What is your opinion on Vladimir Putin?

this is what putin is: look up this: top secret document 0008-6/86


this is what the east german stasi had in mind should east Germany fall and become democratic. well in Russia that is what happened, and what you are now seeing w/ putin, is he is KGB lol and they are taking over the Russian gov't. although in Russia, there are a lot of billionaires that have a lot of influence.

 

Putin is a typical Russian gangster living like a gangster and following gangsters' rules. Russia is a weak country with poor people, all the power and money is concentrated at Putin's partners and vassals wallets.

 

Lotsa people in Russia, speshully older folks, miss the USSR too.

 

Because life was clear and simple and there was a common goal. Probably also because they didn't know shit what that system was doing to their fellow countrymen. Who cares what happens in Siberia, if it's not about people you actually know? It could as well have been on the other side of the world.

Lots of different stories too, although far less of course as far less people with a different opinion and mindset surived into this day and age Enough though to understand that the old russians who miss the USSR have a distorted picture of that soviet union. Ignorance is bliss.

 

When will westerners learn to respect other people, other nations; and, leave them to live their own lives under their own form of government?

 

Not before they start respecting basic human rights.

 

Well Karen, that says the west will enforce their own ideas on others. That's not fair and it is a violation under international law. It is also considered a war of aggression, when a country invades another just to enforce its own ideas about human rights. There are are established and codified human rights under international law. These would cover areas like torture and perpetual detention without basic legal rights. Many countries like the USA seem to violate these basic human rights that are a part of international law, then turn around and preach human rights. The USA invaded Iraq while using lies as a pretext for that war. During the occupation of Iraq, thousands of civilians were killed, and even tortured. When American troops killed Iraqis, they were let off by the courts, as in the case of SGT. Wutterich (think I spelled it right) In the Blackwater case, an American government official gave instant immunity to the killers who gunned down 17 Iraqi civilians. Countries need to respect and live by what international laws we have, and should start at the top and powerful.

 

There is nothing admirable by just blindly "respecting" everyone and every nation... Russia is quickly moving further towards a totalitarian state now. They have no respect for ant international laws of establishments or even citizens of other nations.

The US/UK are definitely guilty of the same but that is not an excuse.

 

I feel the same way. I don't think there are too many safe havens on this planet where ordinary people can go and live in freedom. I have a friend who likes it in Costa Rica. Another says Uruguay is nice. I know that Malta is nice, and they don't even have an army. Several nations are not interested in war at all. Canada used to be nice. I have been there a bunch of times. My last trip there was another matter. Turkey used to be nice; but, they want to get into your pocket book these days.

 

If international law requires me to respect the right of religious men in some countries to declare that women and minorities there have no rights at all, then I say fuck international law. I have no more respect for that than I would have had for old American laws that used to say it was okay to own slaves.

I say people have a moral obligation to oppose and disobey evil laws, in the spirit of Gandhi and Martin Luther King and John Brown. There are still some causes worth fighting for.

Inside my house, I can do almost anything I want, short of killing somebody. Outside of my house, I can go wherever I want and spend my free time and money any way I want, as long as I follow traffic laws, which are a necessity.

 

Karen, there is no international law that demands treatment of women and minorities that way. I know you are patriotic and love your country. I live here too, and have formed my opinion after 55 plus years of observation. There are serious problems with laws in this country which infring on civil rights and liberties. America has more laws on the books than any other nation. The more laws you have, the less free you are. The more laws you have, the more privilages replace freedom. Often cops tell me that, "we are a nation of laws." Well if that is the case, then I am not as free as you tell me. America has privilages that are not like what exists in other countries. In some cases the laws are similar. I have traveled to many countries and see these differences. You are white and can travel in your car without being pulled over by the cops on some made-up or petty charge. You can go into a store and spend your money, where a Muslim woman would be told to leave (Missouri case). You can feel safe inside your home; but, there were 3 Muslim college kids who were gunned down in your town, inside their apartment. A few years back, a black man named Roy Davis was hung inside his own house, by the local judge and sheriff. That was in Gilpin County, Colorado. Today, the Larimer County government is changing the panhandling laws, so they can fine more Homeless folks. It is already a crime, if you sleep in your car, or on a park bench. In South Carolina, it is a crime TO BE HOMELESS! So, we have laws and we have laws. You can stay here, and I'll most likely travel to another country. It does not follow that I would like other places completely. I sort of miss the liberties we had in the sixties and seventies. This era feels like living in a global prison.

