From Echo Moskvy:
It would appear the majority of our countrymen are not at all proud of their country
This was shown in a survey that VTSIOM conducted on the eve of Russia Day. Kommersant today write about the results of the survey.
“Glorious country, we are proud of you” – this line from the chorus of the Russian anthem seems still far from reality. Sociologists from VTSIOM have found that many of our fellow citizens were not able to recall the great achievements of the country since the collapse of the Soviet Union. They were also asked what recent events people think make citizens proud. It turned out that the upcoming Winter Olympics in Sochi were remembered by about seven percent of the respondents, while the victories of Russian athletes and economic growth were remembered six percent. Nine percent of the people surveyed named President Vladimir Putin and a few less named Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu, writes “Kommersant”.
Notably, 42 percent of respondents did not find any reason to be proud of their country over the last 15 years. A few percent of the respondents remembered the growth of the economy, the entry of Russia into the WTO, the end of the war in Chechnya, and even space exploration. According to experts, this shows that the efforts of the authorities to introduce patriotic education into population has so far yielded little success.
Interestingly, last autumn, researchers from the Levada Center reported that 76 percent of people were proud of Russian citizenship, and a little later, a VTSIOM opinion poll showed that 80 percent of Russians consider themselves patriots.
Comments from Echo Moskvy:
desaqz:
Why are they not proud of anything? What about Putin?
santil:
Bring back the Soviet Union, then we’ll be proud.
ilunga2:
We need decent, liberal capitalism.
alexx2101:
How can people not be proud of anything? What about stability?
johnywalker:
Pride disappears as soon as you sober up
wuwer:
How can people not be proud of anything? What about what our grandfathers did? … We’re their grandchildren … although our grandfathers our turning in their graves at their grandchildren …
plank1957:
Very informative illustration of how Putin‘s regime is running. I hope nobody blames VTSIOM of Russophobia and Zionism.
aggga:
There’s no education, no culture, no sport left … We got angry, disillusioned … somehow, when I’m abroad I feel more ashamed to be Russian than proud …
valss:
There will come a day where the people are proud of the country that managed to free itself from the power of the “party of thieves”!
novosel2000:
And bribes and kick-backs? Aren’t we ahead of the whole world in that respect?
oldgregg:
You feel particularly proud when you come back over the Finnish border.