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Author Topic: How Russians Think  (Read 193573 times)

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Offline mendeleyev

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Re: How Russians Think
« Reply #400 on: December 23, 2008, 12:02:37 PM »
Reminds me of a interview I had with an elderly lady (retired politician from California) one time.  After the end of the interview we were wrapping up with some small chat and she asked what I thought of term limits. 

After a quick glance to make sure that mics were turned off, I replied that I supported them and my idea of term limits was that you send someone to Washington for 2 terms, and afterward bring them home and shoot them.

Heavens!....was her reply.  "Why would one waste a perfectly good bullet on a politician?!" was her rhetorical question.   :laugh:


The sad truth is however that Russian politics is far more corrupt in ways most here could only imagine.  At least in Western societies we have a justice system in place which is truly independent and if the people have the will, problems can be dealt with in a systematic manner.  A good example of that was this past November.  No system is perfect and neither is any country.  The question really is--do citizens have the power to do something about it?

In Russia you have no true independent courts, the Duma is controlled by the Prime Minister's party to an extend that would make most Westerners dizzy, and the average Russian citizen really has very little recourse to change things so there is a great deal of apathy--which makes the politicians even more bold and the system even more corrupt.

It's a downward spiral that is very troubling for Russia's future.

Offline leeholsen

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Re: How Russians Think
« Reply #401 on: January 14, 2011, 08:55:06 AM »


My Ukrainian girl offered to show me a "Russian thing" that she claimed would help my asthma.  Although it was nice to have her rub my body down with vodka and wrap me up in blankets, I'll have to admit that it didn't do much to clear up my lungs.   :) But it was sweet.



HOT DAM !

i got asthma ! ok, it's very mild asthma and rarely bothers me enough to use anything more than an over the counter inhaler to kill it when it comes on; but i could go for that treatment.  :laugh:

more seriously though, this is indeed another great thread. i do think you give better info here on all things FSU that the economist does on covering everything it covers.
Eat 'em up Houston Cougars !

Offline Eduard

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Re: How Russians Think
« Reply #402 on: January 24, 2011, 07:27:44 AM »
Mendeleyev, you obviously prefer certain type of propaganda. My memory of Soviet shops is completely different. You posted pictures from Perestroyka time, that what we became thanks to so popular in the West Gorbachev. In my son's childhood we had to stay in line for absolutely everything, so it was in early 90-s. In my and my brothers childhood there was no such thing.

And some comments of yours give the impression that you deliberately want to paint USSSR in such colors. For example there is obviously a bus stop in front of the shop and people waiting for the bus, but for you they are camping overnight in front of the shop. Or Milk shop... I don't see any line, people are walking in all directions, fathers pushing their prams on the road.. Everyone sees what he wants to see
I must have lived in a different CCCP from you, WO. I clearly remember standing in long lines and empty shelves back in the late 60s and in the 70s. There were a few items that were always available like: pasta(macaroni), milk, buttermilk, canned sardines, bread, desserts, Herring, potatoes, carrots, pelmeni (tortellini Russian style) and nasty looking chicken meat. I probably missed a few items but I clearly remember the empty shelves in stores in Moscow when I was a kid and a teen growing up there. And the lines...those are unforgettable.


Offline Eduard

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Re: How Russians Think
« Reply #403 on: January 24, 2011, 07:29:29 AM »
This is funny stuff, just got this in the email from a friend:

How would Russian chastushki sound in English:
Рыбка плавает в томате,
Ей в томате хорошо,
Только я, едрена матерь,
Места в жизни не нашел.
Fish in thick tomato sauce
Swims in happy comatose,
Only me, pathetic wimp,
Have no  :censored: ing place to swim. 
По реке плывет топор из села Чугуева,
Ну и пусть себе плывет железяка х*ева...
Down the river drifts an axe from the town of Byron,
Let it float by itself-  :censored: ing piece of iron!!! 
Я лежала с Коленькой совершенно голенькой,
Потому что для красы я сняла с себя трусы.
I was sleeping with my honey absolutely naked;
I have taken off my panties just to make a statement. 
С неба звездочка упала
Прямо милому в штаны,
Пусть горит там, что попало,
Лишь бы не было войны.
Starlet's fallen from the heavens right into my boyfriend's briefs,
I don't mind his roasted penis if it helps us live in peace


