Tomsk is what people call a university city; I live here while I study in TSU. What struck me about the city as soon as I got a place here - and went on to walk the streets, subsequently, - is that people here are rather active politically, unlike my homecity of Kemerovo. People care about a local channel being closed; people care about the municipal water supply being sold to private hands; and apparently, people care about what political parties of Russia have to say.
Against TUSUR - state university of electronics and control systems - there's a small square with a fountain on an artificial concrete hill. There, I've already seen quite a few groups of people rally for this or that party (was there an election or something?), so that another group gathers there surprised me not.
What bothered me is the slogan under which they rally. If you care about the recently-developed tense situation between Russia and the Western countries, take a seat or risk falling over, since the slogan reads: "Freedom. Motherland. Putin!" and "Let's free Russia! Are you with us? [huge face of Putin near the words] Or with those? [faces of Saakashvili and whom I assume to be Western political and other prominent figures under the words]".
I laughed at first, given how ridiculous it sounded. A few seconds after the thought settled in, and the next time I saw the flags and the improvised stage, I couldn't hold my resentment. It was still ridiculous, but now it became appaling. Disgusting.
The whole idea behind the rally is that Russia is somehow oppressed by the evil people of the West - and of the US in particular - and that we, as Russians, owe it to our country to fight back. I have no idea what is that supposed to mean, and I didn't have it in me to come and talk to those who serviced the rally. It is to the best of my understanding that these people believe: we, the Russia that we make up, are at odds with the West and, being (naturally) right about what we do, we ought to push back to whatever the evil West may unleash upon us, persevere through the adversity and somehow win this whole situation, preferably without giving it a single thought.
Well, by god.
Don't get me wrong. I like Russia - as much as the abused may like the abuser, I suppose. It has its beauties and it has things - and people - to fight for, but what it is, right now, with the putinist regime online, is a fucked-up state with fucked-up people, tortured by the Soviet past still haunting every single one of us through the abusive elderly who reign over the raised-mindless crowd. Most people seem to know very well that Russia is ruled by a member of the Russian mafia (which may or may not be true literally) - and those same people, the absolute most of those, don't care: they just want to slog through another day and take another month's pay, fueling themselves with jealousy, anger and unrealistic fantasies of the wonderful, utopian days to come.
I've recently read on Mark Manson's website the definition of an abusive relationship - and the way most of the middle class lives in Russia fits almost perfectly, both among themselves and with the government. We aren't taught to think for ourselves and criticize the bad ways that exist among us - we're taught to surrender ourselves to the higher power (religion and the government) and let ourselves be controlled by the greedy, selfish, megalomaniac people in charge of those institutions.
It was exactly what I witnessed today, at the square against TUSUR: people mindlessly rallying for their master Putin, like slaves arguing against those who try to free them. It wasn't just that Putin was a prominent figure in the whole affair, like Martin Luther King or John Lennon would be, - he was the instigator of such ideas. Our whole media are filled with the brainwaves of the sort that would make you hate "the West" (meaning mostly the US), and if one spends their evenings lazily imbibing the sounds and the images from the television screen without processing it in any way - as most people tend to here - they're bound to grow such superfluous, shallow ideas in their heads soon enough.
But, to a certain extent, the rally was no surprise. People used to do that when major enough brainwashings happened, and they did it once again. Not that it doesn't bother me - those I'm supposed to be kin with doing crazy shit - but I can't apologize for them nor justify their actions. It saddens me that the relationships between two superpowers - at least, that's what Russia still believes itself to be - got to such a point, and that people are brainwashed rather than educated of the events that are happening.
Shit, even locals recognize how terrible is it to live in Russia today. Yet, from those who leave - to Brighton Beach, for example - most still hold their mother country dear and ask about what happens there at every opportunity. Is it patriotism? Given what partiotism looks like in Russia - or, rather, given that it merely exists in the peaceful, love-fueled form - I can barely tell. That it's jingoism, is for sure. People wave their dicks around far too much for it to not be fueled by some sort of perceived self-inadequacy.
И удивляться здесь, право, товарищи, нечему. Такая она уж слепая, глухая уродина, Ну а любить-то мне больше и нечего." which roughly translates to, for those who don't read Russian, "I hate my homeland as well as I love it, and it's really not that surprising. She's a blind and deaf freak, but I really have nothing else to love". On a more serious note, I've left about half a decade ago, and it seems that Russia is just heading towards a point of no return, with a cult of Putin's personality being plastered all over the walls. A fair few of my friends, those who had the opportunity, of course, had also moved to the West, to Russian enclaves like Brighton Beach, for example. I've been there a year or two back, and it feels like I've traveled back into the 90s, even though I was too young to remember anything back then. I have friends in Boston, Toronto, and Frankfurt who have moved just a few years after I did, and they do not regret their decision. Quick question - what makes you stay there? Is it friends/family, financial situation, or just a lack of opportunity to move places?I like Russia - as much as the abused may like the abuser.
