doing business in Rusia: a story

It’s kinda personal story coz it happened to my brother. Were it a hearsay I wouldn’t trust its authenticity.
My brother works at a printing company. They make, i.e. supervise contracts on self-sticking labels and my brother’s job is to look for customers willing to place order for those labels. Not long time ago I found one potential customer. I say ‘potential’ because that company had been already ordering the labels from someone else. But my brother’s firm could offer them a better deal and sent in the price list to the office. The next day, a leather-clad man showed up at my brother’s company office. He said that in order to avoid trouble they should revoke their business offer.
My brother and other managers were completely shocked. What shocked them was not that somebody posing as a gangster shows up essentially threatening them but the fact the contract was of quite low value, about 1000 CAD a month. Although criminal enforcers are instrumental for the functioning of Russian business, it is highly unlikely that ‘serious’ people would bother to interfere for such a small amount of money. In short, it looks like it was just a show. The manager responsible for the contract at the company competitor might have acted on his own accord by asking a friend to stage ‘mafia like threats’. Investigation continues.
The story is truly bizarre. My brother keeps insisting that it’s the first time something like that happened to him and even much bigger companies that do have gangsters at their disposal, would not do it even for larger sums of money. May be it’s true but I still think it says a lot about the nature of Russian capitalism and ‘transition’ in general. Fair competition is still not fully feasible in Russia – until such things become unthinkable, capitalism is not genuine there.

my take on Lost in Translation

First of all, I know, I know... I am fully aware how mistimed is my critical outburst at the movie that came out more than a year ago and has generated so much feedback since. There's been 132 entries at the IMBD so far.
yet, being a little bit self-congrulatory, I daresay I've got something to add to the discussion.
I watched this movie a while ago and it left me cool. I didn't dislike it nor I thought it was brilliant. However, only now I've come to realize what didn't bode well to me - the leading female character played by Scarlett Johansson. I thought she didn't quite fit the profile because of being not beautiful enough. Seriously, her name suggest a Scandinavian background and her face - somewhat rough fully corresponds to the sad reality that perfect looking Swedish blondes is mostly a fiction.
I am used to Slavic girls and in Russia, nobody would call her beautiful. She's kinda cute and does convey an aura of innocence which is a right juxtoposition to Murray's deadpan shtick but only in America such girls are headturners. I'd imagine that a more glamorous looking lady might've been more appropriate for the role. I don't mean that some vacuous babe should've been cast instead, mind you. But IMHO, there is a definite lack of glamour in Johansson to believe the plot.

Why Western Alliance is dead

Nato will not be around circa 2015 - which is why the Americans are talking it up right now. An organisation that represents the fading residual military will of mostly post-military nations is marginally less harmful than the EU, which is the embodiment of their pacifist delusions.

This is from Mark Steyn's latest article in the Telegraph on the NATO summit in Brussels (read it all). I pick these lines mostly because of their eloquency, especially the last one. But it makes me wonder: if it Steyn's assessment is correct what about Ukraine? I mean Yuschenko came to Brussels not only to meet with Bush but also to reaffirm Ukraine's new foreign policy objectives - to join the EU and NATO. But everybody understands the EU membership is a distant future whereas joining NATO is an attainable goal. Does it mean that Ukraine's efforts are in vain? Questions...

roots of antiwestern attitudes in Russia

It's not an easy matter but what I want to say right now is just a starting observation.
For a while I've been reading Russian nationalist web sites and blogs that are sharply critical of America to say the least but beneath all the crap about 'American-Jewish' conspiracy etc. there is a great resentment to the way Russia has been treated after the end of the Cold War.
The Soviet Union WAS a great superpower after all that did manage to compete with the U.S. and the rest of the West for fifty years. But since the collapse of the Soviet Union Russia has been relegated to the level of Bangladesh, Central African Republic etc. A country that has nothing but poverty, corruption, crime and is socially backward.
Its people might be pitied for her vices but never, never anything good can come out of that would be worth of respect and Western countries can learn.
Most Russian nationalists are actually quite educated people and they feel very offended by this attitude which makes them say many stupid things.

