Anti-Putin protests held across Russia

Again I would like to let Albanians know before they rejoice over this that the only other groups that could gain power in Russia are communists and ultra-nationalists. The neo-liberal pro EU party got 0.6% in the elections so I doubt they have anything to complain about.

This time I actually believe Hilary when she says the USA are not behind these protests. This is because Putin is in fact the most pro western of the relevant forces in Russia. So if he is gone, expect more headaches from the big bear.

Zoran,

The Eurasian Union is a joke. For Serbia there is no alternative to the EU.

Serbia is almost surrounded by EU Member States.

Romania- EU Member State
Hungary- EU Member State
Bulgaria- EU Member State
Croatia- will become EU Member State on 1 July 2013

Ari, Putin blamed the US, so it must be so. Don't you realize that those idiots in America are the cause of all Russian and Serbian problems?

(Mircea EU citizen, 10 December 2011 13:49)

So far EU proved to be a joke.Or rather a tragicomedy.

We are witness of the first step of Russia's final disintegration. Putin can stop this is only by using violence, and violence will cause only more violence, ending this vicious cycle only in complete annihilation of the pathetic rest what was once the Soviet Union.

Byebye Russia!

One has to be very careful when attributing Putin's fall in support or the recent skirmishes between police and protesters in Moscow to Putin's neoliberal policies.With the end of the Yeslsin era Putin organized Russia in a way as it is today, and Russia is highly appreciated by investors. This strategy created jobs and the Russian economy is doing well, particularly compared to Euroland and the US.

30000 protesters in a population of 145 million is very negligible.One also has to take into consideration the fact that those organised protests maybe the result of the activities of foreign-financed NGOs aka Trojan horses aiming to de-stabilise Russia.Lets not forget that the same NGOs were organising the protests in favour of billionaire oligarch mafioso Mikhail Khodorkovsky who championed the interests of the Wall Street and the City of London and was sent to Siberia by Putin.

http://landdestroyer.blogspot.com/2011/11/how-to-start-wall-street-backed.html

Although I strongly disagreed with Putin's handling of Libya at the UN I still think that Russia and its people are lucky to have Putin at the helm.One has to look back ten years ago when Russia was virtually bankrupt and compare it to its present standing.A country with no debt,with reserves in excess of $500 billion,being a major creditor of the US and with vast untapped energy reserves.The future can only be bright.

There is enough blame to go around, both Democrat and Republican, for enriching Wall Street, banks and powerful corporations.
Where are the outcries for the $350 billion in TARP funds supported and passed by the majority of Democrats?

The Occupy Wall Street Movement has become a joke; defecating in public, using police cars for toilets, lewd acts in the open just to name a few of their primitive activities.

At the OWS camp in NY City a protestor carried a sign reading "Zionist Control Wall Stree" AND the American Nazi Party is urging their members to join the movement and fight against "Judeo Capitalsit banksters."

Whatever their massage is or was doesn't matter anymore, their actions speak louder than their words.

DUNG!

Roger7- a human being

"Thirty thousand people are expected to gather in Moscow’s Bolotnaya Square...
50,000 police on duty."

I love Russian way of thinking 'just in case'.. lol

Ari is right. The protest is organized by a combination of Russian nationalists and communists, both who are even more supportive of Serbia than Putin. These protests, in fact, may push Putin to be more hawkish with support for Serbia over Kosovo.
Cheers!!

An Anti Putin Protest in Moscow (pop 11.5m) drew 30,000

An Anti Tadic Protest in Belgrade (pop. 1.6m) drew 90,000

"Thirty thousand people are expected to gather in Moscow’s Bolotnaya Square... 50,000 police on duty." I love Russian way of thinking 'just in case'.. lol (ben, 10 December 2011 15:38)

Tell me about it. That's how official ussr ("russia") celebrates human rights day, with a good show of ready organized terror and repression. boy we've come such a long way.

as for the demonstrators, they come from a wide ideological swath, so we should not be so naive as to think they are all true freedom fighters. many are committed communists and or fascists. but SOME are clearly democrats, sick to death of politics as usual, russian (soviet) style. and i wish them all the luck in the world, because they will surely need it over there in putin-ville.

Not just in russia but all over the world ppl are coming together to mark human rights day, not for govt's but for ppl themselves, whatever their ethnicity, color, religion, orientation, gender. and for all of those ppl, i salute you and send my warmest support.

roberto frisco

-American jews badly need russian resources however putin is in their way.Nothing has changed in the last 100 years.At that time bandits from brooklyn and manhattan had their inside agents in russia like trockij this time the role is taken over by troublemakers like Nemcov and similars who under Yeltzin already stole a lot.Fortunatelly most russians remember the period of Yeltzin .30 000 lunatics in a city of more than 10 million is nothing.(szemi, 10 December 2011 18:39)-

Thank you "szemi" for the usual anti-semitic rant. always facilitated by their press. some things never change. so are you a serbian anti-semite or a russian anti-semite, not that it matters. you and your types and ideology disgust me, and of course on human rights day...

about the occupy movement, of course i support their right to protest -- of the prolonged encampments i'm a bit more ambivalent for a number of reasons. the main thing the movement has done here is to challenge the narrative of tea-party types about cut -- cut -- cut-- i call them the modern day john birch society for anyone who remembers those nice ppl. now we are openly discussing income disparity, the privileges of the 1%... so in that way, it is very progressive.

roberto -- proud anti-fascist american jew in frisco

Of course the fault here lies always with the wicked Americans, or Martians or everyone else; it never lies with the ruler.

