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Left-wing extremists have been showing “substantial activity on Lemmygrad.ml” with an accompanying increase in toxicity, a new joint study published by Binghamton University and Cyprus University of Technology on Arxiv says.

The researchers also identified posts that support authoritarian regimes, endorse the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and feature anti-Zionist and antisemitic content.

“Overall, our findings contribute to a more nuanced understanding of political extremism within decentralized social networks and emphasize the necessity of analyzing both ends of the political spectrum in research,” the researchers conclude.

[…]

Users on Lemmygrad.ml frequently discuss […] China and North Korea, with many posts expressing support for them.

[…]

Discussions [on Lemmygrad.ml] on the Israel-Palestine conflict primarily criticize Israel. While many posts condemn antisemitism, [the authors] also encounter numerous posts that extend beyond criticizing Israel, displaying anti-Zionism and even antisemitism.

[…]

[The study] results show that users of Lemmygrad.ml frequently share posts that support authoritarian regimes, as seen in their support for China, North Korea, and Russia. Moreover, their support can extend beyond backing these authoritarian regimes, even cheering on their violent actions, as evidenced by their posts on the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Additionally, we observe anti-Zionist and antisemitic behaviors, which show similarities to right-wing extremism.

[…]

Our analysis suggests a concerning endorsement of authoritarian actions and extremist rhetoric on Lemmygrad.ml, further indicating that left-wing extremist communities on decentralized platforms should receive more attention from the academic community.

[…]

  • Jo Miran@lemmy.ml
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    2 months ago

    I think those denials might be defining traits of a tankie, so…yes?

    • optissima@lemmy.ml
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      2 months ago

      If those are the defining traits then why are they called Tankies and not something related to that?

      • da_cow (she/her)@feddit.org
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        2 months ago

        The term tankies originally comes fro Qm the tianamean square massacre, in which the Chinese government ordered tanks to run over studenta who were protesting. People who denied that this ever happened were called tankies. Nowadays its more of a broad term who deny, that authoritarian regimes like China, North Korea or Russia di anything bad.

        • plyth@feddit.org
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          2 months ago

          It’s older.

          The term “tankie” was originally used by dissident Marxist–Leninists to describe members of the Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB) who followed the party line of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU). Specifically, it was used to distinguish party members who spoke out in defence of the Soviet use of tanks to suppress the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 and the 1968 Prague Spring

          https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tankie

          • Cethin@lemmy.zip
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            2 months ago

            OK, this doesn’t say anything about the term tankie except the author’s supposition, which doesn’t align to the common understanding, so I don’t think it’s accurate. This is about the CIA using a “Nazi turned communist turned anti-communist” to fight the USSR. It’s just modern tankies using anti-western propoganda to say “actually, it’s the Fascists who are tankies!”

            Look, the CIA is bad, and the US has done a lot of bad things. This argument is bullshit though. If you read the article you can see that. It has nothing to do with the word tankie except that the author brings up that the USSR sent tanks (as part of the army) in their direction. This isn’t the origin of the word tanky almost certainly, and isn’t used in any of the stuff referenced. You should read more critically.

            • optissima@lemmy.ml
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              2 months ago

              I haven’t seen anything with commies calling others tankies. Is tankie a term for a group of people or a slur to you?

              Also seems like you didnt know that the term tankie comes from the said hungarian uprising mentioned here.

              • Cethin@lemmy.zip
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                2 months ago

                Also seems like you didnt know that the term tankie comes from the said hungarian uprising mentioned here.

                Again, there’s no evidence for that. It’s the author’s supposition and nothing more. You’re taking the hunch of one author, who says it’s just a guess, as fact.

                • optissima@lemmy.ml
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                  2 months ago

                  Specifically, it was used to distinguish party members who spoke out in defence of the Soviet use of tanks to suppress the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 and the 1968 Prague Spring…

                  from the wikipedia page.

                  • Cethin@lemmy.zip
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                    2 months ago

                    I may be misinterpreting what the author of the article you posted meant by this:

                    “Király’s newfound army fought bloody street battles against the pro-Soviet faction comprised of Hungarian troops, policemen, and civilians. Moscow sent Red Army troops and tanks (hence the name “tankie”) into Budapest and agreed to students’ demands to let Imre Nagy run the government.”

                    To me, it sounds like he’s trying to define the people standing up against the Red Army as tankies, rather than the people supporting them. Maybe he meant the well understood meaning of the supporters of the Red Army being tankies. The article to me reads like he’s trying to redifine it to say “actually, tankies don’t support authoritarian crackdowns on freedom.” Again, I could be wrong, but that’s what it seems like they’re saying to me, which is the opposite of the well understood meaning.