A few words about the march and rally on September 15. There were a great many people, and they understand very well why it is important to be in that place at that time.
http://youtu.be/nN7cuevECuE This is the main thing. Everyone was feeling a bit nostalgic for the wild energy of the first protest actions on December 5–24, when you could literally feel the electricity in the air. But this was a normal demonstration. That is exactly what I spoke about from the stage: Yes, this government is fundamentally unviable and harmful, but every individual representative of it undoubtedly has a personal interest in defending it. For them, it means money, power, the chance to steal from an APEC summit construction contract, even if what they built starts falling apart a week later. They are defending what is personal. We are demanding what belongs to everyone: law, fairness, justice, and the fight against corruption. That is why the crook Putin will, with obsession and zeal, keep throwing innocent people in prison, generously feeding all these Arkady Mamontovs and Komsomolskaya Pravdas (a pro-Kremlin tabloid newspaper), pushing idiotic and repressive bills through the Duma (Russia's parliament), and so on. And wait. Wait for us to get tired. Wait until the number of idlers and whiners with their "the protest has been sold out" and "how long can we keep rallying" exceeds the critical mass after which they can, without any embarrassment, fully implement the Belarusian-Kazakh model of statehood. The answer to the question "how much longer are we going to keep rallying" is very simple: until victory. For as long as it takes. Participation in mass protest actions must become a regular act of civic self-identification. I go to work—to support my family. I go to the store—to buy meat for borscht. I go to the barber—to look respectable. I go to rallies—because I want a normal future for myself and my children. That is the only way. It is a matter of who outlasts whom. Who works better and more effectively. There is plenty to do besides rallies: take part in campaigning take part in projects you consider useful. With money or with your work. help opposition candidates in their election campaigns. With money or with your work. help political prisoners No one can sell out or discredit your personal protest except you. Time is on our side. The information environment is on our side. Changes in public mood are also on our side. We just need to work harder for our own cause. A couple of photo reports from the scene: http://drugoi.livejournal.com/3763839.html http://zyalt.livejournal.com/627240.html http://prosto-vova.livejournal.com/1914679.html A good, substantial report in The New Times P.S.
The main failure of my speech: I had intended to devote most of it to the election to the Coordinating Council, but to be honest I got a little intimidated and forgot (which brings us back to the question of energy. On stage, you feel even more of it than you need. The moment you see that the crowd stretches for kilometers and keeps pouring in from the boulevards for an hour, you instantly forget what you wrote on your piece of paper). Want a real opposition? No kindly uncle is going to appoint one for you—or rather, he will (a kindly uncle from the Kremlin), but then you should not complain afterward. There is only one responsible position: register, choose your candidate, and support them with your vote. Voter registration is already underway.
Places