I would reserve judgement on the effectiveness of these financial sanctions to the elite's of Russia and the effect it may have on Putin's power until we see more. We need to see plenty of asset's seizures, for sale signs on acquired property and a whole lot more before we jump with glee about how great of a job they are doing. We need some action and some enforcement with teeth.
One thing that hasn't been made public would how elected officials in democracies like Canada can be bribed to similar levels as they can in places like Russia. I am curious what may come out of some of this. The difference with a lot of these countries is that their economies and the imbalance of rich/poor powerful and weak is larger so they can't hide it as well. In Canada we have a larger economy and are generally wealthier so your average Joe doesn't have the same concerns with the same level of basic necessities.
Bottom line is you can hide the corruption better in democracies.
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