this post was submitted on 25 Apr 2025
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Can you please dont repost russian propaganda??? This looks like russian PMCs in Mali, posting for a photo op. By using it as a meme Template u further "russia strong" narrative.
If i should be wrong with my assumptions please let me know.
As someone who doesn't know shit about military technology, nothing about this suggests Russia to me. In fact it doesn't suggest any country, except "hur dur Americans like shooting" because of context.
So I don't know, is it propaganda if you need to have specialised knowledge to recognise what's being advertised?
Just because you dont recognize State backed Private Military Forces who committing war crimes in Mali...dosent mean this Picture is less propaganda. Would u still find the meme funny if it where the same picture but u would realize what it is?
edit: never mind i just realized what instance this was posted in...arguments are probably futile
I don't know, it at least doesn't seem like very effective propaganda if only a tiny group of people even recognise what it's showing. Propaganda usually tries to reach as many people as possible with very simple and effective imagery. So I'm not sure.
I get where you're coming from, if you do have that specialised knowledge, it must be obvious to you. But without that, I don't see how anyone would think "Russia strong" just from this picture. For all I know, they might be Ukrainians.
They arent Ukrainians, what would make you think that. See the idea behind this picture in the first place was "we show off new gun development" aka "russia strong", added to that where this picture was taken and you have a geopolitical context. That not everyone strait out sees that they are russians....i would say furthers the meme because this makes it "slip thru" and gain some traction, if enough ppl see the picture they will ask themself "huh what is that creazy weapon" and then someone in the comments points out its "russias new mega blaster 9000 russia strong hahaha".
I dont even say that with the caption above it it aint making for a flat laugh...it probably does. But the issu is deeper, people would probably not laugh about a picture showing a American Drone strike with the caption "dropped a big one in the toilet" but concept wise its the same thing.
Or Argentinians or New Zealandians or Norwegians or South Africans or whatever. What would make me think that (if I even thought of ANY nationality) is that I don't know, I know nothing about any military, I wouldn't recognise them unless they have very ostentatious symbols of their nationality somewhere on them or I'm being told "these are [country]ans". That's why I said "for all I know" and then added the most polar opposite option I could think of.
Which I also don't recognise. Might be anywhere in the world. (well, "anywhere" is an exaggeration, it does look rather hot and dry)
That would count as propaganda, of course, from that person in particular.
I don't know, active drone strikes seem different to me from some dude posing with a stupid big gun. The connection to "Americans being posers in Walmart" is a lot stronger.
Anyway, what I can accept is that people might use this picture for their actual propaganda if it is spread around, I get that, and I agree that we need to be cautious. I'd venture though to say that anything that is even remotely related to some kind of national identity can be used that way. That includes stuff like news coverage of Russian aggression ("Woah what is that weapon making the cool fireworks over Kyiv?").