What is the difference between this as tax increase?
Because, in my opinion, socialism/communism are ideologies which go beyond the increase of collection of money from the rich, to benefit the state and the rest of the people.
For example, one of the pillars of communism is the theory than Religions are the opium of the masses, a tool of domination used by capitalism to distract them from the struggle against the dominant class. However, in Russia the Church is an important institution, ally of the Kremlin and if I recall correctly Putin is not atheist but rather follows the Russian Orthodox Church.
There is also the communist theory of the ownership of the media of production by the state/the people. And as far as I am aware,.the Kremlin still allows the keeping of private property and the existence of businesses in Russian territory...
Because, in my opinion, socialism/communism are ideologies which go beyond the increase of collection of money from the rich, to benefit the state and the rest of the people.
For example, one of the pillars of communism is the theory than Religions are the opium of the masses, a tool of domination used by capitalism to distract them from the struggle against the dominant class. However, in Russia the Church is an important institution, ally of the Kremlin and if I recall correctly Putin is not atheist but rather follows the Russian Orthodox Church.
There is also the communist theory of the ownership of the media of production by the state/the people. And as far as I am aware,.the Kremlin still allows the keeping of private property and the existence of businesses in Russian territory...
Putin is not an atheist or a believer, he is a thief. If he believed in God, he would not kill people. Putin is a bandit and progmatist.
As for private property and business, he gave away all big business to his friends, who in return subsidize his aggressive policy.
Well, to be fair and stick to the facts there are historic examples of people committing atrocities in the name of their religion, so I would not say that believing in God and killing people are two mutually exclusive characteristics. I do believe that Putin has religious views, that would explain his close relation with the Russian church, which is very much in favor of the attack on Ukraine.
Also, I do not doubt he has friends in charge of important industries like Gas/oil and management of military personnel. Most of them, I assume, are already sanctioned.
Church in Russia is completely subordinate to the owner of the Kremlin. All church servants are propagandists of state policy.
As for Putin's friends, they are all members of a gangster group that controls all business in Russia and provides economic support for Putin's aggressive policies.
That was exactly my point, though. They call themselves to be doing God's work but continue to push the narrative of the government.
I recall seeing on TV one of the ceremonies being carried by one of the biggest authorities of the Russian Church and he was basically defending the actions of the Kremlin, pointing out to the alleged degeneracy of the west which was affecting the Ukrainian society and evil forces wanted to introduce it into Russia, among other things.
So basically, to him the scapegoat to justify the war is to keep in check the liberal policies of western countries, which have been becoming more popular around the world.
, the US has become more communistic that Russia, even though they try to tell Americans that they are not communistic. The difference between the two countries is the structure of their governments, not the fact that they are both a form of communism. So, Russian communism isn't the worst kind after all.