But...but...but...
Zyuganov is a middle-of-the-road, conservative mainstream politician. He's kind of a doofus, but he's no extremist.
The CPRF has nationalist tendencies, to be sure, but it's hardly far right. It has always distanced itself from extremist positions. If had to choose an American politician who most closely resembles Zyuganov, it would be Buchanan.
I don't know about the CPRF's program in 1996, but in 2000 it was mostly about building the party, reaching out to young people, providing jobs and educations to young people and pensions for the elderly, protecting domestic business and avoiding nationalization of the railroad.
The far right is inconsequential in Russia, at least in today's political landscape. Even Russia National Unity has barely 15,000 members, most of whom are teenagers.
Chris Doss The Russia Journal ----------- Date: Mon, 25 Feb 2002 04:36:50 -0800 From: "michael pugliese" <debsian at pacbell.net> Subject: Re; Soviet Philosophy
Chris Doss mentions Alexander Dugin. Dugin was a co-author of the Manifesto of the Zyuganov Communist Party in the Russian Federation. Walter Laqueur in, "The Black Hundreds: The Rise of the Far Right in Russia," "Penguin/Viking pb.has much material on Dugin and the influences of Rightist idfeologies on Comrade Zyuganov.