December 21, 1999
Happy Anniversary! / Blah Blah Russia Blah Blah
Yes, happy anniversary to me! And of course to you, my cherished readers. Yes, December 19th was the first anniversary of our marriage. It was on that day in 1998 that the first Budget File, "The Russian Crisis: What it Means to the Palestinians" was sent out worldwide. Since then I have written about subjects as diverse as Turkish politics and my search for a job. From Charles Bukowski to Andrei Sakharov. I started out in Moscow and now I'm in San Diego. I hope that you have enjoyed my efforts, and will continue to read and enjoy the next year, wherever knows it may lead.
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In Russia on Sunday, elections were held for the Duma, the Lower House of parliament. And yet, I feel so detached. Like it is all taking place in some mythical kingdom far, far away, which in a sense, it is.
I'M NOT THERE!!
How can I sit here and write about these elections, write about them the way I really want to, without just rehashing what has been said on CNN or the various news services and whatever other sources there are. I wish I could be in Moscow now, to just walk the streets and feel the air. To talk to my friends about what's going on. To see the election posters on the streets, and to grab a few for souvenirs. To watch the candidates on TV. To understand very little of what they are saying, but still be able to see them, watch them get angry, watch them tell jokes. To see the political commercials. I have read over and over again about the television networks, each controlled by either the Kremlin or their allies, and their complete and total lack of objectivity. About how just two months ago, the Kremlin created a party, put an attractive, popular government minister who has no real responsibilities, and therefor no reason to be hated, and plastered this party all over the airwaves. This party almost became the largest party in the Duma. A 'virtual party' (so it's been dubbed) created to reap the political benefits of the Chechen war, and backed by a completely controlled media. But how can I write about them if I haven't seen it for my own eyes? Damn!
And to tell you the truth, these elections kind of snuck up on me. I knew they were coming, but I just spaced on the whole thing, and then the next thing I knew they were here. I haven't been really keeping up with the whole Russian political scene like I should.
But I do feel like I must say something about these elections. For some reason, I think that if I don't I'll be letting down you, my devoted readers. After all, how often have I blabbed on about Russia, or politics? And here we have Russian Politics!
This election was a child of the last presidential election four years ago, but a mere dress rehearsal of the presidential elections coming in June. In 1995, a war was started in Chechnya in order to boost Yeltsin's popularity. The mass media, both those controlled by the government and those controlled by his allies, used everything in their power to belittle and castigate the opposition, in 1995 the Communists, in this election Yuri Luzhkov, the mayor of Moscow, Yevgeny Primakov, a former Prime Minister who has announced his candidacy for president, and their party. Their party was the real threat this time, not the commies. All the stops were pulled out to smear their reputations. The nightly news was turned completely into negative attack ads. But who was the Kremlin going to run against them, after all Yeltsin or his PM and heir apparent, Vladimir Putin, don't belong to any party. Who could they support? Hence the insta-party, Unity, was created. Sure, the Communists got their 25% and first place, which they will get until everybody who remembers the Soviet union dies off, but Unity was able to hold off their main rivals for power.
And the war in Chechnya is going fairly well, at least that's what the Russian people are being told. The powers that be learned a lesson from the last conflict there, something the US learned in Vietnam and applied in the Gulf War, and that is to keep the media in line. There are no death tolls on the evening news, no pictures of broken bodies and starving soldiers being transmitted throughout the country. Supporting this war, which was made extremely popular following the 'terrorist' bombings of a few months ago (bombings that ended as fast as they started, bombings that ended once the people were whipped up into a sufficient furor so that they clamored for a new war) and it's instigator and leader, Putin, was a sure fire way of getting votes. And if you even slightly criticized the war, as one politician did, you were almost signing your political death warrant. The party that the critical politician belonged to barely made it into the Duma, it popularity having dropped quicker than an artillery shell on Grozny.
