Hundreds of Russian truck drivers head to Moscow for protest

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP-Excite

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (AP) — Russian truck drivers have been protesting across the country, and one of their leaders says hundreds of trucks are now heading toward Moscow to press their demands.

The truck drivers, many of whom own and operate their own vehicles, are protesting the introduction of a hefty road tax for long-distance haulers.

They say the new tax represents a heavy burden and they have little faith that the money will go toward maintaining Russia's notoriously bad roads.

Alexander Rastorguyev, one of the leaders of the protesting drivers in St. Petersburg, said Sunday that more than 200 trucks are driving toward Moscow and are to be joined by others along the way.

Read more: http://apnews.excite.com/article/20151129/eu--russia-truck_protest-34b4e97931.html

[Bernardo de La Paz]

1. This is the kind of thing that Putin directs attention away from with foreign adventurism

... foreign adventurism, to put it mildly. Armed takeover of the Crimea, propping up dictator in Syria while giving Daesh (ISIS) a free ride.

Look! Over there! Something shiny! I'm a strong man! (strongman)

[another_liberal]

3. "Giving ISIS a free ride" . . .

That's not Russia you're talking about? The Russians are the ones sending Islamic State forces straight to hell!

You must be talking about our own phony damn "Coalition?" Right?

[Bernardo de La Paz]

6. Nope. Putin is supporting his fellow thug Assad. Putin is bombing rebels, not Daesh (ISIS).

It's a three-way fight. Rebels vs Assad vs Daesh. Each one is fighting the other two.

When Putin bombs the rebels (as he has been doing 95% of the time) instead of Daesh, he is giving Daesh a free ride. Not hard to understand, I think.

[uawchild]

4. Protests by private long-haul Truckers is a Putin ploy? Really?

So private owner-operators of long haul trucks protesting AGAINST a government tax increase in Russia to improve highways is a ploy by Putin to distract us all? Seriously... wow.

Actually isn't is a good sign that individuals ARE protesting to protect their own economic interests? Is that the ploy then, to ALLOW protests against the government. Wow -- how insidiously 3-dimensional chess-y of old Pootie-poot, eh? But you know we could be wrong, it COULD be just a protest by truckers not wanting a tax increase.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

5. No, you got what I wrote completely backwards. Golly!

Really.

I thought I was clear.

Putin is mounting a lot of foreign adventurism to direct public opinion away from the problems at home: struggling economy chief among them. The truck drivers protest a symptom of the economic problems; a protest like that is just the kind of thing that Putin wants to crowd out of the news by filling it up with brave soldiers fighting foreign wars. It was ever thus: Disregard the man behind the curtain (Putin tightening grip on Russia).

Read what I wrote again.

[uawchild]

7. crowd out of the news by filling it up with brave soldiers fighting foreign wars ? sounds like CNN !

Last edited Mon Nov 30, 2015, 12:20 PM - Edit history (1)

"Putin wants to crowd out of the news by filling it up with brave soldiers fighting foreign wars."

OK, so it sounds EXACTLY like our main stream media then. CNN, FOX, WSJ... all of it is just filled with the same type of stories of brave soldiers fighting foreign wars. Why do expect more of Russia then we get from the exact same BS from our media too?

[newthinking]

2. In the 90s Russia was sold a vision of capitalism that is "libertarian"

They are used to artificially low taxes and cheap gas. Now Russia is realizing the need to build better roads throughout the country and they are fighting the stereotypes.

[Sunlei]

8. the price for protest may be the private truck is seized by the government.

[uawchild]

9. "may be" ?

Maybe Putin will take off his shirt and ride bare-chested atop one of the big rigs leading the protest cheering them on to inflate his poll numbers too? lol That seems just as likely.

Well, I guess wild speculation has its place, eh?