There's No Point in Being Afraid

The wages of courage

This piece was sent by Sergei Ross from the administrative prison where he is under arrest.

“I told you!” - Alexandra Andreeva, a deputy of the Lefortovo Municipal Council, wrote to me after my arrest, hinting that I should not have gone to the polls to register my position against the war. Andreeva is a meticulous lawyer and an energetic, enterprising deputy; she believes that it is better not to “tease the goose” and venture an opinion on the federal agenda unless asked. Her personal position is very tolerant of the authorities - judging by her blog, she believes that it would be better for Ukraine not to aggravate its situation. In general, she feels it would be easier to give up.

The other day, she was taken away. As was Andrei Morev, who is a staunch supporter of the Yabloko party and, therefore, opposed to Alexei Navalny. As was Mikhail Lobanov, who is sympathetic to the Communist Party of the Russian Federation and did not go to these municipal elections at all, but did call on his comrades to participate.

I am not gloating, but I want to repeat a simple truth: we must remember the history of the Russian Empire. This government abhors any competition, no matter who you are: a fighter like the socialist revolutionary Grigory Gershuni; a compromiser like Pyotr Struve, running to Prime Minister Pyotr Stolypin for consultations between Duma sessions; a convinced pacifist and populist Leo Tolstoy; or a nationalist monarchist who received money from budget, Alexander Dubrovin.

If you claim any weight or authority in the eyes of citizens, you are an enemy and will be dealt with as such. The difference is only in the method: crushed - like Navalny; restrained - like Ross; or be played for fools and be seduced by the appearance of cooperation - as happened to the very responsible liberals from the New People party.

I love teamwork, Russia, and I’m also very responsible, but I don’t like empty illusions. We have not had a public policy for a long time, all we have is the struggle for the right to it. Our history has already passed by this fork many times in the past - once the lesson is not learned, we will have to go through it again. Everyone will have to choose a side, and hitting “save” will not work.

But you should not be afraid. You could always live in prison. Everyplace has its bright side.

If during my last arrest in Mnevniki I studied the basics of thieves’ jargon, chased cockroaches, and cleaned the sewer after it began to leak (together with Professor Kagarlitsky), then here, in special detention center No. 1 in Sevastopol, the conditions are almost exemplary.

I never thought I’d say this, but I would put 4 or 5 stars in my review. The mattresses are clean, there are no cockroaches (I’m in shock), the guards are polite, the plumbing is not kaput. There still is, of course, the same hole in the floor, and there are also iron doors and bed frames welded to the walls, and cafeteria food (as from childhood), but the difference from my previous experience is amazing.

In Mnevniki, there was usually a fight for boiling water; our daily ration came in five-liter plastic bottles, wrapped in a blanket so that it did not cool down. But here it’s just fantastic: there are stainless steel containers in the cells, which the guards help to fill 2-3 times a day, almost like a homemade kettle.

In general, I recommend it! The next time you’re faced with political repression, demand only the finest detention center! I was in the same one as Ross and the guys from the leftist student magazine DOXA (at least judging by the inscriptions in the walking yard).

There are minuses. No one has their own mobile phone; once a day they give out a common one, you insert your SIM card and then you can call.

P.S. I was horrified to see in the daily schedule from 10:00 to 10:15 that a mandatory viewing of video clips of patriotic content was to occur. I’d already warned everyone that I would return a different person, but they did not show the videos. Maybe it’s for the best.