From Why Dont Russians Smile The definitive guide to the differences between Russians and Americans
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Revision as of 02:15, 30 December 2020
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"Suvok" is translated as "dustpan" (dustbin) in Russian.
In its simplest form, "Suvok" means to be a Soviet Citizen. The Soviet Union "Советский Союз" is "Советский Grajidin (?)" is what dedicated Soviets used to say, and a lot of old Russians took pride in that.
Even after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the "old mentality" Russians today say:
- "Look what is going on, everyone is at everyone's throats, the Ukrainians, the Kazakhs, the Russians. In the former Soviet Union we were all together, we were all in one boat, maybe it wasn't all that rich, but we were all in one boat."
This is a classic line by the elderly.
Origin of the Russian word "dust bin"
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There were two concepts that emerged from Советский Grajidin (Soviet Citizen).
One is the intelligentsia. This is the somewhat contentious book "Homo Sovieticus", written by dissident author Aleksandr Zinovyev. Homo Sovieticus is an effort to define a certain type of person. In the late 1920s and early 1930s Stalin said he was going to be the "engineer of human souls" to justify the deaths of millions. In large part he was successful. Stalin created a certain type of man.
Later on with a touch of bitter humor, Homo Sovieticus came to be known in a wider circle outside of the intelligentsia as "Subor" - which is a potter.
Subor was a group of people united with one goal, a collective mentality wrapped around a particular idea of a Soviet citizen. Troskti said "we will all be in the dustbin of history"
The most obvious and simple historical reason behind the Suvok mentality is this:
- This suspicious mentality is understandable because most of the Soviet period everyone was against everyone. A Soviet citizen couldn't say anything in front of your children because they would blurt it out in school and that would be at best 25 years in the Gulag.
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- Dust pan leadership personalities today
Although currently not used by the general Russian population, "Suvok" can explain heartless Muscovites today, the majority of those who have economic (oligarchs) and political power.
These "Suvok" will never say:
- I am sorry,
- they will never admit they are wrong.
- ...They can't because it is a sign of weakness.
- They don't smile. Because there is nothing to smile about.
- There is Endless suspicion. To a Suvok there is the sense that nothing is what it seems. You have to keep digging until you find out where the person's real interest is.
This Moscow attitude has infected (permeated) international relations. This attitude is small part of the reason that the West is so hostile to Russia today.
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The average American reading the above description of Russia, probably feels a deep habitual pride about America's system of government. What social scientist call "American Civil Religion". In addition, they probably feel sorry for the Russian government, dominated by Russia's oligarchs....
American "Democracy" is a hoax, according to social scientists.
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Social scientist have determined that the United States is not a democracy, but it is an oligarchy. As the BBC quoted an academic study:
- Multivariate analysis indicates that economic elites and organized groups representing business interests have substantial independent impacts on US government policy, while average citizens and mass-based interest groups have little or no independent influence.
- In English: the wealthy few move policy, while the average American has little power.[1]
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- ↑ 17 April 2014. Study: US is an oligarchy, not a democracy. BBC.