Posted on 09/04/2019 7:21:59 PM PDT by CondoleezzaProtege
Weeks of demonstrations over elections for the city legislature have turned into the biggest sustained protest movement in Russia since 2011-2013. Russia has accused the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, Germany’s Deutsche Welle media outlet and Google of meddling in Russia's internal affairs by allegedly promoting the protests and encouraging people to attend them.
Almost one-third of Russian respondents (32%) dismissed the Western interference claims as attempts to smear the protesters, Levada’s survey published Tuesday said. Another 26% of respondents said that even if meddling did take place, it likely had no effect on the protest movement.
Only 26% of Russians surveyed blamed the West for meddling in the Moscow elections.
“Propaganda didn’t work. The Western conspiracy talking point has failed,” Lev Gudkov, who heads the polling agency, told Russia's Vedomosti business daily Tuesday.
When asked about what had sparked the wave of protests, 45% blamed this summer’s protests on Kremlin-backed candidates who they say are afraid of competition, while 30% accused the protesters of failing to collect the required number of signatures to get on the ballot.
When asked about the occasionally violent crackdown on protesters, 41% of the respondents called the riot police’s actions unjustified and 32% said their response was adequate.
(Excerpt) Read more at themoscowtimes.com ...
Just like we don’t believe Russia somehow had anything to do with Trump’s election.
Only our deep state and media propaganda is even more full-on and blithely false than the Russian’s own domestic propoganda. Russians are probably far more aware they are being lied to by their government and crony media than Americans are.
We will learn eventually, I suppose.
So most Russians are as naive as most Americans?
Whooda thunk? /s
Russia meddle in our elections? They can’t make it decent roll of toilet paper.
78% of candidates on foreign-funded Navalny’s ‘vote smart’ list are Communists. Just saying.
LOL. No foreign meddling,sure. If they believe it doesn’t mean it is true.
Lol, of course democracy movements in Russia are funded from abroad. The last oligarch, Mikhail Khodorvsky who started Open Russia that criticized Putin, served more than ten years in prison and had his wealth confiscated.
Do you know what Open Russia is? Or Open Society. I bet you are a supporter of George Soros.
“We will learn eventually, I suppose.”
Not until we realize how enough discomfort happens and someone feels “put upon.”
rwood
“Do you know what Open Russia is? Or Open Society. I bet you are a supporter of George Soros.”
Even a broken clock is right twice a day. The enemy of my enemy can be your friend in specific situations.
Open Russia is funded by Putin critic Mikhail Khodorvsky who served ten years in Russia for his beliefs. Open Society, a separate organization is funded by Soros.
~~~~~~
“Do you know what Open Russia is? Or Open Society. I bet you are a supporter of George Soros.”
Even a broken clock is right twice a day. The enemy of my enemy can be your friend in specific situations.
~~~~~~
If only all of you could be that straight forward:)
But morally of course you are on a wrong side. Not if you care though.
And here is a dilemma. You want Russians to believe ‘democratic movement’ is for their greater good and then admits you understand the subversive nature of these movement and say you support it because Russia is your enemy.
Now tell me why Russia has to follow any friendly policy towards yours and how do you think your agenda helps to advance freedom in Russia and elsewhere.
No answer is required because you have technically answered it with your comment.
You don’t really care about freedom. The talk of freedom and democracy is a front for you to destroy the ‘enemy’.
In that sense the crackdown on ‘freedom movement’ is not that it looks like. It is basically an attempt to preserve integrity in struggle against foreign subversion.
Of course, freedom is a secondary victim but who are the enemy of freedom in this case?
It is absolutely clear for anyone with half a brain why tyranny is on the rise in the World, the West and US included.
It is Western ‘do as I say not as I do policy’ in the first place.
“In that sense the crackdown on ‘freedom movement’ is not that it looks like. It is basically an attempt to preserve integrity in struggle against foreign subversion.
Of course, freedom is a secondary victim but who are the enemy of freedom in this case?
