Corruption..

[Steveboy]

I was starting to think corruption was slowly going.. maybe it is!

But anyway we was out the other night and got talking to one of my wife friends.. seems a traffic cop gets about 60,000 roubles a month, but this particular one who is married to a friend of just brought an apartment for 2 million cash and apparently his salary is just pocket money compared to what he takes in tips of kind..

We also have another friend who is only 37 he has three apartments bought for cash from tip money! Also have a CID kind of friend he's special officer investigating crimes .. funny he has a few apartments too!!

Im thinking of a career change..

[andrewfi]

These things don't change overnight but I am sure the direction is the right one. This is a process I have seen repeated in more than one country over the past few years.

[Steveboy]

Yes its clearing up for 100% as I said can't even buy a driving licence now... BUT I might take a weekend job as a traffic cop.. a little like a paper round..

[Manny]

can't even buy a driving licence now...

I know a girl in St Pete who just failed her driving test. She is going to try harder next time - no bribes involved. Buying the licence doesn't seem to be an option on the table.

Over a decade ago wifey arrived in the UK with her *valid* Russian driving licence. She had a vague idea, but the tester was a pal of Papulka's - so her pass was a given. I started from scratch and later she got a UK licence properly - and took the test in English. How it should be.

Last time I was stopped by the cops in Russia, I sent wifey to bribe them with £10 or whatever it is, she came back with a ticket and said "We are not fuelling corruption in Russia". FIL paid something like £14 into the bank the following week on my behalf.

Times, they are a changin'.

[msmoby]

Last time I was stopped by the cops in Russia

10 years or more..?

Why isn't Steve a 'russophobe' for pointing out what you ( clearly)  don't have  scoobie do  about  ..?

Russian traffic cops are businessmen and the system is corrupt from the top down ... Not got a RU diver's licence .. ? They ain't interested in you. You can't be scared by re opening gambit, "you driving licence is suspended" ...  I just laugh and hand it over - which TOTALLY throws them.. 

There are 'cops' raiding businesses in Krasnodar region - suggesting "copyright theft". Don't pay them? They return with a Court Order and insert DVDs or USB and 'find' illegal software. Your computers are seized pending a Court appearance..

How DO you fight a system when it is corrupt from the top down?

Take off your blinkers, Manny - Russia needs a govt that actually DOES do something about corruption - rather than encouraging it .

The  way the law is written paying a bride is as criminal as asking for one.

Unless you drive a Russian registered car, in Russia you have NO idea how bad things are.  Why DO you think some drivers simply ignore speed limits and drive like ***ts ? They know they won't BE fined.

Corruption is ENDEMIC

[Lord of the Dance]

Slightly 

Do police officers in Russia carry sidearms? in Ukraine?

[msmoby]

Slightly 

Do police officers in Russia carry sidearms? in Ukraine?

Yes, including the traffic police

[AvHdB]

Slightly 

Do police officers in Russia carry sidearms? in Ukraine?

Most police in Ukraine do carry weapons on foot patrol.

There is the fact that private security personnel who also wear uniforms do not have sidearms.

[Steveboy]

Slightly 

Do police officers in Russia carry sidearms? in Ukraine?

We had one in our place a while back drinking tea with his semi auto..

Was going to make a small photo shoot with him holding me down on the ground with a gun to my head! Thought it would be a amusing pic t send to my parents... they don't have much of a sense of humour..

[Lord of the Dance]

We had one in our place a while back drinking tea with his semi auto..

Was going to make a small photo shoot with him holding me down on the ground with a gun to my head! Thought it would be a amusing pic t send to my parents... they don't have much of a sense of humour..

 

[Steveboy]

Last time I was stopped by the cops in Russia

10 years or more..?

Why isn't Steve a 'russophobe' for pointing out what you ( clearly)  don't have  scoobie do  about  ..?

Russian traffic cops are businessmen and the system is corrupt from the top down ... Not got a RU diver's licence .. ? They ain't interested in you. You can't be scared by re opening gambit, "you driving licence is suspended" ...  I just laugh and hand it over - which TOTALLY throws them.. 

There are 'cops' raiding businesses in Krasnodar region - suggesting "copyright theft". Don't pay them? They return with a Court Order and insert DVDs or USB and 'find' illegal software. Your computers are seized pending a Court appearance..

How DO you fight a system when it is corrupt from the top down?

Take off your blinkers, Manny - Russia needs a govt that actually DOES do something about corruption - rather than encouraging it .

The  way the law is written paying a bride is as criminal as asking for one.

Unless you drive a Russian registered car, in Russia you have NO idea how bad things are.  Why DO you think some drivers simply ignore speed limits and drive like ***ts ? They know they won't BE fined.

Corruption is ENDEMIC

Russian traffic cops are businessmen and the system is corrupt from the top down ... Not got a RU diver's licence .. ? They ain't interested in you. You can't be scared by re opening gambit, "you driving licence is suspended" ...  I just laugh and hand it over - which TOTALLY throws them.. 

Only 30 years ago it was pretty easy to pay English cops , most cops in London including Special branch were all corrupt , it took a fair few years to sort all their shit out.. I'm sure its still there a little. Traffic cops throughout the world are always bent  or HAVE been at some time.. its just the way it is..

[Steveboy]

We had one in our place a while back drinking tea with his semi auto..

Was going to make a small photo shoot with him holding me down on the ground with a gun to my head! Thought it would be a amusing pic t send to my parents... they don't have much of a sense of humour..

 

Always wanted to stop a couple of cops in the street and ask them if its ok to have my arms spread out over their car while they cuff me with a semi auto pointed at my head... to make a few good pics.. I'm going to do it soon.. its one of those "Must do" in Russia things for me..

[Contrarian]

Slightly 

Do police officers in Russia carry sidearms? in Ukraine?

We had one in our place a while back drinking tea with his semi auto..

Was going to make a small photo shoot with him holding me down on the ground with a gun to my head! Thought it would be a amusing pic t send to my parents... they don't have much of a sense of humour..

Why was a Police officer in your home? 

[Steveboy]

Slightly 

Do police officers in Russia carry sidearms? in Ukraine?

We had one in our place a while back drinking tea with his semi auto..

Was going to make a small photo shoot with him holding me down on the ground with a gun to my head! Thought it would be a amusing pic t send to my parents... they don't have much of a sense of humour..

Why was a Police officer in your home? 

Husband of wife friend, he's Special investigator.. plain clothes..

[Jerash]

can't even buy a driving licence now...

I know a girl in St Pete who just failed her driving test. She is going to try harder next time - no bribes involved. Buying the licence doesn't seem to be an option on the table.

Over a decade ago wifey arrived in the UK with her *valid* Russian driving licence. She had a vague idea, but the tester was a pal of Papulka's - so her pass was a given. I started from scratch and later she got a UK licence properly - and took the test in English. How it should be.

Last time I was stopped by the cops in Russia, I sent wifey to bribe them with £10 or whatever it is, she came back with a ticket and said "We are not fuelling corruption in Russia". FIL paid something like £14 into the bank the following week on my behalf.

Times, they are a changin'.

In general, I agree with the sentiment that times are a changing. Russia is definitely a more clean place than it has been in the past and I think it’s going to keep continuing in that direction.

That being said, seems like the drivers license thing still happens in the Moscow region. A student of mine recently did this. On test one, the evaluator hadn’t been informed and she failed. Everything got clarified for the second test.

I guess about 40,000ru is the going rate.


.

[Jerash]

Last time I was stopped by the cops in Russia

10 years or more..?

Why isn't Steve a 'russophobe' for pointing out what you ( clearly)  don't have  scoobie do  about  ..?

Russian traffic cops are businessmen and the system is corrupt from the top down ... Not got a RU diver's licence .. ? They ain't interested in you. You can't be scared by re opening gambit, "you driving licence is suspended" ...  I just laugh and hand it over - which TOTALLY throws them.. 

There are 'cops' raiding businesses in Krasnodar region - suggesting "copyright theft". Don't pay them? They return with a Court Order and insert DVDs or USB and 'find' illegal software. Your computers are seized pending a Court appearance..

