[Destro]

How could you describe taking away the people's rights to elect their own governors and representatives as something within "the framework of democratic freedoms that have become Russia's most valuable achievements over the last decade"?

You mean like how we can't directly elect our American president? Or how the American Senate until just recently was appointed by the States and were not elected? Was America a dictatorship back then also?

England used to appoint her mayors until 2000 - was she not "democratic" then either?

There is no clear democratic system that applies to all nations - democracies have to be tailor made for each country.

[Luis Gonzalez]

Tell me...

When was the last time that the electoral college elected a president other than the one who won the votes in the respective States?

Does the fact that we USED to appoint rather than elect Senators, and that today we elect them mean that we are more or less of a representative society today then we were yesterday?

Does the fact that Putin's political Party will appoint Governors and representatives instead of allowing the people to elect them via popular vote mean that Russia is more or less of a representative society today than they were yesterday?

Same with England.

Russia is moving backwards, and all you did by posting those examples, is to prove that they are.