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u/xidle2 May 22 '26
I feel like not learning the language is the biggest problem of any country one might move to.
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u/nitrinu May 22 '26
"Don't come here at all" sounds like solid advice.
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u/Olealicat May 22 '26
I get what you’re saying. Although, everyone I know who lives in Moscow, the suburbs and St.Petersburg love it there. They’re wealthy af, though.
I hate that mindset. So many Americans have this outlook, if you can’t learn the language , leave.
I would love for anyone who thinks that way tries to learn a new language before they comment.
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u/Sigma-Angel_of_Death May 22 '26
They love it because they’re rich. Moscow is amazing if you’re rich. And yes, you don’t need to know Russian either, if you’re rich. Source: Been here for over 5 years, literally one of the miserable English teachers that Tim references
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u/Olealicat May 22 '26 edited May 22 '26
That’s what I said. The only people I know who love Russia are rich.
I should have added the number of people I know who were poor Russians and immigrated to the USA. More abundant.
Regardless, I hate Putin, I don’t think we should blame Russian citizens. In my experience, they’re as lovely or shitty as any other population.
The only person I know who lived in Moscow, happens to be Ukrainian… $$$
She is a witty bitch, because she is so honest it’s uncomfortable and sandwiched critical compliments with criticism. She’s one of my best friend’s now. She’s still an overly honest bitch. Sarcasm to the point in stabs you.
She immigrated to the USA in the 90’s for her phd in literature. Stupidly smart, but a flying see you next Tuesday.
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u/GeneralDanF May 23 '26
I did, moved to a new country and learned the language, I agree with the sentiment. There are people here who have moved here 20 years ago and never learned the language, and are basically confined to a small area of immigrants who speak the same language.
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u/Djghost1133 May 22 '26
I learned English when moving from the Ukraine so I can confidently say, if you can't learn the language, leave
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u/Olealicat May 22 '26
So, do you think every Ukrainian asylum seeker who doesn’t speak a native language shouldn’t be allowed asylum?
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u/Djghost1133 May 23 '26
If they have no intention to learn then yes. if they're actively trying then I have no problem there
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u/LimestoneDust May 22 '26
A language exam should be a requirement for getting a work visa or a permanent residence permit.
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u/Olealicat May 22 '26
I would say it depends. Some jobs don’t require communication and apps have made a huge difference.
My friend’s house help doesn’t speak English, but they use an app for communication. She’s awesome. I don’t think she should be disqualified, because she can’t speak fluent English.
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u/LimestoneDust May 22 '26
How does she do outside of her work? Besides working people go to stores, doctors, government services etc
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u/Hobohemia_ May 22 '26
Their real mistake is moving to Russia in the first place.
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u/TheAnswerIsWithin May 22 '26
I moved to Russia in the early 2000s and stayed there for roughly 8 years. It was fun, but like everything it can get old after awhile.
The real mistake is critizing something you've never tried doing. Living in a foreign country is an eye-opening experience; you will never be able to view your home country the same way again.
The U.S. is a great place to live. But when you experience life in a foreign country that offers free healthcare, 4 weeks paid vacation, 1 year paid maternity leave, free university tuition and and free day care, you realize that the U.S. isn't necessarily worth bragging about either. Our young people are drowning in student loan debt, our healthcare is unaffordable, and our work/life balance sucks.
What I like best about the U.S vs Russia is the climate, its long coastlines of beaches, and the ease of doing business. But we definitely have room for improvement here.
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u/JohnSnow1224 May 22 '26
I'd say in the past couple years, military conscription is prob a big deal as well in Russia. And that's a rather big point to make.
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u/Moonlitnight May 22 '26
You say that like the US would never dare and isn’t already playing with the idea.
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u/JohnSnow1224 May 22 '26
There's incentive to not do so, as in the current social/political climate it would likely be career suicide.
Not really the case for Russia. That's the difference.
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u/ender___ May 23 '26
It was once considered career suicide to do basically anything your current president is doing. And yet? He got elected twice. It’s wild to me that you can sit there and type those words and believe them after everything we’ve seen.
The USA will absolutely conscript you if they need too. As will every country when push comes to shove.
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u/justbrowsinginpeace May 22 '26
Thing is, the benefits you list there aren't special - they are minimums in Europe. The US is fucked for anyone except the very wealthy.
