Windows to Russia
47 years ago on June 16th, 1963 – Valentina Tereshkova first woman in space. I then went and looked up some information because I thought, “No Way!”
It is true and Valentina Tereshkova is now 73-years-old, and lives in Star City, just outside Moscow.
She has been quoted as saying while talking with Putin: “If I had money, I would enjoy flying to Mars,” she said. “This was the dream of the first cosmonauts. I wish I could realize it! I am ready to fly without coming back.”
Windows to Russia!
Hello,
I was drinking my morning cup of coffee and was reading an article on the democracy issue in Russia. Here is the article to read. It is written by a Russian for Americans. (So the whole story may not be what it seems?)
When Americans start teaching democracy to Russians,
It only irritates the majority of Russian citizens. I doubt that US advice and suggestions can improve the state of democracy in Russia. Moreover, Washington’s criticism is an extra argument for the Russian authorities to accuse the U.S. of interfering in Russia’s domestic affairs and to crack down, saying “keep your hands off sovereign democracy”. Although US criticism of Russian reality often is superficial, imprecise or one-sided, it does not mean there are almost no faults with democracy in Russia. These faults are graver than the Kremlin imagines them in its on-going dispute with the West concerning where Russia is headed.
I’ve recently traveled all over Russia and met thousands of people. I can confirm: the congressmen who criticize Russia, and who don’t see it closely, have no idea of what goes on here. And here is what’s going on: as the Duma election approaches, the preparation for falsifying its results is in full swing. At the local level, officials have already received quotas stating where and how much the United Russia party should get. Somewhere it is 69 percent, while somewhere else it is complete 100 percent. Governors lean over backwards to secure the required result. They have a lot to lose and to fight for, because it is the president who appoints governors.
On that background, a movement in support of the third presidential term for Vladimir Putin is growing. Under the threat of F-grading or salary non-payment, students, teachers, and doctors are forced to attend the rallies, collectively imploring the president to stay: “Don’t leave, Father, we’ll die without you”.
Newspapers ignore it, because there has been introduced censorship. The opposition has no opportunity to speak either at federal or at regional channels. While saying that discussion is important, which Putin himself said this week, the United Russia refused to take part in debates. Consequently, the planned debate is doomed to be boring and full of meaningless accusations of parties against each other. One more circumstance: there have been created the conditions in Russia making it extremely dangerous to finance the opposition. For businessmen, the fact became evident after Khodorkovsky’s arrest. The United Russia is the only party in which it is safe to invest, and the investment will be good for business.
All that leads to the following conclusion: Russia’s election on December 2 is becoming as lawful as elections in Belarus or Turkmenistan. That is the indicator of the state of democracy and political freedom in Russia, about which the US Congress debates.
One might ask me: “Why don’t you boycott such election then?” The matter is, we have studied our Belarusian colleagues’ experience and we understood: waiver of participation in elections plays into the authorities’ hands. They will anyway create an illusion of wide choice by means of dummy parties created specially for that purpose. Russia’s democratic opposition should not give up the struggle, because there are those who stand for a law-governed state, freedom, and people power. After all, someone has to represent their interests. We, and not the U.S., need democracy in Russia.
Boris Nemtsov, political council member of the Union of Right Forces (SPS).
I liked the article and I believe that this article has much truth within it? (Does It?)
I have been saying all along…. America stay out of Russian Politics!
Kyle
comments always welcome.
“Peyton Place” A saying in America for a situation that is like a soap opera! In fact the saying comes from a book written in 1956 and ensuing prime time soap that was aired from 1964 to 1969…
“The term “Peyton Place” became a buzzword to describe the duality of middle class life, with its deep secrets and rampant sex beneath a hypocritical veneer of propriety.” (Link)
Last night I used that term and Svet used a term that Russian’s use, “Santa Barbera!” It seems that Russian’s loved the soap Santa Barbera!
It all started: I had just walked the dog at around 1:30am and thought that going to bed would be a great idea. Svet was finishing up on some computer programing and I had battened down the hatches on the flat.
That is when the soap opera started outside our flat. In our building is a young lady that has a child. She lives with her mother. The young lady is still married but they do not live together. So I have noticed that this young lady has a multiple of boy friends and they all some how seem to coincide together? Until last night…
The husband that does not live with her anymore got upset with the situation and it escalated from there…
We had the cops outside. Plus we had at least 5 of her boyfriends that I have seen making the rounds. 🙂 We also had her real husband and we had all their friends. All together about 25 people. Oh, and also her mother was in the middle of all this. Everyone was screaming in the middle of the street. The young lady was the center of attention and you could tell that she was so happy to play the part of the distressed mistreated female.
She had all her guys ready to fight for her and she was the damsel in distress. It was a great show and better than any soap opera on TV. This was real life and after 2 and a half hours of drama. The young lady and her real husband walked off into the sunset (really sunrise at this point) hand N hand discussing how much they loved each other…
That is when I said: “Oh Brother – What a Peyton Place!”
Svet said, “No – What a Santa Barbera…” 🙂
Windows to Russia!
Two muggers attacked Natalia Osipova the world famous Russian international ballet star, as she left the American Ballet Theater in NYC (New York City) early one morning this week. They hit her in the nose and stole her bag: I then proceeded to check all the sources in America on this happening…
Yes it happened and these are some of the comments from the many postings at the news sights, that the articles received from readers in America:
So, why was she walking alone on a NYC street
at night? That is my main question! Shocking!How Stupid! Oh yes, she is Russian, what do you expect.
She was alone? What a stupid female!
Send the Russian home, that just shows you how naive they are!
She deserves to be mugged, everyone knows that you do not combine alone female and NYC. Plain dumb!
Poor girl, Hope she is OK! Someone needs to tell her that she is in America and she needs to get her a bodyguard!
I thought about the comments that I just read from a dozen websites on this story. I then realized that the people in America do not realize that Natalia Osipova could walk alone in Moscow and never be bothered. She has been safe to walk alone all her life in Russia!
I would never let Svet walk alone in an America city. I have a hundred stories I could tell about the murder, rape, muggings and such that occurred just in a city of 150,000 people in America much less million of people like in NYC. Atlanta, Georgia which has a lot less people than NYC is a very unsafe place to walk alone at night. (I know I have been robbed there.) I also have lived across the river from Cincinnati, Ohio and if you know anything about “Over The Rhine” then you know a small city like Cinn. is a crime ready to happen.
But in Moscow Svet has walked alone all her life and she has lived in Moscow all her life. So if Svet was in America she would expect to walk alone wherever she felt like. It does not work that way though…
So when I walk at night in Moscow at around 2 – 3 am, I am still amazed at the freedom and peace that you have. It is like a small town with 15,000,000 people. By the way that is Boza and I’s favorite time to walk… 🙂
Windows to Russia!