How Powerful is Putin? Upfront Article Response

From shirtless horse rides to posing with tigers, there is no doubt President Vladimir Putin’s masculine image has spread all over Russia, and other parts of the world. The article, “Czar Putin?” by Patricia Smith talks about how Putin’s aggressive leadership techniques have made Russia’s economy thrive and become a threat to other countries over the years. However, with the recent price of oil sinking at home, his leadership skills are put to the test. The Russian economic crisis will either make or break President Putin’s career.

Firstly, the ongoing economic crisis in Russia might potentially make Putin the imperial ruler he sought out to be. One strategy Putin uses to gain power over Russia is by silencing his opponents. According to the article he, “Jailed members of an all-female punk band for singing anti-Putin songs.” As you can see, destroying freedom of speech takes out anyone rebelling against him. But will this strategy continue to work with Russia’s sagging economy? In the article the author discusses how actually being more aggressively hostile of a ruler could actually benefit in drawing the attention away from the economy. Therefore,

On the other hand, Putin might potentially lose his powerful influence on Russia due to the crisis. When the economy was back on track and better than ever, it was easy for Putin to take away freedoms from Russians. The article states, “But as Russians begin to feel the pinch of the economic crisis, that could be harder.” Silencing opposing views is an important part of how Putin maintains his power; without that he cannot move forward with his policies. The article states, “The other question is whether Putin’s mounting problems at home will force him to tone down his aggression against the West.”

All in all, I realized after reading this article the power of freedom of speech. Putin, one of the most powerful leaders in the world, signed a bill criminalizing repeated street protests. Living in a democracy, it’s easy for me to take for granted the amount of freedom I have as a teenager to express my opinions and ideas. This makes me think about the rest of the world, where some teens my age don’t even have the right to an education. One voice can have a huge impact on what other people think, and to me, that is the greatest power one can possess.