This election was just a dry run, however, for the only election that really matters, the presidential election in June. In Russia, the president has all the real power. Don't expect anything really politically new to come out of Russia for the next six months, the Kremlin doesn't want to do anything that might harm their man, or give the opposition any ammunition. The only thing I can think of to derail the Kremlin's train is if they really get their asses kicked in Chechnya in the next six months. Or Boris flipping out again and firing everybody in town. And both these scenarios are highly plausible, considering the wacky world of Russian politics. But considering the fact that as of now no one can criticize the Chechen war, as long as Boris keeps his cool, everything will fall into place.
And where will this all lead Russia. Most likely a continuation of the raping of the country. The treasury will be emptied, the businesses that have yet to be privatized will be sold off to the lowest bidder with the best political connections, the rich will get richer and the poor will get poorer, so on and so forth, all in the name of reform. In fact, the so-called 'young reformers', who were all kicked out of the Kremlin last year, were re-elected to the Duma with Putin's and Yeltsin's backing. The man who oversaw the privatization rape of the country, and ran Yeltsin's last presidential campaign, ran their parties campaign. Soon they will be returned to power. Some analysts see a right-wing dictatorship on the horizon, but I've heard this so many times before that frankly it bores me. Democracy is becoming more deeply rooted into Russian society. But the manipulation of information and the ability of the center to mobilize all it's power for election time (about the only time they deem it necessary or important enough to do so) will not improve the country any time soon.
Politics in Russia isn't much different than politics in America. They're just a little more heavy-handed, a little cruder. They haven't had 200 years to fine-tune the art of mass popular manipulation. Subtlety isn't a Russian trait.
It has been six months now since I returned from Russia, and it seems more like six years. Russia is so far removed from sunny suburban San Diego. And often it feels like I was only there for a week or two, not nine months. But researching the elections the last couple of days, I have been overwhelmed with a homesickness the like I never felt when I was over there. I happened upon a map of the Moscow subway system, and I almost started to cry. That's the stop where I lived. That's the stop where I worked. That stop is the one with the giant mosaics of the revolution. How many hours had I started at my Moscow metro map when I was there? And here I was staring at it again. I saw a picture of a guy handing out leaflets for a political party at the Arbat metro station. I knew exactly where he was standing. Right by the dozen artists drawing portraits, crowded inside the pedestrian underpass; the artists I used to pass when I was going to the place I changed my money. Or I watch TV news, and the inevitable backdrop behind the reporter of Red Square, or the Russian White House and Kuznetsky Most. (They must be standing by the only cheap Chinese take-out joint in Moscow, the one Carolyn and me were so happy about when we found it!) Or I check out the Kremlin Kam (http://www.kremlinkam.com), a live web cam trained in on Red Square, where you can see what the weather is, you can see the traffic around St. Basil's. And then I remember my first night in Moscow; we get off the plane, dump our stuff at the flat, and head straight for the square. And how disappointed we were with St Basil's (we thought it would be so much bigger!), but then how each time we saw it after that, it grew more immense and more impressive. And slowly, the realization returns that I was there for longer than two weeks, but that I still wasn't there long enough. And how I consider Moscow my home as much as Riverside or California. That I belong there.
I feel like I went to Moscow a year to early. I should be there now, with the war in Chechnya, the Duma elections, the presidential election. But I know it's a good thing I'm not, for one reason. I sent in my grad school application Friday. I know that if I were still over there, I wouldn't have done that, because California would have felt so far away, school would have seemed like a foreign concept. Now I can't wait until fall, when I can start studying Russia full time. And with every paper I write, with every book I read, with every test I take, I will get closer and closer to returning to my beloved Russia.
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Did you know that if you look up dumb jock in the dictionary, there's a picture of John Rocker? And you thought they actually grew up after high school. Now, off to letter land.
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"John Hartman"? C'mon, now, I know you've been out of the loop for awhile, but even you must remember that his name was Phil.
Steve
SF
Reply:
Once again, I make another pop culture reference mistake. Thank God I have the type of readership that knows their stuff better than I do.
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Did you know where you can make corporations donate food to starving people just by clicking an icon on a website? It's true! The site to go to is http://thehungersite.com. Sponsors sign up and every time someone clicks on the page, the sponsors get "charged" 0.5cents. It's good advertising for the company (cheaper than regular advertising on the web, and apparently gets them more actual hits than a regular ad) and good for the hungry. So send this address out to all the people you know, and encourage those friends to do the same. It's absolutely free for the clicker, and you can click on it every single day (but just once a day). This is totally serious - my brother turned me on to it (it's on his web page) and I've been hitting daily since I've been here, then I realized - DUH - send this message out.
