neilparker62 said:
Perhaps again it's wishful thinking on my part but there has to be some kind of code of honour in the Russian armed services which views with revulsion what we are seeing in Bucha and other cities that have fallen under Russian occupation.
Well I can't cite studies with regards to this as most of it has happened long ago or in places few people had ways to document it (unlike now) so this is anecdotal evidence, but it is a known fact around where I live that the Russian army has always been more brutal and cruel than other armies. I am not saying all of the soldiers are alike and that there are no soldiers with dignity and honor, but I am saying there are plenty that are.
Red army soldiers raped women back in WW2, looted houses, killed dogs for fun and did other war crimes.
Only back then it all happened on a more massive scale, what has happened so far in Ukraine pales in comparison.
To understand this better one needs to understand the psychology of the average Russian conscript. Unlike his western counterpart he is not a paid professional but rather a guy who failed to get into university (or never even attempted), many come from poor backgrounds and rural places. Their upbringing isn't always according to "the book".
I have heard many personal stories from former army men who were in the obligatory service during the USSR about how harsh army was. Much depended on to which base one was sent. On average those closer to the west like East Germany or Baltics were nicer while the far east ones were harsh not just psychologically but physically. My father had to sleep in barracks while it was -30 outside (Celsius) and inside it was around 0, heat was sometimes a luxury item.
Alot also depended on the local officers and their attitude, some let violence between recruits pass as norm.
It wasn't uncommon for two cadets to get into a fight where someone later died from injuries, not much was done. Dying while in service irrespective of cause was more or less "collateral damage".
It was every loving mother's greatest fear for her son when the time of army came, on average everyone had to serve 2 years. During the 80's many got unlucky and got either sent to Afghanistan or Chernobyl.
So you wish to understand how a war crime is made? Well imagine a poor upbringing combined with mandated service combined with propaganda, fear, stress, lack of sleep, and probably most importantly the understanding that the territory in which you are in is outside law. Those guys know that whatever they do nobody will even ask. So in the end of the day, it's each man according to his conscience.I really do believe that most people are capable of extreme evil if put in the right conditions. I am not excusing Russian war crimes as I believe most are/have been done on purpose, but I think there is plenty of evidence from around the globe how people turn evil rather quickly.
Look at some of the out of control protests in US in these past years, without any police presence I think things would have taken a sharp turn for the worst.
I think the reason why we mostly haven't seen such barbarism in the west is not because people in general have changed, is just that society there has had time to build up strong enough countermeasures that keep everyone in check, even those that would otherwise resort to violence.
And even with those measures and even in a country like the US which is among the most civilized societies ever on Earth there still are neighborhoods and places where homicide and theft is a daily occurrence.
Wish to understand the average Russian conscript? , well just imagine a street gang with official authority and modern weapons, there you have it. I think it's now easy to see how they can shoot civilians on the street and have no remorse.
Again this is not a blanket statement for all, but there is a sizeable portion of such men in the Russian army, and they are being driven towards that at certain times from above.
