Sean, I think you forgot to write about Putin’s class(es) )

I didn’t want to imply that Putin is an idiot. The fact that Alexander I listened to Speransky didn’t make him an idiot. Quite contrary, the smarter the advisors the smarter the leader.

Although I noticed that both Putin and Speransky were doing almost the same job in St Petersburg:

“8 декабря 1799 г. Сперанский одновременно с получением чина статского советника получил важное назначение, став «правителем канцелярии комиссии о снабжении резиденции припасами». Комиссия с таким непритязательным названием занималась весьма важными делами: не только доставкой продовольствия в масштабе всей столицы, контролем цен, но и благоустройством города.”

That seems to be exactly what Putin was doing for Sobchak in early 90-s.

I disagree with this. Bad though things were, they could have been an awful lot worse. Had Putin tried to emulate Mugabe, famines would likely have followed.

Putin is clearly no idiot, that he was accepted into the KGB is proof enough of that without even considering his political career.

Somewhat related to your Time point is how some journos (no names) do a double take.

They’ll come out with a muted PC enough critique saying that the Russia coverage can be improved, only to then write pieces which conform to what’s wrong. Some will take it as even handed. Others see it as trying to gain access to a greater market share.

Time gave the finger to Petraeus in this issue as well. Not that it really matters, it’s entertainment news and commentary for the lowest common denominator. Seriously, has anyone ever actually read an article in Time, and not felt their intelligence completely insulted? But then none of the other “middle-of-the-road” (center-left) mags are any better either, with the exception of the Economist. It seems that if you want insightful reading, you generally have to choose one side of the political aisle or other.

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