VLADIMIR PUTIN: Am I a ‘pure democrat’. -Must Read

[BlackVoid]

Re: VLADIMIR PUTIN: Am I a ‘pure democrat’. -Must Read

I put them on the same path. The populist message to their people is much the same, the methods may vary, but regardless of resource ownership, I am still curious if anyone here sees an outcome [from Putin's policies] that actually raises the standard of living (not to mention the lifespan) of the large majority of the Russian people?

The standard of living is already rising in Russia.
And it seems to me that the USA is on the same populist path with a slightly different propaganda.

As for Mexico: if they let in the oil majors in a big way, they will just deplete the oil much sooner. Look at what happened to the North Sea and US oil production. The oil majors are there, but production is still falling. The US was among the first countries to peak in oil production. If the Mexican leaders have any brains, they leave the oil in the ground for now, it will be worth MUCH more in a decade or so.

[ER59]

Re: VLADIMIR PUTIN: Am I a ‘pure democrat’. -Must Read

I emigrated from Russia 16 years ago and have lots of relatives and friends in St. Petersburg. I distrust Putin for a pure reason that he was raised by the KGB. However, I must confess that the standard of living is noticeably rising. My 75 year old mother told me to stop sending money to her. My friend’s mother, who survived the blockade of 1941- 1944, got a free trip to Paris from the government. Some new social services were set up and some of my relatives 60 years and older joined music and athletic clubs for free. They get free tickets to musical concerts and holiday dinners at least twice a year. My friends: programmers, scientists, accountants and even artists started to travel abroad.

[Jim Nickerson]

Re: VLADIMIR PUTIN: Am I a ‘pure democrat’. -Must Read

Welcome, ER59, its nice to see contributors who are not "spooks."

"Spook" = those who offer lots of advice without anyone knowing anything about their expertise, background, age, location, interests.

[Shakespear]

Re: VLADIMIR PUTIN: Am I a ‘pure democrat’. -Must Read

The fact that Putin was KGB I find as a plus for him. Why? Because he has a grasp of how to put facts together and better knows what is being fed to him. Bush Sr. was CIA and no one raised this as a problem of him being a president.

As for Mexico. They have plenty of consultants in their ranks (my company has been providing this service to them for years) and I am sure that they will know where to head to get something done. Perhaps the real reason why they are slow is so as not to deplete that which will be in short supply in the near future. I am sure this calculation is being made by many nations and of little concern with the oil majors. They serve different Masters.

Throwing Russian girls in the discussion about Putin makes little sense. I doubt that is on his agenda. But what about White Slavery and slavery in general which has been going on for years and is STILL happening in Northern Africa and the Middle East ( and God knows where else that we don't hear about ).