There is a song by the Russian band Nol', not sure if you've heard it or not, but I remember this one verse from it: "Как ненавижу, так и люблю свою Родину
Not to attack the point in any way - from what I understand, people feel the same of the US - at least, Mark Manson does. Might it have something in common? The two countries were considered superpowers at one point, after all, and are still looked at during major events (often because they cause the ripples). Finances and lack of real-life knowledge. I used to think that if I had enough money, I'd leave right away (I still do, but with understanding of how silly it sounds). Once I figure myself and my ground out and once I find myself with enough resources to travel and live somewhere freely enough, I'll at least give leaving a thought. Can't see what's to stop me, though, at least right now.it seems that Russia is just heading towards a point of no return
what makes you stay there?
If by "common" you mean that both are losing their relevance, perceived or real, on the world stage, then I'd probably agree with you. The similarities don't go all that far, however, because the U.S. is still, in my opinion at least, a superpower. It's the world's largest economy in terms of nominal GDP, and loses only to China when compared to other countries by GDP based on PPP ($17.63 trillion vs $17.41 trillion), while still beating China by a huge margin in GDP per capita ($54,678 in the US versus $12,893 in China). It also has the world's most powerful military, something to do with the $577 billion it spends on it each year, I reckon. Point is, I'm not really sure if we can say that the U.S. is not a superpower in this day and age. Now, I largely agree with the article by Mark Manson you linked. Personally, I tend to dislike the United States, and I wouldn't want to move there (I happened to rather like the frozen wasteland that is Canada where I reside at the moment). However, as much as I dislike the U.S., I dislike Russia way, way more. Some people say that the States cause a lot more instability in the world than the Russian Federation does, but the thing is, the reason RF is behind the US in this regard is definitely not for the lack of trying. Rather, it just doesn't have the resources anymore, not having a strong enough economy which is dependant on something other than crude oil exports. Moving is a tough process, in some regards. It doesn't help if you have a family. There are always options for those who seek emigration, however. It helps if you have work contacts outside of the country, a dual citizenship (how are things with that, by the way? does Russia still support dual citizenship?), or simply a particular set of skills that can easily get you a job anywhere in the world. From your post, I gather that you study in TUSUR, which is quite a marketable position.Might it have something in common?
I used to think that if I had enough money, I'd leave right away
Whether the US is still a superpower - I'm in no position to argue on the matter - it looks rather crippled, what's with its massive debt which even the in-country people are aware of to a great extent (which is to say, it's not a typical Russian anti-US propaganda piece of which there are plenty at the time). Why do you dislike the US? Why do you dislike Russia? Is there something you dislike in Canada as strongly as you do things in the aforementioned countries? I hope to attain at least some contacts while I study because my field of education has to do with languages and translation. And no, I study in TSU; TUSUR is near, I go by the thing often enough. I have my eyes set on either the US, Britain or Germany at the moment, given that my second language is German (and I might learn some more with time). As far as I know, Vladimir Pozner - a prominent Russian journalist - maintains both his Russian and US' citizenship (possibly French, too); I'm not aware of anyone else doing so, though.
Wait, google says elections are next year... hum I don't know then. My dad was watching new about Duma elections. A test run? http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/b8a93c78-55f2-11e5-a28b-50226830d644.html#axzz3mQz2CRb5
My university apparently has access to Financial Times. I'm going to copy and paste the article here for a little while for discussion purposes, then delete it since I don't think I'm actually supposed to rip this information off their page. “People react negatively to us,” says Svetlana as she tries to hand out flyers for RPR Parnas, a party that was co-founded by Boris Nemtsov, the veteran opposition leader shot dead earlier this year. “The relentless propaganda works and people have it in their brains that we are the fifth column.” A few days ago, two women asked Svetlana why there were Russian flags on top of her stand and suggested that the party should instead fly American ones since it was a US lackey. Sunday’s elections, in which 16 regions will choose governors and 14 will select parliaments, illustrate just how far president Vladimir Putin has progressed in hollowing out the country’s democratic institutions during his 15 years in power, and how resigned to that the population has become. “The few who do listen to us say yes, everything you say about the corruption of the regime is right, but nothing is ever going to change, and no matter who rules they will always steal and lie,” says Svetlana. “Nobody believes in elections or that they can change Russia.” Kostroma in central Russia is the only region where the Democratic Coalition, an alliance of the Progress party of opposition leader Alexei Navalny and RPR-Parnas, was even allowed to run. Both the opposition and the Kremlin see Sunday’s vote as a test for the Duma elections a year from now. Those, in turn, may have consequences for the next presidential election, as Mr Putin discovered four years ago when brazen fraud during the parliamentary vote triggered a protest movement against him that challenged his return to the presidency a few months later. For now, Mr Putin looks