I also got a few reviews from people who said, "ok, so they're corrupt, but it's not a ." So... what do I mean by saying that... a political system i… - Karen Dawisha

Putin... 1991... was made head of the supervisory council overseeing the... gambling industry in St. Petersburg. ...[H]ow did the city become a majority owner in... [that] gaming industry in St. Petersburg? ..."by relinquishing the right to collect rent for the facilities that the s occupied," the city could claim 51 percent ownership ...[E]stablishing a joint stock company called Neva Chance, which... went on to create over twenty-five different [gambling industry] companies ...many ...headed by ex-FSB officials ...

Gref and Kudrin appeared... drawn to Putin... because of his... liberal economic policies and... ability to... get things done in St. Petersburg... when most... were paralyzed by the "alegal" political situation and the total eruption of criminal activity at all levels.

The Economist outlined the essential truths of the Putin era...<blockquote>The job of Russian law enforcers is to protect the interests of the state, personified by their... boss, against the people. ...[F]ormer (and not so former) members ...have gained huge political and ...since ...Putin came to office. ...[T]op ranks in the ...FSB ...describe themselves as the ...new nobility ...personally loyal to the monarch and entitled to an estate with people to serve ...As Russia’s former Procurator General ...said in front of ...Putin: "We are the people of the sovereign." Thus they do not see a redistribution of property from private hands into their own as theft but as their right.</blockquote>