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Who’s Afraid of Alexei Navalny?

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Who’s Afraid of Alexei Navalny?

Protests continue in Russia, the Proud Boys are falling apart, and some nice Soviet-era Funk.

Jason Fields
and
Matthew Gault
Feb 1, 2021
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Who’s Afraid of Alexei Navalny?

angryplanet.substack.com

“A man is detained while protesting the arrest of Russian dissident Alexei Navalny.”
“A man is detained while protesting the arrest of Russian dissident Alexei Navalny.”
“A man is detained while protesting the arrest of Russian dissident Alexei Navalny.”
“A man is detained while protesting the arrest of Russian dissident Alexei Navalny.”
“A man is detained while protesting the arrest of Russian dissident Alexei Navalny.”
“A man is detained while protesting the arrest of Russian dissident Alexei Navalny.” 

Twitter avatar for @KevinRothrock
Kevin Rothrock @KevinRothrock
Cops in Petersburg dragging unconscious detainees into police vans.
Image
1:20 PM ∙ Jan 31, 2021
64Likes62Retweets

That was the photo caption, over and over, in a Reuters picture gallery on the protests in Moscow, St. Petersburg and elsewhere. The images themselves appeared to show people getting the shit kicked out of them in many cases, including one where a man is facedown in the snow with armored cops standing over him.

Twitter avatar for @KevinRothrock
Kevin Rothrock @KevinRothrock
How violent was Russia’s crackdown on protesters today? Take a look at the floor inside this police van in St. Petersburg, where detainees were held. via @OvdInfo
Image
5:52 PM ∙ Jan 31, 2021
2,851Likes1,008Retweets

Thousands were detained this weekend across 85 cities, The New York Times reports. Thousands were detained last weekend, too. Experts say the protests are the largest and most forceful in at least a decade. Putin himself has been in power for more than 20 years.

Twitter avatar for @olliecarroll
Oliver Carroll @olliecarroll
St Petersburg. This is quite funny - and brave.
Image
12:52 PM ∙ Jan 31, 2021
1,784Likes491Retweets

Navalny is in a Russian prison, which he must have known would be the outcome when he returned to Russia from Germany where he was being treated after being poisoned with a nerve agent administered by agents of the state. How can we be sure he was poisoned by his government? He tricked the poisoners into revealing it.

Twitter avatar for @KevinRothrock
Kevin Rothrock @KevinRothrock
Clear evidence that Russian police are tasing protesters today.
Image
12:03 PM ∙ Jan 31, 2021
92Likes56Retweets

What does this all mean? And does Vladimir Putin finally have an adversary to fear? We’ll be talking this week to Mark Galeotti—expert on all that is Russia—so stay tuned for the episode.

Twitter avatar for @KevinRothrock
Kevin Rothrock @KevinRothrock
National Guard troops deployed in St. Petersburg. Video via @znak_com t.me/znak_peterburg…
Image
11:47 AM ∙ Jan 31, 2021
126Likes93Retweets

Western audiences get excited when Russians protest. There’s a sense in America and Europe that Putin is bound to fall. The Putin biographies and explainers published in the English speaking world see him as a Bond-villain—a spy-master turned dictator. 

But Western views of Russia often say far more about the West than they do about Russia. Politicians turn Russia into a boogeyman, military leaders project Cold War baggage onto it, and civilians want to shove Moscow into its conceptions of good versus evil. The truth is always more complicated and only time will tell what the impact of these protests will be.

All that said, something about these protests feels different. 

Angry Planet

Get the week started right with some Soviet-era psychedelica.

Myanmar decided to show America the meaning of the word coup. The military there has detained top level politicians, including State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi.

The United Arab Emirates have built a massive urban warfare training complex to teach its soldiers how to fight in cities.

The founder of the neo-Nazi militant group “The Base” had some kind of nervous breakdown on his Telegram channel. He went from pushing The Turner Diaries to earnestly posting about women. Not a great look for the master race.

Trump and his legal team (which, much to Matthew’s shame, included four South Carolina lawyers) have parted ways. Apparently the ex-Prez wanted them to spend his impeachment trial claiming he had actually won the election.

The legal fallout from the Capitol Hill riots continues apace and it looks like the events might shatter the once-Proud Boys. Leader Enrique Tarrio allegedly loves talking to authorities and informing on his buddies. On Friday night, prosecutors charged members of the group with conspiracy, assaulting an officer, and civil disorder. 

at top: World Economic Forum photo

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Who’s Afraid of Alexei Navalny?

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