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Comment by foxx-boxx | Hacker News Reader

It’s no Russia, but Russian gov’t. Russian population can’t throw this regime out. This government is a lot like Saudis royal family.

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Russia, unlike Saudi Arabia, is a democracy. They have elections. If the Russian people wanted to throw the regime out, they would have.

Yes, you could make a good argument about propaganda, freedom of the press, and the unfortunate things that happen to leaders of opposition to Putin. But that is all to make the the population doesn't want to throw the regime out, not that it can't.

A democracy with things that happen to anyone who runs against Putin and anyone who speaks out against Putin is not a democracy.

An election where the public isn't free to get a real opposition candidate on the ballot, isn't a real election. Even if the rest of it was remotely free which it is not, it doesn't matter if you're offered Hobson's choice.

Putin is a dictator.

Russia is a dictatorship.

And if all of the new edits to the constitution will pass (they will) he will be call The Supreme Ruler.

> Russia, unlike Saudi Arabia, is a democracy. They have elections.

Elections alone aren't the sole definition of a full democracy. Hell, even Iraq under Saddam had elections...

Iran an NK both have elections. As for Russia, it casually ignores evidence of election fraud (as in literally throwing in stacks of ballots by local officials caught on camera). Also the official vote results in some especially democratic regions show over 99% support for the putin party, would you claim this result to be possible in real elections?

Russia is an authoritarian state, that imitates some democratic institutions. Transit of power via elections is impossible.

Source: I'm Russian.

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