How DO you fight a system when it is corrupt from the top down?

Take off your blinkers, Manny - Russia needs a govt that actually DOES do something about corruption - rather than encouraging it .

The  way the law is written paying a bride is as criminal as asking for one.

Unless you drive a Russian registered car, in Russia you have NO idea how bad things are.  Why DO you think some drivers simply ignore speed limits and drive like ***ts ? They know they won't BE fined.

Corruption is ENDEMIC

Moby, maybe you’ve had some of your own experiences, but your characterization of corruption in Russia is wrong. This was a very corrupt place in the past, and it IS getting better. Corruption is not resolved overnight.

I know people that give me a bit of an inside view on this. Corruption and abuse are serious issues and resources are being put into reducing them, for obvious reasons.


.

[Jerash]

Slightly 

Do police officers in Russia carry sidearms? in Ukraine?

Most police in Ukraine do carry weapons on foot patrol.

There is the fact that private security personnel who also wear uniforms do not have sidearms.

One of the most visual displays of change for me is, when I first visited Russia in 1999, the shopping mall security had Kalishnikovs. These days, they are not armed and are often overweight, or older, and generally bored. That tells me a lot more than 10,000 Western news articles about what has changed in Russia (coincidentally this change occurred after Russia ended its brief experiment of being a Western tool).

[andrewfi]

It wasn't so long ago that here in Estonia one could get a drivers license 'the easy way'. That changed when the testing process was changed to make such things less easy, if not impossible. I'd also bet that the wages of the testers increased at the same time.

One thing to bear in mind that 'corruption' is a plastic sort of thing. For example, in the old days, in many parts of Eastern Europe, one might pay a little extra money to get things done faster. That was, in most cases, the entire reason for paying a bribe. Well, what about in other 'less corrupt' places where one can pay extra to get to the front of a queue? Get better or faster service?

The only real difference is who benefits from the payment. In one case the government or business benefits and in the other the employee benefits. I'd lay a pound to a penny that corruption in Russia started to decrease at the same time as the flat rate income tax was introduced.

Of course, blat still exists, but that's true anywhere! Masons in Britain, sauna in Finland, everywhere it exists.

[Ste]

Until 1968 in Ireland you walked into An Post and paid for your driving licence there and then. No lessons, no test.

And until a few years ago learners could drive unaccompanied.


.

[msmoby]

Moby, maybe you’ve had some of your own experiences, but your characterization of corruption in Russia is wrong.

Jerash - I think you're losing your objectivity, matety ...  You don't drive a car and you're not a Russian business.

As I'm sure you realise I'm not making this up - I'm at a loss to understand your post

This was a very corrupt place in the past, and it IS getting better. Corruption is not resolved overnight.

NO, it ISN'T ..((

I've been going to Russia a long time and ( previously )  I've even told folks the same as you - but my own ( recent ) experiences and those of friends and loved ones suggest otherwise - let alone the somewhat bizarre lengths used to remove years old social media  that suggests corruption from the top down - it has been there all the time, but only when it was highlighted by Navalny and the timings / locations pieced together was there a need to threaten instagram and youtube to remove such material.

I know people that give me a bit of an inside view on this. Corruption and abuse are serious issues and resources are being put into reducing them, for obvious reasons.

.

Nonsense.. A major blow to cracking down on corruption has been making the act of paying a bribe as much a crime as being asked to pay.

Based on this - most Russians are criminals and no-one is going to come forward.  You simply haven't seen this happening and I was shocked in this day and age that it could be so rife.

Thankfully, being a foreigner means 'revoking my licence' for a moving traffic offence I haven't committed - isn't going to phase me ... but it does a RU citizen that needs their driver's licence

What I've seen re the 'using pirated software' scam has put me right off being involved in RU biz... and I WANT to see other folks trusting Russians. 

For sure there are citizens who drive like (onanists) and DO use illegal software - but we both know that ripping off those that aren't guilty - whilst looking t'other way - because of position does't cut it in our nations.