Can Russia Move From Mess Hall To Restaurant?

By Yakov Krotov Copyright (c) 2009. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036 www.rferl.org/Content/Can_Russia_Move_From_Mess_Hall_To_Restaurant/1499762.html Yakov Krotov is a correspondent for RFE/RL's Russian Service. The views expressed in this commentary are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of RFE/RL People who are leaving Russia to live abroad often hear people whispering behind their backs that they are "going to where everything is ready." Before the revolution, people didn't talk like that. For centuries, leaving the tsar was as difficult as leaving Stalin later became. The difference was that under the tsar, emigration was illegal, while under Stalin it was forbidden by informal rules and the state apparatus. Ironically, though, under the tsar emigration was considered treason, while under Stalin it was considered both treason and punishment for treason. The prism of ...  more