The photo of the St. Petersburg protestors reminded me of my visit there in March 2020...right before everything shut down due to Covid. I asked my host, a 60+ year old citizen of Russia, about whether he felt that he could share his feelings about the government of Russia. Of course, my question was alluding to the shadow of the previ…
The photo of the St. Petersburg protestors reminded me of my visit there in March 2020...right before everything shut down due to Covid. I asked my host, a 60+ year old citizen of Russia, about whether he felt that he could share his feelings about the government of Russia. Of course, my question was alluding to the shadow of the previous USSR regime, and he took the question very much in stride and expressed "As long as Putin and his "friends" are making money...we can say whatever we want". So...he and his fellow countrymen know that Putin is making money illegally, but if it means a bit more freedom for the citizens...it's a deal they can handle.
Obviously that equation has changed and I've been unable to get in touch with him to understand how he and his friends are assessing the current situation. Given their pragmatism before...I'm sure that they understand exactly what's going on with this invasion. St. Petersburg was much more modern and European than what I was expecting. It's of no surprise that they are protesting the Ukraine invasion.
The photo of the St. Petersburg protestors reminded me of my visit there in March 2020...right before everything shut down due to Covid. I asked my host, a 60+ year old citizen of Russia, about whether he felt that he could share his feelings about the government of Russia. Of course, my question was alluding to the shadow of the previous USSR regime, and he took the question very much in stride and expressed "As long as Putin and his "friends" are making money...we can say whatever we want". So...he and his fellow countrymen know that Putin is making money illegally, but if it means a bit more freedom for the citizens...it's a deal they can handle.
Obviously that equation has changed and I've been unable to get in touch with him to understand how he and his friends are assessing the current situation. Given their pragmatism before...I'm sure that they understand exactly what's going on with this invasion. St. Petersburg was much more modern and European than what I was expecting. It's of no surprise that they are protesting the Ukraine invasion.