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ssaaff t1_j1ytgvl wrote

Reply to comment by Avicennaete in [OC] Defence budgets around the world by giteam

USA lost to rice farmers, soviets lost to afghanis . War is not won only by better guns

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fail-deadly- t1_j208pfd wrote

The North Vietnam had tanks, artillery, surface-to-air missiles and even jet fighters, much supplied by the USSR and PRC.

The Afghans had weapons supplied by the U.S., Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan. The stinger surface-to-air missiles sent by the U.S. were as sophisticated as any of the Soviet weapons.

Don’t act like simple rice farmers were using SA-2s they slapped together in their fields to shoot down B-52s.

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khwaled t1_j22v339 wrote

And who supplied the afghans with weapons they used to win against the US?

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fail-deadly- t1_j230o0l wrote

Often it was the U.S. supplying both the weapons and the training, but Pakistan, China, and Iran were all involved too.

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ssaaff t1_j20vmpp wrote

They did indeed have soviet support . They also knew their way around the jungle .

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brainblasttt t1_j1zt8oa wrote

USA lost to rice farmers being supplied by communist China, Soviets lost to Afghanis being supplied by the US. Russia is currently losing to a Ukraine supplied by NATO. All wars would’ve been won by the superior opponent without outside intervention.

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Wanderlust1994 t1_j1z7dao wrote

The British lost to Icelandic fishermen with scissors.

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aljokerr02 t1_j1zt0uo wrote

Australians lost to Emus

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provocative_bear t1_j20le3n wrote

Yeah, but the emus were propped up by Mussolini, who had an interest in a fascist flightless bird state in the Pacific.

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brk51 t1_j1zu3xd wrote

Bro I hate when mfs say this. Those rice farmers were literal seasoned fighters that have been fighting consistently for over 30 years. Technology aside - Pound for pound - they were objectively well trained, determined, and effective

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[deleted] t1_j1yz17a wrote

Its a little more complicated than that. Geopolitics define rules of engagement that can result in neutering one sides advantage. Just like Russia is losing the war in Ukraine, but could realistically win it any day they wanted by just nuking Kiev.

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brotatowz t1_j1zl350 wrote

could realistically win it any day they wanted by just nuking Kiev. How do you define win?

They kill their own country men. They bomb their own land with radiation. The entire world comes after them, unlike how USA got away with doing the same twice.

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Jerund t1_j1zr2ew wrote

The usa got away with it because those that were invaded by the axis did more damage and harm for those countries. You aren’t gonna hear china/Korea complaining about Japan being nuked because Japan was occupying china and Korea. Russia ain’t gonna complain because Russia was also being invaded to some extent. Etc…

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Bawstahn123 t1_j21ckw3 wrote

>rice farmers

Those "rice farmers" were at that point hard-core veteran light infantry who had been fighting for over 3 decades by the time the Vietnam War kicked off, and were receiving shit-tons of military aid from China

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