>It all depends on who you know.
Sounds like the way things work in the US:-).

>The taxes turned out to be more than the profit he made in a year.
Like you said, it depends on who you know. A year or so ago, a company in in Houston, that had not paid any taxes in years, there was an attempt by the candidate they sponsored, to give 243 Million Dollars in overpaid minimum taxes they never paid.

>There were factories in the city which were deliberatly allowed to go bankrupt and left idle until they were worthless. This allowed people in the right positions to buy them for nothing.
Sounds like the kind of ruthless capitalism our alpha males practice here! You almost get the sense they think they'll have money to spend in heaven-).

>Despite the fact this scheme put all kinds of people out of work. It was also not uncommon for workers and teachers not to be paid for 4-6 months.
Thats a shame - teachers are the most important people in a culture.

>The phone system that I had to use could only sustain 300baud so access to e-mail and the internet were nearly impossible. Even today I cannot contact my friends via e-mail.

I know that Europeans pay by the minute. It seems hard to control costs that way. We lease lines here. I remeber some funding that Russia received from the US - it seemed implicit in the funding agreement that the money be used to set up McDonald franchises and coke machines. Privitization is a form of colonialism. It seems that pushing to democrasize cultures is just another way for outsiders to own a country's resources. Sad choices: Corrupt national ownership or corrupt international ownership.

>My experience with approaching regional leaders is that they will take control and move things in a direction that is advantage to their interests not yours.
You need to make them understand that acting in YOUR best interests is the only way they can act in their best interest. Let them not forget the fond farwell Mousilini and Marie Antionette received from their constituents:-).

Building a power base takes time. You must not let the coruptness of the staus quo deter you from the future you want. The government works for you. Without you, they are powerless. Organize, give yourself a reasonable window of time and don't give up.

>>>>Start with your provencial leaders and neighbors. Organize. Get the changes you need to make development tools cheaper - or (my preference), compete and offer the world another [better] option. Don't waste time looking back or lamenting the issue!
>>>
>>>I can understand what are you hinting at :)
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>>Don't start reading between the lines on me! Don't lay your European sensitivities on me:-) Now I feel bad for sounding like an obnoxious Yankee! I am, of course (obnoxious), but I don't like feeling bad about it:-)
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>>Some of us in the states are independent contractors. Customers like that because they just have one bill to pay (no health insurance or social security or unemployment insurance). An independents job is to get fired. You deliver the project and then you're fired. Hopefully, some follow-up work and we get to work in a variety of industries. Very Risky work! It always helps to understand bookkeeping (and accounting) systems and rules. Automating bookkeeping tasks is a big part of custom projects I have the fortune to enjoy. It always helps to have flow charting skills. It's the only basis to determine a price and delivery schedule. This is how a prospective niche market might be isolated. If the developer is writing a system, it means that a useable system is not available. A market - maybe!
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>>Now, you tell me about Russia - do you have job boards where you can search for work? Do you have independent developers? Can you set up a company and get funding?
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>>Do you see yourself selling development services, or do you have an idea for a product? ARe there any success stories you can share about other engineers or startups?