Death of a Nation 2/6
Summary
TLDRThe video script explores the transformation of Moscow into a symbol of wealth and power, contrasting the opulence of the few with the struggles of the many. It features individuals like Vladimir Potanin, who transitioned from a doctor to a wealthy undertaker, and Sergey Veremey, a former geologist turned multi-millionaire. The narrative delves into the darker side of Russia's economic boom, including corruption, criminality in the funeral business, and the exploitation of state assets by oligarchs. It also touches on the plight of ordinary citizens, like Smirnoff, who face the might of the wealthy and the state, often leading to violent confrontations and the loss of their homes.
Takeaways
- 🏛️ Moscow has transformed from the heart of global class struggle to a symbol of Russia's new capitalist prosperity, with vast fortunes concentrated in the hands of a few.
- 💼 Vladimir Potanin's success story exemplifies the new Russian business elite, transitioning from a doctor in Soviet times to becoming Moscow's largest undertaker with a significant annual turnover.
- 🚨 The funeral business in Russia is unexpectedly lucrative and fraught with criminality, ranking third in unofficial criminal activities just behind arms and drug trafficking.
- 🔫 Last year, a high-profile incident involving the murder of a businessman's bodyguard and driver highlighted the high stakes and risks associated with wealth accumulation in Russia.
- 💰 The rapid and often ruthless acquisition of wealth in the 1990s has given rise to a new class of individuals known as oligarchs, who have amassed fortunes through connections and the privatization of state assets.
- 🕍 Sergey Veremey, once a humble geologist, now a multi-millionaire, represents the new rich who are investing in real estate and religion as a means to distance themselves from their past and the country's history.
- 🏡 The acquisition of land by the wealthy often comes at the expense of ordinary citizens, as seen with Sergey Veremey's plan to convert farmland into luxury real estate, displacing long-time residents.
- 🛑 The use of state power, such as anti-terrorist police, to enforce the interests of the wealthy against ordinary citizens, as in the case of Smirnoff and his neighbors, underscores the alignment between the authorities and the elite.
- 📉 The script suggests a pervasive sense of corruption and inequality in Russia, where the surface-level changes mask a deep-seated system that favors the rich and powerful.
- 🌐 The narrative reflects a broader global concern about the concentration of wealth and power, and the impact it has on social justice and the livelihoods of ordinary people.
Q & A
What was Moscow's former role and how has it changed according to the script?
-Moscow was once the headquarters of the global class struggle but has now become the capital of the Russian good life.
How has the wealth distribution in Moscow been perceived to change?
-The script suggests that vast fortunes have collected in the hands of a very few people, leading to a perception of unfair wealth distribution.
What significant change did Vladimir Potanin's career undergo as described in the script?
-Vladimir Potanin transitioned from being a doctor in accident and emergency in Soviet times to becoming Moscow's biggest undertaker.
What is the annual turnover of Vladimir Potanin's business as mentioned in the script?
-The script states that Vladimir Potanin's business has an official annual turnover of close to 100 million pounds.
What is the nature of the funeral business in Moscow as described in the script?
-The funeral business in Moscow is described as being rife with criminality and unofficially ranks third in terms of profitability, just behind sex trafficking and the arms trade.
What incident involving violence did the script mention as related to the funeral business?
-The script mentions that last year, Palin's bodyguard and his driver were killed and his car was shot up.
Who is Sergey Veremey and what is his background according to the script?
-Sergey Veremey is described as a former humble geologist in Soviet times who is now worth 500 million dollars.
What significant purchase did Sergey Veremey make recently as per the script?
-Sergey Veremey recently acquired 400 acres of land on the outskirts of Moscow from a group of former collective farm workers.
What is Sergey Veremey's plan for the land he purchased?
-Sergey Veremey plans to turn the land he purchased into prime real estate.
What does the script suggest about the current state of wealth acquisition in Russia?
-The script implies that in the 90s, one had to be unscrupulous and fast to acquire wealth, but now it's more about being in power or being a bureaucrat to feel safe about wealth or to amass new wealth.
What conflict is described in the script involving Rey Smirnoff and his neighbors?
-Rey Smirnoff and his neighbors are fighting a decision to demolish their homes, which they claim are illegal. They were raided by anti-terrorist police, leading to a conflict with the authorities.
Outlines
🏛️ Moscow's Transformation and Corruption
The script describes Moscow's shift from the center of global class struggle to a capital of wealth and luxury, where a few have amassed vast fortunes. It introduces Vladimir Potanin, a former doctor turned successful undertaker with a business worth nearly 100 million pounds annually. The narrative delves into the criminality within the funeral business, suggesting it's the third most lucrative illegal trade in Russia. It also touches on the broader context of corruption and the rise of oligarchs, exemplified by Sergey Veremey, a former geologist turned multi-millionaire who has acquired land cheaply from collective farm workers with plans to develop it into prime real estate. The script suggests a deep-seated corruption where the wealthy and connected exploit their positions to amass wealth, often at the expense of ordinary citizens.
🏡 Land Disputes and Power Dynamics
This paragraph focuses on the story of a wealthy individual, Veronika, who plans to convert agricultural land into a golf course and marina for the rich, facing resistance from locals who have lived there for years. Rey Smirnoff, a former Russian Navy officer and current interpreter, owns a summer house that Veronika wants to demolish. After Veronika buys the land, Smirnoff and his neighbors are deemed illegal occupants, leading to a legal battle. The situation escalates when anti-terrorist police raid their homes, leading to property destruction and violence against the residents. The incident, when broadcasted, reinforces public suspicion of the state's alignment with the wealthy and powerful against ordinary citizens. The narrative reflects on the necessity of being in power or part of the bureaucracy to secure wealth in modern Russia, contrasting with the 90s where unscrupulous speed was key.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Class struggle
💡Undertaker
💡Criminal mafia
💡Oligarchs
💡Corruption
💡State assets
💡Prime real estate
💡Anti-terrorist police
💡Golf course
💡Impoverished fellow citizens
Highlights
Moscow has transformed from the HQ of the global class struggle to a capital of the Russian good life.
Vast fortunes have been amassed by a few, leading to a perception of improved but unfair living standards.
Vladimir Potanin's success story, from a doctor in Soviet times to Moscow's biggest undertaker with a £100 million turnover.
The funeral business in Russia is unofficially the third most profitable after arms and drug trafficking.
Violence and criminality are common in the funeral business, with risks and rewards being equally high.
Sergey Veremchuk, a former geologist, is now a multi-millionaire and has acquired 400 acres of land near Moscow.
Veremchuk's newfound wealth and religious conversion have led him to build churches, including one from scratch.
The acquisition of state assets by a few with connections has led to the creation of oligarchs.
Corruption runs deep in Russia, with the surface showing impressive changes but underlying issues persist.
Local administration is increasingly controlled by those who have acquired land, consolidating power and wealth.
Anti-terrorist police raids on homes deemed illegal are used to demolish properties for development.
The state's alignment with the rich and powerful against ordinary citizens is suspected, as shown by police raids.
In the 90s, being unscrupulous and fast was key to wealth; now, being in power or a bureaucrat is essential for wealth safety and growth.
The narrative suggests a shift from individual opportunism to a system where power and wealth are intertwined.
The transcript highlights the stark contrast between the wealthy's ability to shape the legal and administrative landscape to their advantage.
The story of Moscow's transformation serves as a microcosm of broader societal and economic changes in Russia.
Transcripts
this is Moscow once the HQ of the global
class struggle
now capital of the Russian good life the
rest of the country has watched in
disbelief vast fortunes have collected
in the hands of a very few people it may
not be fair but life here appears
undeniably better than it used to be
Vladimir Potanin is one of the success
stories in Soviet times he was a doctor
in accident and emergency
now he's Moscow's biggest Undertaker his
business has an official annual turnover
of close to 100 million pounds Wisam
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soon came to mean a violent free-for-all
where the most successful had allied
themselves with a homegrown criminal
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the funeral business weirdly enough you
wouldn't think it but it's rife with
criminality in fact it is unofficially
Cher's third place with sex trafficking
just behind the arms trade and drug
trafficking
last year Palin's bodyguard and his
driver were killed and his car was shot
up so you know it's that the rewards are
huge but the risks are equally huge
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it said that there are profits to be
made from and this is hard to believe
but from selling body parts that there's
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skeletons
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there seems to be a kind of eternal
Russian way of doing things which still
obtains you know that and the more you
hear about it them this constantly
surprises that that on the surface
they've been these impressive changes
and underneath there's a deep trough of
corruption
most Russians got left behind while a
handful of people with the right
connection swallowed up state assets
that once belonged to everyone they
became known as oligarchs and Sergey
verum yonkos one of them he was a humble
geologist in Soviet times
now he's worth 500 million dollars
veremey Anka recently acquired 400 acres
of land here on the outskirts of Moscow
from a group of former collective farm
workers and paid them next to nothing he
plans to turn it into prime real estate
sergei built this church from scratch
like many of russia's new rich he's keen
to put the in justices of the past
behind him since becoming a
multi-millionaire sergei verum yonkers
found religion let me move on luckily
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lets it cook out hello mama yeah yeah
yeah yeah poor kitty steals he says you
got Krieger baptized when he was 28 he's
missing critical Jeremy Anka says God
told him to build a church here he's
building another 30 all over Russia
perhaps to ease the pain of his
impoverished fellow citizens avoid Minya
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together
it's his period it is absurd ramit of
children are on top right at the period
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of sheer Kotoko in salina by just a
credit monitor it shows wanted I then
learned that Veronica has plans to use
this land to make him even more money he
wants to turn these fields into a golf
course and build a marina for rich
people like him but there are others
have lived here for years who are
standing in the way of the project and
Rey Smirnoff was an officer in a Russian
Navy now he's an interpreter for foreign
businessmen
he owns a summer house on the lake here
and very Minka wants to get rid of it
what we observe in the in the
neighborhood is the people who have one
way or another got hold of the land they
are now getting positions in the local
administration so they're the power
they're the authorities and they've got
the land now and who is the rest of us
what new Russian serfs
shortly after very Menka bought the land
here Smirnoff and his neighbors were
told that their homes were illegal in
order to demolish them they began
fighting the decision in the courts when
suddenly they were raided by the
anti-terrorist police Smirnoff's
brother-in-law filmed it Bolivian
two houses were demolished women were
handcuffed and beaten you can imagine
that against a couple of dozen kids and
a couple of dozen old ladies there was
almost a battalion of people you know in
masks in camouflage with submachine guns
with transients and storming the houses
I read a raid like this would have been
appropriate against terrorists or
against us but not against peaceful
citizens when the footage was shown on
TV it seemed to confirm people's worst
suspicions that the state was aligning
itself with the rich and powerful
against Russia's ordinary citizens in
the 90s one had to be utterly
unscrupulous and very fast but as now
it's changed one really has to be in
power you know one of the ranks of power
one has to be a bureaucrat to really
feel safe about his acquired wealth or
to amass new wealth Sergei remain
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