Decentralism: even in Russia?

Arutz Sheva, an Israeli network, reports that Russian President Dmitry Medvedev may oppose the powerful Vladimir Putin for the Presidency. It appears that Mr. Medvedev is positioning himself as one who supports the inviolability of private property:

"We tried to create a society without the rich in the past. That experiment led to stagnation, poverty and disintegration of the country," he said.

Not only does he oppose the top down approach so endemic in Russian politics and government, he actually favors decentralism:

"A sophisticated society with many groups and centers of influence requires further decentralization on our part, transferring certain governance functions to social organizations and responsibilities at the highest level to the regional and municipal levels."

The Russians may be proving that decentralism is indeed our zeitgeist (spirit of the age).