@ Ari Gold:
in a free society (respected) rules are everything, political parties are actors, not factors. Give Russia (and every country) the chance to be a free society and the outcome will be just and fair. Think dynamic, don't stick to motionless schemes. Everything flows, everything changes, nothing is eternal.

We are the people - wir sind das Volk! (22 yrs. ago in DDR - still to come in Russia etc.)

Putin has had the opportunity to turn Russia into a modern democratic society. Instead he has gradually suppressed the free press and allowed corruption to continue. He has often abused the law by using the courts against freedom and free speech. Unfortunately, his KGB history has not been forgotten and his methods have tended towards a repeat of that - particularly in regard to engineering the system to keep in power.

The Russian people are not on the streets because they want extremism - they are there because they don't want their voice stolen. I seem to remember that Milosevic kept doing that - Putin seems to have been trying the same techniques.

I just scorn those posters who think that Russia has any care for Serbian politics. The whole of Eastern Europe was glad to escape the Russian yoke not so many years ago and has happily embraced the relative freedom and prosperity that has come through association with the EU. Even Tito was wise enough to play a game that left Yugoslavia free of Russia.

As for blaming the west for Serbia's problems, that is just silly. It is a real sign of political weakness to have to blame the rest of the world for your own troubles. The break-down of Yugoslavia cost the region enormously economically - and that was the fault of the selfish nationalisms that originated in the Balkans. If Milosevic and others had wanted to do 'clean' politics they would not have needed the west's interventions to put a stop to that nonsense. Instead the Balkan leaders chose nationalism, violence and corruption. The price is still being paid for that.

As for the argument that the parties that will replace Putin are more extreme; that is often the case. it is the stupidity of people that they turn to nationalism and other forms of extremism because of simplistic thinking as an alternative to something gone bad. This is where the EU is a very positive influence. It stands by law, cooperation, democratic systems, human rights and defends personal freedoms. The US also.

Look east at your peril - it is likely to be worse that looking west!! If Russia is to move towards nationalism and other extremisms expect troubles rather than solutions.

And don't hold out too much hope that the west's capitalism has failed - all systems are tenuous and have their ups and downs. The EU in particular s going through its worst difficulties - but it will get through. It is an evolving institution, but it will certainly keep the good values that it learned after WW2 - it will maintain the emphasis on democracy and human rights rather than follow those who make an argument for degeneration into extremism.

Putin may not have been finished off yet - but he should get the message that there are many who are unimpressed by the way he has spoiled his democratic credentials. Maybe he will be quick enough to learn the lessons and open up Russia to democratic freedoms again.

Democracy is not just about getting into power - the real democrat knows how to leave power gracefully.

Putini is turning in to another Quack Daffy of Libya next Putini will be saying they are all on drugs. Then what do you expect from a highest ranking KGB/FSB member. His incredible rise from obscurity that his KGB/FSB buddies murderously set up http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8712664469489507026 .

Ari's analysis is quite interesting. Clearly Putin has lost the majority of ethnic Russians to the communists and nationalists...even according to the official results. Just look at the regional breakdowns. As both the communists and nationalists are even more opposed to the US than Putin, I'm not sure what the boob Clinton thinks she has to blab about. She is the same fool that applauded the "Arab Spring" as some "advance" for America as well.

The joke of the day. The only 'economy' Russia has is the export of natural resources, oil and gas, comparable to Saudia Arabia. Though SA have more oil and gas, and the income can be spend on a much spaller country and population. For the rest, you can forget about. In Russia, there are many people who are living under extreme poverty conditions and unemployment, especially in the region far away from Moscow. Average life expectancy was going down for years. Sure, there's a middle class in Moscow, and some oligarchs and other people protected by Putin made it to some wealth, some even becoming billionaries. In this way, Russia is even worse than the extremes of capitalism.
(Analyst, 11 December 2011 12:12)

Anther uneducated comment from a well informed Albanian.To start with Russia's Gas reserves are six times those of Saudi Arabia's.

http://exploredia.com/natural-gas-reserves-by-country-2011/

As far as poverty is concerned this was decreased as GDP was increased.Since Putin came into power GDP increased 1999: 6.5%, 2000: 10%, 2001: 5.7%, 2002: 4.9%, 2003: 7.3%, 2004: 7.2%, 2005: 6.4%, 2006: 8,2%, 2007: 8.5%, 2008: 5.2% making it the 6th largest economy in the world.In the same period the middle class grew from 8 million to 55 million, an increase of 7 times. The number of people living below the poverty line also decreased from 30% in 2000 to 14% in 2008.

Also your jibe that Russia's only exports is oil and gas shows ignorance the the borders of extreme.You only have to analyse every sector of the Russian economy and you'll see that Russia has managed to emerge from the Yeltsin years even stronger.There is still an aircraft,space industry,Automobil,electronics,telecoms and information technology industry employing millions of people.

People like yourself should be more concerned for the poverty in Albania and Kosovo than in other parts of the world.

American jews badly need russian resources however putin is in their way.Nothing has changed in the last 100 years.At that time bandits from brooklyn and manhattan had their inside agents in russia like trockij this time the role is taken over by troublemakers like Nemcov and similars who under Yeltzin already stole a lot.Fortunatelly most russians remember the period of Yeltzin .30 000 lunatics in a city of more than 10 million is nothing.

