In the Kremlin

The triumph of the vertical

February 1, 2006 Alexander Golts

The annual press conference of Vladimir Putin finally turned into a ritual, and the process of asking questions and receiving answers to them is no longer aim to inform Russian and foreign citizens about the views and affairs of the chief chief of Russia. For the third year in a row, the action begins with the question of a journalist from the newspaper Six Silets - and this only emphasizes the rituality of what is happening. And the subsequent questions asked by endless blondes (this is not about the field and color of the hair -we are talking about the state of mind and soul) -about the president’s car, about the book that the president reads about the television program that the president prefers, as well as how the president manages to maintain his beauty, must first of all demonstrate the result of the stressful and effective work of his press service. This is she, the press service, sorted journalists to invite the most purebred blondes, it was she who distributed questions and prepared answers to them. Success in this area is more and more noticeable. Now, not only domestic reporters, but also a certain English-speaking, swallowing from the excitement of the word, is in a hurry to ask a question from the series “Yourism, is it probably nice to be so smart?”

The meaning of the ritual is to give praise of the imperious vertical. The celestial sitting on its top, by the power of his mind, is able to cover all the problems that the state faces. So, in the evidence that the new gas price “was not picked out of the nose”, he explains the formula on which this price is formed. But in the details he tells how the pregnancy certificate should function and what kind of root of this document should be left in a antenatal clinic. Truly the coriffer of all sciences.

However, those few (I suspect that most of them are just councilists, who did not give a damn about the president), who will give himself labor to carefully study Putin's answers, will easily find: the head of state does not bother with argumentation if he sees at least a shadow of doubt about his divine righteousness. “We better than you know what happened in Andijan,” he throws an American who dared to ask about the reasons for the support of Islam Karimov. “Free elections are always possible,” he says to a French journalist who asked if free presidential elections in Belarus are possible.

Having sure in a complete and final victory over journalists, Putin not only lets go of dubious jokes about diapers. Having relaxed, he becomes extremely intellectually careless. He does not make it clear how it contradicts himself. For example, in one of the answers, he claims that the “gas crisis” in relations with Ukraine proved the need to lay the gas pipeline along the bottom of the Baltic Sea, and in the other suddenly reports that the signing of new contracts with Ukraine resolutely strengthens the energy security of Europe (if so, why did the gas pipeline need?). Putin says that the anti -terrorist operation in Chechnya is successfully completed - and immediately adds that the situation in other regions in the North Caucasus bothers him more. That is, pretends that he does not notice (or actually does not notice?) The connection between the situation in Chechnya and the way terrorism spreads to the south of Russia.

Speaking about the Chelyabinsk tragedy, Putin did not find anything better than repeating after the generals that it was guilty, they say, the whole society, as well as the media and a demonstration of violence on television. As for the barracks, it is supposed to get rid of them with the help of proposals prepared by the Minister of Defense to improve educational work, which include the creation of a military police. At the same time, it is not too clear what will keep from the grandfather of the military police themselves.

Well, when Putin is asked by the most important questions for him - who will be a successor, whether he intends to lead Gazprom - he turns into a Delphic oracle at all, and is explained by hints and parables.

So the Putin press conference is interesting primarily by the fact that it demonstrates the functioning of the power vertical in all its glory. The highest official makes decisions and is responsible for any problem. And therefore, the president is doomed to delve into the nuances of the work of women's consultations. And therefore he is doomed to be a hostage to his secretaries, who provide his information. The president got rid of critics and does not consider it necessary to take care of himself. So the broken mirrors first stops combing his hair, and then shave. Alexander Golts

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