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ENVY DROVE DENUNCIATIONS How thoroughly depressing. It still happens, though. I recently met someone who works at the local tax office here in Poland, and fou

ENVY DROVE DENUNCIATIONS How thoroughly depressing. It still happens, though. I recently met someone who works at the local tax office here in Poland, and found out that the area I live in is notorious for the large number of "Mr So-and-so is driving a new car, and I think it's because he hasn't paid his taxes!"-type reports from my neighbours. Apparently it's endemic; any time someone shows up with a new something, a phonecall is made from a different neighbour to the tax authorities. As much as I believe in paying one's taxes - and for the avoidance of doubt: I'm a very honest taxpayer! - the whole business left me feeling somewhat uneasy.

golergka 11y ago
It's a complicated topic. In russian culture, for example, you cover your friend and even your neighbour, even if he did something worse than not paying his taxes. Even if it's a husband beating his wife, and you decide to call the cops, people still will look at you in a certain way. Surely, you would agree that this level of disdain for authorities is not very heealthy too.
- varjag 11y ago
  It's even more complicated. With all the outward cultural disdain for the "rats", Russians do not hesitate to write secret or anonymous reports to authorities. It's prison culture meeting communist morality.
- sigsergv 11y ago
  The situation is much more complicated. Some sources mention 5 m reports written to authorities during Stalin epoch. Russian good-worse scale is not the same as for Western Europe or US for example. I'd say that there is no such scale at all, because everything depends on context (city, neighbours, social group etc).
- stefantalpalaru 11y ago
  > Surely, you would agree that this level of disdain for authorities is not very heealthy too. That depends on whether the authorities are a danger for civilians, and when they start acting like organized crime or like the arm of a dictatorship, they truly are one.

golergka 11y ago

It's a complicated topic. In russian culture, for example, you cover your friend and even your neighbour, even if he did something worse than not paying his taxes. Even if it's a husband beating his wife, and you decide to call the cops, people still will look at you in a certain way. Surely, you would agree that this level of disdain for authorities is not very heealthy too.

varjag 11y ago
It's even more complicated. With all the outward cultural disdain for the "rats", Russians do not hesitate to write secret or anonymous reports to authorities. It's prison culture meeting communist morality.
sigsergv 11y ago
The situation is much more complicated. Some sources mention 5 m reports written to authorities during Stalin epoch. Russian good-worse scale is not the same as for Western Europe or US for example. I'd say that there is no such scale at all, because everything depends on context (city, neighbours, social group etc).
stefantalpalaru 11y ago
> Surely, you would agree that this level of disdain for authorities is not very heealthy too. That depends on whether the authorities are a danger for civilians, and when they start acting like organized crime or like the arm of a dictatorship, they truly are one.