1990, Boris N. Yeltsin was elected President of Russia. While during his rule Russians got the taste of basic democracy and freedom, the country suffered an absolute disaster in all spheres of life-- economic, social, cultural, political. See my previous post. Rise of extreme nationalism, free rule of organized crime/mafia, economic dilapidation, severe poverty, educational dumping, etc. His was not leadership, but mere presence. Other, very dangerous people were ruling behind the scenes. It was during Yeltsin's rule that my family moved to the US (1996), giving up on any hope of recovery and security... Anarchy ruled for the entire period until Putin took over...
Russians then decided, they would rather have ORDER with less democracy, than ANARCHY with freedoms... That is why, Putin who brought that long-awaited order became so popular and so loved by Russians... While of course many of the problems associated with Yeltsin's rule have become systematic and not conducive to simple solutions, Putin's intelligent and very thoughtful leadership ameliorated the severity of the effects...
Could there be a third alternative for Russia-- both order and democracy (any style)? Maybe in the future! Freedom is a cherished human need and Russians are not devoid of that... It is ingrained in their very culture, based on a country extending over a vast territory... Certain amount of wildness and rebellion characteristic of gypsies is in the deep psyche of Russia... So, perhaps it is a philosophical question, how much of freedom is enough not to turn into anarchy and disorder?
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