Some Insight into Russia... Our New BFF

I've read the many threads and posts on ATS, especially since the Trump-Russian love affair started, about how Russia is really good and that Putin is an awesome guy. I've been to Russia. I've seen life on the streets. I've seen and talked to people there to understand the conditions under which they are forced to live their lives. The Russian people are, for the most part, really nice and very interested in Western culture and most of the same things we are here. But there is a huge difference. Although Russia is technically a 'Communist' country, it's no more Communist than we are a Democracy. The disparity between the Russian Elite and the common people is even more dramatic than what we see in America. Far more, in fact. Russia is controlled in virtually all aspects by the Russian mafia. You learn that almost as soon as you set foot.

Today, the Russian Parliament approved a measure supported by Putin to decriminalize Domestic Violence. The bill essentially says that if the violence does not cause 'substantial bodily harm' and does not occur more than once a year then it is punishable by a fine of roughly $500, or a 15-day arrest, provided there is no repeat within 12 months. No criminal liability.

In November, prosecutors began investigating a police officer who took a call from a woman complaining about her boyfriend’s aggressive behavior. Instead of offering help, the officer reportedly told the woman that the police would only come if she got killed. Shortly afterward, the man beat the woman to death.

Article

a reply to: jtma508

That is SO Wrong on Many Levels . God Bless the 3RD Russian Revolution .

Da! Ve vill all vear adidas track suits and drink vodka! Soon. Nyet?
Da!

That's sick.

I've listened to interviews with Russian women. (Social anthropology interests me).

They have nothing good to say about Russian men.

I don't get the Russian love affair. Putin didn't get where he is (and stay there) by being a nice guy. He's smart, he's ruthless, and he knows how to be patient to get what he wants.

i voted for the person Putin fears.

In the end you just can't change the world to our liking... We are "friends" with a lot of nations that treat their women and men extremely bad in our view. Though I would not say Russia is any kind of friend, nor are they Trumps buddies either, that is just left spin, but we do need to work with them at some level just like other nations. This is unless everyone believes in isolationist tactics instead.

other side of coin maybe?

The world practice in the sphere of fighting family violence proved that special law on domestic violence prevention is more effective that separate articles of criminal, civil and administrative legislation.
Similar laws already for several years have been effective in the territory of many countries of the Western and Eastern Europe, as well as CIS. Experience of Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Moldova, Kyrgyzstan, the Czech Republic, Lithuania and also other countries showed that cases of domestic violence reduce from 20 to 40% after adoption of similar laws.

Hopefully a less biased source?

a reply to: jtma508

Meanwhile, in the USA, the land of dreams, no-knock is legal. They shoot you and your dog and your family by accident as they had the wrong address. They will however, apologise afterwards.

Bwahaha

how is it decriminalized if you can still be arrested and put in jail for it?

The way the laws are now in Russia a parent who spanks their child faces harsher penalties than if a neighbor or a stranger were to hit their child.

a reply to: Annee

As a russian man may i say your statement is extremely sexist and racist.

a reply to: jtma508

The russian communist party was actually outlawed so in fact Russia is NOT a communist country, it WAS a communist country and there is growing sentiment for a return to a communist system among the population there today in part because of what you point out about the Russian Mafia but even when Russia was ruled by the totalitarian big brother with the KGB breathing down there own people's neck's the Russian Mafia was still there, actually the term Mafia is borrowed from the Italian's and a better term is the Russian Criminal Underworld, one time the Russian gangster's would mark themselves with tattoo's often featuring orthodox iconography but actually meaning something completely different to them.

Here is the replacement for the old Soviet party and it is not the one in power.
en.wikipedia.org...

Today Russia is technically a capitalist society just like most western nation's and indeed like most of those the term Democracy can only be loosely applied as corruption and money greased palms run the show just like here in the Britain and to a large part there in the US.

True democracy is like a dream we can strive for but never attain, the same exact thing can actually be said about communism as well as though so different both system's are about the people running there country but in practice that is simply never the case but at least in a non communist system you have a chance to rise out of poverty were in a communist system no matter how much you work you are just part of the state, the state own's your labor and all you create belong's to it and some despicable little self serving party member with a big Dacha (country house) decides what you get - no matter how hard you work.

Socialism (not extreme marxism and not to be confused with NAZISM - NAZISM was not Socialism - Hitler and his cronies purged the NAZI's under his control of the socialist element during the night of the long knives 1934) is another dream, basically moderated economic's were the rich pay more tax and the poor are protected against the very worst suffering of poverty, the poorest kid's get full education and are in part protected by the state (ideologicaly anyway) and the social safety net help's to keep EVERYONE better off by - the poor are not made rich on there benefit's as they only receive enough for food and shelter as well as a few utility bill's and all they actually do receive in state benefit's goes entirely back into the economy boosting the retail and utility sector's while the education given to the poor kid's ensures that they are able to take up the job's and have the skill's necessary to ensure the nation has the skill resources it will need always at hand.


But these day's Socialism which has NEVER been implement in the US, was in the UK but was ruined by liberal's as you call them opening the door's to mass imigration and then blaming there own poor for the problem's (convenient for the right as well) is constantly confused with NATIONAL socialism (which is simply NOT socialism despite what some bespectacled gobsh@% of a professor may have tought some of you) and it is also not Communism, oh and it is not the Liberal of the American meaning of that word but is the Liberal of the old English meaning of that word though HALF way to marxism (all the way IS communism).

As for the reduction in the sentencing the Russian's are moving through it may be a bad move as there was a reason there law was so harsh, beating woman in the home was something of a pass time in Russia and had been since forever, Vodka, mood swing's and beaten woman, it is also a problem shared across the world so I Think they are wrong to reduce that sentence.

yes but it was a woman politician who pushed it to vote so it must be in the best interest of marginalized people, in soviet russia woman beat you.
TRACK SUITS ARE A SUIT OF ARMOUR AGAINST VODKA

a reply to: jtma508

There was a thread that talks about how China has plans to back stab Russia in the future by invading Siberia.

What if Putin decided to ally with Trump because he was afraid of China taking over Siberia.

originally posted by: dashen
a reply to: Annee

As a russian man may i say your statement is extremely sexist and racist.

Blame the Russian women who said it.

Are you actually in Russia?

These women lived in Russia. They were talking about the men they know in Russia.

Not Russians living elsewhere.