The Cuban Cossacks

Another nice post from Bob Tarantino wherein he manages, as usual brilliantly, to expose leftist rubbish. This time the target is David Suzuki's latest piece on Cuba:

... you'll also learn that in the Suzukiverse, all of Cuba's problems are caused by... yep, the evil Amerikkkan fascistimperialistwarmongers. You see, Cuba "has been deliberately blocked from the global economy by the U.S.", and the country "is in many ways cut off from the outside world". Fascinating stuff. If David knew his head from his ass, he'd know that there is only one country on the face of the planet which has an economic embargo against Cuba (i.e., the US). Every single other country in the world, unless I'm missing some, like, say Tuvalu, trades with Cuba.

Geez, it didn't occur to me before even though I heard exactly the same lame explanation why communism appears to be not working in Cuba (well, of course there are some loonie lefties that would tell ya that everything is all right on the 'Freedom Island'. But it's no point to have a discussion with that type anyway.).
It's always puzzled me why mainstream leftists like Mr. Suzuki would have to embarrass themselves by supporting communist dictatorships such as Cuba's. There appears to be nothing that mandates one provide lame excuses for communism while advocating, say, 'green living'.
My explanation is purely psychological. Hatred blinds. The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Not very moral but pretty self-serving. If U.S. is sooo much against Castro's Cuba then there MUST be, surely must be something good about their system like the following:
It's all hunger and malnutrition over there but

the happy Cubans are developing "a deeper appreciation of their relationship with food".

P.S. I am sure nobody will be able to recognize the allusion I am making in the title of this post. So here's the explanation:
The Kuban Cossacks (a.k.a Kubanskie Kazaki) is a famous Soviet Stalinist postwar flick that portrayed happy Soviet peasantry while in reality people in the village were dying from famine.

Russian press on the start of Kyoto

So, the day has come - on February 16, 2004 the Kyoto protocol kicked off. Russia's last minute hopping on the Kyoto bandwagon was instrumental and some Canadian newspapers (I mean National Post hehe) that were too quick to declare Kyoto dead have been proven wrong.

Environmental issues and Kyoto in particular are not the hottest item on Russians' minds to say the least. In country that's being swamped with public outcry over so called 'transport benefits' that are wroth about 20 USD, it is hard to argue that green house gas emmission is THE problem.
But Russian respected daily Izvestia did respond to the call: it's published two articles on Kyoto in its February 16 issue. Toeing to the Western standard of objectivity one was against and one was for (somewhat) it.

Discourse is a postmodernist invention and I stil have trouble saying it out freely but it's a great way to describe how differnt is the issue framing in Russia as compared to say, Canada.
In the West, the Kyoto madness is primerily a moral one and fueled by guilt - over unprecedented economic wealth harming our planet, over thawing artic ice and polar bears losing their habitat. An evil SUV owner emmitting greenhouse gas just because he/she likes to drive that behemot is an unlikely target.

Not so in Russia. It's not that Piotr Obraztsov, the author of the 'contra' article, doesn't believe in the greenhouse effect citing Robert W. Wood's experiment.
He believes that Kyoto is

"a global consipary of politicians and scientists that lost military contracts after the end of the perestroika"

His opponent, a prominent sceintist, Georgiy Adamov, doesn't really argue that Kyoto is good for the planet. Instead, he insists that "such conversations [about validity of science behind Kyoto] take away from discussing whether the protocol is good for Russia's economic interests". He does, however, come up with his own methaphor. It turns out that Kyoto could be compared to attempts to save the planet if a big asteroid is coming our way. In this case a couple of nuclear missiles sent its way to prevent a global disaster are wholly justifiable.
Evidently, Mr. Adamov had just watched the Day After Tomorrow AND the Star Wars :-)

So, what's the point of all this? Russia has joined Kyoto hoping to get serious and tangible economic preferences. In particular, it's been reported that it was promised Russia's entry into the WTO would be smoothed up. She will pull out immediately once Putin and his advisers decide that it's no longer in Russia's economic interests. But if those preferences are indeed be given, western taxpayers are gonna have to pay a heavy price for it. Next time, when you look at your tax receipt wondering where your taxes might be going to, you'll know the answer - to support Russia's economy.

Iraq war memoirs

It is very unfortunate that this text is written in Russian for war buffs and just about anyone like me who has a slightest interest to find out about modern U.S. warfare would surely enjoy it. The Mission(Komandirovka) is written by a Russian-American guy who ended up in Iraq as a “military civilian”. Ivan Dow is a coroner sent to Iraq on a special mission by the U.S. government not lastly due to his Russian background. But there’s relatively little about it. The first part of the novel is entirely devoted to the battles fought by the crew of an Abrams tank. And it’s awesomely written. There are quite a few technical details but reading it remains entertaining and easy.
I have the benefit of being able to read in Russian I highly recommend the Trip or at least you can take a look at the pictures taken by the author.

world in news

sometimes it's really hard to figure out what's going on on this planet. In the continuous stream of news pouring down one's mind from TV, internet etc. the most challnenging task is to decide what news actually deserve attention. Here's what has stuck to my mind today:

Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen's center-right government won its second term Tuesday, with 84 percent of the votes counted, as Danes embraced its plans to keep immigration in check and taxes from rising.(read more...)

Is it just an abberation or a growing trend?

Unidentified persons have demanded ransom for an Israeli businessman they had kidnapped in St. Petersburg, the Interfax news agency reports. (read more...)

The thing is that he was kidnapped in the broad daylight, forcibly put in the car on the St. Petersburg's main street. I guess the Man on Fire might as well have been made in Russia.

A pilot project of the Leningrad military district. Draftees are sent to a sanatorium on the Finnish Gulf coast in order to gain weight. Ever fifth soldier in Russia suffer from malnutrition and must be fed before they're able to serve. (read more (in Russian)...).

I am not quite sure what to make of it. Well, I'd rather save the bathos (the country that defeated fascism has been brought to this by the capitalist liberal reformers and so on).
But I reckon some Canadian soldiers may be willing to trade places with their Russian counterparts. Too bad Russia isn't in NATO...

technical notes - Firefox

I've installed Firefox and using it right now.
Well, it's an all right browser, I guess. Faster than Explorer and much smaller but for some reason the bookmark font is too small and alos, it's very important for me, it doesn't display cyrillic properly. I know I can try to change system fonts but I wish it was possible to alter fonts only. Any idea how to do it?

sneaking into U.S.

I am going to NY in April but it's no simple matter if you're not a Canadian citizen. Therefore I have to apply for a U.S. tourist visa.
And it ain't easy.
Unlike Canada and other countries not daring to spell out the outspoken rules of visa lottery, U.S. government is very blunt (or arrogant - whichever you prefer).
According to the U.S. state embassy in Moscow web site

U.S. law requires that people who apply for nonimmigrant visas provide evidence that they don't intend to immigrate to the United States. It's up to consular officers at U.S. embassies and consulates to determine eligibility on an individual basis on the merits of each case.

To put it simply, presumption of innocence doesn't apply to those seeking entry to the states. It's up to the bureacrat who deals with your case to decide whether your intentions are clear like spring water :-). But they are humans too and therefore not infallible.
In practice, it means that if in Canada U.S. consulate offials tend to be somewhat relaxed (probability that someone already in Canada would try to stay illegaly in the U.S. is relatively neglibible).
But in Russia they have the besieged fortress mentality and are much more vigilant, if not outright paranoid. It is harder to convince an INS official in Russia than his counterpart in Canada even though the curcumstances of your case may be exactly the same.
I had known all of that while trying to locate a DHL office wherein I was supposed to drop my application. I had crossed my mind that it might not be free but I couldn't imagine it would be this:
To deliver an application from the DHL office to the consulate, that is within city limits and about 4 km. physically, the DHL asks a whopping price of 32 USD!!!!
And no, one may not submit an application directly coz since 9/11 it has been deemed unsafe for the U.S. consulate to have people coming to them directly en masse and without an appointment.
In comparasion, the analogous system in Canada is simpler and less costly. you just have to book an appointment and pay 15CAD online.
Having been to the States once for the same purpose I thought it would be a piece of cake to get a new visa, even in Russia. But I start to think I was being too naive...
we'll see.

why there's no rock music in Russia

A Russian LiveJournal user tries to explain why Russian radiostations don't want play 'rock' (i.e. non-mainstream) music:

In affluent countries [of the West] rock musis is a form of protest of people who live well against things that don't let them to live better. In Russia however, the population is divided between the thieving elite and the proles busy with survival and not interested in anything else. That's why there is no 'protest' music in Russia.

I like his definition of social stratification in Russia. That's so true. yet, it is so more evident how wrong he, and other Russian intellectuals, are about the West.
Western 'alternative' music is not about 'getting things better'. If it's not all so conceptual teenage whining about how nobody understands me, it's even more disgusting 'rage against the system' whereby the authors want to embrace worst forms of totalitarianism just because it's not like 'our boring world'. Hence, virulent anti-Americanism (at least in Canada), and all that "rock against Bush" campaign.
It's a vicious cycle, suburban kids have it all precisely because they live in the 'burbs but it only makes them hate their living environment more. Rock music is a relatively safe way to channel this protest, especially because their parents are the ones who pay for guitar lessons, auditions etc.

on Kipling's poetry again

Poetry is the most difficult thing to understand in a foreign language. I am no big fan of it altogether but the following verses create such a vivid picture in my mind:

By the old Moulmein Pagoda, lookin' lazy at the sea,
There's a Burma girl a-sittin', and I know she thinks o' me;
For the wind is in the palm-trees, and the temple-bells they say:
"Come you back, you British soldier; come you back to Mandalay!"

It makes me think of Saigon, and the Quiet American (the movie that is). But I am fully aware that the sentiment here is so anachronistic. The world Kipling described is long gone, if it ever existed. To me it's just pure aestetics, a faint feeling so masterfully captured.


Update:
As it turned out, I'm not the only one - suprise, surprise :-) - who enjoyed the verse. A guy went there to check the real pagoda and here's his story.

old-fashioned formula of multiculturalism

"What do they know of England who only England know"
reading Rudyard Kipling.

listening to BBC

an old tradition vanishing in Texas - that was a BBC world service report I was listening to. No it wasn't cowboys or lasso competitions, I guess people still eat beef but... the tradition of carrying guns.
The interview subject - the owner of a gun store in Dallas. The conversation was quite funny, as if the BBC journalist and the store owner had been from two different planets. For example, the journalist's irony was completely lost on the Texan fella when the former said that the only other place with so many guns he'd been to was Afghanistan.
Then the owner complained that the tradition is fading even in his own family. His kids don't want to have guns. "I'm making too much money" he said.

Price of loyalty

If you feel outraged about the federal government selling Canadian flags to curb separatism in Quebec, I am on your side. But it pales in comparison to the audacity displayed by the Russian authorities in Chechnya.
I am referring to the pompous ceremony that took place in Gudermes, Chechnia – the foundation of a water park. All Chechen brass, including Ramazan Kadyrov, were present, plus Russia’s own Paris Hilton, Ksenia Sobchak. According to Chechen authorities the park will be built according to Chechen (i.e. Muslim) traditions – with separate pools for men and women.
Stupid things happen in Russia all the time but very few events can match this one on the scale of absurdity. Water park is surely the last thing, the second Stalingrad – ravaged Chechnya, needs. So, why such conspicuous disregard for common sense?
Yulia Latynina, a prominent Russian journalist, might have been on to something when she mocked the reference to “Chechen traditions”. "I know of one Chechen tradition – to carry out virtual construction projects until enough money is stolen. Then, the non-existent buildings are reported to have been destroyed by Chechen guerrillas." - she said.
I don’t think Putin doesn’t know this. But I can speculate with a great degree of certainty that’s what Kadyrov’s loyalty cost him and the Russian state. Or perhaps, it’s called an award. In any case, there is something rotten in the Russian kingdom…