Whataboutism ("yeah, but what about you and this?").
Tu quoque fallacy: occurs when one charges another with hypocrisy or inconsistency in order to avoid taking the other's position seriously. For example:
Mother who smokes: You should stop smoking. It's harmful to your health.
A form of controlling the narrative.
Round and round. Photo by Waranont (Joe) on Unsplash
A favourite tactic for most, if not all, politicians. But especially Putin and Trump.
As well as by those who enjoy gaslighting others.
Thanks, Reddit, for sparking this reminder in my head.
I'm trying to be neutral here, although I'm siding more towards "Putin is bad, because he instigated the war, and war is bad." However, more than that, I'm grateful to the people and countries that are taking action in support and assistance of war-affected communities with their humanitarian efforts.
Bless you all, and stay safe.