Two notable Russian vlogs — we have met before — and one new addition

Yes what happened in Moscow was indeed horrible

Roman the Russian

Roman Albertovich Abalin (Russian: Роман Альбертович Абалин; born: January 24, 1998 [age 26]), better known online as NFKRZ. He left Russia after the invasion of Ukraine. He tells the story, which I have followed on this blog from before he left Russia, in a recent Instagram post.

…pics from late 2023 Tbilisi. I owe a lot to this city. I’m in Lisbon now but I wouldn’t be anywhere today if I wasn’t able to find refuge in Georgia after the war started, and if I hadn’t met all the great people of this city. I’ve spent 2 years in Tbilisi, living through the highs and lows. And despite these times of my life often being depressing, especially in 2022, this city always found a way to inspire and make me want to continue moving forward. It’s got an eclectic style and a vibe that’s like nothing else. Thanks Tbilisi, I will remember you fondly. Sakartvelos Gaumarjos! 🇬🇪

5 days ago

On a more recent selfie Roman received some vile comments that are total classics of social media stupidity and nastiness. “No comment or video about the atrocity in Moscow?” “No he’s paid directly from NATO for filming oppositional content against Russia. Even when it comes to 100+ people getting inhumanely slaughtered, he has no honor to post a message of support to his fellow citizens.”

In fact he did have a video and here it is.

Screenshot. On Facebook after watching the post I said: Roman the Russian responds…. This is honest and extremely convincing. Do not miss it! Note the use of a deep fake video on Russian TV when pinning it on Ukraine. Roman sees through the Putin line with total clarity.

Indeed he does.

Daniil Orain of 1420 fame

I have also now been following Daniil’s Russian vox pops for around two years.

That is last year. Artyom is on the right. Overnight Daniil has released a new livestream.

Timestamps: 0:00 – Start 1:36 – The reason why I decided to do this live stream 3:27 – Is it safe to do interviews? 4:43 – Are you not endangering people you are interviewing? 6:48 – Justify mobilization 9:22 – Condolences 9:46 – Roman NFKRZ 10:30 – 80% of people support Putin 11:28 – Over 1k of people are watching 12:02 – Mad people are winning 12:59 – Daniil, are you religious person? 16:44 – The screen is stretched 17:10 – How is health care in Russia? 19:30 – Other Russian YouTubers 20:00 – Informing 24:00 – Interrogated 27:30 – Is there hope for Russia? 29:20 – Do people talk about Navalny? 31:00 – Hope for Russia 33:00 – Focus on war-related issues 34:50 – Free elections 37:24 – Multi racial society 41:56 – Historic records of a certain point in time 43:22 – Russian souls 45:10 – How much have prices in Russia changed? 46:07 – Did you ever imagine things going this way? 48:00 – 2nd mobilization 50:56 – Georgia 52:40 – West and East Russia 54:43 – 24 years old girl from Crimea 58:49 – Challenged the narrative 1:00:38 – USA & Russia 1:01:00 – Where is Artyom?

Looking different — a screenshot from the new livestream. Artyom, who had collaborated in the 1420 project for a couple of years, often doing street interviews in regional Russia as well as Moscow, is, Daniil says, now working on his own projects in Moscow. 1420 was the number of the high school he and Artyom attended.

1:07:10 – Which city are you from? 1:08:53 – Comfort zone…

New to me: an interview from Headshot

This video captures the sentiments of residents in Khabarovsk, Russia, following Putin’s victory in the 2024 presidential elections. The survey delves into the diverse reactions among citizens, ranging from those expressing joy due to their vote for Putin to others harboring discontent and skepticism, anticipating negative changes under his continued leadership. Questions included reflections on the upcoming 2030 presidential elections, speculating on potential candidates and the prospects for significant changes over the six-year term extension for Putin. Opinions varied widely, with some attributing grievances to Putin’s handling of international affairs, particularly regarding the conflict with Ukraine, while others hailed him as Russia’s most effective statesman. Additionally, the survey explored societal attitudes towards the possibility of a female president in Russia, reflecting on broader perceptions of gender in political leadership.

I knew that I had encountered Khabarovsk before. It is in the Russian Far East close to the border with China, and a search came up with an old friend on this blog, Zack the Russian, and his friend Natasha back in 2021.

Natasha is now in Tbilisi, and Zack in the USA after two years in Tbilisi — he arrived there before Roman!