Not just in russia but all over the world ppl are coming together to mark human rights day, not for govt's but for ppl themselves, whatever their ethnicity, color, religion, orientation, gender. and for all of those ppl, i salute you and send my warmest support.

roberto frisco
(roberto, 10 December 2011 18:16)

Roberto, you mean just like the Occupy Wall Street movement in the USA? Do you also support them?

"This strategy created jobs and the Russian economy is doing well, particularly compared to Euroland and the US. "
(Leonidas, 10 December 2011 21:03)

The joke of the day. The only 'economy' Russia has is the export of natural resources, oil and gas, comparable to Saudia Arabia. Though SA have more oil and gas, and the income can be spend on a much spaller country and population. For the rest, you can forget about. In Russia, there are many people who are living under extreme poverty conditions and unemployment, especially in the region far away from Moscow. Average life expectancy was going down for years. Sure, there's a middle class in Moscow, and some oligarchs and other people protected by Putin made it to some wealth, some even becoming billionaries. In this way, Russia is even worse than the extremes of capitalism.

Don't you realize that those idiots in America are the cause of all Russian and Serbian problems?
(Nenad, 10 December 2011, 14:13)
=================================

Actually you are more right that you realize. America is to blame for most of the problems in the world. After all, they are the ones who started them..

An Anti Putin Protest in Moscow (pop 11.5m) drew 30,000

An Anti Tadic Protest in Belgrade (pop. 1.6m) drew 90,000
(New Zealander, 10 December 2011 21:46)

Yes. What does it show? It shows that Serbia has a lot more of a democracy than Russia, people aren't afraid of protesting and don't have to fear to be beaten, arrested or killed by the special police or secret service just for opposing the Tzar :)

From Albanian point of view Putin is THA Man they want to have in Moscow. Ari is 100% right: every other force, be them the bone-head Stalinists ("red") or their straight opponents ("white") and everything in-between would ask for immediate intervention in Kosovo. Putin would sell Kosovo, Russia and Serbia with his mom and the icon of God's Mother of Vladimir together to anyone who is ready to pay the right price. All Roberto needs for securing Kosova is to get enough Dollars and give them to Waldemar Puqine.
(Ataman, 11 December 2011 07:28)

So we have the reds and the whites.What about the blues I mean out of fashion blue shirt wearing idiots like Mr Rope.

Almost all the protesters are from the communist party. Everything else in parliament is a rubber stamp of Putin. The communist party is the only alternative. And no, they did not win the majority, but they sure did win much more of the vote than what the regime said they did.


Mircea, I think that something is very wrong with someone who says that there is no alternative. Considering how miserable our neighbors are (and yes we are not doing well either), clearly the EU is not a good alternative. Considering that Zoran did not comment, to who are you addressing your ramblings?

The OWS protests in America have generated more interest with the media than the people. In fact, these small gatherings have often degenerated into crime scenes. Lesson One: don't be quickly impressed with "street protests". On the other hand, the "Tea Party" in America did begin an actual mass movement that resulted in some electoral change in 2010. Lesson Two: be careful not to take American politicians too seriously on "democracy". For instance,America has less parties(2) in its Congress than Russia has in its Duma(4) and that is quite by design. Getting on the ballot and elected is harder in America!! Did you know American laws passed by the peoples' representatives are routinely stricken down by an unelected elite Supreme Court that does not remotely resemble the court originally created in the Constitution. Democracy in America ? More propaganda than reality.

Democracy is not just about getting into power - the real democrat knows how to leave power gracefully.
(Bob, 10 December 2011 19:10)

Sadly they don’t it only an illusion which the west has come to master well. Look at the US, in 220 years of democracy how many parties have won power other than Republican or Democrat?
Even better when either is in opposition they promise to do or that and nothing changes – look at Obama; what has changed? Nothing, you still have the same financial system in place.

They leave gracefull with the full knowledge they will be in power within 3 years. Try and change the system and see how gracefully they behave.

"An Anti Tadic Protest in Belgrade (pop. 1.6m) drew 90,000"

There haven't been protests of 90 000 people in Belgrade since 2004.

This is pure BS.

The UNited States has created revolutions throughout the middle east, in Libya alone these revolutions have cost an estimated 150,000 lives. The west is not in this game to bring about democracy, but rather, it is about creating chaos and negating people and political structures which stand in thier way.

In Libya and Egypt, the people they have propped up are Islamic fundamenntalists such as the Muslim Brotherhood-in Russia they are now supporting Communists and Bolsheviks. Its all about creating discontent and dividing the peoples of certain nations which resist western domination.

The West will have to go full force to remove Putin now, even though Putin has majority support in Russia (over 60% in the recent election). This is an extremely dangerous situation and If Putin comes out victorious, as he will, the United States will have to deal with an angered tiger in the form of United Russia. No more access to the afghan battlefield via russian territory, no more treaties addressing nuclear proliferation, no more free rides to the MIR space station. This is just another colored revolution, another scam created in Washington DC-but the consequences this time may be grave for the entire Human race.

Sadly some Serbs are fully involved in these bogus and bloody revolutions. As mr Putin has properly named them-foreign mercenaries. Organizations such as Serbias OTPOR (now called canvass) are involved, proclaiming peacefull democratic revolutions, but, if you look at the death toll in Libya you will see the deception and hypocrisy in that notion.

Anti-government protests in all major US cities! And they are all being squashed. Anti-government protests in Russia, but nobody wants to tell us who these protesters are. Many are communists, others are nationalists some are pro western. Its not about improving the human condition in these countries-its about anarchy, violence and the ever succesfull american strategy of divide and conquer.

