On the day when everybody was busy watching the opening ceremony of the Olympic games, Russia invaded Georgia.
I have visited St. Petersburg recently, and was astonished by the Kafkian bureaucracy that still reigns in Russia and the absolute power that authorities have over the population. But what it really surprised me was that people seem to agree with how Putin is conducting the country, even though nobody really looked happy.
Vladimir, our taxi driver, said not without a hint of melancholy: 'Russian people need a firm hand, they are not ready for freedom'
