Putin's Policies Facing Protests

Hey Russia, people are not happy in your country.

Oh. You see that.

Moscow - An axiom here holds that Russians are politically passive, but the protests unfolding in cities across 11 time zones is challenging that, while raising questions about public support for the country's course under President Vladimir V. Putin.

The largest of the demonstrations have included no more than a few thousand protesters. But taken together, they are the largest by far of Mr. Putin's presidency and appear to signal a broadly felt, if ill-defined, discontent.

These protests may be demonstrated by just a few thousand, but they represent the country as a whole. Hope without action is dead. So now the people are demonstrating that they need to see action. They have been given hope. Now they want action. People want to see the government working for them. Government serves the people. That's what it does. Might be a hard concept to swallow for a person (or people) who want to be ruler(s) with riches and fame and a following. But the truth is: Government serves the people. That's how it should work if it's operating properly.

"In the first four years of Putin's regime, people had hope," said Roman A. Dobrokhotov, 21, a political science student at Moscow State University and a leader of a new group called Walking Without Putin. "Nowadays, people understand that under authoritarian rule, development is impossible. This government, this system, is not suitable for them."

Rut roh. The people had a taste of democracy before. Could it be that they want that again? Did the people of Russia get to vote whether their democratic government should be changed back to communism? Or were they just given no choice?

If I remember correctly, the change in Russia's government style of leadership (from Democratic to Communism) was forced upon the people. And during the process, certain leaders who opposed the change were "disappearing" left and right. I found that to be very disturbing. Still do. So maybe the malarky going on over in Russia is beginning to come to light. The only people who can make change are the citizens. With or without a vote.

Mounting Discontent in Russia Spills Into Streets - By STEVEN LEE MYERS, The New York Times, Published: February 12, 2005