“Good buy, America!”: Why the Russians are no longer eager for the United States
USCIS - US Citizenship and Immigration Services, announced news: her office in Moscow is closing. Until February 28, they will still wait for Russian citizens who dream of getting overseas political shelter and citizenship, and then overgrown with cobweb doors will be locked. On March 29, the office was liquidated completely, transferring our country to "jurisdiction" of the USCIS branch, which is already located in Greek Athens. However, some of the functions of providing immigration services will be provided by the American embassy in Russia.
What is the reason for this decision? It is simple and banal - the Russians do not need the services of this institution! Well, they do not tear, as before, in rows and columns to storm the "star-striped paradise", what can you do? The Americans themselves were forced to admit that they had to collect manat and perform the “go home” maneuver “because of a significant reduction in the amount of work”. The fact that this is true is quite convincingly evidenced even by the data of a survey conducted by the Public Opinion Foundation in Russia at the end of last year. According to the results of this, more than a third of respondents said that they treat the USA “badly”. The number of citizens with such a position increased in 2018 by more than 10%, and, accordingly, the same proportion decreased (to 11% from 22% of respondents) the number of Russians who are well related to this country. Moreover, exactly half of the respondents honestly stated that they simply did not give a damn about the United States ...
Well, and what kind of emigration can be in this situation? Striving for a country from the mere mention of which turns you off your soul is stupid, at least. No less unreasonable is the desire to settle where you are, to put it mildly, not too happy to see you. The opinion of more than half of the participants in the above survey, who called relations between the US and Russia “bad,” was not born from scratch. Russophobia constantly broadcast by Washington, endless sanctions, threats and nit-picking — it is on the basis of these “messages” that Russians form their attitude towards the United States as a state. But there are especially outstanding cases! How can one not recall Mr. Paul Goble, an adviser to the US Secretary of State (fortunately, already a former). This figure, seriously criticizing “Trump’s excessive leniency towards the Kremlin,” proposed no less, but “canceled American visas to all, without exception, Russians” and confiscated their property, which could be found in the West! And at the same time - to add to the Interpol base, as criminals, “Putin’s administration officials”, without exception, and “disconnect the Russian banking system from SWIFT”.
After such "cordiality", the Americans, of course, can only close the offices in Moscow. However, the point is definitely not only this. Continuing to quote the cult rock band, we note: the "forbidden fruits of America", which really taught us to love for so long and carefully, turned out to be not paradise apples at all. Tasteless and distinctly giving away with rotten, these “fruits” did not bring either saturation or joy, nor, moreover, the promised “knowledge”. If with the help of overseas “friends” we also learned something, it’s only that we want to forget as soon as possible. A Russian person can go on for insight and admonition for a long time - but if they come, then they will not be able to re-conduct it on the same chaff. The "American Dream", which in many crowds lured our people into the distance in Soviet and perestroika times, turned out to be an ordinary fake. And the complete disappointment of Russians in it is a real fact.
In this regard, it will be very appropriate to mention that I’m not afraid of the word, the hysteria that some of our media arranged this week due to another poll conducted by the Levada Center on the attitude of Russians to emigrating abroad. Despite the fact that the percentage of those wishing to leave their homeland remained steadily low - 17% of those polled, the restless “public” found, from which to create a reason for panic. “Almost half of Russian youths dream of“ dumping! ”“ The authorities do not care that the future of Russia is preparing to “make legs” out of it! ” - and these are far from the most catchy headlines from those flashed in news feeds. And it was about the fact that 41% (no longer half!) Of the young people aged 18-24 who participated in the survey spoke out positively about the idea of moving to another country.
In my opinion, Dmitry Peskov, who had undeservedly "gotten into nuts" in the national press, calmly reacted to a question about this matter posed to him with a laid-back mental stress. The presidential spokesman quite reasonably remarked that, firstly, youth is always characterized by a craving for change - including their place of residence. And, secondly, the results are not so nasty to shout directly! As a result, Peskov was accused of “indifference”, for some reason they were dragged into the desire of our youth to leave “behind the hill” of the arrested Arashukov, and they all ended up with the conclusion that 40% of young fools are ready to hang out around the world as emigrants because of the “absence of social elevators ”and, in general,“ hopelessness of their future ”.
I do not set myself the goal of specifically defending Dmitry Sergeyevich - I simply cannot stand it when figures and quotes are taken out of context, mercilessly twisting the facts. He is absolutely right that "everything is relative." I will not cite neighboring Ukraine as a counterexample, the inhabitants of which are fleeing, especially in the last five years, literally in millions - and not only young ones. Including, by the way, to Russia. We touch on the country with which the conversation began - the United States of America. After all, it is they who, in the imagination of seekers of a better life from around the world, are just a dream and a benchmark - according to a recent study by the American Institute of Public Opinion, 158 million (or 21%) of all emigrants of the world sought to get there.
So - according to the same survey as in Russia this year in the United States, “dump” away from this “earthly paradise” dream of ... 16% of those who participated in it! And this, by the way, is a record level for the last three presidencies - the Americans are uncomfortable living under Trump. Among young people aged 15 to 29, one third is not averse to leaving the country. This is not the Levada Center, of course - it’s “only” the world famous Gallup Institute. But the figures given, I think, can be trusted.
