Russians are growing weary of the war against Ukraine but are divided about how much harm it has done and how to end it, according to a report based on polling and focus groups by the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center and the Levada Center, an independent polling group.
“hello we are not with Putin. Do you support the war with Ukraine?”
(Russian looks around nervously) “of course, I support Putin in all his decisions”
Russia’s liberal interpretation of laws to suppress negative public opinion of the war has absolutely nothing to do with that, right? /s
I met russians in germany, italy and thailand. 80% were pro Putin. And there was no camera running or a hot microphone. They are that dense. They have no epathy for the victims the kill in ukraine. These people never learned to admit guilt and will deny every accusation by reflex and will get drawn to the image of putin, as a strong, hard, never-budging man. They can not show softness, empathy or sympathy as that would be a weak woman/gay feeling. Russians always want to look tough, hard and like warriors. They are that insecure.
Best description of that mindset
And that’s why their sons will be poorly trained, poorly equipped, and shipped out to Ukraine, where they will die.
This is the best summary I could come up with:
Notably, however, as President Vladimir Putin appears poised to run in a highly managed presidential election in March, the nation has not turned against him, and Western efforts to punish Russia for the war have not weakened his grip on power.
“All the naïve predictions that popular discontent triggered by sanctions and the wartime restrictions imposed on daily life would bring down Vladimir Putin’s regime have come to nothing,” the report states.
“While the public is tired of the ‘special military operation,’ there are different views on how the fighting should end,” the report said, using the Kremlin’s official euphemism for the war.
The report by Denis Volkov of the Levada Center and Andrei Kolesnikov of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center suggests that the softening of support for the war in some sections of the population will not derail Putin’s reelection, as the Kremlin strives to use the campaign to enhance his personal legitimacy after ditching the limit on Putin seeking another presidential term in 2020.
While Russians voice little trust in the government on everyday matters such as provision of services, they nonetheless seem to accept the Kremlin’s argument that the war is necessary.
“The state continues to create the prevailing public opinion through propaganda,” the authors wrote, adding: “A year ago, this segment of society might have chosen to hide from reality.
The original article contains 936 words, the summary contains 224 words. Saved 76%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!
