There's a very common theme on sites like HN or reddit (and I'm not implying you're using it here, but your comment may at least suggest it - if not, forgive me, my comment is not directed at you specifically) that although western governments can be dicks, they are still nowhere near 3-rd world countries' governments when it comes to human rights and other things you, western countries' residents, take for granted.
However, in my view, the thing to realize is that almost all achievements the west made came not from a system of governance, but from individuals continuously restricting those who govern and from the entrepreneurial talent that flourished when government didn't bother them. To say that western governments are somehow better than a Russian government is to be ignorant. They only thing they are better at is lying and deceiving its people about its own importance to the society.
That's simply not true. Western countries have significant differences in structures that enable them to achieve compared to Russia.
The key one that springs to mind is a rule of law that courts actually follow. Compare Russia after signing the Helsinki Accords, and it's constitution which had all sorts of freedoms that were totally ignored, to the West.
When you look at recent Kremlin activity like the expropriation of entire corporations, jailing of people like Magnitsky, murder of journalists and dissidents abroad you'll realise that there are no checks or balances in place at all.
The rule of law is a misleading term. If you have money, you can afford expensive lawyers and staying out of prison for certain crimes. If you don't, well, then you're out of luck. That's not significantly different from the Russian system, except that in Russia nobody is delusional about the fact that money IS law. Also, when someone sues you, you're most certain to not only lose your time in court, but also money on lawyers, thus the system can be and is used for legitimate blackmailing.
Finally, US government can jail anyone at any time without trial, even US citizens (Bradley Manning). There is no rule of law.
The law may have been followed but the perception may be different. People often (always?) reason in the perception world, then act (in the real world) based on the results of that reasoning.
