Immigrants Finally Talking About Georgia

Hey, members of Philadelphia’s Russian community — previously afraid to speak out, apparently — is finally getting it together. They held a protest yesterday at Independence Mall, and KYW 1060 recaps a bunch of protest quotes:

• “Hospitals are swamped, they’re flooded with people. That’s what we need right now. We need to reconstruct, rebuild and get Russia out.”
• “In Ossetia in Tskinvali they’re still burning the houses down completely!”
• “They do not care about any standards of normal society!”
• “There are people calling in radio stations saying they’re hiding in the basements!”
• “There’s killing killing and killing! Killing and blood is their weapon! That’s the only thing!”
• “We just want to live in a normal, democratic world! That’s what we want! We do not want to live in the jungle.”

See, that’s a better description of this war than you’ll get from a TV news report, and it’s done by people at Independence Mall. Let’s hope Vladmir Putin — clearly, listening to KYW 1060 on his drive home — didn’t recognize any of those voices.

Pro-Georgia Rally on Independence Mall [KYW 1060]

Frightened Northeast Philadelphians Not Offering Opinion On Russian Affairs

What do our friendly Russian residents in Northeast Philadelphia think about the whole Russia-invades-Georgia thing going on right now overseas?

Well, this one dude is pretty clear it’s all Putin’s fault, according to KYW 1060. But everybody else is just too scared to talk:

“We don’t have enough information to have complete judgment about the conflict.”

“I think that both sides are currently being misinformed by the media so it’s very difficult to make any sort of informed decision.”

Some people simply didn’t want to give any opinion: One man said, if I agree with the Russians, the Georgians will get me; if I agree with the Georgians, the Russians will get me.

By far the smartest opinion ever offered to a news station here in Philly, no doubt.

Russia-Georgia Conflict Stirs Strong Feelings in Locals With Ties [KYW 1060]

Local Russians Too Scared Of Putin To Comment

In an award that’s apparently still given out, yesterday Time named Russian overlord Vladimir Putin its Person of the Year. Wait, did that dude get poisoned with polonium this year? I guess so.

KYW 1060 went to Northeast Philly to ask the city’s sizable Russian contingent what they felt about Putin’s honor. And, uh, clearly the city’s Russian community understands him pretty well.

What did people in Philadelphia’s Russian community think about that? “No politics — no!” Many people like this woman were refusing to answer questions about Putin being named person of the year by Time.

Another woman said only that she is this country now and would like to talk about American politics. She thinks Hillary Clinton will be the next president.

Still another Russian immigrant to Philadelphia, Oxana, has been in this country for about two years. She didn’t care very much about the distinction that Putin has received from Time but says he is a good leader: “I don’t know what to say about it and I don’t care about it very much. All I just want to say, he is a good president for the country right now and hopefully the country will continue to develop.”

“No, really, I don’t know much about it. No, I didn’t think anything bad about Dear Leader. No, don’t put me into the re-education camp!” It’s good to see Hillary Clinton is not as frightening as Putin, though; that’s a good sign for her next November.

Area’s Russian Community Reacts (or Doesn’t) to Putin Being Named ”Person of the Year” [KYW 1060]

Philly To Welcome Russians With, Uh, Vodka

Hey, guess who’s in town later this week! The Russian national baseball team! And guess who they’re playing! An adult men’s softball baseball team from Philly! And… oh, just read the item from Inqlings.

Russia’s national baseball team, on a U.S. tour as it preps for the Beijing Olympics, will visit Friday to play a 1 p.m. game against the Greater Philadelphia Men’s Adult Baseball League Stars at La Salle University. Two players are from Philly’s sister city of Nizhny Novgorod, so the International Visitors Council of Philadelphia will extend an official welcome. Golden Gate restaurant in the Northeast will host a postgame dinner, and the IVC seeks a “vodka sponsor” to donate 45 bottles. Tax-deductible, says the IVC’s Nancy Gilboy.

Need I remind you that we, America, inventors of base ball, did not qualify for the most recent Olympics, though we’ve apparently qualified for 2008 in Beijing. The team attributed its success to having the right whiskey sponsor.

Also, forty-five bottles? Each player in this game is going to get his own bottle.

Update, 1:07 p.m.: From the Craigslist casual encounters post titled “some cock from the soviet block”: “We are a group of russian guys on a mission to convert as many women as possible to the red side. If interested, send a pic!!! The rockets are up and ready for lift off.” One can only assume these are the same people.

Talking sports [Inquirer, down the page]

Yeltsin Drunk Jokes: Too Soon?

Boris Yeltsin died yesterday. He was apparently some sort of Russian leader or something in the 1990s, but I don’t remember anything from the 1990s besides video games and my junior prom.

As KYW 1060 heard from LaSalle political science professor Edward Turzanski, Yeltsin was better known for being a big drunk:

“The news is not good for Russia and it should have been better because Yeltsin has a historic opportunity and unfortunately drank it away.” Turzanski says Yeltsin’s finest moment was when he stood atop a tank outside Russia’s parliament, resisting a coup by Communist hardliners in 1991, but after seeing him sloppy drunk 12 years ago in Philadelphia, he’s surprised he lived this long.

In America, our presidents drink away their presidency before they become president, then go to rehab and come out ready to govern horribly for eight years.

Political Scientist: Yeltsin “Drank” His Presidency Away [KYW 1060]