sina.com.cn
新浪首页|免费邮件|用户注册|网站地图

新浪寻宝大行动,奖品多多,快来加入!!



文化教育

新浪首页 > 文化教育 > 网上学园> 英语> 北京青年报 > 正文

您还可以通过
新浪点点通软件
摩托罗拉6188手机
爱立信R320sc手机
西门子3518i手机
浏览新浪网新闻


为什么俄国人显富美国人喊穷(下)

http://edu.sina.com.cn 2000/11/13 11:44   北京青年报

  As I have come to know Russia better,I have realized that the kinds of major financial outlays that most middle-class Americans plan for( namely buying a house,paying for their children's university education and funding their own retirement) do not figure in the thinking of most Russians. Why is this so?

  For one thing,young Russians typically don't pay as large a proportion of their income in rent for their apartments as Americans do,owing to one of the few positive vestiges of the Soviet Union: heavily (in fact,almost completely) subsidized housing. Most Russians pay only token rent for their flats,and very little for utilities.Furthermore,Russian friends have pointed out that sending a child to university does not represent in Russia the huge financial challenge it does in the US. Historically,students earned places in Russian universities on the basis of highly competitive exams;once they made it in,the education they received was essentially free of charge to them and their families. This sort of comprehensive state funding of education is still found in several European countries. Even today,when parents do have to chip in for their children's living expenses,and even in relative terms,university education is a great bargain for Russians. Many continue to attend top universities at least partly at the expense of the Russian government. As a result,middle-class Russians need not save for the university education of their child or children on the same scale that Americans feel obliged to. One should also bear in mind that the average Russian family is quite a bit smaller than the average American family;Russia today has a very low birthrate.As for the third major expenditure,retirement,my Russian colleagues and friends seem to think very little about it-- and when they do,it is with a sense of great pessimism and,ultimately,resignation. On the one hand,they have almost no confidence in the ability of the government pension system to provide for them adequately in their old age;on the other,they see planning for their own retirements as impractical,and even futile.When I bring up the subject of long-term financial planning,young Russians tend to retort:"Save?Invest?

  For what?In what?Russian stocks?Even the bank accounts are unreliable,let alone the Russian stock market! We spend our money because we have no justification for investing. Who knows what tomorrow will bring?Who's to say how long this relatively healthy period in the economy will last?Why not simply enjoy the money now?" Young middle-class Russians see more utility in the experience and memories represented by a used plane ticket lying in the trash than they do in cash in the bank.Let me add,by way of explanation,that few Russians had the opportunity to travel outside the Soviet bloc before 1992;under the Soviets foreign travel,above all travel to the West,was a privilege reserved for the few. Yet Russians tend to be inquisitive and fun-loving,eager to see and to know,to experience whatever is new. By 1992 there was a tremendous reserve of pent-up wanderlust among educated Russians,and foreign travel had acquired great prestige. The explosion in travel is perfectly understandable,but is it prudent?

  Alas,younger Russians see more value in today than in a hazy and unpredictable tomorrow. To many in Russia today,saving money in a Russian bank has become a financially irresponsible act. This is the truest tragedy of modern Russian economic life. I would be the last to deny that the concerns that lead people to avoid investing their money inside Russia are very real. Nonetheless,I think that too often people who are capable of saving and investing for the future fail to see the opportunities that do exist- the Russian economy is not hopeless. The legitimate qualms articulated above too easily become rationalizations for conspicuous consumption. And conspicuous consumption,spending money to impress one's neighbors or competitors(whether or not one can afford it),has a long history in Russia too.

  The fact that the Russian banking system is extremely underdeveloped- and no one disputes this sad reality- doesn' t,to my mind,justify$600 intercontinental vacations on a salary of $1200 a month.

  随着我对俄罗斯了解的不断深入,我知道了美国中产阶级家庭计划中的主要支出(也就是买房、供子女上大学、为退休后存钱)并未出现在俄罗斯人的思考当中,原因何在呢?

