A cynical or dismissive attitude towards the concept of human rights itself is a luxury most often, but not always, found among people who've never had theirs violated or even endangered. https://twitter.com/dc_lawrence/status/1328299845543731200

This reminds of a bit of leftish apologism for Assad that argued the US doing anything to stop his worst abuses in the name of sovereignty would somehow immediately trigger a nuclear war between Washington and Moscow. Dark magical thinking, tbh.

And, ironically, these are the same calculations US Cold Warriors believed they were making to avoid a hot war with the USSR. Some number of foreigners would meet a gruesome fate to maintain the sanctity of the balance of terror.

Was Russia actually going to instigate a nuclear war to save the Assad regime? Would Putin send tanks in Poland for the sake of his lackey in Latakia? No. But in 2016, this seemed to many to be the direct consequence of Washington even *pretending* to care about Syrians...

...and, predictably, pretending to care about Syrian suffering while bleeding Iran was about all Washington was able to muster. Trump's campaign thrived on the idea that he'd revolutionize not giving a shit about foreigners, but he hardly invented it.