Winston Churchill once described Russia  as :  "a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma.,"   This Blogger has had cursory, limited, and superficial, dealings in Holy Mother Russia. He found that the best key to understanding it was reading E.M. Forster’s epic novel about Colonial India, A PASSAGE TO INDIA.    The novel explores the layers of India, riddle, mystery, enigma.   The good-hearted Brit colonizer, CYRIL FIELDING applies his Anglican modernity and tolerance to understanding India, and fails. DR. AZIZ applies his Muslim mental superiority to understanding the nation his religion conquered, and fails.  The Hindu mystic, PROFESSOR NARAYAN GODBOLE may or may not understand India, but he will never tell.   Russia has layers and layers and layers. The modernized Russian, the insular Russian, and, at the hidden core, the atavistic Russian, combining the Mongol and the Viking.   The atavistic Russian does not like suffering; however, he does believe suffering is the

This Blogger has an old adversary, from the Cold War,    turned soul mate; this Blogger met him in    the Soviet Union. This Blogger was on vacation in the Soviet Union, with Linda, checking out icons; he was a tour guide, who became infatuated with Linda.   After the fall of the Soviet Union,  because of his linguistic ability,  he did well, financially; ; upon retirement, he and his wife moved to Sardinia ( why Sardinia? People live there a long time  Gerry).   This Blogger heard from him perhaps once every nine months; he last heard from him in May, 2022, and then again  last Friday.   He emailed this Blogger, furious. He had discovered a novel had been published  about Olga Kameneva; a novel based on alternative history. In the novel, Olga survived her execution by Stalin and moves to Australia.   The old Soviet fumed :” That is like saying Custer survived the Little Big Horn, and moved to Brooklyn to open a bagel shop.”   This Blogger was commanded to craft a Blog on Olga Kameneva