The New York Times brings us the now-familiar story of a nation so awash in propaganda benefiting their Dear Leader that parents are rejecting even reports from their own children about what is truly happening around them. The children are in Ukraine, caught in the war; the parents denying reality are in Vladimir Putin's Russia. And in Russia, Putin controls the airwaves and has for a very long time.
Polls suggest a solid majority of Russians are still supportive of Putin’s war—or, at least, aren’t willing to tell pollsters otherwise. 34%, however, are opposed.
Russia's government is not as able to control information about the outside world as they once did, and growing protests in Russia show that not all Russians are willing to accept the lies their government is dishing out. There were allegedly at least 3,000 arrests in Russia on Sunday as authorities sought to crack down on the protests, but video hints that the government is preparing for even larger anti-war rallies.
The protests can't nearly compare in size to the massive anti-war rallies elsewhere in Europe, but the number of Russians willing to defy new laws promising harsh treatment of protesters appears to be growing.