Some want to turn Russia into Syria, in the name of democracy they want to see the blood flow. Its all or nothing now, the west needs to get rid of putin regardless that he is supported by most Russians. Divide and conquer-it wont work, but the aftermath is going to be a much more bloody and unstable world-pure Clintonian dogma!

Lets just use Egypt as a refrence for what is happening in Russia. The Clinton regime overthrows Hosni Mubarek and the elections afterwards usher in the MUslim brotherhood. Now the USA is sending weapons to the vestiges of the mubarek regime, the military, to overthrow the Muslim Brotherhood. Its not about democracy or freedom-its about pure power! I feel great pity for the people who have fallen for this great deception.

In the future if you want to protest your government and bring about true change-make sure that the Americans are not pulling your strings. Pity the foolish people who bring about such suffering to thier own people in the name of a democracy which does not even exist in America. There is nothing more tragic than to bring great sorrow to your own people, to see them die and suffer for something which is but an illusion.

Please inform yourselves properly ladies as to what Putin was complaining about. Read this, from Asia Times Online:

Bear nettles the eagle, dragon smiles
By M K Bhadrakumar

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Central_Asia/ML10Ag01.html

My take is that Clinton has long since said that she would bow out early from government and this is a parting shot. She doesn't give a damn.

hey buddy, why do not you try to replace in your piece of writing russian leaders by terrorist UCK head-figures`names, and russians with your beloved muslim-albanian extremists - and believe - things will look 1 mln times uglier for muslim kosovo albanian extremists-maffiosos than for former KGB and commies-brainwashed russians...

"From Albanian point of view Putin is THA Man they want to have in Moscow. Ari is 100% right: every other force, be them the bone-head Stalinists ("red") or their straight opponents ("white") and everything in-between would ask for immediate intervention in Kosovo. Putin would sell Kosovo...."
(Ataman, 11 December 2011 07:28)

In fact, a small and unimportant place like Kosovo located far away is totally unimportant for Russia, no matter what government is in power. An elephant doesn't care for a fly - or - better said - fly spot on the map.

People like yourself should be more concerned for the poverty in Albania and Kosovo than in other parts of the world.
(Leonidas, 11 December 2011 13:42)

That's pretty rich coming from a Greek!

American jews badly need russian resources however putin is in their way.Nothing has changed in the last 100 years.At that time bandits from brooklyn and manhattan had their inside agents in russia like trockij this time the role is taken over by troublemakers like Nemcov and similars who under Yeltzin already stole a lot.Fortunatelly most russians remember the period of Yeltzin .30 000 lunatics in a city of more than 10 million is nothing.
(szemi, 10 December 2011 18:39)

Like most (if not all) of the protesters I believe, Putin is a sell-out who would sell his mom to the neo-libsi and neo-con bibsi overlords of the Wall Street. I am not joking.
He is selling his country piece-by-piece, Yeltsin-style but with the old apparat in his back. One day he will pay for his crimes.

From Albanian point of view Putin is THA Man they want to have in Moscow. Ari is 100% right: every other force, be them the bone-head Stalinists ("red") or their straight opponents ("white") and everything in-between would ask for immediate intervention in Kosovo. Putin would sell Kosovo, Russia and Serbia with his mom and the icon of God's Mother of Vladimir together to anyone who is ready to pay the right price. All Roberto needs for securing Kosova is to get enough Dollars and give them to Waldemar Puqine.

Putini is turning in to another Quack Daffy of Libya next Putini will be saying they are all on drugs. Then what do you expect from a highest ranking KGB/FSB member. His incredible rise from obscurity that his KGB/FSB buddies murderously set up [link] .
(Lenard, 10 December 2011 22:04)

The name of this traitor of Russia and Serbia should be "Puqine" and he deserves a street named after him in Prishtinë, capital of Kosova Republic. And of course 3 meters of rope. And being stuffed with Dollar bills he craves so much for.

So we have the reds and the whites.What about the blues I mean out of fashion blue shirt wearing idiots like Mr Rope.
(szemi, 11 December 2011 14:12)

Not many around, luckily. The word "blue" i.e. "голубой" has a very special second meaning in Russian and fits perfectly.

"You only have to analyse every sector of the Russian economy and you'll see that Russia has managed to emerge from the Yeltsin years even stronger.There is still an aircraft,space industry,Automobil,electronics,telecoms and information technology industry employing millions of people. "
(Leonidas, 11 December 2011 13:42)

You are right, theres STILL aircraft, space, car industry left - from former soviet times. Good old Lada (still producing the same model of cars since 20 years), I think Antonow is still producing some airplanes a year, space industry is still able to launch a few rockets a year, though not so successful recently. Yeah, sure, telecom and electronics industry is prosperous, too - I heard Russia is exporting millions of mobile phones, TVs and computers a year :)

About the GDP raise: Compare it to the raise of oil and gas prices over this period of time, and you know where these numbers are coming from and suddenly, the growth rates look less impressive.

For once, many of the posters here got it right, albeit for different reasons. The protests against Putin are not led by some Soros-funded US-backed pro-Western liberals seeking a revolution. Although those who would want to see true democratic reform of Russia are among the protesters, particularly those of the better educated urban classes of St Petersburg and Moscow, together they do not seem to constitute anything close to a critical mass. After all, Homo Sovieticus is very much alive and kicking in Russia, as a majority of the population still prefer a strong leader who can guarantee stability and continued incremental socio-economic progress for the masses, rather than a champion of democracy, human rights and media freedom.

