russia

[Danzig]

Originally Posted by Antitrust32

http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/europe...les/index.html

what is going on here? last thing this planet needs is another cold war.

would help on that whole global warming thing tho.....

[hoovesupsideyourhead]

whithout sounding stupid ..i thnk that russia is trying to re live the past ..if we scare america about europe again the will re comit forces to the west..germany ect..keeping them away from the arabs .....

From the article:

Gorbachev said that Russian democracy is growing despite its problems. He noted that the courts don't work and some media outlets have made deals with the authorities. But there is now, he said, a relatively free press.

Russia is moving from a totalitarian regime to democracy, he said, but it is only halfway there.


This is a very optimistic view of Russia. I think its bull.

The press is having a very tough time. And Russia is moving back towards a totalitarian way. Democracy is a terribly difficult thing to achieve. We had some sense that it would just occur automatically. That Democracy is somehow the steady state that is inevitably reached. Well its clearly not.

The institutions must be in place, a country just cant say we want to be democratic. And given Russia's history, the cultural inclination is clearly set up for a very organized totalitarian state, rather than a democracy that cant keep the lights on and protect citizens from criminals. The fledging democracy was rife with scandal and people taking advantage of the government privatizing industries, etc... And the folks on the street get sick of having inequities right in front of their faces, rather than hidden behind the big wall of a government.

IMO, this country is heading in a diff. direction...The easier well worn path. Not the difficult fair path of democracy. And I thank you...

[timmgirvan]

It is bull! It doesn't look like the totalitarian folks are succeeding at "keeping the lights on and protecting the people" very well either!

[somerfrost]

Originally Posted by timmgirvan

It is bull! It doesn't look like the totalitarian folks are succeeding at "keeping the lights on and protecting the people" very well either!

They don't have to!

[timmgirvan]

Somer: then they should stop rattlin their sabres and get cracking on rebuilding Russia! Agreed?

Originally Posted by somerfrost

They don't have to!

Exactly. Thats why its easier. Fairness and basic human rights be damned.

You will live in the cold and you will like it commrade.

rather than...

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[dr. fager]

Pretty intersting counter proposal by Putin

"Putin told Bush he would not seek to retarget Russian missiles on Europe if the United States agreed to put the radar-based system in Azerbaijan, a former Soviet republic bordering the Caspian Sea."