Vladimir Putin isn’t going anywhere, or: Boris Nemtsov is a hack and a moron (in case you didn't know)

[CarbEast]

choose putin because of others are worse?

Is it any different anybody else? I'd expect the most of voters support the least disgusting of the options they're presented with.

[Admiral Piett]

Medvedev and Putin are the lesser evils in this case, I agree. Most Americans these days (at least from this generation) are far more interested in being cordial and in closer ties. Despite Putin's whining about us all the time.

[Frederich Barbarossa]

putins coming to venezuela tommorrow!!! Im excited. Last time he brought like 5,000 russian marines.

[Thorn777]

putins coming to venezuela tommorrow!!! Im excited. Last time he brought like 5,000 russian marines.

I could follow you till it said marines....

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Where those hot female marines by any chance?

Putin is a great leader maximus, Kasparov a great chess-player, just to stay on topic.

[Frederich Barbarossa]

nope just short guys and tall blonde guys. I meant sailors

[YuriVII]

Meanwhile, in part as a result of the improved economic conditions and in part because of efforts by the government to encourage births, the number of births has soared, from 1.27 million to 1.72 million in 2008, even as the overall population fell from 147 million to 142 million, meaning that the crude birth rate rose from 8.6 per 1000 inhabitants to 12.1. The number of deaths has by contrast declined from 2.23 million to 2.08 million, with infant deaths falling particularly much, from 19,300 to 14,500.

During the first 9 months of 2009, births increased an additional 3.7% while deaths dropped an additional 4.2%.

Because of the steady increase in births and decrease in the number of deaths, the drop in Russia's population might soon start to stop its contraction and start to increase.

It is interesting to note that many posters on here keep commenting about Russia's population decline without knowing that this year births outpaced deaths for the first time since the fall of the Soviet Union. Dont know if it is just a statistical blip, but the statistics have shown a constant trend since 1998. So Russia's population decline is over for the time being.

[Mightypeon]

Well, one can hardly expect that Russia stays in the miserable state the "Shock therapies" brought it in.
I sincerly hope that it will stay economically and politically stable!
Besides, I am inclined to believe that Putins/Medvedevs parts would propably win in "fair" elections too. Like in Weimar, I think that many Russians associate "Western Democracy" with humiliation and Chaos, and, compared to Weimar (which was better than its reputation), Jelzin didnt have a lot of good points.

[cegorach]

Noone can be compared in oposition destruction with oposition itself.

Sadly, I partially agree.

The thing is that when you occupy the whole stage only the most stubborn or follish will remain to challenge the management.

In other words you have a circus not politics

[YuriVII]

Well I used to like Yabloko party a lot, especially in local politics. Unfortunately they have kinda dropped into obscurity. The closest one is the Democratic Party of Russia, but they and their leader are nut-cases.

[corpse helvetica]

http://windowoneurasia.blogspot.com/...dle-class.html

um..something is boiling there: internet petioning is quickly growing - unsatisfied with putin.

Notable fact most petitoneers are from middle class. Read: brains. VERY IMPORTANT is the fact that this petitioning is not anonymous: people are willing to take risk to achieve desirable results. It is a sign that people have had enough .

[Heathen Hammer]

Of course people don't like Putin. But even if miracle happens and he actually he resigns, who is going to replace him?

[corpse helvetica]

Of course people don't like Putin. But even if miracle happens and he actually he resigns, who is going to replace him?

I think putin ignores those "lil' movements" and that is it. power is on his side after all.

[Heathen Hammer]

I think putin ignores those "lil' movements" and that is it. power is on his side after all.

Well, actual opposition is pretty massive, but it is surprisingly ignored by the west, while unpopular politicians like Kasparov are constantly being depicted as the only opposition in Russia.

[corpse helvetica]

Well, actual opposition is pretty massive, but it is surprisingly ignored by the west, while unpopular politicians like Kasparov are constantly being depicted as the only opposition in Russia.

as long as opposition includes commies, radical nationalists, corrupted high officials from Yeltsin era, clowns like Zhirinovsky.... hard to pick somebody.

for instance, I've heard that in Kaliningrad rally elder people demanded good 'ol times back but younger generation demanded solving visa problems with EU and import tax issues. very conflicting issuers among of opposition as you see.

In short opposition may be united in case of they demand "putin, step back" but they disagree on everything with each other overall.

[CarbEast]

http://windowoneurasia.blogspot.com/...dle-class.html

um..something is boiling there: internet petioning is quickly growing - unsatisfied with putin.

Notable fact most petitoneers are from middle class. Read: brains. VERY IMPORTANT is the fact that this petitioning is not anonymous: people are willing to take risk to achieve desirable results. It is a sign that people have had enough .

7500 signatories? Good, now they only have to convince the remaining 141000000...

[Il-Principe]

7500 signatories? Good, now they only have to convince the remaining 141000000...

For Russia 7 500 signatories are quite a lot. It's considered a dangerous threat to public security by the Kremlin mafia. 10 000 signatories are probably already a revolution...

[CarbEast]

For Russia 7 500 signatories are quite a lot. It's considered a dangerous threat to public security by the Kremlin mafia. 10 000 signatories are probably already a revolution...

You must have checked with Kremlin mafia recently, you know exactly what they think...