So, get clicking next time you're online, and PASS IT ON!! http://thehungersite.com
Ida Martinac
NYC
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Until next time. Oh yeah, Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and all that stuff. Just think, next time you here from me it will be the year 2000. Y'know, that's pretty crazy, isn't it?
#37
January 5, 2000
Brenda's Trip through Africa, Part II
Once again I give this Budget File over to my friend Brenda Semrow, who is off on the road in Africa.
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Out of civilization, inside Africa, today I arrived in Nairobi, Kenya where again there is electricity, running water, ATM's and e-mail!
Well friends and neighbors, it has been a while. And what a time it has been, needless to say. Egypt was a trial, one of the bigger disappointments of my life, having waited so long to go there and having it be such a difficult place in which to exist. It was quite the ordeal to find genuine people; everyone had an angle and a whole lot of time in which to get around to expressing it. While being disposed of an amazing propensity for languages, English and otherwise, the Egyptians seem to be incapable of comprehending the word 'no'. Doesn't matter what language it is spoken in, they will not cease and desist until one displays violence or shouts. It's really a horrible way to be on holiday. It is also the nosiest place on earth. The traffic and the prayers blaring out of the mosques competing for predominance amongst the voices of men, camels and donkeys; I wonder how these people can think. Islam permeates the whole life. With so much praying going on, I wonder how anything gets done. Egypt brought out every feminist tendency I never had. Really, the highlights of that month were the southern lands of the Nubians and the Sinai Peninsula.
The Nubians apparently appreciate colors other than sand and dirt. Their houses were colored red and yellow; totems, scrapcloth bags tied with colored string, dead creatures and metal emblems adorned their doors and lintels. They smoke pot 24-7 and sing and dance and laugh and drum the days away. Took a 2-day trip on a Felluca down the Nile with some of the happiest people I will ever meet. Aswan was the place from which to stage a journey of the country, in my opinion. There, one is able to travel by boat to relocated ruins on the islands of Lake Nasser, which one can explore in relative peace, free from the trappings of tourism - the lights, the people selling things or merely telling you things and then demanding money in that brash Arabic way. It is the only place I was able to get any sort of sense of place, what it must have been like to pass under those massive doorways into courtyards of carved stone. Graffiti of the ages adorns these sites: Coptic crosses, Napoleonic inscriptions, and the names of dead soldiers have been carved into the temple walls. Luxor, while being the ancient capital of Thebes and the center of all things ancient was an absolute nightmare of a town to walk around in. It is from there that you visit the Valley of the Kings and Queens and Luxor and Karnak Temples, the road to which is flanked by the ancient road lined with sphinxes, now in peoples' front yards. You have to wonder if they appreciate that. Then there is Dahab, bastion of relaxation on the Sinai. There, I must admit, I saw nothing beyond the Gulf of Aqaba, for once I started diving, there was no removing me from the world under the sea. Of remark, though, are the Bedouin children who speak 7 or 8 languages each and have never been to school. They tour the restaurant/cafes by the sea peddling string bracelets and learning from the tourists.
Culturally, what is quite disturbing in Egypt are the men in the white suits with "Tourist Police" emblazoned upon their sleeves. Their job is to keep the locals from "bothering" the tourists (after the "accident" that happened at Luxor a few years back, as it was explained to me) but what it all amounts to is keeping the white people from interacting with the Egyptians at all, which you might just think is a good thing after all I have said about the general population. It is a terrible thing, however, for once you have met a nice Egyptian, the poor guy is constantly hassled by the men in the white suits for being in your company, risking imprisonment, even, for showing you the sites and explaining the culture. It made a difficult situation worse for it was quite refreshing to have a guide and quite disheartening to have them under constant attack from their own people. It's prejudice, really, as though they believe their own people are all thieves and all the tourists saints. Needless to say, I was happy to fly out of Egypt on November 19.
