022 now.
For many Russians though their media is still as, or even more, strictly regimented as it would have for Americans in the 70s. A lot of Russians can’t speak English and/or won’t be surfing the internet via a VPN. But the fact that the breakthrough of media coverage having an impact with Vietnam shows it does have an effect, whether it’s traditional media or social media being used to reach people with the reality isn’t a big problem.
Also a reminder that the invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan began before Twitter had even been created. Also that social media helped create the Arab Spring in 2010-12.
LT42 It would take you all of 20 seconds to find ISIS beheading videos, tank commanders getting their heads blown off by sniper fire or US soldiers getting blown to smithereens by IEDs.
Those are different wars, on different scales, in different, more distant countries, in different contexts. This one will be much closer to home and more relatable for many people. Russia would not have experienced anywhere near as many casualties as this in any of their invasions in recent decades and fewer Russians would have been personally impacted. And again, I’ll point out that this was not even sold as a war to the Russian people, or even many of those in the army itself. They were not expecting this level of opposition from Ukraine.
Also, life imprisonment and/or execution has of course also never stopped people committing murder, but you can be sure that incidences would be higher if there was less awareness and belief that such actions would have major consequences.
If even one Russian is convinced to reconsider signing up to the Russian army (though I’m aware they have conscription), or one mother convinces their son not to join, it will have been something.
LT42 Yet public opinion matters not. Everyone knows war is shit, we don’t need videos to change our mind of that. Regimes go to war despite public opinion.
Not everyone knows every war is shit. Sometimes lots of people consider a war to be just initially, but then realise they were mistaken later on.
Also, sure public opinion doesn’t always matter enough, especially with a dictator like Putin, but it’s not always entirely futile either. A rise of Russian public opinion against the war would make it more likely for someone to wish to overthrow Putin to capitalise on that public opinion, for instance.