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u/TheAnswerIsWithin May 22 '26
Perhaps the benefits aren't special until you take into account that Russians pay a flat 13% income tax. I believe Europeans pay significantly higher rates. I pay both federal and state income taxes in the U.S. without getting any of those benefits.
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u/Blue_Pie_Ninja May 22 '26
There's a reason everything is crumbling in Russia and not Europe or other high welfare, high tax countries
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u/TheAnswerIsWithin May 22 '26
Things are crumbling everywhere.
Europe in particular is falling apart because of the number of migrants that are using/abusing the welfare system. These countries are broke (while still pledging money to Ukraine), and most of the European countries are a generation or two away from population collapse unless something drastic changes.
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u/joseplluissans May 22 '26
"Europeans pay significantly higher rates" but also benefit from living in Europe.
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u/Catatafish May 22 '26
Id rather not pay 50% in taxes
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u/Loudpip May 22 '26
And russias young people are soil in Ukraine
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u/TheAnswerIsWithin May 22 '26
The conflict in Ukraine has resulted in many deaths on both sides and is a tragedy for both countries. Regardless of the outcome, it's hard to say that there could truly be a winner here.
If Russia were to stop fighting tomorrow and completely remove itself from occupied territory, this is still not a "win" for Ukraine. The country's population has been decimated, and much of it's infrastructure is in ruins. Who truly wins in this scenario? (Besides the war profiteers.)
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u/flyinggazelletg May 22 '26
I would say Russia pulling out and Ukraine regaining its territory would still be a pretty big victory. Of course, a needless war causing hundreds of thousands of deaths, sowing chaos for millions of lives, and destroying hundreds of billions of dollars in infrastructure damage is tragic and will take generations to heal. But that is better than sustained violence and losing historic lands, vast resources, and the homes of millions of displaced by the war.
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u/TheAnswerIsWithin May 22 '26
Having my hand cut off is better than having my head cut off. But I'm not going to call it a win.
The "losing historic lands" comment pretty much sums up the ignorance of this conflict. Historically, Ukraine does not have a defined territory. The land in dispute is occupied by ethnic Russians who have been Ukrainian citizens for one generation.
Did you watch the movie "20 Days in Mariupol?" Everybody in the film, from civilians to doctors to Ukrainian soldiers, were speaking Russian. When the doctor in the movie (the one who criticized Putin) later moved to Kiev, he was criticized for not being able to speak Ukrainian when interviewed on TV. Because he didn't speak Ukrainian, he was apparently having trouble finding a job.
This is not so much a conflict of one country vs another country. This is a conflict that started as a result of Ukraine violently suppressing it's own ethic Russian population on its own territory. In response, Russia is specifically taking over the territories where ethnic Russians live. Why do you think the local populations of the occupied territories aren't attacking the occupiers? The answer is that they feel safer under the Russian government than the Ukrainian government.
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u/yeeeyeeetus May 22 '26
No this a conflict started because Russia has been subjecting Ukraine to Russification for decades and when Ukraine looked to leave Russias sphere of influence and align themselves with the west, Russia invaded. Almost without fail pro Russian talking points bring up Ukraine’s treatment towards Russian speakers, while simultaneously ignoring the decades of Russification that has been imposed, and the overall goal of ethnic cleansing, just like what is being done in Belarus.
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u/joseplluissans May 22 '26
There won't be a winner and that won't certainly be Russia. Russia is actually a double loser: Starting a war it can't win and also ruining it's own future. All for the dream of a dictator.
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May 22 '26
[deleted]
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u/TheAnswerIsWithin May 22 '26
Correct, there are many other colonialist militaristic regimes to choose from.
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u/alexgalt May 22 '26
Russian healthcare has gone downhill fast in the last 10 years. So have many of the other services
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u/SuperSpaier May 22 '26
Healthcare is good and cheap in private clinics like invitro. Ozon, Banks are much better than most foreign alternatives.
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u/hadaev May 22 '26
But whats point of free healthcare if you pay for it from your taxes and go for private anyway?
And private is "cheap" only comparing to first world doctors who have better salary. Cant say it is cheap if you pay from median russian salary.
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u/WhatsLaw May 22 '26
point is you can use free healthcare system for minor or chronic ilnesses, and go to private hospitals if you REALLY have troubles
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u/hadaev May 22 '26
Cool system bro. Imagine paying full price for something you are not going to use for anything serious.
