February 15, 2016

Cold Hard Facts


Cold Hard Facts

I have just returned from our “distant” village. Its last remaining resident, Lyokha, died (I wrote about him previously). Let me briefly share the news.

Lyokha died from cold; he froze to death. Yenot (a fellow who trades in alcohol, actually diluted mineral spirits) came to visit him, saw that Lyokha was dead, and stole a pair of axes (the only things worth taking).

Lyokha’s mother, Tasya, is lying in Yesinovichy, in a rural hospital, where, in reality, no one gets any treatment. It has a FAP (фельдшерско-акушерский пункт, a feldsher-obstetric station), and a car that is used “on demand” as an ambulance until 4 pm. But the hospital is really just a nursing home – a hospice, actually. But they feed Tasya there, give her liquids, and change her diapers. She doesn’t recognize anyone any more, she is very old and very weak. Soon they will transfer her to the nursing home in Vyshny Volochyok, which has just under 400 residents. Old folks generally die very quickly there. There are about 20 others like Tasya in Yesinovichy hospital.

They are closing the hospital in Yesinovichy because it is not profitable to support rural hospitals.

There is a fire department alongside the hospital. It is being reformulated as a “fire post.” Everything is exactly as before, only they cut everyone’s pay by R1500 a month and one of the three firemen will be let go as of March.

Meanwhile, the firemen and doctors are being forced to write false reports about how everything is fine. If they write that something is bad, then in flies someone from the regional leadership, who must answer to Moscow.

In the village opposite ours, in Kozhina, on January 28 a babushka celebrated her 80th birthday. On the 29th she died of starvation.

In summary: In the twenty-first century, 350 km from Moscow, people are dying from cold and hunger, the hospital and fire department are being shuttered, and Russia is spending $2.5 million every day on the war in Syria.

Russians have never lived so poorly as under Obama.

You Might Also Like

Demographic Woes
  • May 08, 2006

Demographic Woes

Russia's population is in steady decline. So you would think it natural that the country would welcome immigrant workers. You'd think...
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

Russian Rules

Russian Rules

From the shores of the White Sea to Moscow and the Northern Caucasus, Russian Rules is a high-speed thriller based on actual events, terrifying possibilities, and some really stupid decisions.
Life Stories: Original Fiction By Russian Authors

Life Stories: Original Fiction By Russian Authors

The Life Stories collection is a nice introduction to contemporary Russian fiction: many of the 19 authors featured here have won major Russian literary prizes and/or become bestsellers. These are life-affirming stories of love, family, hope, rebirth, mystery and imagination, masterfully translated by some of the best Russian-English translators working today. The selections reassert the power of Russian literature to affect readers of all cultures in profound and lasting ways. Best of all, 100% of the profits from the sale of this book are going to benefit Russian hospice—not-for-profit care for fellow human beings who are nearing the end of their own life stories.
At the Circus (bilingual)

At the Circus (bilingual)

This wonderful novella by Alexander Kuprin tells the story of the wrestler Arbuzov and his battle against a renowned American wrestler. Rich in detail and characterization, At the Circus brims with excitement and life. You can smell the sawdust in the big top, see the vivid and colorful characters, sense the tension build as Arbuzov readies to face off against the American.
A Taste of Russia

A Taste of Russia

The definitive modern cookbook on Russian cuisine has been totally updated and redesigned in a 30th Anniversary Edition. Layering superbly researched recipes with informative essays on the dishes' rich historical and cultural context, A Taste of Russia includes over 200 recipes on everything from borshch to blini, from Salmon Coulibiac to Beef Stew with Rum, from Marinated Mushrooms to Walnut-honey Filled Pies. A Taste of Russia shows off the best that Russian cooking has to offer. Full of great quotes from Russian literature about Russian food and designed in a convenient wide format that stays open during use.
Turgenev Bilingual

Turgenev Bilingual

A sampling of Ivan Turgenev's masterful short stories, plays, novellas and novels. Bilingual, with English and accented Russian texts running side by side on adjoining pages.
Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

A book that dares to explore the humanity of priests and pilgrims, saints and sinners, Faith & Humor has been both a runaway bestseller in Russia and the focus of heated controversy – as often happens when a thoughtful writer takes on sacred cows. The stories, aphorisms, anecdotes, dialogues and adventures in this volume comprise an encyclopedia of modern Russian Orthodoxy, and thereby of Russian life.
The Little Golden Calf

The Little Golden Calf

Our edition of The Little Golden Calf, one of the greatest Russian satires ever, is the first new translation of this classic novel in nearly fifty years. It is also the first unabridged, uncensored English translation ever, and is 100% true to the original 1931 serial publication in the Russian journal 30 Dnei. Anne O. Fisher’s translation is copiously annotated, and includes an introduction by Alexandra Ilf, the daughter of one of the book’s two co-authors.
Moscow and Muscovites

Moscow and Muscovites

Vladimir Gilyarovsky's classic portrait of the Russian capital is one of Russians’ most beloved books. Yet it has never before been translated into English. Until now! It is a spectactular verbal pastiche: conversation, from gutter gibberish to the drawing room; oratory, from illiterates to aristocrats; prose, from boilerplate to Tolstoy; poetry, from earthy humor to Pushkin. 
Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography

Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography

This astonishingly gripping autobiography by the founder of the Russian Women’s Death Battallion in World War I is an eye-opening documentary of life before, during and after the Bolshevik Revolution.
Jews in Service to the Tsar

Jews in Service to the Tsar

Benjamin Disraeli advised, “Read no history: nothing but biography, for that is life without theory.” With Jews in Service to the Tsar, Lev Berdnikov offers us 28 biographies spanning five centuries of Russian Jewish history, and each portrait opens a new window onto the history of Eastern Europe’s Jews, illuminating dark corners and challenging widely-held conceptions about the role of Jews in Russian history.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955