Wednesday, July 19, 2017

Painkillers

Article on opioid epidemics.
While it is really an issue, problem do seems to be a bit overblown.
In these kind of cases I blame how in western countries journalists like first hand experience.
You can never find a report in press generally describing an issue. Informing you on overall matter. It is always have to be accompanied by interviews with real simple folks who got  into it.
Of course it gives the problem a human face, something to relate to. But often it creates biases. As people tend to believe testimonies more than to careful analysis.

Saturday, January 28, 2017

History


V.V. Shulgin is a person with very interesting history. He was Russian nationalist, monarchist, constitutional monarchy advocate  and one of the members of white movement (called white as opposed to red,old Russia anti-bolshevik movement). Was a member of all sessions of Duma (first Russian parliament). He was among those who accepted abdication of Nicholas II.

So, conservative, nationalist and one who was fighting communists, after all in 1920 wrote this (highlights are mine):

...our ideas jumped over forefront...they (bolsheviks) rebuild Russian army... It might be terrible to acknowledge that, but it's what it is... Bolsheviks raised the Flag of United Russia... Communist International appeared as weapon... to expand Russia's territory...and Moscow power... no one can deny, russian language again rules over 1/6 of the world and all that in the name of Communist International... bolsheviks: 1) rebuilding Russian army; 2) restoring Russian borders... 3) preparing the return of Russia's Tsar.

Valuable lesson here: Some people may appear wise and insightful, by just being narrow minded. It just happens sometimes that time steps on the same tracks with your narrow point of view. Never for long, though.

Saturday, January 14, 2017

Cambodia

Some thoughts about Cambodia.
Money

That was tough experience converting between Riel and USD. And I think they should ban using dollars. It makes everything more expensive. I mean most stuff costs $1, because it's hard to split it further without using local money. Like in Thailand, $1 is about 60 baht. So you can conveniently split dollar at least by 6.

Beggars

People constantly begging for money almost everywhere. Victims of war, mothers with babies or children with big eyes. Striking thing was not that I never seen it before. I've seen lots of stuff like that back in Russia. It was that I haven't noticed anything like that in Thailand. Still mistery for me.
Sometimes it is interesting what things remind me about my motherland. When I talk with Chinese (esspessially mainland and HK) they remind me Russians by their lifestyle choices and maybe a bit of temperament. And now beggars in Cambodia.