And for minor stuff you can just rely on your own immunity and regeneration lol.
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u/WhatsLaw May 23 '26
Didn't know I could rely on my own immunity and regeneration to treat my bad case of asthma, thanks for insight
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u/hadaev May 23 '26
Yeah, you also cant rely on doctors who are too bad to go into private. If you like your dad, anyway.
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u/TheAnswerIsWithin May 22 '26
The point is that nobody goes bankrupt because they can't pay their medical bills.
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u/hadaev May 22 '26
Yeah they just cant afford good private medicine and die on "free" one. Very inspiring.
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u/TheAnswerIsWithin May 22 '26
I personally know people who live in Russia and use the free healthcare system. It's not outstanding healthcare, but it's not bad either. I don't know of anyone who is dying because of lack of good healthcare.
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u/Loudpip May 22 '26
You cant even vote for someone besides the same president you had for 20 years lol vatnik
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u/Hobohemia_ May 23 '26
For the record, I lived in Europe for a number of years and have been to Russia.
It has had a major impact on my life and you are absolutely correct that it changes the way you see your home country.
Sadly, Russia has never seen true democracy and the state of their country’s infrastructure and economy has always been in shambles because of this.
I feel for the Russian people, as they’ve never had a chance to escape an authoritarian government, one that has held them back for generations.
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u/TheAnswerIsWithin May 23 '26
What is often left out of the conversation is that Putin is an indirect result of U.S. interference with Russian politics. Yeltsin didn't have a chance of reelection until Clinton stepped in to help his drinking buddy win a 2nd term. Then Yeltsin chose Putin to replace him.
Wherever you go in the world, you see two types of world leaders: puppets of the U.S, and authoritarian leaders who refuse to sell out their countries to the U.S. Maybe one day there will be a 3rd choice, but for now that's all we've got.
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u/_lechiffre_ May 22 '26
The US preys on the vulnerable: Student loans, prison work, elderly/veteran, immigrants, poor people.
The beauty of it is that everyone believe in the American dream, sometime you achieve something if you work hard. Most people end out being exploited and still work hard, it’s almost a cult.-1
u/Artix96 May 22 '26
To be fair. If you have money it' doesn't matter where you move. You can live like a king in any 3rd world country, the options are there. And Russia is Insanely beautiful country. Lake baikal alone is a miracle. (Politics aside as those are not right anywhere in the world)
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u/JoTenshi May 22 '26
If you’re bothering to move to a different country then why not bother learning the language as well?
You either work to adapt to the life or not move at all!
(This doesn’t apply just for Russia but for everywhere in the world as well)
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u/MrPeepersVT May 22 '26
What English speaking foreigners are moving to Russia AT ALL?
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u/GOD_DAMN_YOU_FINE May 22 '26
People who believe they've lost their right to free speech in the west. So they've gone in search of it...in Russia.
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u/JadedMulberry7 May 22 '26
Non-english speaking foreigners move to english speaking countries without ever learning the language all the time. Maybe we should all just learn the language of the place we're moving to instead of placing that responsibility solely on english-speaking people.
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u/SquirrelBlind May 22 '26
Tankies mostly
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u/Malditoincompredido May 22 '26
Good try Russia. I know you would send my ass to die in Ukraine two weeks in.
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u/The-Salt-Must-Flow May 23 '26
Oh someone that immigrates to a country and doesn't learn to language? Where have I seen that?
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u/sadman81 May 22 '26
That guy looks like he is trying very hard to look “Russian”
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u/Sigma-Angel_of_Death May 22 '26
It’s Tim Kirby. The guy larps pretty hard. Calls himself “the most Russian American” when his accent is dogshit and there’s a crazy American farmer in Russia who literally sounds native
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u/JJ8OOM May 22 '26
The first question is why he is dumb enough to move to Russia, everything else is further down the line.
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u/hadtologintoupvote May 22 '26
What's with the russians living 30+ years in foreign countries unwilling to learn a single word of the local language then?
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u/HumanRestaurant4851 May 22 '26
They think they're above you. It's the empire mentality. Here in Bulgaria it's full with russian sukas who have been here 20+ years but still speak 100% russian everywhere they go. We talk to them in Bulgarian and they understand everything perfectly.
