this post was submitted on 09 Oct 2023
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Tankiejerk

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Dunking on Tankies from a leftist perspective.

A tankie is someone who defends/supports authoritarian or even totalitarian regimes who call themselves "socialist". The term originated from people supporting the 1956 invasion of Hungary by the Soviet Union. Nowadays they are just terminally online, denying genocides, and falling for totalitarian propaganda and calling such regimes "true democracies". remember to censor usernames when necessary.

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[–] zeppo 93 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Seems reasonable to me. It’s strange to me how these people hate US liberals, never say a word about US conservatives, and love Russia and China, despite none of those things being in line with their professed beliefs.

[–] [email protected] 54 points 1 year ago (1 children)

You can't be pro worker and pro China, the literal sweatshop nation.

[–] [email protected] 50 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Tankies go out of their way to defend an absolute hereditary monarchy just because the Kim Dynasty says they are communist, defending China is nothing in comparison. They are the same kind of idiots as the ones that fell for the "Sozialistische Arbeiterpartei" (socialist workers party) part of the NSAPD's (aka Nazi party) name.

[–] [email protected] 27 points 1 year ago (2 children)

North Korea isn't a monarchy. It's a necrocracy. Officially the first Kim is still leader, despite being dead.

[–] RedAggroBest 11 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Sounds like a theocracy with extra steps

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

It basically is.

Weird mix between Fascism, and Theocracy.

Interesting read on this:

The Cleanest Race: How North Koreans See Themselves and Why it Matters is a 2010 book by Brian Reynolds Myers. Based on a study of the propaganda produced in North Korea for internal consumption, Myers argues that the guiding ideology of North Korea is a race-based far-right nationalism derived from Japanese fascism, rather than any form of communism. The book is based on author's study of the material in the Information Center on North Korea.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cleanest_Race

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 year ago

It has layers, like onions, and green ogres.

[–] NOT_RICK 22 points 1 year ago (1 children)

They’re not talking about liberals in the way the word is used in contemporary American politics, they’re using the classical definition of liberal which fits most mainstream Americans be them democrats or republicans.

[–] zeppo 31 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Right, I understand that distinction, but their philosophy doesn't make sense or hold consistence even in that context. The highest scorn is reserved for the most socialist American politicians, and American conservatives are pretty much 100% in line with the politics of Russia, other than gun control. Also, it makes no sense to revere China and Russia due to their governments being communist 60 years ago, because they are not now. Most of the discussion seems to be about foreign policy with little regard given to workers' rights or economics.

[–] [email protected] 15 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

It's absurd.

The people running the show in Russia, are often the people who helped cause the catastrophic collapse of the USSR, along with all the suffering that caused.

I honestly don't get why people who go on about the ultra-rich and opposing capitalism, then support actual oligarch robber barons who's hobbies include raping underage girls, sitting on a whaleforeskin couch drinking overpriced champagne, and ruining countries from the safety of their goldplated super yaught.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago

Exactly fuck all the shit from the bottom to the top.

[–] Fried_out_Kombi 75 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (2 children)

I'm not even communist — rather a Georgist myself — but it's so fun to portray THEM as the conservative reactionaries and paid shills. They literally don't even know how to properly respond. The best part is everything I said is 100% true: tankies ARE in fact errand boys for the imperial elites. Or at the very least useful idiots.

[–] [email protected] 47 points 1 year ago (2 children)

The best part is everything I said is 100% true: tankies ARE in fact errand boys for the imperial elites.

It's so unreal for me, that they'd champion Russia and China of all places. I remember reading a comment from one tankie defending Xi removing his own term limit. "Clearly people like him, he has overwhelming poll numbers. Depriving them of the chance to continue to vote for him would be undemocratic"

[–] Fried_out_Kombi 39 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Depriving them of the chance to continue to vote for him would be undemocratic

Oh man, the irony. Do they not remember that China doesn't even pretend to have national popular elections? The people can't vote for Xi even if they actually wanted to!

[–] uis 3 points 1 year ago

Huh. Just like Putin's "nullification"

[–] [email protected] 15 points 1 year ago

That's because they are reactionary scum, and just don't like admitting it.

[–] ThePyroPython 46 points 1 year ago

Sincerely, thank you. Fuck these fascist edgelords.

[–] [email protected] 37 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I love that when the issue of Ukrainian working class being murdered and exploited under a Russian kleptocracy comes up, the only thing they have is "But NATO bad!!!!"

[–] Fried_out_Kombi 21 points 1 year ago

All workers are equal but some workers are more equal than others /s

[–] Roflmasterbigpimp 10 points 1 year ago

Reminds me of the Guy (I can't remember who it was) that one-upped the Conspiracy theorists. "The Moon Landing was faked" "You still belive in the Moon?!"

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago

Yeah, I like it, kind of funny.

[–] peopleproblems 5 points 1 year ago

Oh man

my day has been made I love it

[–] uis 4 points 1 year ago

I mean that's true. Even fucking CPRF members hate Putin, his mafia and his imperialism.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

It always perplexes me whenever I see far-left american students excusing Putin (a far-right dictator who even wants a state from us), conservative gay men A) existing and B) supporting Trump, transgenders licking Stalin’s boots and ultra-Orthodox Jews in New York joining forces with the far-right because they’re both lobbying to make being trans illegal and think such politicians are Israel’s friends when in reality they’re just selfishly using it to fulfill their doomsday prophecy. Guys, they won’t and historically haven’t hesitated to throw y’all in camps on day one after getting what they want.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago

You're the fucking man

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

I feel like tankies and anarchists proliferate on social media so well (relative to communists) because it's simple for them to comment something "fresh" on a piece of news whereas communists say the same correct things over-and-over and just get dismissed as class reductionist or champagne socialist. Tankies (and paradoxically anarchists) get to pick a side in the Russo-Ukraine invasion and vomit a myriad of poor excuses in defense of their position while communists can only advocate for revolutionary defeatism.

[–] [email protected] 10 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Feels odd to see tankies and anarchists grouped together

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

It's even funnier when you think there's Russian anarchists and Nazis fighting side by side against Russia in Ukraine lmao

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

People classify them as libleft and authleft but in the end they both carry water for capital. Anarchists are perhaps more articulate than libertarians but they both fundamentally agree that it's the right ideals/laws that make society prosper rather than the structure of the economy. Tankies think communism is when the state has a monopoly on labor.