Re: Death of Zoya Krakhmalnikova, Russian Christian writer jailed

Marko Amnell wrote:

>O
>
>>>Under Putin, Russia has taken a path that is taking the country
>>>away from the West. Russia has roots in both the East and the
>>>West. More Russians have been able to join the consumerist
>>>lifestyle but the Russian economy is not in good shape. Much of
>>>the new wealth is built on the rising price of oil, but other sectors
>>>are underdeveloped, such as IT. There is too little investment in
>>>education and infrastructure, inflation is very high, and pensions
>>>and social security have deteriorated. Seventeen years after the
>>>end of Communism, Moscow and St Petersburg still have no
>>>hot running water in the summer, so people must heat water
>>>on a stove in the kitchen. Even the military (recently showcased with
>>>a Soviet-style Victory Day parade in Red Square including Topol-M
>>>ICBMs) which has received more funding, is plagued by lack of
>>>funds at the grassroots level. Russia lacks freedom of the press.
>>>Democractic institutions exist but do not function as they should.
>>>Corruption is rampant. Half of the price of a public contract goes
>>>to kickbacks. It is simply wrong to say that Russia is a Western
>>>country. Opinion polls show consistently that Russians see
>>>themselves as part of a separate Orthodox Eastern civilization,
>>>not as a part of Western civilization. The socio-political system
>>>is not Western. It is best described as semi-democratic
>>>state-controlled capitalism, and is similar to the Chinese model.
>>>Despite Putin's failures and the rampant corruption, Putin
>>>remains very popular among Russians. Yeltsin, who tried to
>>>introduce true Western institutions, is reviled.
>>>      
>>>
>>You make some blanket statements here that far exceed the reality of the
>>transitional and economic problems you suggest.  If you would like to
>>continue discussion, you might want to attempt to back up your
>>generalizations with reading links.
>>    
>>
>
>First reference:
>
>"Revolution from Above: The truth about the latest Russian
>Revolution", by Marko Amnell, in the magazine Nordi***, 1/1998.
>  
>

OK, post it here.  I'd like to see how, in the last five years, half the 
cost of a public contract is kickbacks, for example.  You would be 
posting your own article from 1998. And something recent?

>In this article I review the book _Revolution from Above: The demise
>of the Soviet System_ by David Kotz and Fred Weir, showing how
>it is an accurate description of the chaotic and lawless way in which
>the so-called oligarchs gained their possessions.
>  
>

And you are doing it a decade ago.  There are vast structural changes in 
Russia, and in different parts of CIS today and in the Soviet successor 
states.  The dynamic has necessarily changed.  I would be interested in 
seeing your article and any recent articles. When were you last there?

>What you call my "blanket statements" are merely summaries
>of the conventional analysis of the current condition of
>Russian society under the Putin/Medvedev regime in the
>Western press. Of course that is not how the regime describes
>itself but that is not surprising, given its lack of sup****t for
>freedom of the press. As a former journalist (correspondent
>for Agence France-Presse) freedom of the press is something
>I feel I have a stake in defending.
>

Where were you re****ting from on what when?  Numerous people on this 
newsgroup regularly post (I do) on media issues in majority (or large 
minority) Orthodox countries, many of which are emerging from different 
sorts and degrees of socialism and communism and have suffered from 
varoius kinds of media controls over time.

> I alluded earlier to
>Anna Politkovskaya. She was an independent Russian
>journalist who was persecuted, and eventually murdered,
>because of her truthful coverage of issues such as the
>Chechen war. She is not the only Russian journalist
>who was murdered because of her work. There have been
>many others.
>  
>

I would think that those of us who have known of her for decades have 
known her from her work with the samizdat press, with mostly religious 
issues.  You are appearing to me in the general Eastern Orthodox
newsgroup.

>Second reference:
>
>http://eng.globalaffairs.ru/numbers/21/1148.html
>
>This is a link to the article "A New Epoch of Confrontation"
>by Sergei Karaganov, a Russian political scientist. He
>correctly describes the new Russian socio-political system
>as "authoritarian semi-democratic capitalism". My description
>of the current Russian socio-political system is based
>on his analysis. If you disagree with my description, may
>I suggest that you read Karaganov's article and address
>his ideas.
>  
>

I'll take a look, but I am back right now from Vigil and about to eat 
dinner.

Galina

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