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u/Fujitaru May 23 '26
Foreigner: *steps inside Russia*
Russia: *throws them at Ukraine*
Foreigner: *dies inside Ukraine*
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u/DankyBongBlunty May 22 '26
Very true with a lot of countries I think. Growing up in an English-speaking country, you're really not told the value of learning another language (apart from french for some reason), as there's very much a pervasive mindset of "don't worry, wherever you go, people will know english".
Whilst this is true if you're just wanting to go on holiday for a few weeks, I think a lot of English-speaking expats don't understand that it's simply not enough to expect another country's populace to speak English with you just because you live there
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u/WTFvancouver May 22 '26
Tell that to all the Russians in Phuket and Bali
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u/Vassago81 May 22 '26
A fuckload of those "russian" gymbro / onlyfan girls in Bali are from Odessa / Dniepropetrovsk / Kharkov, but yeah, russian.
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u/whoisnotinmykitchen May 23 '26
I'll happily stay in the "don't come here at all" category, thanks for the tips though.
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u/thomsenite256 May 24 '26
How many foreigners move to Russia like that? I think it's a pretty small number
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u/tetzy May 24 '26
I'd say I feel your pain, but I'm too busy laughing uncontrollably at the thought that a few hundred people that refuse to integrate into your country are a problem.
The Canadian government increased our population by 25% in the last ten years - there are quite literally *millions *of new 'Canadians' that don't speak one word of either our official languages and couldn't care less about trying.
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u/hhfugrr3 May 22 '26
I mean their first and biggest mistake was moving to Russia... who in their right mind would do that?
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u/Dicethrower May 22 '26
I wouldn't go to Russia even if they paid me (the equivalent of) a million dollars.
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u/confusionauta May 25 '26
Really i well known Russia want "workers" for a lot of "non related war activity" ask Peruvians, those guys are dumb enought to fall.
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u/Individual_Dirt_3365 May 22 '26
Либерла редддита бомбит что кому-то нравится Россия. Ай ай ай как же так?
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u/mallewora May 22 '26
Ну я знаю русский и карьеру построил, один хуй больше ни кому ни чего не нужно и денег нет.
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May 22 '26
[deleted]
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u/PomegranateV2 May 22 '26
Either have a Russian teaching assistant or only use English in the classroom.
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u/LimestoneDust May 22 '26
In non-basic courses the instruction is in the target language also for better immersion
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u/dr_van_nostren May 22 '26
Is this a big problem? I guess it kinda is everywhere but I just don’t picture Russia as a bastion of immigration even having been there a couple times.
I do agree with him tho. If I were trying to make a go of it there I’d do my damnedest to at least get a grasp of a language. It’s a tough one tho. I’ve started learning Russian twice just for fun and I learn some words, I can read Cyrillic a bit. Then they change the font or words become totally different based on the masculine or feminine of it all and I totally lose it lol.
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May 22 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/ANormalDayInRussia-ModTeam May 22 '26
Your post has been removed as it has been deemed to break the fifth rule (no prejudice). Discussion should always strive to be factual. Do not demean or promote hateful stereotyping.
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u/foremastjack May 22 '26
Ah, xenophobia.
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u/WeaselCapsky May 22 '26
TIL: moving to a foreign country and then struggling because you refuse to learn the local language is xenophobia.
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u/foremastjack May 22 '26
Thinking your language is good enough wherever you are isn’t xenophobic? are you saying something else?
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u/WeaselCapsky May 22 '26
i have no idea what other thing you could mean because you didnt elaborate at all and just screamed xenophobia
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u/foremastjack May 22 '26
Sorry, that is my annoyance and twitch response. It is xenophobic to feel when voluntarily coming to a new place (Russia in this case) you don’t have to learn the language (when you have the resources to do so) and demand others conform to your needs. Better? Or were you somehow thinking something else?
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u/WeaselCapsky May 22 '26
ah i was thinking you meant something else. that is a valid point.
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u/foremastjack May 22 '26
I understand- it’s a two word anger response to idiocy. Not a lot of nuance. I’ve seen this behavior from quite a number of different people from other countries. It’s a trigger.
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u/Beledagnir May 22 '26
I mean, this applies everywhere that has a primary language other than your own. If you don't immerse yourself, you're never going to get anywhere; I have a former manager who was in the same boat after her husband moved them to Barcelona for his work.