Aleksejs - 30 March 2008 03:11 AM

AugustaDels - 26 March 2008 08:51 AM

Aleksejs - 25 March 2008 09:40 PM

Ambersun can read the “Russian-language press in Latvia,” but couldn’t understand амберсан?

эмберсан, if to be correct.

Juris

Juri, that would depend on your accent… ;) In English, it is Латвиа or Лэтвиа?

Aleksej, of course Лэтвиa is the right pronunciation of Latvia in English.

As well as “Sweden” is the English word, though Swedish people speak: “Sverige”.

And Russians call Baltkrieviju “Белоруссия”, but Byelorussians aren’t agree and call it Беларусь.

Anyway, both Latvian and Russian have not word “amber”. It is a just English word and should be эмбер in Russian spelling.

Regards,

Juris

Aleks, to remind you, you made the following sarcastic comment to me: “ Ambersun can read the “Russian-language press in Latvia,” but couldn’t understand амберсан?”

I answered you with the knowledge you shared with Peteris of your Russian-language-press non-coverage of the deportations.  Why didn’t you share that with everyone?

Why should I? It was in a private conversation. Would you like me to share all of my private conversations? And it wasn’t a comment, it was a question. If you can read the Russian-language press, then you ought to be able to understand амберсан. There was nothing sarcastic about it.

Aleks wrote: “Would you like me to share all of my private conversations”?
Now look, sweetheart, let’s get real.  Don’t let Roberts’ ardor for you get to your head.  Your private conversations may seem interesting to you, but I’m not losing sleep not being privy to your personal admissions.  Too bad you keep them private when they are actually very revealing.  I just thought it was interesting that you always share with me what’s wrong with Latvia and Latvians and I never hear a public peep from you about what’s going in your Russian world even though I’ve asked you to share countless times.  It would have been nice to hear that the Russian-speakers commemorated the deported Russians.  That would be a start towards admitting that there was an occupation.

And I’ve said it before: what a site called Latvians Online needs is a lot of people whining about bad Russians, right? And how much more revealing do you want me to get? What else would you like to know apart from my real name, line of work, family history, connection to Latvia, place of residence – all of which are widely available on the “internets”? By comparison, you’ve said very little publicly about yourself, including such a simple thing as your real name. The only one prolific poster, or should I say cut and paster on this site avoiding identify her/him self by a real name. Not even a first name. And then, you’re suggesting that I share more of my “revealing” private conversations with Peteris? You think that’s fair?

This constant sniping about Russians this or Russians that with Aleksejs is bringing back memories of “bābu kari” some years back when the late Lilita and some other ladies burned bandwidth in a similar manner on various issues.
Let us agree that the Russian nation/state/entity has brought Latvians and, probably the world, more evil than good and that it is showing few signs of changing, but this is not really the topic of daily concern, worry, handwringing or discussion here in Latvia.
The main problems here are runaway inflation (look for 20 - 25 % in the next few months), the coming collapse of the real estate bubble, the general white-trashing of society (for lack of a better term, without having to explain the various degrees and nuances of my concept of “mutts and mooks"), the hopeless political culture, and, as I said to cynical nods and laughter at a private gathering of ex-trimdies living in Riga—“general pointlessness”.

I’d much rather talk about inflation, AIDS and drugs (we had a drug bust in our apartment building over the weekend) than about inter-ethnic problems.

However, if Russians aren’t the topic of the conversation, the Latvian diaspora here on LOL appears speechless, no?

I’ve yet to hear ambersun’s own outrage over rising inflation - crookedness of the politicians - or Latvian government’s giving way to Russia - or whatever else. No one of threads she launched dealt with economic problems, for example. But that’d be criticism of the Latvian government run by ethnic Latvians. It’s a no-no. It’s much better to criticize Russians for all of it – that way the responsibility lays across Zilupe and not in Riga. 

Let us agree that the Russian nation/state/entity has brought Latvians and… more evil than good.

I agree.

“However, if Russians aren’t the topic of the conversation, the Latvian diaspora here on LOL appears speechless, no?"--Quotes from Aleks.

IMO, it’s because many of the trimda are still and probably always will remain, psychologically, “displaced persons”.  We still don’t know quite where we belong/how we fit in and thus this burning question of identity which still gnaws and continues to haunt.  Back to the cause of it all--the occupation and even though it happened such a long time ago (in fact when I think about just how long ago in terms of real life years, I’m appalled) nevertheless, the effects are still there and it’s still the reason for how we define ourselves, or not.  And even though the occupation was caused by the Soviets, it’s very difficult to extract it from the ‘r’ word, the Russians, whether fairly or not (and BTW, whoever said life was fair anyway) from all the pain, the still smoldering wounds.

And if it appears that the trimda are not as concerned about what’s going on in present day Latvia (I, for one am), I think it’s because we feel more like observers, standing outside and looking in.  Which brings us back to the unpleasantness of feeling like an outsider, which brings us further back to why this is--the cause, which is the occupation. And if it hadn’t been for this occupation, there would be no diaspora, we wouldn’t have had to be separated, to go through this identity crisis and things in Latvia today would be way different, if only if it hadn’t been for this occupation.

