Thanks to everyone who signed the petition to free Svetlana Bakhmina yesterday – it appears that the number of signatures is rapidly approaching 80,000. It would be great to 100,000, so please forward this one around. Today the columnist Alexander Arkhangelsky at RIA Novosti (!) argues that the release of Bakhmina would be the state’s first step in reconciling with Russian society:

A state that takes hostages is like a guerilla group of mujahideen—it stops being a regular power meant to enforce some general rules. Becoming irregular for the sake of expanding its domain, it becomes outwardly stronger, but weakens on the inside, like an occupying army weakens as it spreads out over the territory it controls and becomes demoralized in drinking bouts, chicken hunts and tomcatting escapades. The command displays increased self-importance, puts on parades and sends out orders, all the while trembling in fear from not knowing how to handle this damned victory.