  拿房子这件事来说,俄罗斯年轻人通常都不像美国人那样要从收入中拿出一大部分来租房,这是由于前苏联遗留下来的一项有利百姓当前生活的政策:住房有大量(实际上几乎是全部)补贴。大多数俄国人所付的房费只是象征性的一点,水电煤气等公用设施的费用也很少。

  再者,俄国朋友指出,送孩子上大学也不像美国那样代表着很重的经济负担。学生能在大学获一席之地历来都是靠竞争激烈的考试,一旦考进大学,所受到的教育对他们及他们的家庭来说就基本上是免费的了。这种由政府为教育全面出资的情况,如今在欧洲一些国家中仍然可见。即便是在父母必须为子女的生活费出钱的今天,即便与欧洲国家相比,大学对于俄国人来说还是非常便宜的。很多人继续上名牌大学,政府至少出资一部分。因此,在存款数量上俄国中产阶级就不必存出像美国人必须为子女存的那么多钱。还有一点请记住,俄国家庭的孩子数量平均说来比美国家庭孩子少很多。如今俄国的出生率很低。

  至于第三大项支出--晚年生活,我的俄国同事和朋友似乎想得很少。当他们想到此事时,则带有沉重的悲观感,而最终则是听天由命,一方面他们对政府能在他们年老时提供足够养老金的能力没有信心;另一方面,他们又视自己存钱是不实际的、甚至是徒劳之举。

  当我提出有关个人的长期经济计划时,年轻的俄罗斯人往往会反驳道:储蓄?投资?为什么?往哪儿投?俄国股票?把钱存在银行都不可靠,更不要说俄国的股票市场了!我们花掉钱,是因为我们没有地方去投资,谁知道明天会是什么样?谁能说经济比较好的这段时期能持续多久?为什么现在不享用手中的钱呢?年轻的俄国中产阶段从一张用过的扔在垃圾里的机票所代表的经历与记忆中,看到了比把钱存在银行所得到的更多的实用价值。为了把事情说清楚,我再多说几句。1992年之前几乎没有俄罗斯人到境外旅行过,前苏联的境外旅游,尤其是去西方旅游,则是极少数人的特权。而俄罗斯人往往好奇、喜爱玩,热切地想看、想了解、想经历新鲜事。到1992年,在俄罗斯知识分子当中被压抑的旅行热潮,已积蓄得十分强烈,境外旅游已成为极受羡慕的事情。

  因此旅行热的爆发是完全可以理解的,但这样做明智吗?

  唉,年轻的俄罗斯人更看重今天,而不是那朦胧的不可预料的明天。今天,对于很多俄罗斯人来说,把钱存到俄国银行里已是经济上的不负责任的行为,这也是现代俄罗斯经济生活的真实悲剧。我一点也不想否认,那些使人们避免将钱投资到俄罗斯国内的种种考虑是很现实的,然而,我认为,有能力为未来存钱及投资的人们总是看不到现有的机会--俄罗斯的经济并非没有希望。上面谈到的合乎情理的疑虑非常容易变为高消费的理由。而高消费,花钱以弦耀于邻里或竞争对手面前(不管自己是不是付得起),在俄罗斯也是有着久远历史的。依我之见,俄国银行极不发达这一事实--没人对这一悲惨现实进行反驳--也不能给那些月薪1200美元却要花600美元出国旅游的人找到理由。




 相关链接
为什么俄国人显富美国人喊穷(中) (2000/11/10 11:48)
为什么俄国人显富美国人喊穷(上) (2000/11/08 10:10)
 新浪推荐:定制您关心的新闻,请来我的新浪
第三届珠海航展
纪念抗美援朝战争专题
新浪招聘网站
美国NBA专题
手机频道提供资费技巧WAP及电信资讯
支持奥运,网上签名!
约会文学请到新浪文化专区
最新聊天室:E网情深



 新闻查询帮助及往日新闻

网站简介 | 网站导航 | 广告服务 | 中文阅读 | 联系方式 | 招聘信息 | 帮助信息

Copyright(C) 2000 SINA.com, Stone Rich Sight. All Rights Reserved

版权所有 四通利方 新浪网