Having seen several pictures of cops on fire from protester-thrown firebombs, I’m very surprised they haven’t just opened up live gunfire in return and put this whole thing down already.
The dynamics of this revolution puzzle me, and I can’t quite put a finger on whence my puzzlement.
They don't have live ammunition, and are trained to withstand getting torched: observe the men with fire extinguishers nearby. The dynamics is, I think, dictated by adopting the Intifada model in order not to get into a Libya model. Violence is intentionally moderated on both sides.
I was also puzzled by the intensity of the protest against what amounted to a bad trade deal with the European Union, so I started looking into it. The so-called revolution which is being presented as 'spontaneous' and 'pro-democracy', was in fact planned well in advance as a pre-election tactic and is being carried out by militant National Socialists from western Ukraine.
Now rather than compete in upcoming elections against an incumbent President who has lowered gas prices, restructured the government balance sheet, and raised the country's bond rating to attract investors, the divided 'pro-democracy' crowd has decided to attempt a putsch.
The real irony is that if this type of civil disruption (rocks, clubs, fire bombs, etc.) were to take place in any western democratic nation, the government crackdown would be swift and harsh.