It is absolutely clear for anyone with half a brain why tyranny is on the rise in the World, the West and US included.”
Russia is due for a political revolution - they’ve been run by the same crazy cabal that has sucked it dry of its wealth and resources since 2000 - Putin and his cronies.
Why is it wrong for me to want them to have real elections? My moral ground is steady, thanks for your ad hominem though.
Open Russia is an organization modeled after Open Society and Soros and a bunch of like-minded people are its trustees.
Khodorkovsky was imprisoned for a bold tax fraud and not his ‘beliefs’. Even the biased European Court couldn’t find why it was wrond. The size of a fraud is of such proportion that given he was convicted in US it could have been a life sentence. Also Khodorkovsky is responsible for around 70 murders of his opponents and government officials trying to expose his crimes. The only reason he is not serving life is because his sidekicks took the heat.
Russians apparently can still think critically.
A skill lost on far too many Americans.
Deflection. Go to your post #9.
Russian median monthly income was $63 in 1999. In 2008 it was $1400.
That is a result of some mightly looting. /s
And now you are advocating a ‘free election’ dominated by aforeign-funded group mulling the restoration of Communism in Russia?
And that is coming from a member of society which is struggling to accept the result of presidential election based on fictional meddling of 13 foreign internet trolls and one gun right activist.
Why Russia is your enemy? Especially an 2000s Russia.
“Why Russia is your enemy? Especially an 2000s Russia.”
Russia is the only one annexing territories in broad daylight with their little green men. Putin and his oligarch friends own Russia’s industries. I don’t hate Russian people - I feel sorry for them. I hate Putin and his cabal.
The only territory annexed is Crimea and it wasn’t in 2000s. And if you do research you’d realize why.
It doesn’t make Russia an enemy of US though.
“The only territory annexed is Crimea and it wasn’t in 2000s. And if you do research you’d realize why.
It doesn’t make Russia an enemy of US though.”
Never claimed it happened in the 2000s - and no, not just Crimea, Donbass as well.
We’re used as Russia’s boogeyman by Putin for propaganda reasons, quite clearly, but they are a threat to Europe primarily and the free world in general, not just US.
They are a belligerent nation run by their version of the “Mafia” - a criminal cabal that uses welfare to buy votes while siphoning Russia’s resources into their crony oligarchs.
Their brain drain is through the roof - China’s educated elite come back to the country after studying overseas - Russia’s educated elite stay the heck out of there once they get away.
Putin’s regime imprisons everyone running against him while maintaining fear through kills dissenting journalists. His criminal reach spiders throughout Europe, Britain and Germany being recent places of incident.
If they are an enemy of the free world and our allies, they are an enemy of the US.
I won’t argue your every point because it would take too long.
Bottomline is a great deal of societies and Russia included could have had much more competitive political systems if not for the foreign interests actively attempting to buy opposition.
It is a tough choice for them because it is universally recognized that free political systems are more successful all around.
Unfortunately, it can’t be applied to nominally free systems but with groups in power controlled by foreign interests. The idea of competitive political system is to apply different ideas on how to run the country better and for the populace to decide who are doing better by their vote. It simply doesn’t work if one or several competing political groups has foreign interests in mind.
For a group in charge with a patriotic agenda there is a choice to accept the related loss of sovereignty by allowing such opposition or to softly suppress them.
As I said earlier it is a tough choice but you can’t blame them.
You put the the beginning of looting Russia at the start of Putin’s term but the real looting was exactly before with foreign-owned group in charge.
And there was nothing democratic and free about. Everyone outraged at Putin regime jailed two people accused of beating policemen during recent protest.
In 1993 Yeltsyn regime gunned down 1000 protestors and then shelled Congress with artillery for impeaching him. He usurped power and stolen the election and nominal economy shrinked 100 fold during his presidency with median incomes shrinking to $63 a month. The West praised him.
That’s how democracy and your version of ‘free election’ worked there.
Russia can have a more competitive political system if president for life Putin will allow it.
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