So was it worth it to raise a panic because of a certain number of boys and girls who really still have no idea what they want from life? Again - they do not aspire to leave Russia, but only allow the thought of such a thing. All these are subtle matters, very close to fortune-telling on coffee grounds. The real facts that were mentioned at the beginning testify that America lost the battle for the minds and hearts of Russians. But in the confrontation between the two countries, this battlefield is perhaps the most important thing.
What is the reason for this decision? It is simple and banal - the Russians do not need the services of this institution! Well, they do not tear, as before, in rows and columns to storm the "star-striped paradise", what can you do? The Americans themselves were forced to admit that they had to collect manat and perform the “go home” maneuver “because of a significant reduction in the amount of work”. The fact that this is true is quite convincingly evidenced even by the data of a survey conducted by the Public Opinion Foundation in Russia at the end of last year. According to the results of this, more than a third of respondents said that they treat the USA “badly”. The number of citizens with such a position increased in 2018 by more than 10%, and, accordingly, the same proportion decreased (to 11% from 22% of respondents) the number of Russians who are well related to this country. Moreover, exactly half of the respondents honestly stated that they simply did not give a damn about the United States ...
Well, and what kind of emigration can be in this situation? Striving for a country from the mere mention of which turns you off your soul is stupid, at least. No less unreasonable is the desire to settle where you are, to put it mildly, not too happy to see you. The opinion of more than half of the participants in the above survey, who called relations between the US and Russia “bad,” was not born from scratch. Russophobia constantly broadcast by Washington, endless sanctions, threats and nit-picking — it is on the basis of these “messages” that Russians form their attitude towards the United States as a state. But there are especially outstanding cases! How can one not recall Mr. Paul Goble, an adviser to the US Secretary of State (fortunately, already a former). This figure, seriously criticizing “Trump’s excessive leniency towards the Kremlin,” proposed no less, but “canceled American visas to all, without exception, Russians” and confiscated their property, which could be found in the West! And at the same time - to add to the Interpol base, as criminals, “Putin’s administration officials”, without exception, and “disconnect the Russian banking system from SWIFT”.
After such "cordiality", the Americans, of course, can only close the offices in Moscow. However, the point is definitely not only this. Continuing to quote the cult rock band, we note: the "forbidden fruits of America", which really taught us to love for so long and carefully, turned out to be not paradise apples at all. Tasteless and distinctly giving away with rotten, these “fruits” did not bring either saturation or joy, nor, moreover, the promised “knowledge”. If with the help of overseas “friends” we also learned something, it’s only that we want to forget as soon as possible. A Russian person can go on for insight and admonition for a long time - but if they come, then they will not be able to re-conduct it on the same chaff. The "American Dream", which in many crowds lured our people into the distance in Soviet and perestroika times, turned out to be an ordinary fake. And the complete disappointment of Russians in it is a real fact.
In this regard, it will be very appropriate to mention that I’m not afraid of the word, the hysteria that some of our media arranged this week due to another poll conducted by the Levada Center on the attitude of Russians to emigrating abroad. Despite the fact that the percentage of those wishing to leave their homeland remained steadily low - 17% of those polled, the restless “public” found, from which to create a reason for panic. “Almost half of Russian youths dream of“ dumping! ”“ The authorities do not care that the future of Russia is preparing to “make legs” out of it! ” - and these are far from the most catchy headlines from those flashed in news feeds. And it was about the fact that 41% (no longer half!) Of the young people aged 18-24 who participated in the survey spoke out positively about the idea of moving to another country.
In my opinion, Dmitry Peskov, who had undeservedly "gotten into nuts" in the national press, calmly reacted to a question about this matter posed to him with a laid-back mental stress. The presidential spokesman quite reasonably remarked that, firstly, youth is always characterized by a craving for change - including their place of residence. And, secondly, the results are not so nasty to shout directly! As a result, Peskov was accused of “indifference”, for some reason they were dragged into the desire of our youth to leave “behind the hill” of the arrested Arashukov, and they all ended up with the conclusion that 40% of young fools are ready to hang out around the world as emigrants because of the “absence of social elevators ”and, in general,“ hopelessness of their future ”.
I do not set myself the goal of specifically defending Dmitry Sergeyevich - I simply cannot stand it when figures and quotes are taken out of context, mercilessly twisting the facts. He is absolutely right that "everything is relative." I will not cite neighboring Ukraine as a counterexample, the inhabitants of which are fleeing, especially in the last five years, literally in millions - and not only young ones. Including, by the way, to Russia. We touch on the country with which the conversation began - the United States of America. After all, it is they who, in the imagination of seekers of a better life from around the world, are just a dream and a benchmark - according to a recent study by the American Institute of Public Opinion, 158 million (or 21%) of all emigrants of the world sought to get there.
So - according to the same survey as in Russia this year in the United States, “dump” away from this “earthly paradise” dream of ... 16% of those who participated in it! And this, by the way, is a record level for the last three presidencies - the Americans are uncomfortable living under Trump. Among young people aged 15 to 29, one third is not averse to leaving the country. This is not the Levada Center, of course - it’s “only” the world famous Gallup Institute. But the figures given, I think, can be trusted.
So was it worth it to raise a panic because of a certain number of boys and girls who really still have no idea what they want from life? Again - they do not aspire to leave Russia, but only allow the thought of such a thing. All these are subtle matters, very close to fortune-telling on coffee grounds. The real facts that were mentioned at the beginning testify that America lost the battle for the minds and hearts of Russians. But in the confrontation between the two countries, this battlefield is perhaps the most important thing.
Information