And if you’re an ethnic Latvian trimdie, how and where do you fit in with Latvia’s ethnic Latvians?  And if you’re not a pure ethnic Latvian, but have some Russian mix, how do you fit in with Latvia’s Russians?  Or if you identify more with ‘musu krievi’ how do you fit in with the new wave of Russians who speak differently, have different attitudes?  And if you’re Latvian Russian how do you fit in with the Latvians in Latvia?  Questions of identity that still haunt and are centered around the occupation--the Russians.  I’m not saying that it “should” be this way, but it is, what it is.  We think more about these things because we’re outsiders, not involved in the survival, every day realities of living life in Latvia. 

Irena

Aleks, IMO, for many people a large part of “Latvian identity” in the diaspora was based on fighting them Rooskies.  Most have moved along (or passed away), but it seems that for some, their Latvian identity is nebulous (or non-existent) without the black/white starting point of evil Russians.  They’re still so wrapped up in the cold war, they’re missing so much of everything else.

Ah, and Juri, you and your namesake outdid the Babu kari a loooong time ago.  Or is that somehow different??

Thank you Irena and Anita.

Aleksejs - 31 March 2008 04:55 AM

I’d much rather talk about inflation, AIDS and drugs
(we had a drug bust in our apartment building over the weekend) than about inter-ethnic problems.

Aleksej, please… start a discussion on one such topic.  I’m willing to hear what you have to say about your community.  I’d be more than happy if you act be a “window” into a dimension of Latvia that LOL members and readers would not otherwise see.  We are, after all, a community based on a “Latvian” perspective (hence the “L” of LOL). I would be interested in hearing about what Latvia’s “Russian” community is doing in terms of things like YMCA, sports leagues, Boy Scouts, youth enrichment programs.  Latvian diaspora is often defined by their choirs, the theater groups, church congregations, sports teams, schools.  Perhaps learning that there are things people have in common may alleviate their concerns and prejudices over the things that differ between them.

Aleksejs - 31 March 2008 04:55 AM

However, if Russians aren’t the topic of the conversation, the Latvian diaspora here on LOL appears speechless, no?

Well, there was talk about the Tibetans for a hot minute.  Peteris likes to bring up Chechens.  Dr. Janums favors the Estonians.  Don’t get me started on the Lithuanians.

Aleksejs - 31 March 2008 04:55 AM

I’ve yet to hear ambersun’s own outrage over rising inflation - crookedness of the politicians - or Latvian government’s giving way to Russia - or whatever else. No one of threads she launched dealt with economic problems, for example. But that’d be criticism of the Latvian government run by ethnic Latvians. It’s a no-no. It’s much better to criticize Russians for all of it – that way the responsibility lays across Zilupe and not in Riga.

You should take that up with Sunny Bernstein herself.  Try reading what Kaža has to say on “the muttsies,” or (God forgive I am pointing anyone in that direction) to what Comrade Zag has to say about Saeima and the subject of regional representation.  The Amberdawg is not necessarily representative of all Latvians, as you are not the role model for all of Latvijas krievi.

all the best,
/R

I have read about this horrible fact, what happened in all the Baltic countries under the Soviet era.
And I would have another question, for which I didn’t want to open a new thread, I hope it isn’t a matter if I put it in here.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, what happened with the members of the Latvian communist regime?
Did they found a new party (or simply changed the Communist Party’s name) where most of them entered - as it happened in almost all former Eastern-Bloc countries?
Was there ever a time in the history of the independent Latvia when the government consisted mostly of the members of the former communist regime?

Sveiki!

Kiskun posed an interesting question: “Was there ever a time in the history of the independent Latvia when the government consisted mostly of the members of the former communist regime?”

Does anyone know whether the ‘oligarchs’ that actually rule LV, i.e., Šķēle, Lembergs et al, could possibly not have been members of the KP?

Visu labu,

E.

Lembergs was - he was the head of the Ventpils chapter of the LKP.

Yes, Lembergs was a Second Secretary of the Komsomol and Propaganda Secretary for the Ventspils Party Committee. Later he was the Secretary for Industry in the Ventspils Region Committee. Re Šķēle—I don’t know, but if he was—I don’t think he held a position.

To answer Kiskun’s question—the Party split in April 1990. The pro-independence wing became the Democratic Labor Party and eventually fused with the Social Democratic Workers’ Party (Latvia’s oldest party, which had survived in exile).

The pro-Moscow wing was led by Rubiks, who was imprisoned for his part in the August coup. The illegalized Party re-emerged as the Socialist Party—it now shares a list with Harmony Center (the “moderate” “Russian party") and is still led by Rubiks, who can’t be elected to Parliament because those who remained active in the Party after the violence of the “January events” of 1991 began cannot stand… he could theoretically be elected to the European Parliament, however.

Most entered or founded other parties across the political spectrum—one of the founders of the rightist LNNK, now fused with the Fatherlanders, for example, was Eduards Berklavs, who was a “national Communist” in the 1950s but helped draft lists of “anti-Soviet and bourgeois elements” to be deported back in 1940.

The first head of state of independent Latvia—before the Presidency was restored—was Anatolijs Gorbunovs, who had been the Ideological Secretary of the Party.

Regards,
/P