@ Konyok

LOL! Good one.

@fred

It’s not so much about Russian culture, as history and politics. 400 years of Mongol rule over parts of Russia has left its imprint on the collective psyche. Add to that Tsars, with the practice of nobility “ownership” of peasants being discontinued around the time they launching the Paris subway. After that, come 2 world wars, Stalin’s repressions, and 80 years of Communist rule, with total subjugation to authority and complete lack of open freedom of expression and brainwashing.

A potential turning point was after the revolution, when Provisional Govt was in control of the country, made up of largely liberl bourgois, they might have set Russia on a democratic course. However, it was overthrown by Lenin.

The second potential turning point came when Lenin, seeing negative effects of revolution of the economy created NEP, which has worked very well, and over the long run would have allowed Russians to get used to the concept of private property and earning based on performance. However, it was discontinued by Stalin (Gorgian from Gori, who spent his youth robbing banks) in favor of nationalizing all property and destroying country’s agricultural production.

During Perestroyka by Gorbochev, things seemed to have improved a lot and freedom of speech was slowly introduced. Then, in 1991 an attempted coup by GKChP was stopped by the public, which seemingly gained social awareness. However, opportunist Yeltsin with others did not allow Gorbachev to return. Later on, Yeltsin, with his desire to have greater control over his government in the new system of things would break up the Soviet Union with the help or agreement of the US (which was a mistake on US part). (this is getting long, to be continued)