Hello again everyone! Happy Friday!
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin conducted his annual television talk-a-thon yesterday in Moscow, spending over five hours sharing his views on the recent allegations of election fraud, his waning popularity, and the 50,000 or so who converged last Saturday near Red Square to voice their displeasure about all of the above. Based on transcripts of his question-and-answer session, it's clear that Putin is utterly out of touch--or, more to the point, doesn't give a damn--about anything beyond holding onto power. He dismissed the protestors as being paid lackeys of the opposition and made fun of the white ribbons they wore, claiming the ribbons looked like condoms, a remark that sent the opposition blogosphere into overdrive.
Putin went on to reiterate claims he made earlier in the week, saying that the opposition movement was fueled and funded by the U.S. government and that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was personally responsible for inciting the unrest. I don't know about you, but this is beginning to sound not dissimilar to the ridiculous accusations of a certain recently dead and dethroned Libyan dictator who said his country's protests were spurred by Western drug dealers and foreign agents.
Has Putin not been following the news? Does he not realize momentum is on the side of the protestors? He did make some concessions, paying lip service to charges of ballot-stuffing by saying he'd have Web cameras installed in 90,000 polling places across the country during the upcoming presidential elections in March. It is doubtful however that this is going to stem the tide flowing against him. Another protest has been called for December 24th that could very well exceed the tens of thousands who turned out last Saturday.
Of course Putin has demonstrated time and again a certain bizarre predilection for advertising his masculine hubris. He seems to relish the photo-op that allows him to pose bare-chested in all manner of manly-man activities, including hunting, fishing, and wrestling. His latest involved a mixed martial arts competition at which he was roundly booed when he took the ring. Putin denies this as he denies everything, claiming the jeers were actually directed at the loser of the previous bout. Whatever.
While even the Western media has said Putin's re-election in March as President (in a much-derided job swap with current President Dmitri Medvedev) is a foregone conclusion, I'm going to take a different stance and say all bets are off. A lot can happen in three months, as we've lately seen in the Middle East. I'm dubious of opposition candidate and New York Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov's chances against Putin (nor am I convinced that he isn't part of the Kremlin-sponsored opposition) but I wouldn't rule out People Power just yet. No dictator is an island...not even you, Mr. Putin.
Do svidaniya.
QUESTION OF THE DAY: "Do you believe Russia is fated for a similar uprising to what we've witnessed in the Middle East?"
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