Prego. Attento al cappello.
Estratto da un AMA di due giorni fa. I bbcode da telefono fanno cagare, abbiate pazienza:
The atmosphere on Hrushevskogo street, where the riot takes place (this is literally one block away from Maydan Nezalezhnosti, where the majority of protesters are) is probably close to war. Everybody wears something to filter the air they inhale, otherwise you would bend and cough most of the time because of police's gas (recently they stopped using it because of the wind). Same applies for eyes. Most of the people wear motorcycle or other kinds of helmets and some home-made armor. Police also uses rubber bullets and noise-light grenades all the time. The protestors use molotovs and fireworks and throw rocks.
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Until /u/ukraine_riot can respond I'll throw in my own knowledge. I was lucky enough to be in Kyiv for two and a half weeks from mid December-early January, time that I spent ferrying medical supplies to the central clinic that has been established on the Maidan. This means I missed the recent violence, but I have intimate knowledge of the Maidan demonstrations.
The mood on the Maidan is simultaneously joyous, because those demonstrating there feel that they are finally able change the corrupt status quo of their country, and tense because they know that the regime will only react with force to the Euromaidan. People are also tired because it takes a serious mental toll to demonstrate for so long when the stakes are so high; it is understood that if the demonstrations fail, the government will be out to "teach them a lesson" which means beatings, disappearances, or at least harassment. The overriding mood, however, is raw determination. I was told by a middle-aged man from Zhytomyr (many of those on the Maidan are middle-aged or older; they say that they hold the fort day to day so the youngsters with families and jobs can come out after work) that he is in it for the duration, but to please make the duration short because the situation is so difficult for so many.
The young men I saw were angry, and for excellent reason in my opinion. The explosion of violence against the police I think has come from a seething rage that has been building in the face of the government's cowardice in dealing with the protest movement. Journalists, female and male, have been ambushed by unnamed persons while alone, beaten, and left in ditches. Recently, activists with the "Automaidan," who use their personal vehicles to rapidly respond to calls for help, have suffered a crackdown where thirty or more have disappeared. The body of a journalist has been found in a field outside Kyiv, beaten to death. All institutions are in the pocket of the Yanukovych government, so the police are no help.
How would you feel if your government was so grossly abusive against anyone who called it on its abuses? These young men are angry as hell. I'm angry as hell and I'm not even Ukrainian. I would venture to guess that's the mood right now at Hrushevskogo street, where the riots are taking place. On the Maidan, I'm sure the sense of raw determination to stay the course is as strong as ever. I hope this provides some insight into your question and I look forward to hearing from /u/ukraine_riot, who I wish all the best in his struggle for decency and a democratic government.
Edit: I'd like to use the gilding of this comment to direct people to sources of information about Ukraine that I rely on to stay abreast of the situation:
[Euromaidan PR](https://www.facebook.com/euromaidanpr) on Facebook
[Euromaidan Journalist Collective](https://www.facebook.com/Euromaidan.Collective) on Facebook
[Babylon '13](http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrJIIeADD45RsffK2yYgmSw), a YouTube channel that creates artistic films which I believe capture the feeling of being there rather than transmit information.
[ЄвроМайдан – EuroMaydan](https://www.facebook.com/EuroMaydan), the original Facebook group of the protest movement (Ukrainian language, occasionally posts in English)
Inviato dal mio GT-I8190