Nathan Hodge, CNN: As coronavirus hits record numbers in Russia, this is a dangerous moment for Putin
(CNN)Russia hit a grim milestone over the weekend, officially recording the highest number of coronavirus cases the country has seen in a 24-hour period, with 10,633 people testing positive. And the economic pain is worsening: Last week, Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said on state television that he had never seen a crisis like Covid-19.
"I don't recall anything like this," he said, adding that plummeting global oil prices -- a primary source of Russian state revenue -- had delivered a "double hit" to the country's economy.
It adds up to a dangerous political moment for Russian President Vladimir Putin. In a new survey published by independent pollster Levada-Center, less than half of respondents -- 46% -- said the Russian government had responded adequately to the crisis.
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WNU Editor: What Putin says in his weekly address is not what people are experiencing on the ground. So yes, his "popularity" and "trust factor" is taking a hit and deservedly so .... Vladimir Putin's popularity slumps as coronavirus ravages Russia and country sees more than 10,000 new infections for second day in a row (Daily Mail).
O suppose the question would be is Purin a "dictator," a "tyrant, has he killed and/or jailed his opposition in the past, and does he have the power and ability to do it now? If so, then COVID-19 is definitely not a dangerous moment for him. It provides the opportunity to mark down opposition, test them, they test "positive" and into quarantine they go!! From there they disappear a victim of the virus.
ReplyDeleteIf Putin doesn't do these things which available evidence suggests he has or if he can't do them now, then he may indeed be in trouble. We shall see. It should understood that his replacement IMHO would likely be even more dangerous for America than he is. We'd hope competent Intel would be monitoring all of this.
1 out of every 7 people died during the Antonine plague. Romans 20 years afterwards look to that period as the Golden age of the Roman Empire.
ReplyDeleteJust because there is a plague or a small epidemic (and this one is very small, when compared to say H1N1 or others) does not mean woe is us. Give up the ship.
Putin will do fine.
Russia will do much better than say the State of Oregon with that clown governor Kate Brown.
Anonymous -- I have to agree about Kate Brown.
ReplyDelete