-Caveat Lector- from: http://www.aci.net/kalliste/ Click Here: <A HREF="http://www.aci.net/kalliste/">The Home Page of J. Orlin Grabbe</A> ----- Russian Follies The Old Drunk Yeltsin Quits KGB man takes possession of the nuclear suitcase. VLADIMIR PUTIN, new acting president of Russia, last night stepped into the void left by the resignation of Boris Yeltsin and promised to fill any "power vacuum" in the run-up to spring elections. Mr Yeltsin chose the last day of the century to announce his immediate retirement, saying the country needed "new politicians, new faces, new intelligent, strong and energetic people" for the new Millennium. He again endorsed Mr Putin as his successor, saying there was no need to wait six months to the official end of his term. Russians now face an election on March 26 to choose their first new president since Mr Yeltsin, 68, became the country's first democratically-elected head of state in 1991. Mr Putin, Mr Yeltsin's prime minister, is firm favourite to win. The outgoing leader shed a tear as he presented Mr Putin with the decree effecting the transfer of power in his Kremlin office. Mr Putin was blessed by the head of the Russian Orthodox Church and took possession of the suitcase which controls Moscow's nuclear arsenal. In his farewell address, Mr Yeltsin emphasised that he was not resigning for health reasons. The expected victory for Mr Putin at the polls would ensure one of the smoothest transitions of power in Russia's turbulent history. One of Mr Putin's first decrees guaranteed Mr Yeltsin immunity from prosecution for life, an early sign of the new administration's loyalty to the outgoing president. A former KGB officer in East Germany during the Cold War, Mr Putin, 47, has become a popular figure since his appointment as prime minister and the start of the war in Chechnya. Mr Yeltsin's farewell speech included an apology for his mistakes. He said: "I ask you to forgive me for not fulfilling some hopes of those who believed we could jump from the grey, totalitarian past into a bright, rich and civilised future in one go." Mr Yeltsin once believed such a leap was possible. But he had been proved wrong. He said: "We struggled on through mistakes and failures . . . I also experienced the pain which each of you experienced." The London Telegraph, Jan. 1, 2000 ----- Aloha, He'Ping, Om, Shalom, Salaam. Em Hotep, Peace Be, All My Relations. Omnia Bona Bonis, Adieu, Adios, Aloha. Amen. Roads End DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance—not soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credeence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/CTRL.html http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
