06-16-2017, 04:03 AM
Now that everyone (except Trump) is expected to tone down their caustic rhetoric, we should stop calling Putin a dictatorial strongman. After all, he is the democratically-elected head of Russia and no doubt the Russian parliamentary system has checks and balances to suppress autocratic tendencies. And the suggestion that he had anything to do with the assassination of critical journalists or that he in any way was behind the unfortunate habit of political opponents falling out of windows or being shot is beyond the pale. If there were any truth to that, Russian police would be right on it and it would be all over Russian TV news. ;D