New Russian President

You mean votes bought and paid for -- how crass, commercialism in politics -- glad we don't have any of that in the US.

you forgot the wink wink
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Proud member of TSWB.

End terrorism by building a school

I think nat geo did an expose' on Putin and his ability to get people out to vote in numerous polling stations all in the same day. It's amazing how many shenanigans went on in Ukraine when a pro Putin man was about to lose. Putin brought all his cronies to ensure a rigged election. To think he would do anything less at home is silly
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Proud member of TSWB.

End terrorism by building a school

you forgot the wink wink

Vote Early and Vote Often! It is the Chicago way!

According to their local callings Putin is new Stalin, Bush is total destruction, Blair is Bush's pudel. I mean just in 1 decade historic events really enriched by interesting figures or leaders according to social scientific calling.
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Mandtugai!

Putin have no strong ideas, he is the representative of interests of a parasitic bureaucratic administrative layer. Therefore he is not the reformer and not the conservator, he is the dexterous imitator of ideas and deeds.

I'd say Putin kind of halfway fixed what Gorbacheiv and Yeltsin did to russia. But what Bush did to america is almost same as what Gorbacheiv and Yeltsin did to russia. There is some fate twisting going on among the super empires looks like.
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Mandtugai!

Orgil, well Gorbachev and Yeltsin did push the Soviet Union / Russia away from single party communist rule, and Putin seems to have pushed Russia back to single party rule -- true enough.

Also, Yeltsin was weak enough to increase a sense that the country might not work with a single autocrat in control, and Putin has reversed that trend.

State sponsored corruption is about the same over the full range -- oligarchy, nomenclatura -- not really much different there.

Of course Gorbachev did lose the various empire acquisition states (Ukraine, Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Georgia, etc.). Putin hasn't yet 'reacquired' them.

As to the economy, well if you have high priced oil, a lot of things can be improved.

I do understand that the demographic hole that Russia was sinking into (1990 to 2006 or so) has in the recent couple of years been slowed down -- that's probably a good thing -- The rest of Europe has a similar problem -- but lacks oil income to offset that.

Just compare Yeltsins russia and Putins russia.

I am not a Putin supporter. Within past 10 years russia is really changing from 90s mad society. Maybe it is dictators effect but russian strategic moves kind of improving multipolar balances in the bigger politics. Although still millions of russians are suffering mad society desease.
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Mandtugai!

Orgil, no argument that Putin is a more effective autocrat than Yeltsin -- especially when compared to the end of Yeltsin's 'reign'.

And I suspect Russia would be worse off with more of a Yeltsin like leadership.

The thing is, to a large extent, Russia's 'resurgence' can be pinned to oil and natural gas revenues. Also, Putin's 'war' with Chechnya, and invasion of Georgia, and manipulations with Ukraine seem, by comparison with Yeltsin's fecklessness, to be at least 'actions' by Russia.

It certainly has helped Russia that the US has been mired in Iraq and Afghanistan (when will ANY country truly learn how useless Afghanistan adventures are).

Also, the big crash of financial markets along with the real estate bubble burst certainly have trimmed the top off of the developed world's capacity to push back at Russian activities in with bordering countries which Russia seeks to dominate.

But those conditions mask the lack of real progress that *could* have happened in Russia. That it hasn't is on the autocrat at the top.

I am not a Putin supporter. Within past 10 years russia is really changing from 90s mad society. Maybe it is dictators effect but russian strategic moves kind of improving multipolar balances in the bigger politics. Although still millions of russians are suffering mad society desease.

I am ethnic Russian, and the situation in Russia is one of my interests, naturally. All successes of Putin are reflected in the diagram of the world oil price. Nothing more. Neither real economic reforms, only possibility to spend the increasing incomes from oil and gas. If the oil price falls, the economics of Russia will fall next day. Putin hasn't made anything really good in the modernization of economics or something else (for example, the situation in science and education in Russia are slowly fixedly degraded), he is the dexterous imitator. I'm very sad that the majority of voters in Russia don't understand it. They want stability and as a result they have voted for "put in" pseudo-stability illusion, fake.

Barry I'd say 90s mad society suffered russians are simply choosing dark dictatorship to avoid another mad decade. And Putins opponents are not finding russian domesticated effective democracy approaches.

There are huge differences between western democracy and eastern domesticated democracy. Just look at japanese and s.korean kind of democracies which hugely under american political influence.

And now starting from hungary numerious eastern european countries beginning largely opposing western political influence and changing their constitutions to modify eu dictated limitations. Because except poland all of eastern europe has very shaky economic state, even in poland each month thousands are immigrating all over western side of eu.

For example japan has switched 5 prime ministers in last 6 years which seemingly american exported democracy since WWII period is still in not perfect shape including japans 220% of domestic debt ratio to its gdp vs america's 100% debt. Plus mafias in japan were legalized!! But its social mentor in america mafia is not legal although pots are in its way of legalization.

Even uk political parties have some level of american parties influence yet they've got 400% of debt.
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Mandtugai!