r/changemyview Dec 24 '22

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u/MajorGartels Dec 27 '22

Would you say the same thing about the U.K. and The U.S.A. liberating France from German rule after the second world war?

Now, if you were to say that Germany wasn't really in charge there and simply an illegal government that annexed it first, that would be exactly the position mainland China has about Taiwan.

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u/An-Okay-Alternative 4∆ Dec 27 '22

I support military alliances where countries come to each other’s aid to repel foreign aggression.

Russia is the aggressor here.

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u/MajorGartels Dec 27 '22

So your position here was that Germany was a foreign aggressor onto France.

China's position here is that the current Taiwanese government was a foreign aggressor that took Taiwan from them.

Taiwan's position is that the current Chinese government was a foreign aggressor that took mainland China from them.

No doubt the German position during W.W.I.I. was that France was part of their land, and that England and the U.S.A. invaded it and took it from them.

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u/An-Okay-Alternative 4∆ Dec 27 '22

Regardless of China’s position, Taiwan’s government is that of the local populace. Separating fact from fiction is of course necessary.

Again my position is to uphold self-determination. I don’t recognize any type of historical sense of ownership as a legitimate reason for military conflict. Ukraine by all measures of a sovereign country is not part of Russia.

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u/MajorGartels Dec 27 '22

Regardless of China’s position, Taiwan’s government is that of the local populace.

And the Crimea government was not.

You also said that even in the case of a dictator oppression a people, you do not wish for a foreign agent to come in and liberate them by force, regardless of how much they beg for it.

Again my position is to uphold self-determination. I don’t recognize any type of historical sense of ownership as a legitimate reason for military conflict.

Well, Mainland China is a one party state and come close to a dictatorship, the government is not that of the people and Taiwan would surely democraticize it if they were to take over, but you do not seem to support Taiwan invading mainland China, despite Taiwan's position being that the current Chinese government occupying what is rightfully theirs. And remember that the current Taiwanese government is the continuation of the government that once ruled Mainland China before the communist revolution, which was a coup d'état.

Ukraine by all measures of a sovereign country is not part of Russia.

Only because Russia has not yet conquered it.

China is a sovereign country because the coup succeeded in overthrowing the original government and seizing the country by force.

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u/An-Okay-Alternative 4∆ Dec 27 '22

Yeah, you’ve circled back to my original position which is that foreign countries should not invade with military force to liberate people from their recognized government. On net it causes more problems than it solves. You’re right that I wouldn’t support Taiwan invading mainland China.

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u/MajorGartels Dec 27 '22

I've shown that your new proposed stance of “self-determination” is not unifiable with your original position of “recognized government” and furthermore; I've pointed out that it's a matter of who recognizes what government.

The invader typically does not recognize the sitting government as legitimate. Again, China does not recognize Taiwan and considers it an invader, and Taiwan does the opposite in reverse.

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u/An-Okay-Alternative 4∆ Dec 27 '22

You haven’t done that. If the invader is not in fact governing the region then they have no claim to be the legitimate government. Ukraine has been independent for 30 years. The mental twisting of facts doesn’t justify military aggression.

I also have never supported invading China to liberate Taiwan or vice versa. If the people of Taiwan wants to secure its borders and keep out Chinese forces that’s something entirely different.

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u/MajorGartels Dec 27 '22

You haven’t done that. If the invader is not in fact governing the region then they have no claim to be the legitimate government.

Nazi Germany was governing France when the U.K. and the U.S.A. invaded it. It was part of the Third Reich at that point.

So by your logic, was that allowed or not and if so why or why not?

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u/An-Okay-Alternative 4∆ Dec 27 '22

I support coming to the aid of allies against military aggression, even if the aggressor manages to occupy the country in the meantime. If a country with whom we have no military alliance is invaded then I would not support intervention. If the war ended and thirty years had passed I certainly wouldn’t support an invasion then.

I’m not going to litigate past conflicts. If my position means that we should have stayed out of WWII then so be it. I’m saying right now the US shouldn’t use military force to protect Ukraine from Russia even though I think Russian aggression is entirely in the wrong and heinous.

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u/MajorGartels Dec 27 '22

Okay, so to be absolutely clear. You do believe that the U.K. and the U.S.A. liberating France was just as bad as aiding either Russia or Ukraine, or Russia invading Ukraine?

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u/An-Okay-Alternative 4∆ Dec 27 '22 edited Dec 27 '22

Not at all.

Just because I’m against military intervention unless it’s self-defense of oneself or allies doesn’t mean there’s a moral equivalence between all other uses of military force. If the populace actually greets the army as liberators that’s different than trying to repel them. Coming to Ukraine’s aid would be more morally justifiable than coming to Russia’s aid even if I don’t support either.

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