That's not only starters, that's the end.
How ridiculous is it that I'm dismissed about my fears of Russia's reverting to communism after a little more than a decade of democracy, because the Soviet Union died in 1991, then you turn around and put up something that happened 143 years ago as some ridiculous proof of the "friendship" between the US and Russia.
Ahh so you now agree that America and Russia were friends and allies in the past, unlike your previous statement.....well I'm glad to see that there is progress being made in our therapy.
To clarify a little. The spontaneous grass root democracy was finished in Russia at the request of Western free marketeers with the massacre of Parliament by Yeltsin in 1993.
The Duma led by a Chechen - Ruslan Khasbulatov was resisting the rapid fire sale "privatisation" which led to the dispossesion of Russian people. This was the real beginning of Chechen revolt, before Wahabi missionaries came from Saudi Arabia and confused the situation.
Putin who is very popular with Russians (about 70% as opposed to the %7 for Yelstin in the last years of his rule) is restoring Russian democracy on a strong presidency model - similar to the France.