"What do you think?"
I think the good "doctor" Bill needs some grammar lessons before he begins to pontificate.
Posted on 06/07/2006 10:12:11 AM PDT by G. Stolyarov II
Dick Cheney warned President Putin that he has"unfairly and improperly restricted the rights of her people."
The Russian people responded by going shopping.
Russians are a resilient bunch of people. They are also a pessimistic lot. Most people in Russia still feel they are know better off, though they are consuming more. Inflation is 12% but economic growth is above that.
Apartment prices are going up quicker than they are in Shanghai or New York. Of course, once it reaches the $1 million price tag, everything slows down, eh?
Putin has a popularity rating of 70%, twice that of the US Prez. And Putin has the nickname "Teflon President." That's important because five years ago no one in Russia knew what Teflon was.
Things seem to be improving in Russia and the current Prez is enjoying the ride.
But is economic stability the only thing that is important? Most people would say so. "If I can't feed, clothe and house my family, what else matters?"
What do you think?
we should change our policy towards russia. it is necessary that we court putin and pull russia away from china.
But we should call a spade, a spade. Russian has not become republic due to growing power of President "I Luv Stalin" Putin.
Complaining could get you shot, and then you'd miss out on the beans.
BFD. When it comes to places people in which foreigners would like to move, the U.S. is exponentially more popular than Russia.
Well, given the choice between beans or bullets, I'd have to take the beans.
"What do you think?"
I think the good "doctor" Bill needs some grammar lessons before he begins to pontificate.
Private talk, good. In public, out of line IMHO.
We don't when it comes to Saudi Arabia whose citizens attacked our country. Nor do we with Mexico whose citizens invade our country.
I know somebody who visits Russia every year and is dismayed at the general state of decline. Emigration is huge and is underscoring a demographic crisis.
the russian people seem to be behind putin. it is very likely that the next president of russia will be a putin supporter. all said and done russian people elect their president. so i would call it a democracy.
i agree with SOME decisions that putin has taken in the past. the oligarchs that he put in prison were corrupt thugs. they were "capitalists in the enron mould".
"Most people in Russia still feel they are know better off,"
This is a blog, not a news source. Worse, it's a blog that cannot even spell.
emigration isnt such a problem anymore. in fact many russians are beginning to return home. the demographic crisis is a truth. AIDS and the reluctance of russian (european) women to give birth are the main threats.
You have a point there. Russia is still a democracy in progress. Putin has provided stability and the russian economy has grown at a good clip. Honestly Putin is a better president than Yeltsin. Many of the so called "pro-western" parties in Russia have probably more followers in our State Department than in Russia.
Having said that I am concerned about controls being placed on the Russian economy. Reigning in Oligarchs is one thing but stifling competition is another. Putin and his advisors are smart men and hopefully they will realise their folly.
We need to pull Russia away from China. Once we do that then we have successfully encircled China.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.