Russia No.1

There is a Russian saying: "Better is the enemy of good"

This suggests a respect for stability in Russian mentality. It is similar to the English "Don't fix what ain't broke" but in the Engish expression we are talking about leaving something as it is rather than messing around with it, whereas the Russian expression is saying that we shouldn't even progress to develop a better alternative.

It has a feeling of protection for what has been invented before and clinging on to the recent past, which is part of the present. What is 'good' is what exists in our lives and what is 'better' is the future approaching to eradicate what we have. There is a fear of the future and a trick of creating the 'other' out of it as if there is some sinister external influence in control of it. If we are now, we are 'good', so who is the figure promising 'better' on the horizon and threatening everything that is now?

Russians have a tendency to look backwards fondly and fear the future. Today nostalgia for the past is evident in mass media. There have been several films about Soviet age brought in to a modern light, drawing parallels between then and now. 'Lost Empire' and 'Silyagi' for example. But more about that later....

NOTE: This is the first in a series of posts which are going to be insights and observations about Russia and its people through an examination of language, behaviour, trends, media, cultural phenomena and of course, personal experience. It is only one person's view or Russia. Of course, please feel free to agree, or disagree with anything that I write.