cross-posted from: https://hexbear.net/post/6943504

cross-posted from: https://news.abolish.capital/post/11749

The voice of an anarchist who fled Ukraine to escape mobilization and war thecollective Thu, 12/04/2025 - 15:10

Mainstream media and even some “anarchist” or “radical left” media outlets bombard us with reports about soldiers on the front lines, but stubbornly refuse to listen to the voices of those who reject war and violent mobilization for war purposes. We take a different approach. We prefer to give space to the voices of those who fled the war rather than to hypocrites who describe the war as a liberation struggle.

Viatcheslav is an anarchist who fled mobilization. To quote him: “I refused to join the army and fled at the beginning of the war in 2022. It’s not that I particularly like Putin’s regime; I know very well that he is a dictator and that under his regime I would have no freedom and, as an anarchist, my life would even be in danger. But I have no desire to sacrifice my life so that the Ukrainian bourgeoisie can enjoy their privileges, so that the sons of oligarchs my age can continue to sunbathe on the beaches of Odessa while I tremble with fear in a trench, waiting to be bombed by a drone. War is also a class issue: if you are rich, it is very easy to obtain a medical certificate and be exempted from going to the front. That is not my case. It is not fair. That is why I decided to leave. Here in France, I was not welcomed with open arms.”

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  • BaroqueInMind@piefed.social
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    2 days ago

    Eh, if you run away from fascism instead of fighting against it, it will simply eventually find you as it spreads like a disease.

    Look what is happening right now across Europe as evidence: right-wing Christian fascist homophobe extremists are getting elected all over.

    Unless you eliminate the idea of fascism by killing the people who push the idea, there is no deterrence.

    You can’t ask bullies politely to stop making you suffer, because they never respected you in the first place.

    But the dude has a good point: wealthy people get to avoid violence by paying money to make it go away. I have a simple solution for this…

    • davel [he/him]@lemmy.ml
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      2 days ago

      Eh, if you run away from fascism instead of fighting against it, it will simply eventually find you as it spreads like a disease.

      He was running away from fascists alright: the ones who would have conscripted him.

      Look what is happening right now across Europe as evidence: right-wing Christian fascist homophobe extremists are getting elected all over.

      Unless you eliminate the idea of fascism by killing the people who push the idea, there is no deterrence.

      Fascism isn’t an idea; it’s not a meme that suddenly went viral across Europe & North America. It’s a weapon wielded by the capitalist class to beat down the working class.

      Once more let me remind you what fascism is. It need not wear a brown shirt or a green shirt – it may even wear a dress shirt. Fascism begins the moment a ruling class, fearing the people may use their political democracy to gain economic democracy, begins to destroy political democracy in order to retain its power of exploitation and special privilege.Tommy Douglas

    • UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world
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      2 days ago

      Eh, if you run away from fascism instead of fighting against it, it will simply eventually find you as it spreads like a disease.

      The goal of war is not to die for your country but to make the other fucker die for his.

      The Ukrainian military has done a far better job getting it’s people killed than killing fascists. There’s no benefit to getting dragged into an army that won’t train you, arm you, or deploy you to maximum beneficial effect.

      You can’t ask bullies politely to stop making you suffer, because they never respected you in the first place.

      This isn’t a schoolyard brawl, it’s a high tech killing field. If a neighborhood bully fires a cruise missile at you, there’s no benefit to standing your ground.