Can someone in the UK give me context for what is going on? (Political)

*and yes, it should go without saying... not all immigration.

 

The thing is, though, their neutrality, much like Switzerland's in every European conflict known to exist, generally helps the aggressor more than the oppressed... and if Putin were to get his way and eventually annex Ukraine, Orban would be a fool to think he would stop there - Putin clearly openly wants to, at the very least, return Russia to the level of power in Europe the Soviet Union had, including taking back all the nations that gained independence from it after its fall in the 90s... and ironically, Orban's isolationism now makes him and Hungary a lot more vulnerable to the potential scenario of an invading Russia in the future, and is thereby mistakenly acting against his nation's interests in the long run. True, he has stood up to the EU and closed his borders to preserve Hungary's population and culture - that is a display of backbone, there can be no doubt... but that doesn't mean he can't exercise the common sense needed to be willing to cooperate with the EU in establishing a united front against Putin's hunger for power. Just because he hasn't been critical of the invasion, that doesn't mean Putin won't see him as a target to be swallowed up by his fascist Russian regime - indeed Orban's comparative cooperation in purchasing oil and other energy resources from Russia will only give Putin political ammunition to claim that Hungary is willing to be colonised by Russia, like Donetsk and Luhansk in Ukraine. If Orban continues his current political stance, I can see he will simply be trading one master for another that will be far less accommodating toward Hungary's desire for freedom.

On a related note...


Yesterday, in TV interviews with some of the few heads of Reform councils that have sprouted up around the UK, at least one has openly stated their pledge to take down not just Pride flags (absolutely a good thing), but also Ukraine flags, which is immensely disturbing. I already knew that Farage wasn't as critical of Putin as he should be, but one of his subordinates being openly willing to withdraw visual support for a country fighting a clear self-declared enemy of peace and freedom in Europe, just as we in Britain and the Commonwealth did over 80 years ago, is deluded and sick. Moreover, if it's purely born out of a fear of Russia, it is innately cowardly.

I honestly cannot understand how politicians anywhere, whether here, or in Hungary or the US, cannot simply be right-wing and patriotic, and also remain conscious that Putin's fascism is a threat to national freedom, and is thus an enemy of a true patriot? Support for Ukraine is not Left-wing, it is a genuine gesture of solidarity against aspiring Russian dictatorship.

It just adds more evidence to the proof that there are delusions on both sides of the political spectrum.

 

Switzerland's neutrality in WWII was the ultimate boss move. Not only did they manage to avoid having their country bombed to shit like the rest of Europe, but they convinced everyone to let them hold on to their money. Of course, if push came to shove, they did have the capability to defend their country; that was the key.

I can't speak for Orban, but I have very little fear of Russia taking Hungary. If the war in Ukraine has taught us anything, it's that Russia's forces are not nearly as powerful as some people might believe. Three plus years later and they still haven't managed to conquer Ukraine. If that had been the USA in Russia's place, they could have taken the entire country in like a couple of days, tops. Sure, lowly Ukraine has no real shot of beating the Russians in a war of attrition, but against the might NATO the Russians would be defeated with ease. The second they would attack Hungary or any other NATO country, article 5 kicks in and Russia is crushed. The disparity in military strength is too great.

I am not pro-Ukraine nearly as much as you are. Russia is ultimately wrong in their invasion of a sovereign nation, but the situation is not purely black & white either. The same can be said about material support for Ukraine. Canada is sending over billions of dollars while we have a growing national debt, a housing shortage, an increasingly strained health care system and a myriad of other domestic problems. Sometimes you have to take care of your own.

 

It would be funny if it weren't true.



I did hear someone make a funny comment once, something along the lines of changing his VPN to a UK server and dropping the dirtiest, darkest and most risqué memes just to fuck with the UK police.