Mother Russia: A Land Still Filled With Contradiction

This is the first in a series of reports from Russia from Michael Patrick O'Connor.

(SAINT PETERSBURG, Russia) - Tears well in my eyes seeing Russian soil again for the first time in 14 years. Do not misunderstand me. I bleed the red, white and blue of the American flag--not the Russian banner of the same colors. As a proud American, I am equally unabashed in believing and articulating that I possess a Russian soul.

With that preamble, my reportage and editorial from along the banks of the Neva River in the Venice of the North (Saint Petersburg) cannot help but include my bias. This vision of the city sees much to be admired and much that draws concern.

The Russian people and the Russian landscape is a dichotomy just as it has always been. Winston Churchill said, "Russia is a riddle, wrapped in mystery inside an enigma". The more things change, the more they remain the same. Russia is the Jew and the Gentile. Russia is the Muslim and the kufar (infidel). Russia is the Orthodox Christian and the heretic. Russia is the believer and the atheist. Russia's past, present and future can be viewed as a muddled amalgam.

Like the turbid waters of the Neva canals, Russia's place in a global context remains clouded. The Russian government is set to host leaders from the top industrialized nations. The G8 summit in Saint Petersburg has the streets cleaner, but alley-ways remain dank and dirty. However, Russian President Vladimir Putin is unlikely to escort U.S. President George W. Bush or British Prime Minister Tony Blair down side streets this July.

This past Monday was a national holiday here. Russian Independence Day was marked by many with the phrase: Independence from what? I heard this sentiment echoed by expatriates living here, from fellow conferees at the Summer Literary Seminar that I am attending and from Russians themselves walking down the famed Nevsky Prospekt that makes New York's Fifth Avenue appear small in comparison. Russian Independence Day, June 12th, marks the day the Soviet Union ceased to exist back in 1992 following the failed coup attempt by Russian hardliners back in August of 1991.

Russia, in my opinion, has never been freed of the bonds of its collective sin, the October Revolution of 1917 that eradicated Russia's only true attempt at full-fledged capitalism that was taking root at the dawn of the 20th Century before being yanked by the Bolsheviks and their web of canards. To be sure, the emerging market that is today's Russia is providing healthy economic returns for global investors--particularly in hedge funds--but the political reform in Russia is a mirage.

Old Communist Party apparatchiks control government and industry. Those critical of the Putin administration claim the Kremlin is his dacha or country home. The Russian Constitution requires that Putin relinquish his presidency in 2008. He will, but not before doing everything in his power to have a hand-picked successor installed. It will likely be political ally Dimitri Medvedev.

As the World Cup soccer matches take place in Germany, the chalice of opportunity remains as elusive as the Holy Grail for many Russians, but many others are living better than ever here and the number of Russian billionaires is closing in on the number in the United States quite rapidly.

Through mutual friends, I was invited to dinner with a gracious Russian family whose hard work and perseverance has its three members living the Russian Dream. The parents reside in a gated community outside central Petersburg that boasts large lots and lots of square footage. It is a starling departure from the Soviet inspired communal honeycombs of dilapidated apartments that are still as ubiquitous as Russia's mushrooms.

The daughter has her own modern apartment in the city and visits her folks often on weekends. Vladimir and Liza's success is self-made. They are the proud owners of supermarkets and offer consumers value without sacrificing customer service. The winning combination has them driving a Nissan Pathfinder when it snows and a Mercedes Kompressor when the weather is good.

Their only child is not even of drinking age in the United States, but already is a dentist who is putting off plans to go into private practice because she wishes to help the indigent and others less fortunate than herself. These people are admirable and a shining example of what Petersburg is comprised of.

But as a friend and fellow journalist observed, Russia has the best of the best and the worst of the worst. Racism is still pervasive in Russia and often unabashedly overt. Darker skinned peoples are discriminated against as are many of Russia's Asiatic populations. Turkish construction expertise is being utilized here but at the same time many disrespect this labor force like Mexican labor in the United States.

One of my literary colleagues, here, in Saint Petersburg is novelist Anthony Swofford whose book "Jarhead" went on to be adapted for the Big Screen and star Jamie Foxx. Tony and another conferee were harassed by police the other night and it appears the reason they were briefly detained was because the other man is black.

Since my last visit to Russia, much has changed. Motor vehicle traffic rivals that in Portland these days even though countless residents of Petersburg avail themselves of the Metro that is extremely efficient unlike the above ground MAX trains of the Rose City. Crosswalks in Petersburg are a sight to marvel. Pedestrians routinely ignore the Don't Walk sign and enter the street en masse as if to thumb a collective nose at authority. Wouldn't you as well if you had been under the Soviet yoke for so long?

Walk the streets of Petersburg and everywhere you turn is another beautiful woman, often wearing extremely high heels and strutting with the confidence of a supermodel. And why shouldn't she? In my not so humble opinion, the confluence of Slavic and Nordic blood in Petersburg produces the most exotic and captivating women on the planet, many with figures that have them easily fitting into Size Zero jeans and dresses that show off a great deal of leg.

A Russian woman's confidence can also be attributed to her station in life. Many possess intellectual might and back it up with engineering or economic degrees. Many are doctors or lawyers.

Unfortunately, a gender inequity seems to exist in Russia--the men are not nearly as good looking as the women for those ladies who might be looking for Mr. Right while on holiday here.