Offline Eduard

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Re: How Russians Think
« Reply #404 on: February 04, 2011, 11:19:14 AM »
Жена посылает мужа на рынок за улитками для косметического ухода за кожей.
По дороге муж встречает друзей и на три дня попадает в запой, естественно,
не приходя домой. Наконец на третий день вспоминает об улитках, идёт на
рынок, покупает улиток и приходит домой. Думает, чтобы сказать жене,
почему его так долго не было. Звонит в дверь, жена открывает, он высыпает
улиток на пол и, подгоняя их руками, говорит:
- Ну вот, пришли! Заходим, заходим, заходим...
 

Offline cufflinks

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Re: How Russians Think
« Reply #405 on: March 26, 2011, 07:51:36 AM »
Жена посылает мужа на рынок за улитками для косметического ухода за кожей.
По дороге муж встречает друзей и на три дня попадает в запой, естественно,
не приходя домой. Наконец на третий день вспоминает об улитках, идёт на
рынок, покупает улиток и приходит домой. Думает, чтобы сказать жене,
почему его так долго не было. Звонит в дверь, жена открывает, он высыпает
улиток на пол и, подгоняя их руками, говорит:
- Ну вот, пришли! Заходим, заходим, заходим...

??? Humor loses something in the translation:

Google Russian to English translation

The wife sends her husband to the market for snails for cosmetic care skin.
On the way, the husband meets friends and a three-day fall in booze, naturally
not coming home. Finally on the third day, recalls the snails, attending
market, buying snails and comes home. Thinks to say wife why it took so long it was. Rings the doorbell, the wife discovers he is pours snails on the floor and urging their hands, said:
 
- Well, come! Go, go, go ...

Offline BelleZeBoob

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Re: How Russians Think
« Reply #406 on: March 28, 2011, 10:41:51 AM »
Humour lost in translation because the joke does not say something that is behind :) some clarification is definitely needed.

The man was thinking about some justification for his long absence. The wife wanted snails. Snails are notoriously slow, and are widely known for being so. This is exactly where the man has seen some reason to remedy his situation.

By putting the snails from the shopping bag on the floor, the man tries to make his wife believe that the snails arrived on their own legs, with his guidance :). The last phrase of him, that should comment to this 'fact', should be correctly translated into English as 'Well, finally you are here! Now come in, come in..' while helping them to 'enter' the home with his hands. :)
Men are like Bluetooth: he is connected to you when you are nearby, but searches for other devices when you are away.
Women are like Wi-Fi: she sees all available devices, but connects to the strongest one.

Offline Eduard

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Re: How Russians Think
« Reply #407 on: March 31, 2011, 02:15:49 PM »
Жена посылает мужа на рынок за улитками для косметического ухода за кожей.
По дороге муж встречает друзей и на три дня попадает в запой, естественно,
не приходя домой. Наконец на третий день вспоминает об улитках, идёт на
рынок, покупает улиток и приходит домой. Думает, чтобы сказать жене,
почему его так долго не было. Звонит в дверь, жена открывает, он высыпает
улиток на пол и, подгоняя их руками, говорит:
- Ну вот, пришли! Заходим, заходим, заходим...

??? Humor loses something in the translation:

Google Russian to English translation

The wife sends her husband to the market for snails for cosmetic care skin.
On the way, the husband meets friends and a three-day fall in booze, naturally
not coming home. Finally on the third day, recalls the snails, attending
market, buying snails and comes home. Thinks to say wife why it took so long it was. Rings the doorbell, the wife discovers he is pours snails on the floor and urging their hands, said:
 
- Well, come! Go, go, go ...
Not just humor, Mike...

