We’ve just launched a major sociological project that I won’t tell you about because it’s secret. When it’s finished, we will come to know Rus' (a poetic/historical way of referring to Russia), and the Truth will be revealed to us.
All I can give you for now is a handful of interesting, though unrelated, sociological data points and facts about what the people of Rus' (Russia) think on various issues. It’s quite curious.
A telephone survey of Russians over 18, based on a random sample of mobile and landline numbers; the statistical margin of error does not exceed 3.8%. The questions were asked in varying order. Don’t trust VTsIOM (Russia’s state-run public opinion center); trust us.
In Rus' (Russia), corruption is still seen as a very pressing problem (which is why I once again urge you to support Rus' and vote for the ratification of Article 20).
One of the most unifying ideas in Rus' (Russia) is free healthcare and education.
This is where it gets very interesting. In Rus' (Russia), people seem to be quite supportive of freedom of speech:
But many of those in Rus' who support freedom of speech believe that publicly criticizing the President is unacceptable. Still, opinion here is split almost evenly.
People in Rus' want to manage their pensions themselves. It’s not certain that they all understand what that means, but they like the idea.
Now this is cool and unexpected. In Rus' (Russia), support for the death penalty is nothing like what people usually assume.
Perhaps the word "economic" had an effect, and if it had said "pedophiles," there would have been more supporters. But the fact remains: on this issue, Rus' (Russia) looks more liberal than the United States.
Rus' (Russia) wants to be part of Europe, no matter how much it is tempted by the charms of Tataro-Mongolia (a sarcastic reference to an authoritarian, non-European path).
Almost as much consensus as free healthcare is generated in Rus' (Russia) by the issue of gay marriage. Interestingly, 6% of the population is tolerant of such unions, which is even lower than the well-known 7%.
This is very interesting too. Even despite the imperialist frenzy on the zombie box (a slang term for television), not everyone in Rus' (Russia) wants to control the countries of the former USSR.
And finally, alas, some bad news for libertarians. Rus' (Russia) wants inexpensive goods at low prices controlled by the government. A striking result given the other answers, but that’s how it is.
We also want to thank everyone who helped us conduct this survey. They are Maksim, Darya, Dmitry, Elena, Nikita, Alexei, Kolya, Viktoria, Sasha, Galina, Vladislav, Anna, Denis, Liza, Olga, Nikita, Pavel, Mark, Vitaly, Sergey, Anna, Ivan, Yevgeny, Nikita, Anna, Pasha, Olga, Marina, Artyom, Mikhail, Lev, Anatoly, Marina, Katya, Anya, Timur, Maria, Denis, Pavel, Anna, Anya, Polina, Natalya, Nadya, Andrey, Tanya, Ruslan, Anastasia, Sergey, Liza, Olga, Arkady, Olga, Vera, Tatyana, Vladimir, Darya
Special thanks to the wonderful Galya Koposova.
Anyone who wants to work as a volunteer sociologist—sign up here.
And let me remind you once again: your vote is badly needed. Vote right now—don’t put it off.
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