[jacquesm]

Thank you for this post. Tough times. Let's hope someone higher up grows a pair and does something about it, because otherwise we will sleepwalk straight into something much, much worse.

FWIW: about those 40 year olds with families that can't do anything: they can, it's just that the perceived price is too high. But think about it from another perspective: how are you going to explain to your kids that you stood by and did nothing knowing full well what was going on? That is the question that is keeping me up at night right now.

[lr1970]

> 2. The majority of Russians are in their 40-ies, have families, have government jobs, and won't risk losing the only source of income they have by opposing said government.

I would disagree. I vividly remember August 1991 coup attempt in USSR against Gorbachev when ordinary people surrounded the "White House" (governmental building of Russian Federation) while a tank battalion surrounded the people. There were quite a few 40+ people in the crowd defending the White House. This standoff lasted for quite a while and then the coup collapsed. The whole thing lasted about 4 days [0] despite the fact that the junta had formal control over military, KGB, police, national guard (interior troops), border guards, etc. Junta summarily lost and Yeltsin became the de-factor leader of USSR with Gorbachev playing a role of British Queen for a short few months before USSR expired.

The real difference then and now is that in 1991 there was an alternative center of power (Yeltsin, government of russian federation, russian parliament). putler made sure that there is no any organized structures left that could potentially challenge his power. This is a real problem, not the 40+ people conservatism.

[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1991_Soviet_coup_d%27%C3%A9tat...

[9214]

Thanks for giving me a perspective as a younger generation! I wasn't even born at the time, and obviously see our daily reality differently. OTOH, I think what you just described falls into p. 1 and 4.