I am completely serious about Russia! I lived there for almost a year and long to return.

Even if you run afoul of their laws (many of which do not function,) you can do whatever you like if you have a roll of $20 notes! ($20 can buy 5 copies of Windows there! I saw police officers in uniform browsing & buying at pirate kiosks in Mitinski Rynok...)

I never had to do it but took to the idea of bribery differently: there it's expected and the bribes are small, unlike here at home. I guess I'm not politically active and wasn't responsible for a large business.

There are a lot of overplayed news stories about nationalism in Russia and it's BS. I definitely do not look Slavic. So why didn't I get attacked on the street and shaken down by the police?

I heard the horrible stories about the Soviet system in public "government propaganda brainwashing" school growing up. The one institution I discovered in Moscow reminiscent of these things is the US Embassy. It was a little creepy having to register with the police as a foreigner; I also dealt with Russian realtors, and got a driver's license with no problems.

The biggest problem encountered during the course of the year was when I tried to export some things. Problem solved easily: find a non-official method, like carrying the stuff out on a flight.

There aren't many lines either, and this is not because the concept of a "line" is a bit of a foreign concept there, which it is. I didn't realize how much time we spend waiting in lines here until I got back.

--
Ken Fister - Charlottesville, Virginia USA
97 328i, 95 540i, 97 Hino truck
bmwecu.org

• OT- Who here is from Canada? - rick540 2007-12-20 16:00:52 (147 views)
  • Re: OT- Who here is from Canada? - Shayne 2007-12-20 22:00:21 (127 views)
    • Thanks Shayne. - rick540 2007-12-21 05:22:41 (100 views)
      • I'm 'here'... - Jerome 2007-12-25 19:10:57 (95 views)
      • Re: Thanks Shayne. - cloudnine 2007-12-21 10:34:39 (103 views)
        • Canada - cloudnine 2007-12-21 10:36:03 (101 views)
          • Re: Canada - acschnitzere34 2008-01-01 22:56:17 (72 views)
          • Re: Canada Now really O/T - Shayne 2007-12-21 12:40:01 (105 views)
            • Polemics. - dave535i 2007-12-21 13:57:47 (101 views)
          • So's everyplace. - dave535i 2007-12-21 11:25:09 (113 views)
            • +1 dave - kfister 2007-12-21 15:37:03 (100 views)
              • Re: +1 dave - dave535i 2007-12-21 17:52:35 (87 views)
                • Re: +1 dave - kfister 2007-12-21 18:42:28 (89 views)
                  • Re: +1 dave - dave535i 2007-12-21 22:17:40 (87 views)
            • My two cents. - bobbert 2007-12-21 12:48:47 (117 views)
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              • Re: My two cents. - Shayne 2007-12-21 13:38:58 (87 views)
            • Re: So's everyplace. - Shayne 2007-12-21 12:46:35 (91 views)
              • Re: So's everyplace. - cloudnine 2007-12-21 17:09:44 (95 views)
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