Politics: Remember When

Remember when we used to worry about Russia? It was a scary place, the "evil empire" and these people lived under appalling conditions. Only one brand of toilet paper? And you stood in line to get some? Terrible.

Anyhow, now we don't think about Russia at all, because we are all afraid of Scott Peterson and, um, Mullahs, even though Americans wouldn't know what a mullah is if one bit them on the arse. But maybe we should.

Two interesting items bring this to mind. First, the New York Times has a compelling op-ed about how our best pals in Mother Russia aren't always working to our best interests. Noting how nicely the UK received a visit from Russian President Vladimir Putin this week, the Times goes on to say:

So all that pomp is fine, so long as nobody forgets that the Kremlin pulled the plug this week on Russia's last independent television channel, or that a lot of people are still dying in Chechnya, or that for all of Mr. Putin's declarations, Russians are still involved in Iran's nuclear program. There's a lot more the Kremlin could do abroad to dissuade North Korea from its nuclear blackmail.

The second item comes in the form of a one-two punch. Late last week, Russia shut down the last remaining independent television network in the country. Yeah, we still call it a democracy. And then this week, the Russian parliament passed a law (pushed by President Putin) that essentially outlaws criticism of candidates by newspapers during elections.

Read, gag, repeat:

Taken to their literal extremes, as opponents assume they will be, the new restrictions would for the first time punish news organizations that advocate one candidate over another, that editorialize against a position or policy, or that report critically on questions of character "not related to the candidate's professional duties."

While the first violation would result in a fine, the second could result in a suspension of publication or broadcast for the duration of the campaign — a penalty that would be influenced heavily by officials answerable to the very politicians who drafted the amendments.

The restrictions raise questions not only about freedom of the press, but also about the fairness of elections in a country still struggling to establish basic democratic norms.

"Lawmakers abolished our constitutional right to comment on the policy programs of parties and candidates, to make predictions regarding the outcome of elections, or to warn voters about the possible consequences of a victory for any political force," the newspaper Vremya said on Thursday.

Okay, off to Supreme Court la-la land. Wish me luck.