Russian 'bear' who loves Black Sabbath set to succeed Putin

[December]

10/ 12/ 2007

http://img.rian.ru/images/9172/21/91722153.jpg


MOSCOW, December 10 (RIA Novosti) - The man backed by Vladimir Putin for next year's presidential election is a heavy-metal loving 42-year-old whose surname comes from the Russian word for 'bear'.

First Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev was nominated by the ruling United Russia party and three other smaller pro-Kremlin parties on Monday afternoon. President Putin later said on national television: "I have known Dmitry Medvedev well for over 17 years, and I completely and fully support his candidature."

In view of Putin's high popularity rating and full support of most of the legislature, his backing of the nomination is likely to guarantee Medvedev the presidency.

Medvedev's surname comes from the Russian word 'medved', meaning bear, an animal which has long been associated with the country. The bear is also the symbol of United Russia, and Bear bombers have contributed to increasing tension between the West and Russia of late with their strategic long-range patrols.

In a recent interview with the Russian magazine Itogi, Medvedev revealed his passion for rock music, saying that, "vinyl really sounds better than CDs."

The man who may well become leader of the largest nation on Earth said he had spent much of his youth compiling cassettes of popular Western groups, "Endlessly making copies of Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple."

All these groups were on state-issued blacklists during Medvedev's Soviet-era schooldays.

"The quality was awful, but my interest colossal," he said.

Medvedev went on to boast of his collection of Deep Purple LPs, saying that he had searched for the albums for many years.

"Not reissues, but the original albums," he added, concluding that, "If you set yourself a goal you can achieve it."

Medvedev, seen as a pro-business moderate, chairs the board of Russia's state-controlled natural gas monopoly Gazprom and is overseeing an ambitious multi-billion-dollar "national project" to improve living standards in the country.

http://en.rian.ru/russia/20071210/91721798.html


http://img.rian.ru/images/9166/47/91664705.jpg

http://img.rian.ru/images/9166/55/91665507.jpg

Medvedev, 42, chairs the board of Russia's state-controlled natural gas monopoly Gazprom and oversees an ambitious multi-billion-dollar "national" project to improve living standards in the country.

[December]

Svetlana Medvedev: Russia’s Future First Lady?

http://en.novayagazeta.ru/ai/article.78/pics.3.jpg

Svetlana Medvedev (nee Linnik) was born in 1965 in the town of Kupchina, in the northwestern Leningrad region, into a military officer’s family. She attended a secondary school in her native town, and it was there that she met her future husband. The couple got married in 1989 and had a son, Ilya, in 1996.
Mrs Medvedev graduated from St. Petersburg’s School of Economics and Finance, but soon abandoned her career as an economist to focus on the organization of public events.

more photos -

http://en.rian.ru/photolents/20071210/91731068.html

[Scorpion]

My God, Svetlana has a set of big knobs! She's got to consider a Playboy layout.

Please, nudies of Svetlana.

[December]

http://blog.kievukraine.info/uploaded_images/5234-735555.jpg

Medvedev, seen as a pro-business moderate, chairs the board of Russia's state-controlled natural gas monopoly Gazprom and is overseeing an ambitious multi-billion-dollar "national project" to improve living standards in the country.

http://en.rian.ru/russia/20071210/91721798.html

Gazprom

JSC Gazprom (RTS: GAZP MICEX: GAZP LSE: OGZD; Russian: О�О Газпром, sometimes transcribed as Gasprom) is the largest Russian company and the biggest extractor of natural gas in the world. With sales of US$31 billion in 2004, it accounts for about 93 percent of Russian natural gas production; with reserves of 28,800 km³, it controls 16 percent of the world's gas reserves (as of 2004[2], including the Shtokman field.) After acquisition of the oil company Sibneft, Gazprom, with 119 billion barrels of reserves, ranks behind only Saudi Arabia, with 263 billion barrels, and Iran, with 133 billion barrels, as the world's biggest owner of oil and oil equivalent in natural gas.

