The Russian language is more than just politics.. [LWN.net]

The Russian language is more than just politics..

Posted Jun 29, 2026 19:16 UTC (Mon) by jpeisach (subscriber, #181966)
Parent article: Xsnow "protestware" in Debian

A lot of people in my town came from Russia. Some even speak only Russian. (This is in the US)

So because they don't speak English, they may use the Russian keyboard layout.

And even though they may support the cause, it's kind of.. um.. unfair? That they have to deal with this?

to post comments

The Russian language is more than just politics..

Posted Jun 29, 2026 19:18 UTC (Mon) by zdzichu (subscriber, #17118) [Link] (2 responses)

If they have russian citizenship, they are eligible to vote in russian elections. That's why there are abroad voting stations.

The Russian language is more than just politics..

Posted Jun 30, 2026 17:28 UTC (Tue) by LtWorf (subscriber, #124958) [Link]

By definition, if you can elect someone (meaningfully) different, it was not a dictatorship.

The Russian language is more than just politics..

Posted Jul 2, 2026 4:13 UTC (Thu) by spiral305 (subscriber, #173166) [Link]

There are no elections in Russia. It's just a show.

The Russian language is more than just politics..

Posted Jun 30, 2026 16:25 UTC (Tue) by farnz (subscriber, #17727) [Link]

It's worth being clear that what they "have to deal with" is being shown Ukrainian flags at a higher rate that those of your neighbours with an English locale, and then only if they choose to run xsnow.

It's only a big deal when you're in a region where displaying a Ukrainian flag on your screen makes you a target.