Putin Has Been Good For Russia
b'There\\u2019s not a lot to like about Vladimir Putin: he\\u2019s autocratic, vain and runs a corrupt government. And he doesn\\u2019t give a fig for human rights. The repression in Chechnya, the jailing of the (now pardoned) businessman Mikhail Khodorkovsky and the Pussy Riot protesters, the murders of journalist Anna Politkovskaya and of Alexander Litvinenko, the former spy \\u2013 all this happened on Putin\\u2019s watch. Who would not be on the side of the 100,000 people who turned out on Moscow\\u2019s streets last winter to protest against Putin\\u2019s election to a third term as president and to demand fair elections and an honest government? Russia would be better off without Putin \\u2013 who would argue otherwise? As a matter of fact, millions would. Talk to many Russians and they\\u2019ll tell you that life under Putin is vastly better than under Boris Yeltsin. Yeltsin let a handful of oligarchs hoover up Russia\\u2019s wealth while ordinary Russians were reduced to selling their possessions on the street. Putin, by contrast, has quelled the economic...\\n\\u2014\\nWe\\u2019d love to hear your feedback and what you think we should talk about next, who we should have on and what our future debates should be.\\xa0\\nSend us an email or voice note with your thoughts to podcasts@intelligencesquared.com or Tweet us @intelligence2.\\xa0\\nAnd if you\\u2019d like to support our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations, as well as ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content, early access and much more, become a supporter of Intelligence Squared..\\nJust visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more.\\xa0\\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices'