Windows to Russia

Rescuers, ambulances and police are heading to Oktyabrskaya metro station in the Belarus capital Minsk. Seven people (10 reported as of this post) are reportedly dead and at least fifty others injured…

The administration of the Belarusian President, Aleksandr Lukashenko, has confirmed the blast has claimed lives and wounded several people…

Igor Tumash, 52, said he was getting off a train when “there was a large flash, an explosion and heavy smoke. I fell on my knees and crawled … bodies were piled on each other”…

He said he saw a man with a severed leg and rushed to help him. “But then I saw he was dead,” Tumash said…

Windows to Russia!

Source:

A few days ago I was waking the dog and saw this dad trying to push his child in the stroller through the snow. It was Saturday, so that is why I was able to find a dad doing what the mothers usually do. Saturday is dads day to take the kids out while mom gets a break… 🙂

Russian mothers are always fighting the snow. They are tough believe me. They are either dragging their kid on a sled or plowing snow with a stroller all Winter long… (Day off is Saturday if they have a nice husband…)

It dawned on me today that we have had a continuation of snow for at least (if not more) 6 months. It has been so long that we have had snow that I am starting to forget what it looks like with out snow…

Here is what we woke up to on the 9th of April, 2011 –  in the picture above…

Sveta was snoozing in bed and Boza decided that he needed an early walk that day. It was about 8 am and snowing like crazy. So I took some pictures as I always do with my trusty camera phone…

Now you know a little bit more about Russia…

Isn’t it great?

Windows to Russia!

PS: It is snow as I write this article…

Take it how you want and no matter what your views in America are about adoption. If you want to adopt a Russian child in America, things are going to have to change. This video by Russia Today gives a good look at the issue and how Russia is looking at the situation…

Right now Russia and the US are working towards an agreement, (Russia expects a signing in May…) which would provide better government oversight on the well being of adopted Russian children in American families – something that would mean regular visits to the families by social workers from both countries.

Some say the biggest obstacle to an agreement is the overall secrecy surrounding adoptions in the US.

“In the United States of America once the adoption is finalized that child is considered the same as if born to the adoptive parents, a birth certificate gets re-issued. The adoptive parents never even have to tell the child they were adopted,” says Mirah Riben.

But Russia says Americans privacy issues should not be an argument for leaving thousands of adopted children without any oversight and protection.

“Any lawyer understands you cannot transport even a bag of potatoes across the border without any contract but small children were being taken by thousands without any agreements,” says Pavel Astakhov.

In the US, people wanting to adopt pay private agencies for assessments of their suitability as parents. This of course raises questions as to how objective those assessments can actually be. Once a child’s adopted, there’s no follow-up to see how they’re doing. If Jessica Beagley had not sent her video to a TV-show, no one would have known about her punishment methods – just as we don’t know about how many other adopted children are now subject to domestic violence in the US.

This is not a little issue and Medvedev just praised the workings of Paul Astakov. Paul was given the go ahead to do what he needs to do and get it done with no over-site from the Kremlin… (Link)

I understand that America has privacy issues but it looks as though some of those issues must be given up to have a better system of control for keeping the Russian adopted children safer…

In the past 10 years, dozens of Russian children have been neglected, while at least 17 have died in the care of their adoptive American parents. (Link)

That is not good because there should be no deaths except by natural causes. These deaths are usually caused by the adopted parent…

I hear the Americans say, “That is just a few that are issues…” I also hear that things are worse in Russia. So – That is not the point. Just because things might be worse somewhere else it is OK if you are not as bad? Wrong…

Sorry even one is an issue…

Windows to Russia!

Statement of income, property, bank accounts, securities, and liabilities of President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev for the 2010 calendar year:

March 10, 2011,

Income for 2010: 3,378,673.63 rubles. (approximately $113,000 American dollars.)

Joint ownership with Svetlana Medvedeva of a 367.8-square meter apartment in the Russian Federation. (This is worth a huge amount of money but I could not even guess at the amount. Price per sq. meter is what you have to know.)

Fourteen accounts with Russian banks totaling 4,961,528.98 rubles. (About $165,000 American dollars.)

Rental rights to a plot of land (4,700 square meters) in the Russian Federation. (Not worth much. Unless gets developed.)