There is more, of course, much much more but really I'd rather move on and tell you of beautiful things, of Ethiopia. A marvelous land, full of the most generous and genuine people on the planet. Having nothing, they will share everything. It is the land of Rastafari as well, so you can all imagine how I passed my days, pleasantly and constantly high. Really though, I have never seen such poverty and disease but somehow it did not mar the beauty of the place. First impression of Ethiopia was flying in. Such a marvelous landscape as the ruinous desert duns of Egypt gave way to the patchwork of reds, yellows and purples intermixed with every shade of green. Little clusters of huts in stone circles dotted these colored fields. At the airport, I was sure we were finally in Africa. Regal ladies in multicolored dresses lined the corridors, waiting, endlessly waiting, as they do here. They have nothing but time, quite literally. The poverty I witnessed is beyond imagination. I'm not even sure I can describe it. Children fight over our garbage. The Ethiopians were incredulous to believe that we have homeless people in the US; they were sure that everyone there is rich and successful, with their own house and car.
Ethiopia is a Christian nation with a tradition stretching back to the 3rd century AD. It seems to be a bit of a Mary cult, from what I have garnered, but Mary also seems to have been a magician. The priests celebrate mass for 10 to 11 hours straight, mostly for themselves. They sing and dance, not allowed to sit down or rest during this whole time, their only respite being to lean on the prayer sticks they hold in one hand and beat upon the ground in time with the drumming. It is a very large double-sided drum they use and it is said to symbolize the slaps Jesus incurred as he walked down the street to his death. The Ethiopian people are fiercely proud (and protective) of their country, heritage and tradition. Much is shrouded in secrecy. The priests have a sacred language they speak that the general population cannot comprehend. No one here failed to remind me that this is the only African nation not to have been colonized. In Lalibela, there are churches carved from the mountain, the entire buildings being hewn from one block of stone. Each took approximately 24 years (only!) and the myth is that as the artisans carved during the day, the angels matched them at night. This is truly a marvel of the world, all the more so as I, nor anyone else on the truck, had not the slightest foreknowledge of the existence of these monolithic churches built from the 900's to the 1200's under the direction of King Lalibela's prophecy to recreate Jerusalem in Ethiopia. They are still in use, with pilgrims and monks living in the holes in the walls that used to be tombs and women coming for fertility ceremonies in the baptismal basins.
The scenery of this land was spectacular, the Blue Nile Gorge was amazingly vast, terrain unlike anything. The cliffs were quite vertical and somewhat terraced, all composed of straight lines. In fact, much of the Ethiopian countryside was straight lines, which I found unique in the world, as nature is usually curved. All of the plants and animals are alien, foreign. There are giant cactus trees in the mountains and a million birds, large and small all over the country. Gelada baboons live only in the Simeon Mountains in all of the world and we saw them on our 2 day trek that Greg and I and one of the drivers, Mike, did up to 3800 meters. It was a spectacular experience albeit tiring. It all made a bit more sense, however, when, 5 days afterwards, bored on the truck, Greg worked out that 3800 meters is 12,890 feet! At the camp there, we purchased and killed a sheep which our scout and mule handlers prepared, using all the organs to make about 4 different dishes which, yes, I sampled. Been eating meat ever since, in fact. It is about survival here. To be at that village way up in the mountains, hunkered down around the huge bowl with the men of the area, taking the sheep bits with our hands, is a cultural experience I will never forget. Mike kept the sheep's skin and it is now lashed to the top of the truck.
Different than what I expected, Africa is all about the people. In the middle of nowhere, they come and watch, sometimes speak but usually only after it has been a few days in their space. Our truck broke down on a road where only 3 vehicles passed in a 36-hour period. Poor farmer people dressed in rags and covered in flies came and gave us chickpeas and watched us for hours, as usual. This was the most difficult time for me as these people were beyond poor, covered in sores crawling with flies, but when they say "gimme" I still cannot. All over Africa they yell "you" and run after the truck. They say "gimme" and I will not once it is demanded of me. We share our food and only give money and clothes to the people who perform services for us, or as a trade for their goods. It is hard and I will have more to say about it later.
