It is absolutely critically useful for overthrowing dictators. Currently that's the only sure way for Russian citizens to fund anti-Putin opposition without immediate consequences.
Dictators are overthrown at a rate of fewer than one in three years (maybe even lower), and Bitcoin has entered the public consciousness no earlier than in 2017. Give it some time.
I’m absolutely sure that Putin and his cronies will find enough use for crypto (avoiding sanctions, carrying out criminal enterprise) that they’ll be more than happy about this minor inconvenience.
You are missing the point. Putin and his cronies will find ways to do their criminal business with or without cryptocurrencies. His opponents have little other choice BUT cryptocurrencies to fund their operations.
> Currently that's the only sure way for Russian citizens to fund anti-Putin opposition without immediate consequences.
This seems like incredibly irresponsible advice: if you're worried about consequences for a political donation, leaving a signed public confession is the police's dream come true. Compromise someone's computer and you now have proof of a crime as well as something you can use to pressure everyone they transacted with, even if you had no idea to investigate them at the time it happened.
Best of all, nobody knows if that's happened unless you tell them so you can continue to quietly map out the opposition network and pressure each person you link to a Bitcoin transaction to identify their partners but otherwise stay quiet.
Source: I'm from Russia.