What Russians Think Of Western Sanctions

I parse the Russian media (corporate and
social) on a daily basis and I am always
amazed at the completely different way
the issue of western sanctions is
discussed.  I think that it
is important and
useful for me to share this with those of
you who do not speak Russian.
First, nobody in Russia believes that the
sanctions will be lifted. Nobody. Of
course, all the Russian politicians say that
sanctions are wrong and not conducive to
progress, but these are statements for
external consumption.  In interviews for
the Russian media or on talk shows, there
is a consensus that sanctions will never
be lifted no matter what Russia does.
Second, nobody in Russia believes that
sanctions are a reaction to Crimea or to
the Russian involvement in the Donbass.
Nobody. There is a consensus that the
Russian policy towards Crimea and the
Donbass are not a cause, but a pretext for
the sanctions.  The real cause of the
sanctions is unanimously identified as
what the Russians called the "process of
sovereignization", i.e. the fact that Russia
is back, powerful and rich, and that she
dares openly defy and disobey the "Axis
of Kindness".
Third, there is a consensus in Russia that
the correct response to the sanctions is
double: a) an external realignment of the
Russian economy away from the West and
b) internal reforms which will make Russia
less dependent on oil exports and on the
imports of various goods and
technologies.
Fourth, nobody blames Putin for the
sanctions or for the resulting hardships.
Everybody fully understands that Putin is
hated by the West not for doing
something wrong, but for doing
something right.  In fact, Putin's
popularity is still at an all-time high.
Fifth, there is a wide agreement that the
current Russian vulnerability is the result
of past structural mistakes which now
must be corrected, but nobody suggests
that the return of Crimea to Russia or the
Russian support for Novorussia were
wrong or wrongly executed.
Finally, I would note that while Russia is
ready for war, there is no bellicose mood
at all. Most Russians believe that the US/
NATO/EU don't have what it takes to
directly attack Russia, they believe that
the junta in Kiev is doomed and they
believe that sending the Russian tanks to
Kiev (or even Novorussia) would have
been a mistake.
The above is very important because if
you consider all these factors you can
come to an absolutely unavoidable
conclusion: western sanctions have
exactly zero chance of achieving any
change at all in Russian foreign policy and
exactly zero chance of weakening the
current regime.
In fact, if anything, these sanctions
strengthen the Eurasian Sovereignists by
allowing them to blame all the pain of
economic reforms on the sanctions and
they weaken the Atlantic Integrationists
by making any overt support for, or
association with, the West a huge political
liability.
But the Eurocretins in Brussels don't care
I suppose, as long as they feel relevant or
important, even if it is only in their heads.