This is definitely me when I'm not parroting state propaganda!
This is part 1 of our new Libs of Lemmy series. If you wish to contribute, just make sure you include Libs of Lemmy in the title. An award* will be presented for capturing the biggest lemmy lib, so get posting!
NSFW spoiler
*one-way ticket to official CCP cbt + milking dungeon
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THAT is the "whataboutism" they so often fucking accuse us of. It will never not piss me off that when they claim "whataboutism" at us, it's to avoid having to confront the obviously real atrocities of the regime they're defending. But if we use the same rhetoric back at them, it's rUsSiAn DiSinForMazIa!!
Having same standards is whataboutism.
Likewise. It's a thought terminator. I have a theory that you need a more sophisticated understanding of history to be able to place the countries in context. Honestly I'm not sold on Russia being a positive force in the world, but I know what an insatiable imperial war machine America is and I don't think Russia has bloody trails leading through the global south like America does. And I'm more concerned with the country I have a more intimate understanding of having lived there before.
There's a similar trick liberals also pull where they somewhat acknowledge something horrible that
is doing but then say "but that's human nature and everyone would do the same thing if given a chance." 
Liberals and fascists shaking hands meme, and the hands are "building entire social institutions to convince everyone that their specific brand of smug sadism is normal and universal, actually."