Offline el_guero

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Re: How Russians Think
« Reply #408 on: May 24, 2011, 09:53:03 AM »
Chapter One of Pavlovskaya's book opens with a cartoon.  The cartoonist has drawn the interior of a plane and the passengers are clapping upon a safe landing.

The stewardess comes on the intercom with the announcement, "Please stop the clapping!  The Captain has a hang-over."

Have you experienced such applause on landing with your trips to the FSU?

Did applauding for a routine landing strike you as different or odd?

After all the arrests of pilots lately, maybe we should also applaud safe landings?

So, to the point of the OP, does the clapping signify that Russians have a low confidence in Russian Technology, or does it signify that they wanted a reason to celebrate?

Offline Eduard

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Re: How Russians Think
« Reply #409 on: May 24, 2011, 02:22:07 PM »
the clapping tradition is dying out. I hardly ever see it happen anymore. Maybe in real rough weather when it's really difficult to land the plane and every one is nervous, they would clap if a pilot makes a truly virtuoso style landing, but on ordinary landings  it hardly ever happens now days.

Offline mendeleyev

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Re: How Russians Think
« Reply #410 on: May 24, 2011, 05:32:33 PM »
I've noticed that too.

Offline lordtiberius

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Re: How Russians Think
« Reply #411 on: November 11, 2012, 01:33:25 AM »
How do Russians spend "free time"


Russians in general don't have the same level of addiciton to television as Americans for example.  Free time is one of those issues in which new AM/RW couples have to make adjustments.  It would be fair to say that Russians/Ukrainians are more oriented toward relationships with family and friends. 


Entertainment
Entertainment for a Russian is not necessarily two people going to dinner and a movie, but often a family outing which might include dinner and a movie, but is focused on more on including others in the event. . . . a poetry reading,

Poetry has been in decline one hundred years before the death of last great English speaking poet T.S. Eliot.  Is poetry still popular in Russia? 

Offline mendeleyev

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Re: How Russians Think
« Reply #412 on: December 05, 2012, 07:28:55 PM »
Lord, all thru our daughter's school experience she was in a poetry society which was tied to her school but met and competed against other schools culminating with a national competition.

Offline Boris

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Re: How Russians Think
« Reply #413 on: December 05, 2012, 08:31:42 PM »
How do Russians spend "free time"


Russians in general don't have the same level of addiciton to television as Americans for example.  Free time is one of those issues in which new AM/RW couples have to make adjustments.  It would be fair to say that Russians/Ukrainians are more oriented toward relationships with family and friends. 


Entertainment
Entertainment for a Russian is not necessarily two people going to dinner and a movie, but often a family outing which might include dinner and a movie, but is focused on more on including others in the event. . . . a poetry reading,

Poetry has been in decline one hundred years before the death of last great English speaking poet T.S. Eliot.  Is poetry still popular in Russia?

Yes! It is my wife's passion. Oddly enough her favorite seems to be Kipling in Russian Translation. She did a public reading here at a Russian gathering...

Offline jamaica_live

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Re: How Russians Think
« Reply #414 on: December 06, 2012, 03:06:07 AM »
Poetry has been in decline one hundred years before the death of last great English speaking poet T.S. Eliot.  Is poetry still popular in Russia?
Nope. It was popular in SU. While people, who were born in SU, are alive we can say "it's still popular", but last 2 FSU generations are not "into poetry" anymore.
People who do not listen to the advice, you can not help.

"В некоторых людях живет Бог, в некоторых - дьявол, а в некоторых только глисты." (God lives in some people, the devil - in others... and in certain people live only worms.)

Offline jamaica_live

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Re: How Russians Think
« Reply #415 on: December 06, 2012, 03:09:50 AM »
Lord, all thru our daughter's school experience she was in a poetry society which was tied to her school but met and competed against other schools culminating with a national competition.
When I was at school I loved poetry, but I was in the minority. We didn't have any "poetry society"... And I can't say our school was bad.  :)
People who do not listen to the advice, you can not help.

"В некоторых людях живет Бог, в некоторых - дьявол, а в некоторых только глисты." (God lives in some people, the devil - in others... and in certain people live only worms.)

