Quote from Eight:
Putin is a criminal leading a country that, in my understanding, is without the rule of law. That is hardly the recipe for prosperity for the masses or for building a middle class.
Well, I never argued that Russia can do all this without the "rivers of blood and years of darkness". That is precisely what has been happening since the 90s. Neither am I suggesting that it's all guaranteed to succeed. However, I don't see any reason to assume that Russia will forever remain what it is today. That is an excessively aggressive extrapolation, if you ask me. Again, my reasoning for that is simply that there is some evidence of tangible trend improvements that have occurred which, in my view, are not simply a result of higher hydrocarbon prices. However, let history be the judge.Quote from trefoil:
That's pretty much what it takes. Rivers of blood, years of darkness. Sorry, but that's just the way it is.
Quote from mr double:
PUTIN is jew or not? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXiaVyA1dcE&feature=related 2) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qoJc7VoEmq0
Quote from johnson100:
wealthy????
Russia has the fastest declining population in the world.
Most unhealthy people
One of the most HIV+ and alcholic people
One of the lowest wages in the world
As a result people don't want to have babies. And also almost everyone is trying to escape to West.
As a result huge population decline going on. Last time I checked their population is declining 1MM every year.
Quote from bone:
Dolt: Read the CIA's commentary. Your motherland is run by thugs and gangsters who take whatever they want and do whatever they want. Honestly, who knows what the economy's metrics are, because all of it seems to be controlled by ex-KGB thugs. Intelligence demands that you read into the CIA's comments - not hard to do with a bit of lucid forethought. They are simply saying it's a crapshoot and it's all up for grabs and there's a very good reason why anyone who could flee Russia would.
It seems like you can't accept simple economic principles for which your mother country is clearly lacking: that property rights and the infrastructure to support and enforce them are universally recognized by economic scholars as the central tenet to drive investment and innovation.
And I attended the University of Chicago and studied the subject matter in Graduate School.
Mother Russia has defaulted on her sovereign debt, she has confiscated legally titled property from outsided investors and companies, there are no intellectual property rights, there are no real estate rights, etc. etc. etc..
Guess what the CIA uses to make their estimates - those kinds of legally binding documents !
Workers of the world, unite !
Quote from DT-waw:
True. So is Lithuania, Latvia, Sweden, Norway, Hungary, Belarus and Ukraine.
The population of white people is declining VERY fast. While black/arab/asian - increases superfast.
Besides, what % of countries like UK, Ireland, Vatican, Denmark and Netherlands is actually homosexual? Large. There is a certain psychological defense mechanism --- occuring under companies like Monsanto (hint: lets kill the maximum amount of hindi people), Microsoft/Bill Gates (hint: lets vaccinate and reduce population), IBM (heil hitler, not a very bright history...).
Russia historically was aggressive too. And how about the British Empire?
Many folks with low melanin happen to have a power abuse issue.