quote:

So, you're using election results from 1991 to draw a conclusion about 2014.

The more we understand the history of a region, the better we are able to understand the present situation.

At least that's how I've always tried to approach it.

And this is why I say facts don't matter.

The generally recognized most objective election observer in the world is the IEOM. If you don't trust them, then it's like talking to a Trump supporter. Our assumptions about the world and about reality are so divergent that there's no point in discussion.

The 1991 election showed that the Donbas, which contained many Russian speakers, was overwhelmingly for staying in Ukraine. Even Crimea voted for staying. Yet the Kremlin fomented rebellion in the Donbas and sent the "little green men" into Crimea to seize it by force.