Posted on 03/16/2006 7:47:22 PM PST by Tailgunner Joe
The murder trial is held behind closed doors. The excuse? To protect "state secrets."
This Kafka-esque drama will be played out in Moscow during the next few weeks and in the end, we will probably never know who shot former Forbes journalist Paul Klebnikov to death on a summer evening in 2004 in Russia's capital because that's how the city works.
The Committee to Protect Journalists has called Moscow one of the worlds's "five most murderous cities." Klebnikov ran afoul of someone in power, but the defendants -- all Chechnians -- are not guilty. Why? Because the victim said so. The killer was Russian, he said, with his last dying breath.
Contract murders in Moscow are as common as jaywalking in Manhattan. Under the present government of Yuri Lushzkov, the "line my pockets or get wacked" mayor of Moscow, the city is rife with crime. It's not difficult to run afoul of the Mayor.
Legitimate businesses have packed up and left, all too happy to admit defeat. Even Donald Trump -- fearless and risk-taking -- won't get his big toe wet. When a famous Moscow hotel was looking for investors, Mr. Trump reportedly said, "Do I have crazy written on my forehead?"
Moscow is worse than Chicago in the 1920s, complete with mafia, hate crimes, gun and drug smuggling, gambling, extortion, kidnappings, murder, rape, robberies and arson.
The Moscow underworld is a snake-pit of greed and corruption, tolerated -- or perhaps encouraged -- by Mr. Lushzkov and immune to prosecution. Doug Steele, a Canadian entrepreneur who owns a Moscow nightclub, recently estimated he paid $1 million in bribes to police, officials and the Russian mafia. At least he's still alive.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtontimes.com ...
were they done dirt cheap?
ping
In other news: the second apple has fallen on the head of Sir Isaac Newton. "This confirms the law of gravity", said the prominent scientist.
This is the same sort of drivel that the New York Times uses to try to force state secrets into the open at Al Qaeda trials. What sort of anti-patriotic filth dug up this garbage?
anti-patriotic? Well no I'm not a Russian patriot like you.
The folks who lobs accusations of secret trials in such scenerios are against Bush and show up protesting of behalf of AlQaeda at trials.
Not surprising you'd post such views, given how you defend AlQaeda's Chechen pals.
Almost had me for a second there.
Right up to the "hate crimes" thing.
After that, my eyes just glazed over.
"Hate Crime" is the most agenda-driven misnomer of our age.
Michael's brother won't be seeing what he's been waiting for.
And Tailgunner Joe is the most agenda-driven misnomer of FR!
Love you're french accent, really plays to your strengths.
You're accusations against Putin are the same folks are lobbing against Bush for allowing the Iraqis to institute a Shite government.
"Contract murders in Moscow are as common as jaywalking in Manhattan. "
Old Russian Saying " One Penny, One Life"
This is a morally bankrupt culture that can aspire to nothing with coercion.
"The folks who lobs accusations of secret trials in such scenerios are against Bush and show up protesting of behalf of AlQaeda at trials. Not surprising you'd post such views, given how you defend AlQaeda's Chechen pals."
Translation: "HaminaHaminaHamina"
Hardly surprising that you would support the Ayatollah-loving Shiite Sadrists too since Russia supports Iran's jihad against American soldiers in Iraq and is arming them with missiles and helping them get nukes to challenge US "hegemony" (and wipe Israel off the map.)
my bad - I meant to say that Russia can aspire to nothing without coercion.
Putin likes the religion of peace because Putin practices the Politics of Peace (Communism)
"Klebnikov ran afoul of someone in power, but the defendants -- all Chechnians -- are not guilty. Why? Because the victim said so. The killer was Russian, he said, with his last dying breath."
I am very surprised the "Washington Times" published this article. It's complete rubbish. That is NOT what Klebnikov said with his "last dying breath." He was unable to identify who shot him because they wore ski masks. He said as much. His last moments were spent talking to his best friend on his cell phone and trying to remember his wife's number so he could say goodbye. What kind of scum exploits a man's death to further their political goals???
Plain and simple - Klebnikov was an enemy of Boris Berezovsky and an enemy of the Chechen mafia based in Moscow. Berezovsky has tons of Chechen mafia contacts. The Chechens arrested ARE guilty - one allegedly has turned "rat" and told who his partners in crime were. But, hey, let's turn this into a "Putin's goons killed him" story (and ignore the fact that Klebnikov never wrote anything damning about Putin and even took Putin's side in the Berezovsky matter). It's sad to see people fall for stories just because they say what they want to hear.
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