By the end of 2004 Gazprom was the sole gas supplier to at least Bosnia-Herzegovina, Estonia, Finland, Macedonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova and Slovakia, and provided 97 percent of Bulgaria's gas, 89 percent of Hungary's, 86 percent of Poland's, nearly three-quarters of the Czech Republic's, 67 percent of Turkey's, 65 percent of Austria's, about 40 percent of Romania's, 36 percent of Germany's, 27 percent of Italy's, and 25 percent of France's. The European Union as a whole gets about 25 percent of its gas supplies from this company.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gazprom

Alexey Miller: “The process of Gazprom’s conversion from the “national champion� into a global energy business leader has been completed�....

www.gazprom.com

http://www.russiablog.org/GazpromJSC-Header.jpg

[ViolaLee]

My God, Svetlana has a set of big knobs! She's got to consider a Playboy layout.

Please, nudies of Svetlana.

Wow, that's a pretty fucked up remark. Your lack of character is showing. Again.

[December]

17/ 12/ 2007

Medvedev officially nominated as presidential candidate

MOSCOW, December 17 (RIA Novosti) - The pro-Kremlin United Russia party officially nominated First Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev as its presidential candidate at its convention on Monday.

Only one out of 479 congress delegates voted against Medvedev's candidacy.

Medvedev was initially named on December 10 by the United Russia party and minor pro-Kremlin parties as a presidential candidate. His nomination was later backed by President Vladimir Putin.

On December 11, Medvedev proposed that Putin be appointed prime minister after the March 2008 presidential election.

Medvedev said that if he was elected president, he would follow the guidelines set out in Putin's plan. He did not specify or clarify the exact details of the current president's plan.

Before voting on Medvedev's candidacy, Putin told the delegates that he would agree to become Russia's prime minister if Medvedev wins the 2008 presidential election.

"If today Russians demonstrate their trust in Dmitry Medvedev, then I am ready to continue our common policy in the post of head of the Russian government," Putin said.

READ MORE -

http://en.rian.ru/russia/20071217/92858987.html

[crimzonsol]

Why does everyone feel the need to point out if someone likes metal? Its not like it makes anyone different. Honestly what is up with it. You never see someone introduced: a country music lover, no its always Metalheads that get the bad rap...

[December]

Why does everyone feel the need to point out if someone likes metal? Its not like it makes anyone different. Honestly what is up with it.

Hello, Crimzonsol.

Well, in this case it should tell you that Medvedev is West-friendly guy.
He is actually VERY COOL. Trust me. :)

http://img.rian.ru/images/9166/49/91664932.jpg


Svetlana Medvedev: Russia’s Future First Lady?

http://img.rian.ru/images/9168/03/91680389.jpg

[crimzonsol]

December I understand your point, I confess that I do not know as much as I want to about Russian politics maybe you could educate me about it sometime. But my point is that if the person who the story is about listens to metal. It is always mentioned in the article. I have to ask why?

[December]

December I understand your point, I confess that I do not know as much as I want to about Russian politics maybe you could educate me about it sometime.

Ask something.
There is good site for you to check every day - www.en.rian.ru


But my point is that if the person who the story is about listens to metal. It is always mentioned in the article. I have to ask why?

Crimzonsol, I think I answered that question in my previous post.
Correct?

:)

World mulls over 'President' Medvedev

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5CawHRgJ9Ow

[crimzonsol]

Being a Metalhead does not mean that you are friendly with the West, it means that you like a type of music. Metal is a type of music, not a political identity.
Being a Punk tells about your political inclinations. Besides the bands he likes where pissed off at everyone, they had no love for anyone. It was and is anger transformed into music.

I am not going to base my opinion of him on the fact that he likes metal. It would be something I consider, but I do not think that liking metal deserves to be one of the centers of an article about him.

Thanks for the info about Russian politics.

My first question would be, how is their government organized. I don't understand much about their government structure. I keep thinking of the Soviet Union whenever I try.

[December]

Being a Metalhead does not mean that you are friendly with the West, it means that you like a type of music. Metal is a type of music, not a political identity.
Being a Punk tells about your political inclinations. Besides the bands he likes where pissed off at everyone, they had no love for anyone. It was and is anger transformed into music.

Well, you sound reasonable, of course.
But in Russia a politician is not going to be popular if he will say that he likes the Western music.
Russian people dislike Western countries because of the Second World war.