 

But it's allowed. Sharia Law countries have the same international status as any other. I wish they would get the same treatment that South Africa got before they changed their racial laws. They were boycotted by most of the world.

What do you want to do that you can't do right now? I'd like for weed to be legal everywhere like it is in Colorado, and I'd like to be able to carry drinks around everywhere like you can in New Orleans. That's about all I can think of. Oh, a few more topless and nude beaches would be nice too.

 

I agree with you on all these points. The nations that enforce Sharia laws are savages in my political opinion. They should be boycotted by all civilized nations. Saudi Arabia and all the other Mini-Saudis should not be allowed to sell their oil, until they start to permit freedom for their people. Bahrain has a majority of Shia; but, it is governed by Wahabist savages who don't allow the Shia to live in liberty. Women in these Wahabist nations are treated like farm animals, giving a new meaning to "Animal Husbandry." Westerners also need to understand that many Middle Eastern nations do have good civil rights for their women, as in Iraq, Turkey, Lebanon, and others. Things may have changed since I was there; but, they did have laws on the books that gave women the right to drive a car, get divorced, get paid for work like a man, and so on. I like the weed freedom in Colorado. I don't know about the nude beaches, as I am a hairy guy. The Right To Go Topless just got voted down in Fort Collins, Colorado. Since I am brown, I get a thrill when I can go to a restaurant without getting arrested. I don't know how brown would go over at a nudie beach. I know there are plenty of nude beaches in Europe. My sister owns some property in Europe. Anyway, the human condition today is not as tranquil as it was forty years ago. When it comes to modern laws in America, you get a speeding ticket when the cop pulls the switch on his radar gun, in a fraction of a second. Forty years ago, they paced your car for a while to get your avrage speed, hence the term MPH. I liked the old way better, because we got a few seconds to adjust our speed. We were not intent on speeding. Sometimes the car got going in the hill country. We just needed a moment to adjust. So, I prefer the old days over the new high tech ones.

 

So because the last guy sucker so very hard, it's ok for this guy to suck too as long as it's not quite as much?

 

I liked Yeltsjin better.

 

I've been suspecting that for a long time, but you never would say for sure. I think the forum needs a lot more nonwhite regulars. Nearly all our international members seem to be white.

Shale could tell you more about how that plays in the US, but I know from experience that it's a nonfactor in the Caribbean, no matter what country owns the island.

Old days, as in when there were no cell phones to use for road emergencies, and the Russian leaders who came before Putin were constantly threatening us with nuclear destruction? No thanks, I don't want to go back to that. I think some people are starting to forget how bad some of the old problems used to be. Putin would like to go back to the old days, because things were better for Russia when it was the USSR.

Other than ISIS, when was the last time the US and Russia had a common enemy? Has there been another one since World War Two? I'm drawing a blank here.

 

I can't think of any, but it makes sense because any enemy of USSR was instantly our ally and vice-versa, so no common enemies, but lot's and lot's of questionable alliances.

 

Can't do that with ISIS, can we? They're equal opportunity haters.

 

I don't know for sure when they had a common enemy. Just keep in mind that ISIS is not a real country, It's a gang. As far as the old days go, I remember having to stuff my body under the school desk. The fear wasn't all that great. During Viet Nam, the local cops used to grab long hair Hippies off the street and take them to the Selective Service office, for the draft. By the way, when I signed on just now, there was a home page quote about patriotism by Emma Goldman. It was a good one. You should read it. As for the Carib, I have been thinking of going to the Virgin Islands. My friend Bryan got a house remodeling gig in Hawai. He invited me to come there. I know it is expensive, but a guy could camp easily enough. I spent last spring and summer in Arcata California. That was the Cat's Meow!

 

Much of NATO doesn't even have ANY form of election for its head of state.