Originally Posted by
talkabout
The recent(probably temporary)drop in the price of crude oil-due to OPEC's refusal to cut production and America's production of oil and gas from the environmentally dubious fracking-are also hitting Russia hard .Even if much of the population swung against Putin ,his grip on power is such that he would probably remain and if he were replaced he would be replaced by s'thing similiar.
Dictators and strong men have always ruled Russia and China (or a strong central control party )To be otherwise they could collapse in chaos as Westerners racently found in N. Africa and the Middle East.To offer democracy to people who have never had it often leads to chaos or a return eventually to the old ways of leadership.Russia had a Tsar ,had a revolution and go dictators(new Tsars)
We had a Westminster parliament ruling Ireland,1919 to 1921 rebellion,then a Dublin parliament ruling most of Irl. and prob. based on Westminster.
All revolutions betray themselves and eventually go back to what was there before.