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Notes -
Russia executing own retreating soldiers, US says
Do you believe the primary claim in this article (from the Pentagon)? If so, or if not, why? If you think the claim is a lie, do you think it originates with American or Ukrainian propagandists. If you think the claim is true, do you think Russia’s actions are likely to have a positive or negative effect on Russian troop morale moving forward?
I’m interested in how our prejudices and priors developed over the last year and half of this war - and more generally - affect our judgment when we hear stories reporting by one side like this. What would it take for you to believe or disbelieve the claim?
It's likely to be true in limited cases, although unlikely to be widespread since nothing in the statement indicated it was such. I wouldn't be surprised if some limited cases also happened on the UA side here and there, although it'd almost certainly be even less prevalent than the times it happened on the RU side.
It has a negative effect, but that's already baked in pretty hard at this point. I wouldn't be surprised if it's happening mostly to the convicts, in which case the regular soldiers could feel a modicum of safety since it's only happening to a lower class of soldiers.
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