by Natasha » Sat Nov 19, 2011 12:15 pm
Boris_B wrote:Hey, is this like fangirl thread? Should I move this?
by hoosiernorm » Mon Dec 05, 2011 3:53 am
(Reuters) - Vladimir Putin's ruling party suffered a serious blow in a parliamentary election on Sunday, exit polls showed, as voters signalled growing unease with his domination of Russian politics before a planned return to the presidency next year.
The result, in which the opposition said Putin's United Russia was boosted by fraud, is likely to dent the authority of the man who has ruled for almost 12 years with a mixture of hardline security policies, political acumen and showmanship.
Two exit polls suggested Putin's party, United Russia, would win 45.5 and 48.5 percent of the votes in the election to the State Duma compared with 64.3 percent in 2007 and that it could struggle even to hold on to a majority in the chamber.
"These elections are unprecedented because they were carried out against the background of a collapse in trust in Putin, (President Dmitry) Medvedev and the ruling party," said Vladimir Ryzhkov, a liberal opposition leader barred from running.
"I think that the March (presidential) election will turn into an even bigger political crisis; disappointment, frustration, with even more dirt and disenchantment, and an even bigger protest vote."
Putin made his mark restoring order in a country suffering from a decade of chaos following the collapse of the Soviet Union. He moved quickly to crush a separatist rebellion in the southern Muslim Chechen region, restored Kremlin control over wayward regions and presided over an economic revival.
He has maintained a tough man image with stunts such as riding a horse bare chested, tracking tigers and flying a fighter plane. But the public appears to have wearied of the antics and his popularity has fallen.
Last month he was booed when he spoke at a sports meeting, and many voters are fed up with widespread corruption and a huge gap between the wealthy and the poor.
Putin and Medvedev, who took up the presidency in 2008 when Putin was forced to step down after serving a maximum two consecutive terms, made a brief appearance at a subdued meeting at United Russia headquarters.
Medvedev said United Russia, which had previously held a two thirds majority allowing it to change the constitution without opposition support, was prepared to forge alliances on issues.
"This is an optimal result which reflects the real situation in the country," Putin, 59, said. "Based on this result we can guarantee stable development of our country."
But there was little to cheer for the man who has dominated Russian politics since he came to power in 1999, then to be elected president when Boris Yeltsin resigned months later.
Two decades after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the communists appeared to be the main beneficiaries in opposition ranks, their vote almost doubling to around 20 percent, according to the exit polls.
"Russia has a new political reality even if they rewrite everything," said Sergei Obukhov, a communist parliamentary deputy.
Opposition parties complained of election irregularities in parts of the country spanning 9,000 km (5,600 miles) and a Western-financed electoral watchdog and two liberal media outlets said their sites had been shut down by hackers intent on silencing allegations of violations.
Sites belonging to the Ekho Moskvy radio station, online news portal Slon.ru and the watchdog Golos went down at around 8 a.m.
"Massive cyber attacks are taking place on the sites of Golos and the map showing violations," Golos said on Twitter.
Medvedev has dismissed talk of electoral fraud.
WORSE IN THE CITIES
Independent political analyst Dmitry Oreshkin said a separate analysis showed that United Russia fell even further in cities -- where it had between 30-35 percent of the votes and the Communist have 20-25 percent.
"No one expected such a sharp downfall for United Russia ... This is a bad climate for Putin. He has got used to the fact that he controls everything, but now how can he go into a presidential campaign when United Russia has embittered people against their leader?"
Putin is still likely to win the March 4 presidential election and could extend his rule until 2024 if he wins the maximum two more terms.
The result was also a blow for President Dmitry Medvedev, slated under a deal with Putin to take over the prime minister's office after the March election. He led the campaign and his position might now be in question.
Opposition parties say the election was unfair from the start because of authorities' support for United Russia with cash and television air time.
Putin has no serious personal rivals as Russia's leader. He remains the ultimate arbiter between the clans which control the world's biggest energy producer.
