Yep! Exactly the same kind of leader that Trump is - a fascist authoritarian.
Also, this:
(Substitute the white race for “the species”)
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I think I just accidentally flagged your post. Apologies!
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A little-known variant of the “Russian Reversal”.
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https://twitter.com/anneapplebaum/status/1694492667516797119
https://twitter.com/michaeldweiss/status/1694430797258732024
https://twitter.com/Stanovaya/status/1694454748093485425
A few thoughts in light of Prigozhin’s death.
No matter the cause of the plane crash, everyone will see this as an act of retaliation and retribution, and the Kremlin won’t particularly counteract this view. From Putin’s perspective, as well as many among the security and military officials, Prigozhin’s death should serve as a lesson to any potential successors.
I see no reason why Putin would need Prigozhin in any capacity after the mutiny. The only question was whether to spare his life: I had no doubt that the Kremlin would gradually remove all geopolitical projects out from under him. After the mutiny, Prigozhin ceased to be a partner of the state and under no circumstances could he regain that status. He was also not forgiven. Prigozhin was only needed for some time after the mutiny to smoothly dismantle Wagner in Russia and move it to Belarus under new leadership.
Prigozhin was not a classic traitor: he did not consciously betray his homeland, but rather “lost his mind,” having significant merits from Putin’s perspective. The question was whether this would be enough to let him live. The issue here is that even if on a personal level, Putin might have been affirmative (which is not a given), on the state level (as Putin perceives it), it would be a vulnerability. And it was. A lively, energetic, and idea-filled Prigozhin was undoubtedly a walking issue for the regime, embodying Putin’s political humiliation.
For a significant portion of the politicized, conservative public, Prigozhin’s death is a well-deserved outcome. Even those who sympathized with him largely condemned the mutiny, believing it weakened the regime during wartime (and they are right).
Prigozhin’s death is a direct threat to everyone who stayed with him till the end or openly supported him. It’s more likely to intimidate rather than inspire protests. So, no special reaction should be expected. There will be indignation, but no serious political consequences.
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I wonder what the lesson is supposed to be.
All I get is that if you threaten a coup, you better go through with it. Also, expect Putin to go back on his word and murder you.
I can hardly blame Zelensky for not wanting to negotiate with the man. Frankly the only way I see him avoiding falling out of a window himself is to remove Putin.
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Gravity is natural. So its natural causes.
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Very rapid once you hit the ground. To zero.
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This will make Putin stronger:
Or weaker:
Either way, Lukashenko has a problem.
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What do you mean, Putin? That was Ukrainians! Or NATO! Or both of them! Or Chechens! Or same space aliens which took out Luna spacecraft! Or all of them together!!
The guy is national hero and we will keep his grateful memory while Wagner is being commanded now by Mr Corruptovsky who is gifted leader and also great friend of Mr Putin’s.
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Bye bye Mr Uruk-Guy…
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The only way that this situation could be any better would be if the plane fell out of the sky and on top of Putin.
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… might be Phantom Menace. Or I might be confusing it with Phantom Thread (surely there is a lightly poisoned donut in that movie)
(Blurred spoiler for Phantom Thread)
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I think Putin would much rather have the world fear him as a despot who mercilessly assassinates anyone who stands against him than believe Ukraine is strong and competent enough to take out one of Putin’s allies.
Putin doesn’t care about deniability. He wants people to be afraid of him.
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Heck, we have seen that Putin would rather people see him as having a military full of garbage that breaks or sinks on its own than that Ukraine is able to stand up to any of it.
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DB can get a bit tabloidy at the worst of times, though.
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Guy who complained that Putin was inefficient at killing his enemies is proved wrong. Ignoring all the many obvious flaws of Putin, he chose to focus one of the few things Putin can often accomplish.
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Putin can’t simply come out and say “we fragged that a…hole, he had it coming for the longest time”, much like he can’t say “we attacked Ukraine because we don’t like how they seem to make democracy work for them and oh, we want Kiev and Odessa back, too, not just Crimea and the Donbass”. Instead it’s NATO’s aggression, the Ukrainian government being run by Nazis, etc., yadda, yadda, even though nobody who isn’t fed a strict diet of 100% Russian state media actually believes that. He still wants people to be afraid of Russia’s military power (even though that isn’t working out so great in practice right now), but that goal is not incompatible with spreading all sorts of BS to put the blame for his invasion on other people. It’s all part of the game.
In Prigozhin’s case in particular this is not a problem at all because that Prigozhin was killed on Putin’s orders is what pretty much everybody assumes by default, anyway – people have been saying Prigozhin was living on borrowed time long before the June uprising. Killing Prigozhin to show people that annoying Putin isn’t a great idea is one thing and it would work, but it’s crude; killing Prigozhin to show people that annoying Putin isn’t a great idea and at the same time getting away with all sorts of preposterous claims trying to make it look like someone (anyone) else did it, even though everybody knows that of course it was Putin after all, that’s a lot more fun. It wouldn’t be a surprise in any way if tomorrow they’d arrest some poor schmuck for being a Ukrainian, or Chechen, or CIA agent (or all of the above at the same time) and sabotaging Prigozhin’s aircraft. Mr Corruptovsky the new boss will put up a nice, dignified commemorative plaque in the lobby of Wagner HQ and any residual danger will be safely contained.
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