I bow before Sakharov. There were also other brave Russian men and women of deep principle whom I also honour. But not enough ordinary Russian people joined their number to make a real difference. Consequently Russian people never took upon themselves the responsibility of removing the oppressive Soviet State; instead, that regime rotted from the inside out, and finally toppled over when it was no longer able to stand under its own weight. And to this very day, Russian people do not demand an accounting from those who oppressed them in the name of the Soviet state. It is people like Sakharov, Solzhenitsyn and others like them who are the true heroes of Russia – people who did not supinely yield to an abusive state. But despite the fact that Russians shed a tear at Solzhenitsyn’s funeral, neither he nor his companions in courage and humanity are celebrated in today’s Russia. Public holidays are rather reserved to celebrate and glorify the bloodiest epochs of Russian history and these are upheld as the preferred examples of heroism.

Without questioning any of Sakharov's achievements. I understand that someone else came with the idea of a technical shortcut in the creation of the Hydrogen Bomb ahead of the USA? Beria and the Politburo, added Sakharov, to head the technical group assisting the unknown self-thought physicist from the Russian Far-East, who came with the shortcut idea! The idea that a High School graduate, without any higher Education, could figure out, that the best World brains were unable to figure out, does not look serious! So here came Sakharov!!!