: Quietly, with himself

Illustration: Sergey Elkin

The behavior of the Russian authorities during election campaigns every time demonstrates that the authorities are seriously not paying to competitors or citizens. In fact, any election action - say, Putin’s program or his participation in the debate turns into an imitation of the campaign. This is our democracy.

The special nature of Russian democracy (or “democracy”, if you like) every time clearly and even convexly manifests itself during federal election campaigns. If all alternative (from the point of view of the authorities) the party and even simply other points of view are trying to squeeze out the television from the television, then in the presidential authorities the third campaign in a row are trying to play on one hundred percent non -alternativeness of their candidate.

Assigning all the formal and real achievements of the government (they are also the achievements of world exchange players in the oil futures market), the candidate from the authorities can afford almost any liberties and non -compliance with the rules of decency. It seems to be direct or indirect denial that in the country there is a political agenda that is different from the power or that it exists at all.

And now, when the capital openly refuses to recognize the authority of power, and the ratings go down, the candidate from power Vladimir Putin defiantly refuses to speak on the debate.

The motivation was voiced, as usual, traditional since the time of Boris Yeltsin - "And with which of them and what can I argue about?" And Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov even reported that participation in the debate would prevent the premiere in much more important things-to fulfill their duties of the Prime Minister. Although the prime minister seemed to have previously promised to send any representatives, but are the representatives on the debate, which no one looks replaced by Putin himself? The rest will come there personally.

Regarding the performance of the duties of the prime minister, a separate conflict occurred-not that very important or fundamental on a Russian scale, but a characteristic, as well as a demonstrative refusal to participate in disputes with other “applicants” (that they act as statists even under the unpopular Putin, even in the first place they themselves) of power. When the Central Election Commission demanded explanations why Vladimir Putin does not go on vacation for the pre -election campaign, as a civil servant is supposed to, the CEC said that Putin is not a civil servant.

Absolutely, by the way, legal, there are no falsifications to you. Vladimir Putin - he is not quite a civil servant, but "a person replacing the highest state position." Its employer is, as it were, not the Russian Federation, but the president (the president is the people, which also allowed Dmitry Medvedev not to go on a pre -election vacation when he headed the list of United Russia).

That is - here it is, Vladimir Vladimirovich, the flesh of the flesh of the people of the Russian Federation, but not a civil servant once.

It’s awkward about debates and other conventions here. No one is obliged to participate in the debate. "So that the nonsense of everyone is visible." Why at all a debate? Putin will be shown many times on the air already - how he visits the factories or kissing boys and sturgeons there in all parts of the body that he only wishes. And they will show with emotion, number alone in the evening news. The rest will also be shown - in a special election block. Here - Putin, here - everyone else. What is the rivalry?

Therefore, the program leader does not particularly need a program - all his activities in a sense already a program. However, the formalities were observed here-Putin had a special election site (it is known that the prime minister does not actually use the Internet, but the time is that everything is only on the network), on which the document called the “program” appeared.

They promised that Putin would write this program himself. If a set of theses presented by the public really reflects the prime minister’s ideas about how the “father of the nation” should look like, then he looks strange. The set of truisms in the document simply rolls over.
A couple of examples. “How to equip the country will solve the people” - allocated for excess persuasiveness with fat font. Excessive is obvious assertion, because according to the Constitution, the people are a sovereign. Further, it is emphasized that some “most important” bills and decisions will pass “through a wide public discussion”.

Popanization is in its pure form, since the mechanisms of “wide public discussion” can always be simulated in one way or another, at least through the “Popular Front”, at least through sites on the Internet. Such imitation direct democracy.

Or promises the prime minister that in the upcoming decade "Russia will become a country where it is comfortable to live and work." It is difficult to argue, but what prevented the previous one from the previous 12 years that the current Putin team is in power? Were there more urgent tasks? And so on - you can list for a long time.

If citizens would read the programs and perceive them seriously, and competitors could specify the most powerful presidential candidate, how he was going to implement one or another good wish - candidate Putin would hardly have a chance of election. But competing with oneself is extremely comfortable, because no one should answer anyone and report to anyone.