According to the Other Russia, ‘2009 was a year of continued contradictions laced with increased strife throughout Russian society’.  The site has its rundown of last year, featuring not just sobering examples of political and violent repression but also positive actions from the opposition.  According to RFE/RL, President Medvedev has proposed the reappointment of Sergei Darkin, a man with apparent ties to criminal groups, as governor of the far eastern Primorsky Krai, a move which, says Communist Viktor Ilyukhin, shows the emptiness of the President”s corruption-busting promises.  RFE/RL also examines the case of a mysterious fire which destroyed one of Moscow’s only remaining historic dachas.  Residents fear foul play: apparently local authorities had long been eyeing the site for a potential car park.