BY LEANDER C. DOMINGO
RUSSIA is a Socialist country with mixed economic system, a combination of planned or controlled (socialist) and free market (capitalist) economy.
In 1990, the first McDonald’s opened in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). This happened as a result of former Soviet Union President Mikhail Gorbachev’s policy of Glasnost (opennes and transparency) and Perestroika (restructuring) starting in the 80s.
There were many skeptics in the West at that time. We were even required by a professor from Hamburg, Germany to read a book titled “You can trust the communists to be communists.”
USSR’s totally controlled (communist) economy was then failing and eventually resulted in the Republics’ disintegration. It was their economy going bankrupt, simply because their economic system was kaput.
Gorbachev was a Social Democrat but was perhaps heavily influenced by his mother who was a devout Orthodox Christian, Maria Penteleyevna Gorbacheva.
Of course, we have learned that the roots of Western Civilization is Christianity which teaches and promotes the autonomy of economics based on Judeo‐Christian thought. In other words, Christianity has been intricately intertwined with the history and formation of Western society.
Now, there are at least 650 McDonald’s throughout Russia and the fast-food chain is thriving in the country. That is Capitalism folks with a capital C for 30 years now.
Perhaps, Russian President Vladimir Putin is no longer a communist hardliner. In 1999, Putin described Communism as “a blind alley, far away from the mainstream of civilization.”
We believe, Putin knows better what communism really is being a former KGB and a Nomenklatura.
During the cold war, we feared communist Russia with its arms capability especially when Kremlin issues an order. In these trying times, we may say “thank you for your vaccine” if it can and will protect us from the dreaded coronavirus.