>We know Putin could end abortion anytime he wants, but he won’t. He has the power to do this.
Power yes, popular support no. Russia is still a managed democracy and abortion is quite popular in Russian. The safer approach is to use the Church to slowly de-legitimize abortion and then implement the policy once public views have been changed. Which is the path Russian appears to be on.
>His admirers, of course, like it when he uses his power to protect the family inherited dictatorship of Assad. His attacks in Syria, like Assad’s, are primarily against any alternative to Assad that is not ISIS or al Qaeda. Assad and Putin do their best to assure that the only path forward there is with Putin’s puppet in charge.
Facts on the ground show that the only alternative to brutal dictatorial government in the middle east is even worse Islamic government as seen in Egypt, Libya, Iraq, ect. Of course it’s hard for Neo-cons like yourself to see reality.
>If that means leaving ISIS to the Americans and the Kurds to fight, fine.
Given that the US policy in fighting ISIS was only to attack ISIS when they were not attacking the Syrian government I don’t think the Syrian government or Russia owes us anything. McCain and his ilk are at the center of the formation of ISIS and I hope to see that traitor hung for it someday soon.
>Yet this war gives him street cred with some Christians that ignores other non-Christian things, like, for example his abortion policy.
How’s the US doing in that regard?
>If he were so profoundly Christian, he would shutdown their clinics. Russia is a dying country, a very unChristian approach to life.
US: Birth rate 13.42 births/1,000 population (147th)
Russia: Birth rate 13.3 births/1,000 population
However the Russian birth rate is increasing while the US birth rate continues to decline. Current trends indicate that we’re dying, not Russia. Step by step Russia is tossing away the progressive state and returning to traditional Russian ways.
>And Putin won’t even shut the abortion clinics for practical reasons. So so much for the “Putin is a swell” Christian claptrap. He’s simply not doing the things he could do to protect life and Christianity, unless owning a state run church counts in his favor.
10 years ago Putin allowed gays to run around like they do in the US. Today they’re no longer allowed to spread gay propaganda. That change in policy caused a massive attack back from the west. Banning abortion would cause an even bigger attack from the west. Putin’s heading there but he’s doing everything in small steps to reduce resistance.
Your primary complaints about Putin all seem to be of the order he’s not doing it fast enough so he must not mean it!!@!! All while ignoring the enormous pressure placed by the west trying to prevent the de-progivsination of Russia and any other state that tries to throw off the progressive shackles.
http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/iraqi-christians-erect-large-cross-on-hill-marking-liberation-from-isis
But that birth rate of the Russians could be Chechnyans, Dagestanis, Tartars, etc. Muslims.