9/29/2004

Ahhhhh, Moscow in the fall.

A story at msnbc.com describes the recent economic boom in Russia. Realistically, Moscow and St. Petersburg are booming while the rest of Russia is suffering. The main reason, if not the only reason, for the boom is Russia's oil reserves. However, the rest of their agricultural and industrial output are low. Something that is happening is a wide gap between the rich and the poor.

Inside of Moscow one will find expensive cars and luxurious homes, while just outside one will find homes without water or electricity. This has left some wondering whether or not they were better off in the communist days of the Soviet Union.

Some say that even though capitalism might create an uneven distribution of wealth, it increases the well being of the nation as a whole. In this situation, though, it seems that the populations of two cities are benefitting while the rest of the country's well being is decreasing.

One woman claimed that her refrigerator was always full when it was the Soviet Union. Another complains that while prices go up because of the economic boom, her pension remains the same.

Is this only a temporary effect? Will the rest of the country eventually catch up with Moscow and St. Petersburg?

1 comment:

Dr. Tufte said...

This post could be tied better to what we do in class.

I have heard the same thing about Russia. Any time you see something like this, you should be asking whether or not there are powers in those cities which are using the legal and political systems to transfer wealth from poorer to richer regions.