Vladimir Putin and Steven Seagal at a martial arts school on the outskirts of Moscow, to promote healthy lifestyles. The film star acted as the Russian president’s bodyguard in what seemed like a choreographed move.
Photograph: Alexei Nikolsky/AFP/Getty Images
soulmates
Putin with his Bond villan.
Vladimir Putin has reached back to Joseph Stalin’s era for a plan to improve Russians’ physical fitness, appearing with the film actor Steven Seagal at an event aimed at promoting healthy lifestyles among young people.
In a meeting at a martial arts school on Moscow’s outskirts, Putin called for physical education rooted in a Soviet-era system.
“I think it would be quite appropriate to recall the positive experience of past decades when the so-called GTO, Ready for Labour and Defence, was in use in our country,” he said. The GTO mass physical training programme was introduced in the 1930s under Stalin.
All of the jokes that could be made about this aside (Steven Seagal? Really?), while we certainly support the idea of improving children’s physical health, we’re not sure why a new program couldn’t have been created to serve this purpose. Even if there’s nothing malevolent going on behind-the-scenes, reviving a program first created by Joseph Stalin just doesn’t look good.
this is real
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On December 21, 1991, “It’s So Hard to Say Goodbye To Yesterday” hit #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States. On December 25, 1991, the Soviet Union was dissolved. Coincidence? We think not.
President Vladimir V. Putin said Thursday that he would sign into law a ban on adoptions of Russian children by American citizens, retaliating against an American law that punishes Russians accused of violating human rights and dealing a potentially grave setback to bilateral relations.
Mr. Putin announced his decision at a meeting with senior government officials on Friday, including cabinet members and legislative leaders. The adoption ban, included in a broader law aimed at retaliating against the United States, was approved unanimously by the Federation Council, the upper chamber of Parliament on Wednesday.
Seriously, though, the U.S. is not happy about this, finding it awful that Russia is putting orphaned children in the middle of a political battle. But the truth of the matter is, there are dozens of families out there which just had their hopes dashed over a transparently political move. Lame.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a law broadening the definition of treason which opponents say could be used to smother dissent and put almost anyone who has contact with foreigners at risk.
The law allows Russians representing international organizations to be charged with treason, as well as those working for foreign intelligence. It took effect on Wednesday when it was published in the official gazette, despite a promise by Putin on Monday that he would review it.
Political opponents and rights activists say the legislation is the latest in a series of laws intended to crack down on the opposition and reduce foreign influence since he returned to the Kremlin in May for a six-year third term.
Unsurprisingly, Vladimir Putin’s return to the presidency has been anything but good news for those hoping to see an expansion of individual freedoms in Russia. Between the incarceration of several Pussy Riot members, increased hostility towards protesters and other political opposition, and newly strengthened treason laws, the future of those opposed to Putin’s return is looking grimmer by the day. source
For this story, imagine Vladimir Putin dressed as a giant crane, hang-gliding through the air. You are not dreaming.
We are simply praying and hoping that these young women and all these people shouting in front of the court building, committing sacrilegious acts not only in Russia but in other countries, realize that their acts are awful. And despite this the church is asking for mercy within the limits of law.Archpriest Maxim Kozlov • Making a backhanded plea of forgiveness to the Russian punk band Pussy Riot, who were sentenced to two years in prison for “hooliganism” after they disrupted a Moscow cathedral with an anti-Vladimir Putin “punk prayer” back in March, weeks before his re-election. The Russian Orthodox church is a powerful force within everyday Russian life, political life even more so – said Tikhon Shevkunov, head of Moscow’s Sretensky Monastery (and believed by many to be a spiritual adviser to President Putin himself): ”We did forgive them from the very start. But such actions should be cut short by society and authorities.” So, in other words, we forgave you right away, but a nice two-year prison spell for uttering an unwelcome political opinion in our church sounds good? That, folks, is the very definition of cold comfort. source (via • follow)
The members of Pussy Riot have been found guilty of hooliganism for singing a song critical of Vladimir Putin in a Moscow cathedral. Check out the latest over here. (photo by Misha Japaridze/AP)
How did it happen that our performance, which was a small and clumsy stunt, brought so much trouble? How can this happen in a healthy society? And now it takes thousands of people around the world to prove the obvious, to prove that the three of us are innocent.Maria Alekhina, member of Russian punk band Pussy Riot • Expressing disbelief that Pussy Riot’s decision to stage an anti-Putin protest on the alter of Moscow’s Christ the Saviour Cathedral has created such an uproar. While Russian President Vladimir Putin has called for a lenient sentencing by the court, some believe that his statements reveal a hidden presumption of guilt which they worry will be shared by jurors. In addition to Alekhina, co-defendants Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Yekaterina Samutsevich stood by their decision to protest, and said they were more free behind bars than prosecutors who can “only say what political censorship allows.” A verdict is expected to be delivered on August 17. source (via • follow)
Ignoring criticism of the bill by the United States, the Kremlin-controlled upper house of parliament, the Federation Council, sped the bill through with just one vote against and one abstention in its last session before a summer break.
The rushed adoption signals the importance Putin attaches to the law, which will force non-governmental organizations (NGOs) engaging in “political activity” to register with the Justice Ministry as “foreign agents” and to file a report to officials every quarter.
The term “foreign agents”, which NGOs will be forced to print on all their publications, carries the same associations of Cold War espionage and treachery that it does in the West.
The penalties for failing to comply with the law include six months’ suspension without a court order and, for individuals, up to three years in jail.
Those who risk being stigmatized include the human rights group Amnesty International, the corruption watchdog Transparency International and the election monitoring group Golos (Voice), which was instrumental in compiling and publicizing allegations of fraud in December’s parliamentary election.
Something tells us that Cold War-invoking labels aren’t going to put an end to the massive protests that many believe Russian President Vladimir Putin has lost all patience with.
Wrote a thing.
Hat tip to this headline writer.
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» Krymsk hit the hardest: The weekend’s flooding slammed the city so hard that some residents suggested water had been released from a nearby reservoir. While local officials denied this, Russian officials said that water had been released, though it didn’t cause the flooding. At least 139 people were found killed in the city, while another nine were from the resort town of Gelendzhik. Most of the victims were elderly, in a position where they couldn’t run away from the flooding. Russian President Vladimir Putin made a trip to the southern region of the country in the wake of the flooding, pressuring investigators to figure out how the deaths could have been prevented.
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More headaches in Syria: According to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Russia is sending attack helicopters to the Syrian government. If this is true, it will undoubtedly set back international efforts to resolve the conflict. Russia, along with China, is Syria’s strongest international ally, and continues to block Western countries’ efforts to take harsher action against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. If the US’s intelligence is correct, not only is Russia not taking a harder line against Assad; it’s actually sending him more weapons. Oy vey. (Picture credit: Sergei Zhukov/AFP/Getty). source
They rifled through everything, every wardrobe, in the toilet, in the refrigerator. They searched under the beds. Were they looking for our secrets?Russian Left Front party leader Sergei Udaltsov • Discussing the searches that Russian police did on both his home, and those of other opposition figures, on Monday morning. Political foes of Vladimir Putin, who protested heavily ahead of his election as president, are now finding themselves the subject of major crackdowns. Putin recently signed a law increasing fines for public street demonstrations, among other things. ”What we are witnessing today is in essence the year 1937,” said activist Yevgenia Chirikova. “It is an absolutely clear scenario in which the authorities scare the people.”
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