Sergey,

Dobro pazhalevet Belmont Club! Be prepared if you have anything good to say about modern Russia to be accused of posting from the bowels of Lubyanka

Sylvia,

Gaidar is remembered in Russia with mixed feelings. Some feel he has been scapegoated for the collapse of the Soviet system and the harsh reality that no soft landing was possible for it, though the worst shocks might have been avoidable.

The USSR could not transition to capitalism the way China could, for a host of reasons. Too many mono-industry towns like Togliatti, Norilsk, etc. These reasons were alluded to in an episode of the excellent PBS series The Commanding Heights.

At least when it comes to Gaidar — he may have been wrong or naive about a lot of things. But he did not become an oligarch or minigarch on the back of the “reforms” he championed, while many around him were getting stinking rich feasting on the choicest parts of the Soviet carcass while pretending that they were creating democratic capitalism in the Nineties (and those folks still have many apologists, like the WSJ/Washington Post/Economist, who ought to know better).

I guess one could say the same thing of Gaidar that Putin (in a quote you won’t hear from those who think Putin still wants to avenge the collapse of the USSR) said about Boris Yeltsin when he died:

“I don’t know if I would have had the guts to do what he did [abolish the USSR]….he gave us our freedom”

LOTM,

See the above quote regarding Putin’s alleged nostalgia for the USSR…and on the subject of junk, Peter is right. You were talking in another thread about cartels/monopolization in the U.S. economy. Have you ever asked why despite the fact that Honduras/Guatemala can compete with China in terms of labor costs and they’re closer for transport (especially when oil went above $100 a barrel) you still only see Chinese stuff at most stores?

I think it has something to do with the Chinese buying loads of U.S. government debt that they get a somewhat privileged position vis a vis other low wage industries. But seriously, if you’re an American who has lived in Europe and the U.S., you start to notice after a while that quality European clothing is something found only in boutiques in America, whereas it’s abundant even in post-Communist Eastern Europe. You can buy anything you want in America…as long as it’s Made in China…but that, along with the FDA keeping out a host of quality European pharmaceuticals, is a rant for another time.

Merry Christmas to all, and to all good night!