There is a more to the Ethiopian oddesey but this mail is long enough! Stay tuned for the tribal lands of the south and then, on to Kenya. A merry holiday season I wish you all and I hope the turning of the millenium poses no problems in the western world. We will, of course, not be affected being quite used to no electricity and running water at this point in time! New Years will find us safely sequestered on the isles of Zanzibar, where you will most likely hear from me next. So, until then…
Love,
Brenda
P.S.
I met these 2 cool motorcycle guys in Nairobi and, even though they are ex Wall Street types, they have good travel stories on their site plus they are giving money to some kids charities so could you maybe send out their URL in a Budget files? http://www.globeride.com
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Before we go off to letter land, I guess I should say something about the continuing events in Russia. I must say Yeltsin's resignation through me for a loop, as it did everyone else. With the Russian offensive in Chechnya stalling outside Grozny, it definitely serves the Kremlin's interests to get the election over with as quickly as possible. It just shows what the powers that be will do to manipulate the system and maintain power. Putin will be elected, no doubt about it. Will this be good for Russia? I have no idea. No one really knows what will happen with Putin. It is unfortunate, though, that the first peaceful, democratic transition in Russian history won't completely happen by the book. It could set a dangerous precedent. But it is still a lot better than the scare scenarios that have proliferated throughout Russian circles for years, that Yeltsin would only leave office in a pine box. With this resignation, Yeltsin I'm sure is looking at his place in history, a place that as of now doesn't look so good. The only thing that could possibly rescue his historical reputation is this peaceful democratic transition, no matter how dirty it may be.
Although I am wary of the moved-up elections, which catches the opposition off guard and without the time to mount an effective run, and the certain election strategy of bombing Chechnya and media puppetry, as I step back and look at these events with a historical perspective, I am cautiously optimistic. Russia has a long, troubled, and bloody history. Russia has been an autocratic state since Moscow rose to prominence over 600 years ago. This autocratic tradition only ended in 1991 (although some would say, with good cause, that it hasn't completely melted away just yet). So no one should expect the transition to an unknown form of governance to happen in one generation. It may take three or four. But I believe they are on the right track. Even though everything that happened in the century that just ended seemed to happen so very fast, history moves very slowly. Sure, events might spring out from out of nowhere, changes may occur in what seems like the blink of an eye, but even the fall of the Berlin Wall was the culmination of a 40 year historical process, which began when the wall was built. Maybe it's just my poet's heart and my dreamers' soul, which Russia breaks and disrupts on a constant basis, but I think that the Russian future is still bright. And now, off to letter land.
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HI! Congrats on your 1 year anniversary!
Tina
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Johnnie B.!
Thanks for the (as usual) excellent analysis. Most of my information comes from some pretty good coverage on Pacific Radio (90.7 KPFK in Los Angeles). You definitely help make the issues and situation clearer.
I remember in about 1985 I read a Soviet critique of western democracy which said that even though we maintained the forms of democracy, they were in fact controlled by moneyed interests. I thought then and think now that it is a valid critique. But even worse than that money should rule the world is that they use war as a technique for whipping up support. The Russian election was a great example. Another is the terrible oppressive totalitarian war on drugs which is a sacred cow of American politics. Just as opposition to the war in Chechnya would be fatal to a Russian politician, the same is true for US politicians and the war on drugs, so that every year we get to be more of a police state.
Well, every time I hear a good piece about Russia I want to call you up and get your take on it, so thanks again for keeping up the work.
Peter Rashkin
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Dear John,
I've spent the better part of my life living much as you have, from place to place, where, you rest you're hat and such. And to be frankly honest, I haven't felt at home in any of them. I hide in astonished strokes from the city I grew up in and the people that populated my conscious and Long Beach isn't such a grand lady, arms outstretched and waiting. Texas, Virginia, no, I don't every really remember feeling at home anywhere, really, and I still don't. All things considered, and given the fact that I'm 35, I'd say a safe bet would be that I never will. San Diego, Moscow, San Francisco, Kansas City. A broad canvas from which to draw. Just a thought. Best to you and all you hold dear, close to your heart.
ken robidoux
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Until next time.
Budget Files
