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Comment by wetpaws | Hacker News Reader

Russia is a huge totalitarian prison and nobody can do much without being arrested or murdered.

While enacting a substantial change does not appear possible you can protest and people do, at least in larger cities streets become full with people holding banners. (Photo galleries were posted on HN and FWIW I have supporting information from someone who is directly there.) Protesters are selectively detained, but there is no mass murder or vanishing of people unlike what I imagine would happen in China (or Hong Kong now) so not sure if 'totalitarian prison' is entirely descriptive.

Blocking is a trade-off. Take Google access as another instance. On one hand, it lets sane people not be limited to just state propaganda by watching live the destruction their government is enacting, as well as communicate to the outside world that they do not support it by protesting and sharing photos of protests. OTOH, it lets bots mass-report YT livestream watchers, causing automated ban waves. If we block access, we address the latter, but also eliminate the former.

There are ways to protest without risking arrest: walkouts and silent vigils. Nobody will arrest people simply walking on the streets in silence.

Imagine the power of rivers of people covering the Russian city streets at the same time, simply walking in silence. No signs, no screaming, no pushing against police - just walking. It would send a strong signal to the leadership with minimal danger to the protesters.

You kidding? That's exactly what have been happening in Russia, or Belarus. When there is a larger crowd on the street that it supposed to be and it shows some signs that it's politically motivated, the police starts to catch people, like any random person. Because it doesn't matter who you put to jail. It made like that to send a signal so everyone sees that them could be next simply by going outside.

Sorry, I didn't know. That's horrifying.

I guess you have to see how it work there:

- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VfKdiI_usQs - https://www.youtube.com/shorts/usqhDfBPsMc - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0q40OsZjoV8 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3acUPxtV-w

Or just search something like "russia protests police" on YouTube

Just like Ukranians are being murdered.

For their opinion?

For even less, for just being Ukranian.

Any proofs? Please send me a link to an article where some Ukrainians were killed by their own government forces (that’s an important point) for being Ukrainian. Or for some protest actions.

From my side, I can easily send you hundreds of links to prove that you can be jailed just for clicking the “like” button in Russia.

That's not what I mean.

I mean Russians are murdering Ukranians right now.

So the least Russians opposed to it could do is protest even under threat of arrest. Protests already are happening in Russian cities so it is possible.

You are not following Belarus or Russia close enough to know that protests are going on non stop for pretty much a decade for little to no avail. Your view is understandable (I used to be likewise naive), but it does not have much connection to reality.

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