This is Oleg Morozov, a prominent representative of the Party of Crooks and Thieves.
As you can see from his positions, he is one of the senior Crooks and Thieves. Because of his special status, Oleg Morozov was issued a flashing blue beacon. So that when all the riffraff—people like the rest of us—are driving around on our petty errands (to work, or, you know... back from work), we, the riffraff, will scramble out of the way and yield the road to Morozov as he travels to carry out his State Mission. Here is how passionately he defended his beacon on May 12, 2011: “The beacon is essential!” Oleg Morozov repeated. “A necessary thing! They’ve piled so much on me! At 9 a.m. I have one report in one place, at 11 a.m. a Duma council meeting, at 12 I have to be at the White House (the Russian government building)... And everywhere I’m the speaker! From the Duma to the White House using the center divider lane—it’s only 11 minutes!.. Otherwise it’s 35–40! And that’s under good conditions...”* * Kommersant newspaper, May 13, 2011. What is especially remarkable is that Morozov made these statements at a meeting where they were drafting the manifesto of the All-Russia People’s Front. And then on May 13, the day the article appeared in Kommersant, one of the activists from the Blue Buckets Society records a wonderful video, capturing the exact place where “front member” and United Russia politician Oleg Morozov is racing off to with his flashing beacon.
There he is on Kutuzovsky Avenue, barreling down the center divider lane, cheerfully winking at the commoners with his blue lights.
And here he is, a couple of minutes later, in the parking lot of the Vremena Goda shopping and entertainment center.
For those who don’t know what the Vremena Goda mall is, Google comes to the rescue: “Vremena Goda” features boutiques of famous European brands, shopping galleries, restaurants, a premium-class movie theater, jewelry salons, digital electronics, a Porsche dealership, perfumes, beauty salons... Total area: 65,000 square meters (about 700,000 square feet). .... On the basement level, as it should be, there is Globus Gourmet, not some tacky Azbuka Vkusa. Next door is the long-awaited Williams & Oliver with legendary handmade French Laguiole knives with the signature bee at the base of the handle, and breathtakingly beautiful KitchenAid blenders—their design hasn’t changed since the 1950s. .... On the first floor you see names dear to the heart: Mercury, Chaumet, Montblanc. There is no need to worry about the fate of Vremena Goda: Mercury would never open a jewelry boutique just anywhere. After putting aside money for a pair of earrings for your beloved, you can pick out something for him too. For example, a tie or shirt at Zilli or St. James. Such caring girls deserve a reward—a floral dress by Sonia Rykiel. .... On the second floor there is a glass-walled Ferrari and Porsche showroom. How did they get the cars in there? It doesn’t matter. Beauty demands sacrifice. Next to it is a Porsche Design store, where everything—from pens to briefcases—looks like it came out of films about the future. .... Probably only the youngest and boldest will make it regularly to the third floor. There is only one question: did Deputy Oleg Morozov make it to the third floor? He probably did, since his participation in the People’s Front clearly points to his youth and boldness. Don’t get me wrong: I have absolutely nothing against expensive, beautiful stores and their bold visitors. Quite the opposite. According to the financial disclosure on the State Duma website, United Russia member Morozov and his wife earned (let’s call it “earned”) 8 million rubles last year.
So they can certainly afford the good life. But why go shopping with flashing emergency lights? Although, of course, one cannot rule out the possibility that at that moment a Matter of State Importance was unfolding at Vremena Goda. Perhaps they had just received a fresh shipment of oysters, and the deputy urgently needed to pick up a couple of dozen as gifts for pensioners. We await an explanation from “front member” Morozov, United Russia, and the State Duma ethics committee.