Russian police detain more than 500 at protest over journalist

"Russia will be free", "Russia without Putin" and "Down with the Tsar"

With its Eurasian Economic Union, its military in Syria, its oligarch's controls in Venezuela, North Korea and elsewhere throughout the globe, Russia's moving to re-establish its empire and reverting to the totalitarian controls it's had since the days of the tsars. As Russia clamps down on opposition, it's showing it's at best a nominal democracy. Elections alone do NOT make a state democratic.

With China expanding its global reach through Belt and Road and other attempts at finlandizing areas in the Indian and Pacific Ocean regions, it's clear it's attempting to establish China as empire. China makes no pretenses to be democratic. At this minute it's showing in Hong Kong the disdain the Chinese leadership have for democracy.

The fading US empire under Trump is trying to undermine already strained cornerstones of the US democratic republic by Trump, his admin and family members constantly attacking free, for-profit media outlets that question the Trump administration and family, by constantly attacking the judiciary, by constantly attacking US intelligence services, by constantly attacking anyone who opposes or in any way even questions Trump.

The US is perhaps the only empire of the three with a few shreds of democracy left.

Trump and his supporters (in the US and 'abroad') are trying to further shred those remaining shreds.

In their zeal to have the US become even more authoritarian. Just like Russia and China.

Putin and his cronies should never be categorized with the Russian people in general.

The war on freedom continues, aided and abetted by those who cosy up to and applaud dictators.

Russian police actually caught red-handed framing a muckraker journalist

Even Russian-controlled media held solidarity with the journalist