invincible. According to independent pollster Levada, his approval rating stood at 83 per cent in August. Yet that was down 6 percentage points from its record high of 89 per cent in June and the lowest since May last year immediately after the annexation of Crimea. The Public Opinion Foundation, a polling group that serves the government, has observed a similar trend. Both pollsters see the bleak economic situation behind the dip in support. But in Kostroma, one of Russia’s most economically depressed regions, few are ready to transform their dissatisfaction into a vote for the Democratic Coalition. Oleg, a 65-year-old former engineer and construction worker who tries to make ends meet on a Rbs5,800 ($85) a month pension, has no illusions about his country. “We have this paradox that the communists lost power but somehow power ended up in the hands of their children,” he says, observing Svetlana’s campaign stand from a safe distance. He believes that Mr Putin’s United Russia party is today’s equivalent of the Soviet Union’s Communist party, and politicians and KGB agents carved up the nation’s wealth among themselves. “Is that democracy? I don’t think so,” he says. “So what is this circus called election?” Indeed, the cards have been stacked heavily against the opposition. Originally, the Democratic Alliance planned to compete in four regions, including Novosibirsk in Siberia, which includes the country’s third-largest city; Magadan, a sparsely populated, resource-rich territory north-east of Japan; and Kaluga, a manufacturing hub south of Moscow and top foreign investment destination in Russia. The common thread is that in the course of the recession, service sector revenues have dropped drastically in large, well-off urban agglomerations and resource-producing regions, suggesting a potential for growing dissatisfaction among the middle class. But under Mr Putin’s leadership, the legal framework has changed so that candidates for governor, mayor or regional parliaments must garner a certain number of signatures to compete. Those collected by the opposition were found invalid by the authorities. The coalition appealed, but lost everywhere but Kostroma. Ilya Yashin, a friend of Mr Nemtsov’s and RPR-Parnas’ top candidate in Kostroma, is convinced this was by design. “They gave us this region because it is the most difficult for us,” he says. “It has large rural areas which are hard to cover without a lot of time and money.” The bureaucratic hassles and court battles meant the party started campaigning only less than a month ahead of the vote. “The authorities want us to lose so they can claim that the opposition doesn’t have any popular support,” says Mr Yashin. The opposition’s plight in Kostroma reflects a broader shift over more than a decade in which Mr Putin has gradually changed beyond recognition an electoral system that was once largely open and competitive, if corrupt, when he won his first presidential election in 2000. The president abolished gubernatorial elections in 2004. He reinstated them in 2012, only to tweak the system again in 2013 so that regional authorities could decide themselves whether to hold a direct vote for governors or mayors. “We should therefore not call this ‘elections’ — they are an imitation of elections, just like many of our institutions are imitations of democratic institutions,” says Solomon Ginzburg, an opposition member of the regional Duma in the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad. In Kostroma, the opposition candidates and campaigners are under no illusion about their prospects. “Of course we won’t succeed in changing the government. Of course United Russia will continue to hold the majority in parliament,” Mr Yashin tells a small group of local residents at a campaign stop in the courtyard of a dilapidated Soviet-era high-rise apartment building. “But at least I will represent you. What I can and will do is finally get this government to do its job.” The article was published on September 10th. I do agree with the overall sentiment that it would be near impossible to change the status quo in Russian politics. It's great that there are still people who are trying to change the political scene from inside the country, but, IMO, any real developments can only be influenced by outside events, like the oil price drop which impacted the price of ruble.Every morning when Svetlana arrives at Susanin Square in the centre of Kostroma, she has to remind herself that she is doing this out of idealism. The soft-spoken 28-year-old is a campaign volunteer for the Russian opposition in regional elections scheduled for this Sunday, and things are not going well.
I'm going to have to read the article to discuss it, but I'm not in the mood to right now. I've copied it to a text file and will quote from it if necessary; since you have the access, it won't be difficult for you to figure out what I'm talking about. How did that change things for the country as a whole?like the oil price drop which impacted the price of ruble
A six percent drop in approval rating overall.According to independent pollster Levada, [Putin's] approval rating stood at 83 per cent in August. Yet that was down 6 percentage points from its record high of 89 per cent in June and the lowest since May last year immediately after the annexation of Crimea. The Public Opinion Foundation, a polling group that serves the government, has observed a similar trend. Both pollsters see the bleak economic situation behind the dip in support.
This makes me all the more appreciative I live in New Zealand. So removed from the world. We have our little issues, economical and political - and there is a real culture shift required in some areas of the country but by and large, people are content. Stay strong friend!
Keep them busy and they simply won't have the energy to do their due diligence in digesting ideas -instead just taking in whatever the RT department in the Ministry of Truth churns out. Trying to rationalize it sure doesn't make me feel better about it though...