But his party has had to fight against opponents who have branded it a collection of "swindlers and thieves" and combat a growing sense of unease among voters at Putin's grip on power. ($1 = 30.8947 Russian roubles)
by Ubu Hex » Mon Dec 05, 2011 3:59 am
by hoosiernorm » Mon Dec 05, 2011 8:08 am
by hoosiernorm » Sun Dec 11, 2011 11:02 am
Up to 50,000 people have turned out in Moscow for a protest against disputed polls that have sparked a rare national show of defiance against Vladimir Putin's 12-year rule.
Hundreds of security trucks blocked off central squares while helicopters patrolled the skies as Moscow authorities deployed more than 50,000 riot police and troops on the biggest day of protest to hit Russia since the turbulent 1990s.
Protesters braved a whipping snow storm on Saturday to snake their way through tight police cordons and across the Moscow River to a secluded square not far from the Kremlin, assigned by the authorities for the "For Fair Elections" protest.
by Hocketing Dad » Sun Dec 11, 2011 12:34 pm
by Doc » Sun Dec 11, 2011 9:43 pm
Hocketing Dad wrote:They'll be having second thoughts in the Kremlin
about all the glowing official coverage they gave, to the Occupy Whatever Shenanigans?
by Hockey Dad » Mon Dec 12, 2011 10:49 am
Doc wrote:Hocketing Dad wrote:They'll be having second thoughts in the Kremlin
about all the glowing official coverage they gave, to the Occupy Whatever Shenanigans?
Indeed
http://youtu.be/ZK2-F5OR3vE
by Doc » Mon Dec 12, 2011 9:22 pm
Hockey Dad wrote:Doc wrote:Hocketing Dad wrote:They'll be having second thoughts in the Kremlin
about all the glowing official coverage they gave, to the Occupy Whatever Shenanigans?
Indeed
http://youtu.be/ZK2-F5OR3vE
Doc appears to have heard your remarks from far away, Hocketing Mailman....
How'd he manage that?
by hoosiernorm » Sat Dec 24, 2011 10:30 am
by Ubu Hex » Mon Dec 26, 2011 1:56 am
Terry wrote:I guess if Putin does not get elected as Russian president on March 4, he can always come to Washington and get elected here, as per Spengler's wishes.
by Hocketing Dad » Wed Dec 28, 2011 9:21 am
Vladimir Putin's wealth put at $179,612 by Russian election officials
Vladimir Putin has faced claims that he is the richest man in Europe, presiding over a mafia state and with a personal fortune of more than $40bn (£25.5bn). But Russia's central election commission has said his bank balance was rather more modest – a mere $179,612.
The prime minister's income from the past four years was $557,744, it added. Putin was also said to own two modest apartments, in Moscow and St Petersburg, and a plot of land.
The politician, who usually travels in an armoured state-owned Mercedes, owns several cars, including two vintage Volgas – a 1960 GAZ M21 and a 1965 GAZ M-21P – as well as a 2009 Lada. He also has a car trailer made in 1987.
The declaration comes ahead of Russia's presidential election in March, which Putin is certain to win to claim a second term as head of state. It is likely to be received with weary scepticism by ordinary Russians, familiar with rampant bureaucratic corruption.
Top Russian officials have, in theory, had to disclose their earnings since 2008. But the reform is widely flouted.
Putin's spokesman has dismissed as "stupid" speculation by American diplomats about Putin's personal wealth, including his alleged links to the lucrative oil export trade and the Swiss-based trading company Gunvor in particular.
Gunvor said at the time that the US diplomatic documents, published on WikiLeaks, repeated old rumours and that its ownership was a matter of public record.
