Kremlin Hopes for a Russia Without Fools

A new website has been launched by the Russian government in order to monitor bureaucratic inefficiency and stupidity in the struggling nation.

On the site called 'Rossiya Bez Durakov, or in English, Russia Without Fools, every Russian in the country can complain about what they perceive to be inane laws and ridiculously bureaucratic procedures, or as President Dmitri Medvedev referred to it, a stupidity contest.

The site comes at a time when the Russian government needs to offer change to their citizens. The month of December saw the biggest protests against the government since the fall of the Soviet Union. The new site is designed for the Kremlin offer a rare chance of some self-criticism, reported Time. The site went online only about a week, but it has already attracted millions of people leaving thousands of messages complaining about inefficiency. The first day, the site reportedly got more than 135,000 visitors.

We had to plug in the backup servers to deal with the avalanche of stupidity, says Raf Shakirov, the director of the project, reported Time. I was like, Wow. We're going to have to hire more people.

Medvedev praised the Internet project that is being run by Big Government, a group aimed at weeding the inane bureaucratic procedures that consists mostly of Medvedev's supporters. The project leaders promise they will make sure the complaints are reviewed by regional parliament leaders and other municipal officials.

The idea is undoubtedly good, said Pavel Medvedev, a member of the Russian National Banking Council. But the site's owners still haven't suggested a clearly outlined scheme of how all the complaints will be satisfied.

A visitor to the site sees a clickable red button with the words add stupidity. They then have the option of inputting a bureaucratic faux pas. However, the site appears to lack any complaints from parliament leaders and especially, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. The creators deny any conspiracy to censor Russian citizens from voicing their opinions.

There are no taboos, said Robert Shlegel, a lawmaker for Putin's United Russia party who co-founded the project. Shlegel continued to say that the inspiration came from similar Web sites that were being operated by opposition leaders.

Alexei Navalny, a blogger and protest movement leader launched RosYama, which allowed residents to post complaints and photos about pesky potholes.

However, there are some leaders who aren't sold on the effectiveness of the site.

I believe, this site will improve Russian governmental structures not better than painting over a ramshackle building would make it firmer. There are really no fools among state officials, said Gennady Dukov, A Just Russia party member of parliament, according to The Voice of Russia. If an official is bureaucratic, this is not because he is stubborn and stupid. This means that he is pursuing some secret aims of his own. It is us who are the fools if we allow officials to fool us.

Still, the creators believe that it will make all the difference and allow Russia to take major steps toward a more efficient country.

This is not just a toy, not another site to make jokes, said Shakirov. It is a mechanism, like surgery, to get at the sick parts of government.