Zoran,

The Eurasian Union is a joke. For Serbia there is no alternative to the EU.

Serbia is almost surrounded by EU Member States.

Romania- EU Member State
Hungary- EU Member State
Bulgaria- EU Member State
Croatia- will become EU Member State on 1 July 2013

Again I would like to let Albanians know before they rejoice over this that the only other groups that could gain power in Russia are communists and ultra-nationalists. The neo-liberal pro EU party got 0.6% in the elections so I doubt they have anything to complain about.

This time I actually believe Hilary when she says the USA are not behind these protests. This is because Putin is in fact the most pro western of the relevant forces in Russia. So if he is gone, expect more headaches from the big bear.

-American jews badly need russian resources however putin is in their way.Nothing has changed in the last 100 years.At that time bandits from brooklyn and manhattan had their inside agents in russia like trockij this time the role is taken over by troublemakers like Nemcov and similars who under Yeltzin already stole a lot.Fortunatelly most russians remember the period of Yeltzin .30 000 lunatics in a city of more than 10 million is nothing.(szemi, 10 December 2011 18:39)-

Thank you "szemi" for the usual anti-semitic rant. always facilitated by their press. some things never change. so are you a serbian anti-semite or a russian anti-semite, not that it matters. you and your types and ideology disgust me, and of course on human rights day...

about the occupy movement, of course i support their right to protest -- of the prolonged encampments i'm a bit more ambivalent for a number of reasons. the main thing the movement has done here is to challenge the narrative of tea-party types about cut -- cut -- cut-- i call them the modern day john birch society for anyone who remembers those nice ppl. now we are openly discussing income disparity, the privileges of the 1%... so in that way, it is very progressive.

roberto -- proud anti-fascist american jew in frisco

"Thirty thousand people are expected to gather in Moscow’s Bolotnaya Square...
50,000 police on duty."

I love Russian way of thinking 'just in case'.. lol

"Thirty thousand people are expected to gather in Moscow’s Bolotnaya Square... 50,000 police on duty." I love Russian way of thinking 'just in case'.. lol (ben, 10 December 2011 15:38)

Tell me about it. That's how official ussr ("russia") celebrates human rights day, with a good show of ready organized terror and repression. boy we've come such a long way.

as for the demonstrators, they come from a wide ideological swath, so we should not be so naive as to think they are all true freedom fighters. many are committed communists and or fascists. but SOME are clearly democrats, sick to death of politics as usual, russian (soviet) style. and i wish them all the luck in the world, because they will surely need it over there in putin-ville.

Not just in russia but all over the world ppl are coming together to mark human rights day, not for govt's but for ppl themselves, whatever their ethnicity, color, religion, orientation, gender. and for all of those ppl, i salute you and send my warmest support.

roberto frisco

(Mircea EU citizen, 10 December 2011 13:49)

So far EU proved to be a joke.Or rather a tragicomedy.

American jews badly need russian resources however putin is in their way.Nothing has changed in the last 100 years.At that time bandits from brooklyn and manhattan had their inside agents in russia like trockij this time the role is taken over by troublemakers like Nemcov and similars who under Yeltzin already stole a lot.Fortunatelly most russians remember the period of Yeltzin .30 000 lunatics in a city of more than 10 million is nothing.

"An Anti Tadic Protest in Belgrade (pop. 1.6m) drew 90,000"

There haven't been protests of 90 000 people in Belgrade since 2004.

This is pure BS.

Putini is turning in to another Quack Daffy of Libya next Putini will be saying they are all on drugs. Then what do you expect from a highest ranking KGB/FSB member. His incredible rise from obscurity that his KGB/FSB buddies murderously set up http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8712664469489507026 .

There is enough blame to go around, both Democrat and Republican, for enriching Wall Street, banks and powerful corporations.
Where are the outcries for the $350 billion in TARP funds supported and passed by the majority of Democrats?

The Occupy Wall Street Movement has become a joke; defecating in public, using police cars for toilets, lewd acts in the open just to name a few of their primitive activities.

At the OWS camp in NY City a protestor carried a sign reading "Zionist Control Wall Stree" AND the American Nazi Party is urging their members to join the movement and fight against "Judeo Capitalsit banksters."

Whatever their massage is or was doesn't matter anymore, their actions speak louder than their words.

DUNG!

Roger7- a human being

Ari, Putin blamed the US, so it must be so. Don't you realize that those idiots in America are the cause of all Russian and Serbian problems?

Of course the fault here lies always with the wicked Americans, or Martians or everyone else; it never lies with the ruler.

@ Ari Gold:
in a free society (respected) rules are everything, political parties are actors, not factors. Give Russia (and every country) the chance to be a free society and the outcome will be just and fair. Think dynamic, don't stick to motionless schemes. Everything flows, everything changes, nothing is eternal.

We are the people - wir sind das Volk! (22 yrs. ago in DDR - still to come in Russia etc.)

Putin has had the opportunity to turn Russia into a modern democratic society. Instead he has gradually suppressed the free press and allowed corruption to continue. He has often abused the law by using the courts against freedom and free speech. Unfortunately, his KGB history has not been forgotten and his methods have tended towards a repeat of that - particularly in regard to engineering the system to keep in power.

The Russian people are not on the streets because they want extremism - they are there because they don't want their voice stolen. I seem to remember that Milosevic kept doing that - Putin seems to have been trying the same techniques.

