I traveled in Lithuania from 1991-1996 and Russia from 1998 through 2006, and I remember what i was told when Putin first cam to power in 1999. I stayed mostly in the South in the Volgograd Oblast (State). The Russian businessman I stayed with and his friend and associates, which included local officials, were unanimous in saying "Puti…
I traveled in Lithuania from 1991-1996 and Russia from 1998 through 2006, and I remember what i was told when Putin first cam to power in 1999. I stayed mostly in the South in the Volgograd Oblast (State). The Russian businessman I stayed with and his friend and associates, which included local officials, were unanimous in saying "Putin is a gangster" and "Putin is a mafioso". They knew that Putin would steal and take anything he wanted by using gangster mafia style methods of protection schemes, kidnappings, torture and murder, "like the St. Petersberg criminal gangs he worked with". Navalny is in the hands of a gangster, don't let the trappings of the head of state full you. A gangster will never back down because of political pressure or lack of support among the people, or protests. He will kill and imprison anyone he has to in order to protect himself. The only thing that stops gangsters like Putin is arrest and imprisonment, or death at the hands of other gangsters. The second method will only mean a new criminal group takes over so that is less desirable and there may not be other gangs strong enough. The first method will require the Russian military or the FSB (SVR or GRU) to remove him out of patriotism because they believe he is hurting the Russian state. Putin has strong supporters in the military and intelligence services so the second option doesn't seem likely either. So it looks like Navalny is going down, and the only question will be whether he is killed or just sent to some Siberian prison where he will be for silenced.
This is a lesson for us here in the USA. This is what happens when you let a gangster (or someone who thinks like a gangster, (i.e. that everything is about personal gain and personal power, without any morality to restrain him) get a hold of the reins of power. That person will do anything to hold on to power, no matter what he destroys or how many are hurt. Trump didn't do as much as Putin will only because he was too stupid, weak, and didn't know how to build the apparatus to do it. But Trump showed us the danger of letting a demagogue stay in high office because of fear of political backlash (McConnell, Cruz), or money (Giuliani). If an intelligent person with Putin's intelligence and lack of restraints, ever got to be POTUS Trump has shown us how the USA could go down the path that Russia has.
I traveled in Lithuania from 1991-1996 and Russia from 1998 through 2006, and I remember what i was told when Putin first cam to power in 1999. I stayed mostly in the South in the Volgograd Oblast (State). The Russian businessman I stayed with and his friend and associates, which included local officials, were unanimous in saying "Putin is a gangster" and "Putin is a mafioso". They knew that Putin would steal and take anything he wanted by using gangster mafia style methods of protection schemes, kidnappings, torture and murder, "like the St. Petersberg criminal gangs he worked with". Navalny is in the hands of a gangster, don't let the trappings of the head of state full you. A gangster will never back down because of political pressure or lack of support among the people, or protests. He will kill and imprison anyone he has to in order to protect himself. The only thing that stops gangsters like Putin is arrest and imprisonment, or death at the hands of other gangsters. The second method will only mean a new criminal group takes over so that is less desirable and there may not be other gangs strong enough. The first method will require the Russian military or the FSB (SVR or GRU) to remove him out of patriotism because they believe he is hurting the Russian state. Putin has strong supporters in the military and intelligence services so the second option doesn't seem likely either. So it looks like Navalny is going down, and the only question will be whether he is killed or just sent to some Siberian prison where he will be for silenced.
This is a lesson for us here in the USA. This is what happens when you let a gangster (or someone who thinks like a gangster, (i.e. that everything is about personal gain and personal power, without any morality to restrain him) get a hold of the reins of power. That person will do anything to hold on to power, no matter what he destroys or how many are hurt. Trump didn't do as much as Putin will only because he was too stupid, weak, and didn't know how to build the apparatus to do it. But Trump showed us the danger of letting a demagogue stay in high office because of fear of political backlash (McConnell, Cruz), or money (Giuliani). If an intelligent person with Putin's intelligence and lack of restraints, ever got to be POTUS Trump has shown us how the USA could go down the path that Russia has.
Trump is actually more like Navalny, it's Biden regime that's acting like Putin's one