Owns a 1948 GAZ 20 Pobeda car. (priceless – to me at least! :))

Statement of income, property, bank accounts, securities, and liabilities of Svetlana Medvedeva, wife of President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev, for the 2010 calendar year

March 10, 2011,

Joint ownership with Dmitry Medvedev of a 367.8-square meter apartment in the Russian Federation. (Se above on same item.)

Three accounts with Russian banks totaling 0.0 rubles. (That is 0$ American dollars.)

Owns two parking lots with total area of 32.5 square meters in the Russian Federation. (? This could be worth several million Rubles + ?)

Owns a 1999 Volkswagen Golf car. (Not worth much? Maybe a $1000 American dollars.)

Statement of income, property, bank accounts, securities, and liabilities of legal minor Ilya Medvedev, son of President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev, for the 2010 calendar year

March 10, 2011,

Legal minor Ilya Medvedev, son of President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev, had no income in the 2010 calendar year. He neither has any property, bank accounts, securities or liabilities. (Poor kid is broke! What about his allowance?)

Public Records is the source…

Windows to Russia!

PS: He is not wealthy by any standards and by American and European head politicians he is poor…

Easter Holiday Dates 2011:

Good Friday – Friday 22, April 2011

Easter Saturday – Saturday 23, April 2011

Easter Sunday – Sunday 24, April 2011

Easter Monday – Monday 25, April 2011

This year Easter falls on the same day whether in the east of West. We have lots of links about Easter. Here are a few…

http://windowstorussia.com/russia-easter-april-27-2008_23.html
http://windowstorussia.com/recipe-from-russia-very-simple-kulich_24.html
http://windowstorussia.com/from-russia-when-is-easter_04.html
http://windowstorussia.com/in-russia-it-is-easter-time-april-19th_18.html
http://windowstorussia.com/from-russia-when-is-easter-western-or_11.html

Windows to Russia!

PS: Easter from year 2000 to 2049…

Just as Muscovites were enjoying the end of wintery conditions and the apparent onset on spring, a blizzard brought road misery and power cuts to the capital and the surrounding region on Saturday.

Three people were reported dead and over a dozen injured as sleet turned road conditions into what one official called “mush.”

In the region around Moscow, some 3,000 people were left without electricity as snow hit power supplies.

Moscow’s Domodedovo airport also reported delays due to weather conditions. Thousands of people were stranded at the airport late last year after a freak ice storm.

In the capital, over 500 trees fell down or were badly damaged.

Heavy snow is forecast to continue for at least the next 24 hours.

Windows to Russia!

One of my favorite articles that is posted every week is on Russian Profile. They have a panel of experts from around the world (Canada and USA today) that give opinions on an interesting question and usually that question is most likely in the Russian peoples mind. That makes it a legit proposition to answer…

Windows to Russia!

Putin on acquiring WTO and obligations: Putin said, Russia is being forced to “sustain losses” and “gets nothing out of a membership that isn’t,”.

“Why in hell would they admit us (WTO) if we do everything anyway? Russia is doing for free that which costs money!”

He then said, “Here is a direct order – don’t do that,”.

“I am asking you – and also tell this to our partners: We will not fulfill anything until we become full fledged members,” Putin said.

I like this guy. He tells it like it is…

Windows to Russia!

Russian correspondents were seized by Libyan opposition forces on Friday afternoon near the city of Ajdabiya. Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs might seek the assistance of countries with troops on the ground in Libya’s to release the journalists…

Source:

Windows to Russia!

The Chief Executive Officer of the German RWT company Stefan Yudish has told the Berlin Forum devoted to the problem besetting the construction of the Nabucco pipeline that the project is at a standstill. Nabucco was conceived to deliver gas from the Caspian region to Europe, bypassing Russia and was also intended to rival the Russian South Stream project. Besides the RWT company the Berlin Forum was attended by the EU countries, the main brain behind the Nabucco project.

The realization of the Nabucco project hangs in the air due to the inability to reach agreement with potential suppliers of gas. However, participants in the project – the Austrian OMV, the Hungarian MOL, the Bulgarian Bulgargas, the Romanian Transgaz, the Turkish Botas and the German RWT periodically try to make a bad situation look good, claiming that their seriously ailing child has good prospects. Perhaps keeping up pretenses have already bored the comrades to death, and Mr. Yudish could no longer live the lie at the Berlin Forum. He said that his company which has invested about 20 million Euros in the Nabucco project wants a speedy start of construction work.