I just scorn those posters who think that Russia has any care for Serbian politics. The whole of Eastern Europe was glad to escape the Russian yoke not so many years ago and has happily embraced the relative freedom and prosperity that has come through association with the EU. Even Tito was wise enough to play a game that left Yugoslavia free of Russia.

As for blaming the west for Serbia's problems, that is just silly. It is a real sign of political weakness to have to blame the rest of the world for your own troubles. The break-down of Yugoslavia cost the region enormously economically - and that was the fault of the selfish nationalisms that originated in the Balkans. If Milosevic and others had wanted to do 'clean' politics they would not have needed the west's interventions to put a stop to that nonsense. Instead the Balkan leaders chose nationalism, violence and corruption. The price is still being paid for that.

As for the argument that the parties that will replace Putin are more extreme; that is often the case. it is the stupidity of people that they turn to nationalism and other forms of extremism because of simplistic thinking as an alternative to something gone bad. This is where the EU is a very positive influence. It stands by law, cooperation, democratic systems, human rights and defends personal freedoms. The US also.

Look east at your peril - it is likely to be worse that looking west!! If Russia is to move towards nationalism and other extremisms expect troubles rather than solutions.

And don't hold out too much hope that the west's capitalism has failed - all systems are tenuous and have their ups and downs. The EU in particular s going through its worst difficulties - but it will get through. It is an evolving institution, but it will certainly keep the good values that it learned after WW2 - it will maintain the emphasis on democracy and human rights rather than follow those who make an argument for degeneration into extremism.

Putin may not have been finished off yet - but he should get the message that there are many who are unimpressed by the way he has spoiled his democratic credentials. Maybe he will be quick enough to learn the lessons and open up Russia to democratic freedoms again.

Democracy is not just about getting into power - the real democrat knows how to leave power gracefully.

One has to be very careful when attributing Putin's fall in support or the recent skirmishes between police and protesters in Moscow to Putin's neoliberal policies.With the end of the Yeslsin era Putin organized Russia in a way as it is today, and Russia is highly appreciated by investors. This strategy created jobs and the Russian economy is doing well, particularly compared to Euroland and the US.

30000 protesters in a population of 145 million is very negligible.One also has to take into consideration the fact that those organised protests maybe the result of the activities of foreign-financed NGOs aka Trojan horses aiming to de-stabilise Russia.Lets not forget that the same NGOs were organising the protests in favour of billionaire oligarch mafioso Mikhail Khodorkovsky who championed the interests of the Wall Street and the City of London and was sent to Siberia by Putin.

http://landdestroyer.blogspot.com/2011/11/how-to-start-wall-street-backed.html

Although I strongly disagreed with Putin's handling of Libya at the UN I still think that Russia and its people are lucky to have Putin at the helm.One has to look back ten years ago when Russia was virtually bankrupt and compare it to its present standing.A country with no debt,with reserves in excess of $500 billion,being a major creditor of the US and with vast untapped energy reserves.The future can only be bright.

An Anti Putin Protest in Moscow (pop 11.5m) drew 30,000

An Anti Tadic Protest in Belgrade (pop. 1.6m) drew 90,000

Ari is right. The protest is organized by a combination of Russian nationalists and communists, both who are even more supportive of Serbia than Putin. These protests, in fact, may push Putin to be more hawkish with support for Serbia over Kosovo.
Cheers!!

Don't you realize that those idiots in America are the cause of all Russian and Serbian problems?
(Nenad, 10 December 2011, 14:13)
=================================

Actually you are more right that you realize. America is to blame for most of the problems in the world. After all, they are the ones who started them..

The joke of the day. The only 'economy' Russia has is the export of natural resources, oil and gas, comparable to Saudia Arabia. Though SA have more oil and gas, and the income can be spend on a much spaller country and population. For the rest, you can forget about. In Russia, there are many people who are living under extreme poverty conditions and unemployment, especially in the region far away from Moscow. Average life expectancy was going down for years. Sure, there's a middle class in Moscow, and some oligarchs and other people protected by Putin made it to some wealth, some even becoming billionaries. In this way, Russia is even worse than the extremes of capitalism.
(Analyst, 11 December 2011 12:12)

Anther uneducated comment from a well informed Albanian.To start with Russia's Gas reserves are six times those of Saudi Arabia's.

http://exploredia.com/natural-gas-reserves-by-country-2011/

As far as poverty is concerned this was decreased as GDP was increased.Since Putin came into power GDP increased 1999: 6.5%, 2000: 10%, 2001: 5.7%, 2002: 4.9%, 2003: 7.3%, 2004: 7.2%, 2005: 6.4%, 2006: 8,2%, 2007: 8.5%, 2008: 5.2% making it the 6th largest economy in the world.In the same period the middle class grew from 8 million to 55 million, an increase of 7 times. The number of people living below the poverty line also decreased from 30% in 2000 to 14% in 2008.

Also your jibe that Russia's only exports is oil and gas shows ignorance the the borders of extreme.You only have to analyse every sector of the Russian economy and you'll see that Russia has managed to emerge from the Yeltsin years even stronger.There is still an aircraft,space industry,Automobil,electronics,telecoms and information technology industry employing millions of people.

People like yourself should be more concerned for the poverty in Albania and Kosovo than in other parts of the world.

"From Albanian point of view Putin is THA Man they want to have in Moscow. Ari is 100% right: every other force, be them the bone-head Stalinists ("red") or their straight opponents ("white") and everything in-between would ask for immediate intervention in Kosovo. Putin would sell Kosovo...."
(Ataman, 11 December 2011 07:28)

In fact, a small and unimportant place like Kosovo located far away is totally unimportant for Russia, no matter what government is in power. An elephant doesn't care for a fly - or - better said - fly spot on the map.