Link
by Hockey Dad » Wed Dec 28, 2011 9:43 am
Hocketing Dad wrote:Luke Harding writes again on the nagging - and 'stupid' - issue (see above) of Putin's rumored $40 Billion stash, a few days ago in the Guardian;
Most fortunately, these wild and unbelievable rumors have been countered by Russia's Central Election Commission.Vladimir Putin's wealth put at $179,612 by Russian election officials
Vladimir Putin has faced claims that he is the richest man in Europe, presiding over a mafia state and with a personal fortune of more than $40bn (£25.5bn). But Russia's central election commission has said his bank balance was rather more modest – a mere $179,612.
The prime minister's income from the past four years was $557,744, it added. Putin was also said to own two modest apartments, in Moscow and St Petersburg, and a plot of land.
The politician, who usually travels in an armoured state-owned Mercedes, owns several cars, including two vintage Volgas – a 1960 GAZ M21 and a 1965 GAZ M-21P – as well as a 2009 Lada. He also has a car trailer made in 1987.
The declaration comes ahead of Russia's presidential election in March, which Putin is certain to win to claim a second term as head of state. It is likely to be received with weary scepticism by ordinary Russians, familiar with rampant bureaucratic corruption.
Top Russian officials have, in theory, had to disclose their earnings since 2008. But the reform is widely flouted.
Putin's spokesman has dismissed as "stupid" speculation by American diplomats about Putin's personal wealth, including his alleged links to the lucrative oil export trade and the Swiss-based trading company Gunvor in particular.
Gunvor said at the time that the US diplomatic documents, published on WikiLeaks, repeated old rumours and that its ownership was a matter of public record.
Link
by monster_gardener » Thu Dec 29, 2011 11:12 am
2) Deteriorating relations with Russia – This isn’t really a prediction, it’s a reality. The recent Russian election brought the downgrading of Russo-American relations to the fore, but the fact is that this has been the case ever since Russian strongman Vladimir Putin rose from the ashes of the Soviet collapse and imposed some semblance of order on a nation in the midst of a meltdown. American antipathy to Russia is largely a matter of habit – after half a century of the cold war, fear of the Russians is embedded in the consciousness of the American elites – but much of it has to do with distrust of any foreign leader who seems too strong for our own good. The Americans thought they could gobble up the pieces of the shattered Soviet empire with little or no trouble, and were surprised when Putin pulled his country out of the trash bin of history and started challenging the American would-be hegemon. While war is not an option, internal subversion most certainly is, and if any enterprising journalist wants to trace the financial links between the US government and the various Russian “dissidents” at the head of the “democratic” opposition, he or she will uncover a thriving industry.
Probability: 99%
.........
by Hocketing Dad » Fri Jan 13, 2012 1:02 am
Vladimir Putin will not take part in Russian presidential election debates because of his duties as prime minister, his spokesman has announced.
Mr Putin's spokesman said the prime minister would use the airtime allocated to him under electoral laws to convey his electoral programme to voters.
Furthermore, Mr Putin could nominate representatives to take part in debates for him, Mr Peskov added.
Mr Zyuganov, who has fought and lost presidential elections since the Yeltsin era and came a distant second against Dmitry Medvedev in 2008, said he wished to debate issues such as the economy, manufacturing, agriculture, science and education.
"Not only must [Vladimir Putin] go on leave, but also officially agree to take part in open political debates," he said in remarks broadcast on Russian news channel Rossiya 24.
One of Mr Zyuganov's MPs, Sergei Obukhov, accused Mr Putin of hogging TV coverage.
"In the last 20 days, Putin dominated the television screens 70 to 100%," he said.
Mr Putin's official duties as prime minister this week included chairing a meeting of Russian angling societies in Moscow on Wednesday.
In his manifesto, Mr Putin talks of "re-thinking the whole system of public security" and "needing to stop the extremely repressive tendency" of Russia's law enforcement agencies.
"This situation is deforming our society and is making it morally unhealthy," writes Mr Putin, a former secret police chief.
"The actions of the security forces should be aimed at protecting and supporting legal business - not fighting it."
Link
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