Hint:
Pussy Riot!
Earlier today, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev called for the three imprisoned members of the punk band Pussy Riot to be released. In fact, they may entirely done doing jail time. Having already served five months prior to their August convinctions of “hooliganism driven by religious hatred,” they could potentially not be forced to go back to prison since their appeal is in just a few weeks on October 1st.
According to the The Associated Press:
The outward appearance of the women, who perform in bright-colored miniskirts and balaclavas, and the ‘hysteria’ accompanying them made him sick, Medvedev said with disdain. But he said keeping them in prison any longer would be unproductive. ‘In my view, a suspended sentence would be sufficient, taking into account the time they have already spent in custody,’ he said during a televised meeting with members of his United Russia party in the city of Penza.
The crimes they were charged with stemmed from an incident inside of Moscow’s main cathedral. As Vladimir Putin was up for a third term of presidency, Pussy Riot performed a “raucous prayer” begging the Virgin Mary to save the country from Putin. Many saw this as an attack on the Russian Orthodox Church while many others considered it a declaration to be protected as free speech. The “Free Pussy Riot” movement has seen incredible amounts of support across the globe with protests in dozens of major cities. Brightly colored balaclavas became a widely made thing, in fact.
However, there are those who have put political pressure on Russian politicians who believe that Pussy Riot’s release shows weakness and as folding under pressure, something Putin is incredibly opposed being associated with his image.
Lovelies, how do you feel about Pussy Riot’s release?
ranunculus / 3457 posts
What the rest of the world doesn’t realize is that Russians don’t care about these movements (and this terrible, terrible band). Yeah, a 50,000 people protest is big… until you remember it’s in a city of 14 million people and therefore insignificant. Putin still has vast support, even if this support comes in the form of “there’s no one else to pick and we know this guy.” Russia is a very free country, in fact, I’d call it near perfect capitalism… you can buy anything, from goods to the law to illegal exotic animals, etc, and no one will care, if you have enough $$$. These girls don’t. And unfortunately, one of the leaders of this “freedom/democracy/etc” movement just got a very lucrative contract…. with a company that is under the oligarch’s wings. People there generally view democracy as a burden or something that will never exist, and don’t find it as appealing as Americans do, given they don’t feel uneducated people should have a say in politics. Russians also enjoy having strong leaders as a culture, you will see this in their political life, school, and in the workplace even; being a boss or a “manager” is a title only the bravest covet since most don’t feel they can do it, very unlike the “climb up the ladder” and “be your own boss” attitude that Americans have.
That being said, I think this whole Pussy Riot thing was blown way out of proportion, just ignore the idiot girls who feel like they are revolutionazing a system no one wants to change.
And before you whine at me, I live in Russia, have for a long time now, specialize in Russian economics and politics, married a Russian (one who did not vote for Putin), etc. I’m not pulling this out of my rear.
sunflower / 300 posts
@MoonFaeEyryan@xanga - Haha, don’t worry, no one is going to “whine” at you for voicing your opinion. That sort of is what all of this is about: being able to openly voice your opinion regardless of who likes it and who doesn’t.