Ari's analysis is quite interesting. Clearly Putin has lost the majority of ethnic Russians to the communists and nationalists...even according to the official results. Just look at the regional breakdowns. As both the communists and nationalists are even more opposed to the US than Putin, I'm not sure what the boob Clinton thinks she has to blab about. She is the same fool that applauded the "Arab Spring" as some "advance" for America as well.

hey buddy, why do not you try to replace in your piece of writing russian leaders by terrorist UCK head-figures`names, and russians with your beloved muslim-albanian extremists - and believe - things will look 1 mln times uglier for muslim kosovo albanian extremists-maffiosos than for former KGB and commies-brainwashed russians...

"This strategy created jobs and the Russian economy is doing well, particularly compared to Euroland and the US. "
(Leonidas, 10 December 2011 21:03)

The joke of the day. The only 'economy' Russia has is the export of natural resources, oil and gas, comparable to Saudia Arabia. Though SA have more oil and gas, and the income can be spend on a much spaller country and population. For the rest, you can forget about. In Russia, there are many people who are living under extreme poverty conditions and unemployment, especially in the region far away from Moscow. Average life expectancy was going down for years. Sure, there's a middle class in Moscow, and some oligarchs and other people protected by Putin made it to some wealth, some even becoming billionaries. In this way, Russia is even worse than the extremes of capitalism.

We are witness of the first step of Russia's final disintegration. Putin can stop this is only by using violence, and violence will cause only more violence, ending this vicious cycle only in complete annihilation of the pathetic rest what was once the Soviet Union.

Byebye Russia!

American jews badly need russian resources however putin is in their way.Nothing has changed in the last 100 years.At that time bandits from brooklyn and manhattan had their inside agents in russia like trockij this time the role is taken over by troublemakers like Nemcov and similars who under Yeltzin already stole a lot.Fortunatelly most russians remember the period of Yeltzin .30 000 lunatics in a city of more than 10 million is nothing.
(szemi, 10 December 2011 18:39)

Like most (if not all) of the protesters I believe, Putin is a sell-out who would sell his mom to the neo-libsi and neo-con bibsi overlords of the Wall Street. I am not joking.
He is selling his country piece-by-piece, Yeltsin-style but with the old apparat in his back. One day he will pay for his crimes.

From Albanian point of view Putin is THA Man they want to have in Moscow. Ari is 100% right: every other force, be them the bone-head Stalinists ("red") or their straight opponents ("white") and everything in-between would ask for immediate intervention in Kosovo. Putin would sell Kosovo, Russia and Serbia with his mom and the icon of God's Mother of Vladimir together to anyone who is ready to pay the right price. All Roberto needs for securing Kosova is to get enough Dollars and give them to Waldemar Puqine.

Almost all the protesters are from the communist party. Everything else in parliament is a rubber stamp of Putin. The communist party is the only alternative. And no, they did not win the majority, but they sure did win much more of the vote than what the regime said they did.


Mircea, I think that something is very wrong with someone who says that there is no alternative. Considering how miserable our neighbors are (and yes we are not doing well either), clearly the EU is not a good alternative. Considering that Zoran did not comment, to who are you addressing your ramblings?

The OWS protests in America have generated more interest with the media than the people. In fact, these small gatherings have often degenerated into crime scenes. Lesson One: don't be quickly impressed with "street protests". On the other hand, the "Tea Party" in America did begin an actual mass movement that resulted in some electoral change in 2010. Lesson Two: be careful not to take American politicians too seriously on "democracy". For instance,America has less parties(2) in its Congress than Russia has in its Duma(4) and that is quite by design. Getting on the ballot and elected is harder in America!! Did you know American laws passed by the peoples' representatives are routinely stricken down by an unelected elite Supreme Court that does not remotely resemble the court originally created in the Constitution. Democracy in America ? More propaganda than reality.

Putini is turning in to another Quack Daffy of Libya next Putini will be saying they are all on drugs. Then what do you expect from a highest ranking KGB/FSB member. His incredible rise from obscurity that his KGB/FSB buddies murderously set up [link] .
(Lenard, 10 December 2011 22:04)

The name of this traitor of Russia and Serbia should be "Puqine" and he deserves a street named after him in Prishtinë, capital of Kosova Republic. And of course 3 meters of rope. And being stuffed with Dollar bills he craves so much for.

From Albanian point of view Putin is THA Man they want to have in Moscow. Ari is 100% right: every other force, be them the bone-head Stalinists ("red") or their straight opponents ("white") and everything in-between would ask for immediate intervention in Kosovo. Putin would sell Kosovo, Russia and Serbia with his mom and the icon of God's Mother of Vladimir together to anyone who is ready to pay the right price. All Roberto needs for securing Kosova is to get enough Dollars and give them to Waldemar Puqine.
(Ataman, 11 December 2011 07:28)

So we have the reds and the whites.What about the blues I mean out of fashion blue shirt wearing idiots like Mr Rope.

People like yourself should be more concerned for the poverty in Albania and Kosovo than in other parts of the world.
(Leonidas, 11 December 2011 13:42)

That's pretty rich coming from a Greek!

