by KYW's John Ostapkovich
The death of former Russian President Boris Yeltsin (above) brings to a close an era of so much promise, with so little to show for it, according to a political scientist.
LaSalle political science professor Edward Turzanski says Yeltsin was once known as the 'Red Rebel', who recognized that Soviet Communism was unfixable. But when he replaced Mikhail Gorbachev, corruption by colleagues and his own alcohol abuse soon sent Russia into a tailspin:
"The news is not good for Russia and it should have been better because Yeltsin has a historic opportunity and unfortunately drank it away."
Turzanski says Yeltsin's finest moment was when he stood atop a tank outside Russia's parliament, resisting a coup by Communist hardliners in 1991, but after seeing him sloppy drunk 12 years ago in Philadelphia, he's surprised he lived this long (see related story).
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