File talk:Putin the Tyrant.jpg

(later I'll double check this is how presented - I don't recognize the photo, but it does look consistent, and the lettering should be either Ukrainian or Russian and easy enough to call for sure, but pending that, I'm willing to sign my own petition) --Caustic Logic (talk) 14:07, 31 October 2014 (UTC)

Sign the Petition!

Human Rights Watch,

Acknowledging the staggering challenges of the Ukraine conflict, we cannot afford to ignore the increasingly repressive and indeed genocidal domestic policies of the Ukrainian junta that directly caused the anguish seen in the photo at the top of your petition to SecState Kerry. As Russia is the only world government showing any interest in that epic Human Rights violation, it's rather twisted to use an image of it in to boost your drive against insanely lesser crimes alleged in Russia (and perhaps lacking evidence, considering how you had to scrape around for this photo to make your point best). Sincerely, - Adam J. Larson (aka Caustic Logic) --Caustic Logic (talk) 14:07, 31 October 2014 (UTC)
 * - Support the petition. There are HR problems in Russia; and there are HR problems in the  USA and UK (economic/labor,  and other); but Ukraine HR problems  are immense in comparison. Continuing to ignore, in effect, problems in Ukraine, such as deaths, injuries,  and unjustified arrests related Odessa May 2 events,  will seriously undermine trust needed to stand for HR issues elsewhere.   --Resup (talk) 23:21, 31 October 2014 (UTC)
 * I guess it's not really a petition. Now they've decided to remove the whole petition page, rather than just picking a better bue less effecting image. That just wouldn't work out right, would it? Just call it a fail and take the hit. --Caustic Logic (talk) 09:54, 1 November 2014 (UTC)

Lettering on the back of black uniform is not Russian, there is no "i" letter in Russian alphabet at all. міліція is Ukrainian (міліцыя is Belorussian, Russian is милиция (outdated, replaced by полиция, since 2011). If this graphics takes a broader imaginative view, I do not know why it is "Putin" and not "White House", or "USA-Russia Famous Friendship society", or "HRW" itself, or whatever. --Resup (talk) 14:55, 31 October 2014 (UTC)

photo is attributed to REUTERS/Yevgeny Volokin, Odessa, May 3, 2014. Here Odessa= Odessa, Ukraine. --Resup (talk) 15:26, 31 October 2014 (UTC)

To note, HRW did call, jointly with Amnesty Int'l, for the Ukrainian government to properly investigate the Odessa massacre, less than a week afterwards, and even raised some fairly good points. What they've done in the meantime I'm not sure, up until this. And this is a big help; whether they meant to or not, this raises the profile of the massacre just ahead of the semi-anniversary on Sunday. All it takes to maximize that now is some people widely noting this irony, and if possible (and safe) getting the opinion of the woman in the photo in front of the world. --Caustic Logic (talk) 09:54, 1 November 2014 (UTC)

Reports
There should be some commentary articles on this episode, maybe worth collecting (Tweets too, or whatever seems worth it). --Caustic Logic (talk) 09:54, 1 November 2014 (UTC)
 * Russia Insider caught part of the story (along with notes on HRW/State Dept. and "smart power," and an argument about what the author says is the law under question that "imitated the US Foreign Agent Registration Act of 1938," asking foreign agents to "make periodic public disclosure" about their foreign contacts, payments, etc. - the May 2 victims were accused of, being Russian agents - dealt with in a "legal" manner by a law that's not an exact copy of any US law I know of...):
 * Russian and US 'foreign agent" laws are not identical, but in contemporary world receiving funding does exert influence, from subtle to brutal in range; taken that into account, real-world differences are not that great. In Ukraine,  foreign donations to campaigns are not allowed (page 3). Thus 5 billion US investment in 'Ukraine  democracy', to support orange and other such revolutions, is on shaky legal grounds (and we know the practical outcome).  --Resup (talk) 15:02, 1 November 2014 (UTC)
 * Oh, and incidentally, as anyone with a knowledge of the difference between Russian and Ukrainian orthography knows, the sinister helmeted riot cops in the accompanying picture are actually Ukrainian riot police. Stupidity is no impairment to “smart power” either. --Caustic Logic (talk) 09:54, 1 November 2014 (UTC)


 * Very brief report over at The Saker, but with many comments, potentially interesting. --CE (talk) 14:49, 1 November 2014 (UTC)
 * HRW "reports" (page updated) "A photograph from Odessa, Ukraine, was mistakenly used to accompany an October digital marketing campaign about Russia. The photograph should not have been used to illustrate the campaign, and its misuse was entirely unintentional. Human Rights Watch sincerely apologizes for this error." --Caustic Logic (talk) 14:56, 1 November 2014 (UTC)