An Anti Putin Protest in Moscow (pop 11.5m) drew 30,000

An Anti Tadic Protest in Belgrade (pop. 1.6m) drew 90,000
(New Zealander, 10 December 2011 21:46)

Yes. What does it show? It shows that Serbia has a lot more of a democracy than Russia, people aren't afraid of protesting and don't have to fear to be beaten, arrested or killed by the special police or secret service just for opposing the Tzar :)

Not just in russia but all over the world ppl are coming together to mark human rights day, not for govt's but for ppl themselves, whatever their ethnicity, color, religion, orientation, gender. and for all of those ppl, i salute you and send my warmest support.

roberto frisco
(roberto, 10 December 2011 18:16)

Roberto, you mean just like the Occupy Wall Street movement in the USA? Do you also support them?

The UNited States has created revolutions throughout the middle east, in Libya alone these revolutions have cost an estimated 150,000 lives. The west is not in this game to bring about democracy, but rather, it is about creating chaos and negating people and political structures which stand in thier way.

In Libya and Egypt, the people they have propped up are Islamic fundamenntalists such as the Muslim Brotherhood-in Russia they are now supporting Communists and Bolsheviks. Its all about creating discontent and dividing the peoples of certain nations which resist western domination.

The West will have to go full force to remove Putin now, even though Putin has majority support in Russia (over 60% in the recent election). This is an extremely dangerous situation and If Putin comes out victorious, as he will, the United States will have to deal with an angered tiger in the form of United Russia. No more access to the afghan battlefield via russian territory, no more treaties addressing nuclear proliferation, no more free rides to the MIR space station. This is just another colored revolution, another scam created in Washington DC-but the consequences this time may be grave for the entire Human race.

Sadly some Serbs are fully involved in these bogus and bloody revolutions. As mr Putin has properly named them-foreign mercenaries. Organizations such as Serbias OTPOR (now called canvass) are involved, proclaiming peacefull democratic revolutions, but, if you look at the death toll in Libya you will see the deception and hypocrisy in that notion.

Please inform yourselves properly ladies as to what Putin was complaining about. Read this, from Asia Times Online:

Bear nettles the eagle, dragon smiles
By M K Bhadrakumar

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Central_Asia/ML10Ag01.html

My take is that Clinton has long since said that she would bow out early from government and this is a parting shot. She doesn't give a damn.

So we have the reds and the whites.What about the blues I mean out of fashion blue shirt wearing idiots like Mr Rope.
(szemi, 11 December 2011 14:12)

Not many around, luckily. The word "blue" i.e. "голубой" has a very special second meaning in Russian and fits perfectly.

Anti-government protests in all major US cities! And they are all being squashed. Anti-government protests in Russia, but nobody wants to tell us who these protesters are. Many are communists, others are nationalists some are pro western. Its not about improving the human condition in these countries-its about anarchy, violence and the ever succesfull american strategy of divide and conquer.

Some want to turn Russia into Syria, in the name of democracy they want to see the blood flow. Its all or nothing now, the west needs to get rid of putin regardless that he is supported by most Russians. Divide and conquer-it wont work, but the aftermath is going to be a much more bloody and unstable world-pure Clintonian dogma!

"You only have to analyse every sector of the Russian economy and you'll see that Russia has managed to emerge from the Yeltsin years even stronger.There is still an aircraft,space industry,Automobil,electronics,telecoms and information technology industry employing millions of people. "
(Leonidas, 11 December 2011 13:42)

You are right, theres STILL aircraft, space, car industry left - from former soviet times. Good old Lada (still producing the same model of cars since 20 years), I think Antonow is still producing some airplanes a year, space industry is still able to launch a few rockets a year, though not so successful recently. Yeah, sure, telecom and electronics industry is prosperous, too - I heard Russia is exporting millions of mobile phones, TVs and computers a year :)

About the GDP raise: Compare it to the raise of oil and gas prices over this period of time, and you know where these numbers are coming from and suddenly, the growth rates look less impressive.

For once, many of the posters here got it right, albeit for different reasons. The protests against Putin are not led by some Soros-funded US-backed pro-Western liberals seeking a revolution. Although those who would want to see true democratic reform of Russia are among the protesters, particularly those of the better educated urban classes of St Petersburg and Moscow, together they do not seem to constitute anything close to a critical mass. After all, Homo Sovieticus is very much alive and kicking in Russia, as a majority of the population still prefer a strong leader who can guarantee stability and continued incremental socio-economic progress for the masses, rather than a champion of democracy, human rights and media freedom.

Democracy is not just about getting into power - the real democrat knows how to leave power gracefully.
(Bob, 10 December 2011 19:10)

Sadly they don’t it only an illusion which the west has come to master well. Look at the US, in 220 years of democracy how many parties have won power other than Republican or Democrat?
Even better when either is in opposition they promise to do or that and nothing changes – look at Obama; what has changed? Nothing, you still have the same financial system in place.

They leave gracefull with the full knowledge they will be in power within 3 years. Try and change the system and see how gracefully they behave.

Lets just use Egypt as a refrence for what is happening in Russia. The Clinton regime overthrows Hosni Mubarek and the elections afterwards usher in the MUslim brotherhood. Now the USA is sending weapons to the vestiges of the mubarek regime, the military, to overthrow the Muslim Brotherhood. Its not about democracy or freedom-its about pure power! I feel great pity for the people who have fallen for this great deception.

In the future if you want to protest your government and bring about true change-make sure that the Americans are not pulling your strings. Pity the foolish people who bring about such suffering to thier own people in the name of a democracy which does not even exist in America. There is nothing more tragic than to bring great sorrow to your own people, to see them die and suffer for something which is but an illusion.