Offline mendeleyev

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Re: How Russians Think
« Reply #416 on: December 08, 2012, 09:39:07 AM »
Jamaica, sorry your school didn't have a poetry or literary club. Club membership and the competition benefited one of our daughters in many ways. It helped her with public speaking skills, comprehension, and she competed in the national finals which helped her scholarship efforts at МГУ.

Offline jamaica_live

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Re: How Russians Think
« Reply #417 on: December 10, 2012, 05:26:16 AM »
mendeleyev,
An absence of a poetry or literary club never was an issue for us - as for me, I just was too busy for it even if we had it.   :)
Also many Russian schools had before and have now (even more than before) a lot of problems, there are no really necessary things in our schools... poetry clubs definitely are not necessary.  :biggrin:
People who do not listen to the advice, you can not help.

"В некоторых людях живет Бог, в некоторых - дьявол, а в некоторых только глисты." (God lives in some people, the devil - in others... and in certain people live only worms.)

Offline mendeleyev

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Re: How Russians Think
« Reply #418 on: December 13, 2012, 08:34:51 PM »
At the risk of being viewed somewhat like a supermarket tabloid the Mendeleyev Journal headline for today screams "Russians fear bureaucrats, even in the forest!

It turns out that the Russian people are just like everyone else around the world, fearing bureaucrats just about as much as anything else, often even more so. So when a poll surfaced showing what Russians believe to be the most dangerous creature in the woods at night, bureaucrats ranked second.




лось = elk
медведь = bear
волк = wolf
лесничий = forest ranger/game warden
леший = mythical forest dwelling spirit/spirit monster

The number one most feared forest dweller turned out to be the комар (mosquito) and if you've ever encountered a Russian mosquito, the likes of which some swear would leave a Texas mosquito quivering in it's wake, you'd understand that fear.

We're surprised that the lowly (pun intended) змея, the Russian word for snake, didn't even register with the poll. Perhaps respondents were confused and equated bureaucrats for snakes. That would make sense.

On the other hand, we're equally surprised that the bureaucrats didn't top the list and force the mosquitoes into second place.

Recount anyone?

Offline el_guero

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Re: How Russians Think
« Reply #419 on: December 16, 2012, 03:15:16 PM »
Жена посылает мужа на рынок за улитками для косметического ухода за кожей.
По дороге муж встречает друзей и на три дня попадает в запой, естественно,
не приходя домой. Наконец на третий день вспоминает об улитках, идёт на
рынок, покупает улиток и приходит домой. Думает, чтобы сказать жене,
почему его так долго не было. Звонит в дверь, жена открывает, он высыпает
улиток на пол и, подгоняя их руками, говорит:
- Ну вот, пришли! Заходим, заходим, заходим...

??? Humor loses something in the translation:

Google Russian to English translation

The wife sends her husband to the market for snails for cosmetic care skin.
On the way, the husband meets friends and a three-day fall in booze, naturally
not coming home. Finally on the third day, recalls the snails, attending
market, buying snails and comes home. Thinks to say wife why it took so long it was. Rings the doorbell, the wife discovers he is pours snails on the floor and urging their hands, said:
 
- Well, come! Go, go, go ...
Not just humor, Mike...

Ed!

How are you?  WHERE are you?  Last we talked you were in Kiev, how did that trip go?  I think you were headed to Lugansk.

Too far for me then.  Still learning trains .... OK, learning buses, starting trains.

;)

Take care!

Wayne

Offline mobyone

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Re: How Russians Think
« Reply #420 on: December 18, 2012, 10:43:46 AM »

Nope. It was popular in SU. While people, who were born in SU, are alive we can say "it's still popular", but last 2 FSU generations are not "into poetry" anymore.

THIS is why *I* prefer the women educated in Soviet times..

My current fav:

"As if I were a river .. The harsh age changed my course .. replaced one life with another .. flowing in a different channel"

Anna Akhmatova - read up on her... WHAT a Life she lived ...