Russia is facing a spring of discontent – and Putin is responding the only way he knows how | CNN

Four years after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russia is facing a spring of discontent. Rolling digital blackouts in Russian cities have touched a nerve with ordinary citizens and public pushback against Russian President Vladimir Putin is emerging. Russia has weathered wartime economic pain while its security services keep protests in check. And the conflict in the Middle East has given Russia’s war effort an unexpected boost through higher oil prices. Nonetheless, Russia’s repressive apparatus of state now appears to be shifting into high gear. In recent weeks, law-enforcement authorities have launched a new round of high-profile political arrests and raids. And in parallel, the Russian government has been resurrecting the ghosts of the Soviet past. The most recent example: On Tuesday, officials from Russia’s Investigative Committee raided the offices of one of Russia’s largest publishers and detained staff members, following a year-old criminal investigation into what authorities allege is a case of “LGBTQ propaganda.” The publisher, Eksmo, is the owner of an imprint called Popcorn Books that published young-adult fiction. One of its titles appears to have draw