Quote Originally Posted by Ramil View Post
Elites must change from time to time. They must give up power or this power will be wrestled from them by force. This is the law of politics, if you want. [...] I think they'll find commies being in Duma rather refreshing.
What's so bad about the present "stagnation period?" Do people kill each other? Is there hunger? A civil war? Does Putin convey mass murders once in a blue moon? Why do you need the refreshment? People got tired of the turbulent 90s and so they loved the stagnation of the 00s. Now, you want to change things again? To what? To the "stagnation period" of the late Soviet Union?

Here's the thing about the elites: they have enough fight of groups inside each other. Something fundamental had to change in order for a new elite to change the previous elite. Usually, it's the major shift of the economic force. It's like, ok - so the cast of the aristocrats (=the professional warriors) could influence the economy less and the "nouveau riches" more, so - voila! - the bourgeois revolution happens. (Of course, it's really about the freedom, blah-blah-blah.) That is an example of taking power by force. But, otherwise, I would respectfully disagree with that "law of politics" and I would require more examples from you to get myself convinced.

I think that presently the only two real influential economic forces in the RF is oil/gas export industry and the weapon export industry. Both are officially and practically controlled by the present or former government officers. There's some fight inside those elites. What difference would it make for a party to have more seats in Duma? I'm pretty sure that would have nothing to do with the LAWMAKING!! I think, they want to get a bigger slice of the pie, that's all. They would not change anything to the pie itself (as it's risky and requires investments) and so more seats in Duma would not make the economy better. The best they could do is to stop shooting each other and the reporters that often (aka "the political stability") so that the foreign investors [who still live in oblivion] will have some reason not to get that scared. If I were living in RF, I think I would vote for United Russia and Putin.