The data are in: life under Putin is a continuous downward spiral into despair

[moondust]

8. Older Russians lost the most in transition.

Last edited Wed Apr 2, 2014, 01:32 AM - Edit history (1)

It's probably not fair to judge Russia against other countries due to the extraordinary social and economic changes it has undergone since the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Older Russians had the most invested in the old system and many were too old to start over in the new system--now without the benefits of socialized services, etc. You can probably figure at least one or two "transition" generations as they try to put together a system that works, create new institutions, etc. Making matters worse, I think much of the wealth created during the transition period by privatizing Soviet state assets ended up not serving the public but in the hands of a few oligarchs.