Quote Originally Posted by rasoforos View Post
Trust him to take a country out of a crisis. I do not say I approve of his tactics or that I would trust him with my coins collection or would want him to run my country. It is just that he will do a much better job than let's say Gordie ole boy Brown...
I doubt Putin would be such an effective politician in a country where he'd actually have to face questions from a hostile opposition, or where he'd be lambasted by the press and unable to do anything about it.
On the economic side, Russia's economy grew so much because it was in shambles to begin with and oil prices enabled them to earn a lot of money. Nothing to do with Putin. Maybe he is capable of steering Russia through this crisis, there's just no reason to assume he is.