Quote Originally Posted by edvalais View Post
In fact, I get most of my information about Russia from the Russian media and from meeting Russians.
Russian media is also biased. But that's beside the point. I don't even care how or why this law about 'foreign agents' was effected. To my personal opinion this blocks the outside propaganda messages and if it works - fine. What IS propaganda? It's an appeal to emotions of not very bright people. Thinking and smart people will see through the propaganda and know its value, but we have stupid people here too. When they are said 'This HONESTY, Inc Ogranization's experts proven that Russian government is very-very bad' - well that's one message. And another one 'This Foreitn Agent 'Honesty, Inc' Organization's experts proven ...." - that's quite another one.
I insist that the Russian government should have the only and monopolized right of brainwashing its own population. No one else should be allowed. (I'm not joking, I'm dead serious)


Quote Originally Posted by edvalais View Post
I invite you to ask yourselves this question: if the Magnitsky scandal had never happened, if there had been no Magnitsky Law in the US, would Russia have still banned Americans from adopting Russian children? In my view, no. The ban was a direct riposte to the Americans - it was cold-war "tit-for-tat". It logically follows from this that the motive for passing a new Russian law which directly affects (and in my opinion, negatively affects) the lives of thousands of Russian children has nothing to do with childcare or improving their prospects: it was passed solely because a country far away passed a law which itself had nothing to do with childcare. This is irresponsible and very very sad, because the only real victims in this are the Russian orphans.
That's one point of view. The ban was a direct riposte to the Americans indeed, so what? You sound as if there was something bad in it.
As for the 'horrors of a Russian orphanage' - that's still remains questionable is it so hellish being an orphan in Russia and is it so good being an adopted by a couple of foreigners.
And again, even if this was not intended, the number of domestic adoptions has increased since the ban. That's good.