Heaven or Death

In a little reported (well I didn't see it headlined), story at the time, in October 2018 President Putin of Russia reportedly said ......

Death Visits Kurgan ...

...... that in the face of foreign aggression to the motherland (Rodina) they would be met with nuclear war. 

He added that while Russians would accept their inevitable death and "go to heaven as martyrs". Their enemies would "just drop dead, without even the time to repent". No one took him seriously at the time .... but with hindsight perhaps this should have raised red flags.

"An aggressor should know that vengeance is inevitable, that he will be annihilated, and we would be the victims of the aggression. We will go to heaven as martyrs, and they will just drop dead. They will not even have time to repent for this."

A fairly stark warning, not least for the Russians themselves, who might not quite see it in such black and white terms. It got some response from activists inside Russia, such as the the Very Dead group in Kurgan, Siberia, who dressed one of their members in the black cloak and scythe of the Grim Reaper, with a placard around his neck posing President Putin's ultimate question. 

Repent Or Martyrdom?

They then invited  shoppers to make the ultimate choice between President Putin's options, did they want to "go to heaven as martyrs" or "simply drop dead"?

Those willing to answer were invited to write their answer in a local 'Book of the Dead'. Apparently, given the two choices most of those who answered preferred to simply die. Oddly the group found that the results were somewhat muddied by some of those who chose heaven-bound, getting confused and adding the names of relatives, former spouses and workmates to the "drop dead" list. Presumably in a little bit of wishful revenge. 

The group has used their Grim Reaper persona to highlight other social issues by visiting a chain of off-licences, a large hole in the road, and a sandy beach. On each occasion it was in order to bear silent witness to alcoholism, poor highway maintenance and swimming in dangerous waters.

I often wonder why it is, that groups in countries where freedom of expression are curtailed, can find such inventive methods of raising social awareness, while we just have anarchist and socialist thugs, or eco-groups who stop people going to work in the West?

FemFem, Pussy Riot are both Eastern European protests ..... a man with two shopping bags stood in front of a tank in silent rebuke in Tiananman square, is a Chinese protest.