Mr. Future Prime Minister

http://mnweekly.ru/images/5529/67/55296748.jpg

The news concerning the presidential candidate Dmitry Medvedev has made a big splash in the business community. Medvedev, widely seen as President Putin's nominee and successor, said that he would ask his current boss to be his Prime Minister should he be elected.

Since all of Vladimir Putin's recent answers, aptly quoted by the KomÂ*mersant daily, point out that there is no reason to believe that Putin will refuse the offer, the proposition seems like a real eye-opener to many observers. What if Putin really agrees to become Medvedev's Prime Minister? What if he really refuses to change the Constitution? What if he is ready to give up his presidential powers? To the hordes of political scientists, analysts, journalists, professional politicians and members of the opposition the answers to these questions might shatter their whole world view so there will be no lack of commentary on this matter in the coming days. Some will say that this is yet another cunning move, some will forecast Putin's demise, some will dub this a multi-step move meant to confuse everyone even more, some will doubt that Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov will easily agree to give up on his own presidential (or head of the government) ambitions and some will hail this decision as unexpected but exciting. I just have several odd thoughts on the matter.

One: If Putin officially accepts Medvedev's offer and does it before the election and if the Medvedev-Putin ticket wins the presidential election in March, we might be looking at the birth of a new electoral system. This is not a parliamentary republic where the Prime Minister is nominated by the parliamentary majority. This is an election with two people on one ticket, only instead of the President and the Vice President we will have the President and the Prime Minister. And this is a wonderful idea, I think. Tell me who is your Prime Minister and I will tell you what kind of a President you are. Putin's own eight years in power showed that a lot of election-time promises and state-of-the-nation-address plans smash against the government's inability or fearfulness. The country's President cannot oversee everything by himself, he needs a team. And during the election campaign the presidential candidates should show the voters who will be on their team. This is honest campaigning, and if next year's election sets the trend, we'll be one little step closer to the democracy that everyone's missing so much.

read more -

http://mnweekly.ru/business/20071213/55296474.html

[December]

Medvedev brands to help promote products
29/ 12/ 2007


MOSCOW. (RIA Novosti economic commentator Vlad Grinkevich) - Russian food producers have shown as much political awareness as politicians lately: they are seriously concerned about the next president who could be a useful advertising tool.

The moment Vladimir Putin named Dmitry Medvedev his chosen successor, the Federal Service for Intellectual Property, Patents and Trademarks (Rospatent) received numerous bids to register "presidential" brands, [all of them having to do with bears since "medved" is Russian for "bear"].

It probably won't be long before grocery store shelves become specked with vodka Volodya i Medvedi (Vladimir and Bears), Medvedevka, or chocolates Tsar Medved (The Bear King).

Russians are known for their unfailing trust in a good and fair tsar. Russian market experts cite this belief as the key reason why playing with the name of the current head of state always gives a brand some competitive advantage.

The day after Medvedev was nominated as a presidential candidate, Rospatent had its hands full with applications from producers to register a host of trademarks like Medvedevka, Tsar Medved and Medvedka. The applicant registering these trademarks, Inso-Energo, plans to use the bear-related brand names for alcohol, soft drinks, and candy. Kaufman Production consulting with Vinexim has applied to register Volodya i Medvedi brand, while Postnoff & Co, vodka Russky Medved (Russian Bear).

They have probably been inspired by the success of Putinka vodka, bottled by Moscow's Kristall distillery since 2003 on the orders of Vinexim, the Moscow-based company that owns the Putinka trademark. Within a year, the "presidential" vodka gained 2.7% of the Russian market in money terms and came in second after Zelenaya Marka with 4.2% by the end of 2006.

Despite the multiple assurances from Vinexim spokesmen that their brand had nothing to do with the president, but was derived from the Russia word "putina" which means "fishing season," everybody knows that its skyrocketing sales had everything to do with the current president's charisma.

Vinexim's rivals must have learned that lesson. Marsia-Torg was the first company who rushed to register a "bear" trademark, MEDVEDEVka, two years ago, when Medvedev was only just appointed first deputy prime minister. A year later the company sold the brand to Esperanto Vin, a partner of the Kristall-Lefortovo distillery, which later resold it to La Termo gifts firm.

READ MORE - http://en.rian.ru/analysis/20071229/94729468.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5CawHRgJ9Ow