@wdlindsy So much of the old Soviet era lives on in today's Russia: the double speak, denying the obvious, and of course blaming their favorite boogieman, the west.

"Proponents of the legislation described it as a matter of national security, claiming that the arguments against having children are part of a broader effort by the west to weaken Russia by encouraging population decline."

I suppose we shouldn't be surprised that Russia's answer to the same problem of population decline that many nations are experiencing is to start down the path of forcing its people to do what the government wants.