Wealth

In Soviet Russia, Money Owns You!

“How do I begin this tale, which has no beginning?” ~ Wax Tailor
- This is what I think of when I think of the culture of wealth being in the hands of the few.

But seriously folks, it’s not just in Soviet Russia, or Post Soviet Russia, it is just the way things mostly are, and have been. We are owned by our desire to own, and it is that desire which translates to the value we imbue to the things we own. This train of thought mostly arises from the fact that I just came from seeing the royal diamond and gold collection of Russia, which is held deep in the Kremlin, and guarded very heavily. I can’t say that I was amused, or even wowed. Yes, they’re sparkly, priceless, rare as the rarest of natural occurances on this planet, but if the platinum is not being used for semiconducting purposes (or some other such practical thing), or the diamonds not being used for creating laser beams from outer space, I have to agree with father Lenin that they should have been and should now be sold, because the opportunity cost of this heavily guarded treasure is much needed public infrastructure.

But I know most people don’t share with me in this view. I think very logically, and not emotionally, or nationalistically. And as they say in here: “you can’t understand Russia with your mind, but only with your heart.” Perhaps this collection and other such things is a source of great pride for the people here, which might explain why they pay money and flock to see it. But perhaps, as I want to believe, they relish in the dream of possibilities, beauty, and some sense of ‘ownership’ – even if it is public. I think this makes them believe that great wealth is achievable to them, even if that dream is only with them for the duration of the tour, and is fleeting in the end.

But the wealth in Russia (especially in Moscow) is not just in diamonds. In fact, as I have found out, this is the most expensive place to live in the world. Real estate here is incredibly ridiculous. The average cost per square meter (meter = yard, roughly) is 10,000, but it definitely goes much higher than that. To put it in perspective for those back home, their average is the high end of San Francisco real estate. And the buildings they’re building are nowhere near the strict codes or standards that we have. That is not to say that their buildings will fall apart. But in San Francisco the high end houses are very cleanly built, with all the wiring, plumbing, and basic amenities already in the units. These places here are gutted. It is basically a skyrise that is just a shell – no sink, toilet, etc. I’m not saying that its necessarily worse, its just a different style, but you probably get more for your money back in the U.S.
Where am I going with this you might wonder? Well, developers here are making a killing. The people building these things are tycoons, in the realest sense of the word. But that is not to say that is that easy to put up a building. Many people have to be bribed along the process, in all the steps from tearing down the previous building, to getting all the permits, to building the building itself. But despite all of these ‘hurtles’, as we might consider them, buildings are flying up like crazy. I’ve never seen more cranes in my life. Dubai is probably one of the few places in the world rivaling construction here. And the prices are pretty much because of demand. Mostly because other tycoons see an opportunity to build, and because they’re in competition with the other 80 or so tycoons who own everything, they are all willing to pay a high buck to see it go up. Basically, until something catches their eye, it is not worth nearly as much as it will be after they build it and sell it. But if its not worth that much before they have their way with it, why do the people sell the property you ask? Well, having your house burned down is a good incentive. Or perhaps just the roof, so that it is unlivable, but the walls still stand. Or perhaps you’ve just been notified that the building is going to be demolished (becau$e $omeone got $ome right $omehow..). Any way they can, they will do it. And then it becomes an overinflated game of supply, demand, access, and resale.

There are definitely a lot of changes going on here, and a very specific crowd is making all the money. That same crowd of the top 0.something % are selling out Russia in everything else as well. In Moscow, most of the businesses we saw were foreign. Nestle sells everything, Coca Cola owns most of the water, European fashion is everything, etc. Somebody got paid (and keeps getting paid) for foreign businesses to own everything. All the TV ads are for American and European household products. There is very little that is local it seems. But despite all the money flying out of the country and into the pockets of foreign businesses nobody seems to mind all this. In fact, foreign business is all the rage. Everybody wants to be like the west, and live just like westerners. To an environmental localized socialist like me this is absolutely abhorrent, especially when this country is sitting on an incredible amount of wealth, and could easily use that money to generate its own infrastructure and keep the money circulating here amongst its peoples, lifting everybody up. But instead, the people seem to be content with just living the lifestyle that we have set up for ourselves back home. I think that their mentality is similar to how they feel about the diamonds; they take comfort knowing that the western companies, whom they trust because the west = good, are going to take care of them and provide them with good services.

Yeah, things here are pretty shade. And that is where a huge part of the economy operates – in the grey (but much closer to black). Bribes are everywhere, all the time, for all occasions. Tips are common place, connections are everything, and everyone expects you to lie. It is very rare to come across an honest official, especially a policeman.

So far here we have gotten past the airport security checking out luggage with a $20, I’ve seen my cousin get out of a ticket by first attempting a bribe, and then just pretending to call some official of the DPT – and was let go grudgingly, but immediately (you should have seen the pair on her in those scary 10 minutes!), and we’ve been given the royal treatment everywhere we’ve been going because my mom knows some people who have connections here. A phone call is made and then you’re received with the best smiles and service. Without that phone call we would have been received just like any regular shmoe – with apathy and the bare minimum in effort. But that is how things are done here. This untaxed grease between the official gears of government and the economy is what keeps this seemingly unlikely system working.
And somehow it actually ends up working okay. I have to say, for the most part they have everything we have, and more. If you have the money or the connections you can have anything you want. There are cars here that are not in production in the U.S. There are expenditures like the richest of us only dream of seeing on a large scale. There are amenities, services, and delicacies that Tzars would be jealous of. But at the same time there is deep, deep poverty, somewhere outside the city limits, povertying its own way somewhere else, beyond the glance and grasp of most people who live within the developed wealth.

And so the world here turns, because someone is bribing for it to turn.. It makes me think of a good line from an awesome Hip-Hop song I know titled “Pimps”

“Flash a little cash, make you think you got class,
But you’re really sellin’ ass
So ho, keep off my grass,
..less u cutting it – see I’m runnin shit.
Trick all you motha@#$%ckas, see I’m just a Pimp!”
~ The Coup