It turns out that long before the election results were known early Monday morning Russia time, Vladimir Putin's Hitler-youth cult "Nashi" ("Us Slavic Russians") had already figured them out. Therefore, it started printing up banners hailing Putin's victory and attacking critics who had not yet spoken. They've appeared on the Russian web, and our original translator favors you with their English meanings, along with some commentary from a few leading opposition figures -- all from the pages of the mighty Yezhedvny Zhurnal.

Assuming it’s True…

Yezhednevniy Zhurnal

November 30, 2007

“This guy tells me they’re printing this pamphlet in the print shop next door…”

TRANSLATION: On December 2nd we elected President Putin to be the National Leader of Russia. The President and his party won a devastating victory. They won in exactly the same way that over the past 5 years they have destroyed the terrorists in Chechnya, paid back all of Russia's debts, regained our country's respect, taken back the huge petroleum reserves of Sakhalin-2, and captured the 2014 Olympics for Sochi.

TRANSLATION: The USA had a different plan. It wanted the traitors and thieves to win - the American citizen Kasparov, the fascist Limonov, and Nemtsov, who sold off the country. They don’t agree that Putin won. The traitors still want to seize power and take Russia back to the oligarchic and chaotic 1990’s, and once again give the bandits and embezzlers the ability to rob our country and sell off our oil and gas for a pittance. From December3 until the official announcement of the election results, they will try to seize the city squares and buildings, incite disorder, and steal our victory. // You can watch all this on television. // Or you can stand up, with the President’s Team, and defend the independence of our country, be worthy of the Veterans who will come out on the streets with us. // In these historic times it is your to decide how you will live. COME OUT AND DEFEND THE COUNTRY! EARN THE RIGHT TO BE ON THE PRESIDENT’S TEAM! // [contact information and identification of the leaflet as a Nashi publication]…”)

Aleksandr Golts:

Assuming it is true that what appeared on LiveJournal (TN: the pamphlet above) is not a fake, this can mean only one thing: that an anti-constitutional overthrow of the government is being planned in Russia. And those who were planning it were looking for comrades or accomplices (as you prefer). What to do in this situation, everyone must decide for themselves.

Viktor Shenderovich:

Setting aside the artistic merits of the publication, let’s take a sniff at dry remains. A few observations, taken from the pamphlet:

1. Still three days before the elections, and they already know the results.

2. They know that these results will the result of falsifications, and are gathering their forces to physically suppress those who will try to prove this.

3. They need the falsified results as a basis for fraud and further speculation on theme of “Putin - the National Leader”. All of this, it goes without saying, is a crime, from beginning to end.

P.S. – A personal linguistic note regarding the phrase “a victory with devastating result” (победы с сокрушительным результатом): “Сокрушительный = уничтожающий [destructive], разрушительный [ruinous]” – Dictionary of the Russian Language, Ed. S. Ozhegov

And this is such an exceptional event that one cannot but agree with “Nashi”: The results of Putin’s victory will be, indeed, devastating.

That is, ruinous.

And destructive.

Boris Nemtsov:

If anyone had any doubt that a lowly and fraudulent dictatorship has been installed in Russia, they should take a look at this. There’s just one thing Putin doesn’t understand: you can’t build a strong country on such a rotten foundation, on such cynicism and barbarism. In reality, he has already lost the elections. His reputation is little different from that of [Belarusian President] Lukashenko’s. And in the eyes of thinking Russians he already looks weak and hysterical. No matter how hard the Pavlovian, half-drunk Leontievites and phony Nashisti provocateurs may try, they won’t be able to change this diagnosis. Sooner or later, not only Moscow and St. Petersburg, but the whole country is going to learn it. Now what kind of National Leader is that?

* * *

(TN: Shortly after YeZh posted the article above, the leaflet in question was posted on another online journal with confirmation from Kristina Potupchik, press secretary for the of the Nashi organization, that it was in fact produced by Nashi. Potupchik characterized the leaflets as “donated materials” in support of a demonstration planned for December 3 in Moscow, at which 10,000 people were expected to attend.)