Аннотация: Antagonism of Russia and the USA as a manifestation of the opposite of collectivist and individualist forms of consciousness.
Russia prior to reign of Peter I if and has evolved, then this development was occurring extremely slowly. Institutes of the power were archaic, the governing layer in the majority was semiliterate and population of Russia was almost completely illiterate and lived according to antiquated codes. Respectively both the public consciousness and personal consciousness at similar stagnant society practically didn't develop.
The history went differently ways in other countries. At the beginning of the second millennium of our era the Charter of freedoms was accepted in England. In Italy and France of the Middle Ages the urban population had actually the same rights, as nobility. Parliaments, municipalities, judicial authorities, executive authorities functioned effectively, being substantially independently, students were trained at universities. The population had opportunity to get polls least primary education. Respectively the public and personal consciousness evolved in Europe much faster rates, than in Russia.
In this case the task of an explanation of a similar phenomenon wasn't set, but existence of it isn't subject to doubt.
Since XVI-XVII century the number of contacts of Russia with Europe through Poland, Sweden significantly increased. The elite of the Russian state of that time had gotten an opportunity of comparing of own way of life and European. Approximately for hundred years the information on life of neighboring countries was collected at a ruling layer of Russia in the volume sufficient for certain conclusions in favor of reforms, despite religious disagreements of Russia and Europe.
Stored information volume, arriving from neighboring countries, comparison of their level of development, their culture with a level of development of Russia and traveling Peter I across Europe led the upper governing country layer to the decision on reorganization of the power upon the European way as in civil, and military relation, without what Russia would remain as the unimportant, powerless state which would be divided further among themselves by more developed neighbors. From the formal point of view in many respects Peter I was successful in this reform, but it didn't affect a general population. Anyway, numerous representatives of ruling estate, and not only, were sent to Europe for education.
For several decades appeared in Russia, in addition to the lowest schools for the population, different educational institutions, including universities. However all of them trained practically only representatives of "noble" estate. Mass of the population remained in a full isolation from the European culture and was almost completely illiterate. Besides, the most part of the population of Russia was in the status attached to landowners, more precisely, serfdom has dominated in Russia that meant for consciousness of people not only humiliation, but also full stagnation, or absence of development. Nevertheless, in Russia as a result of familiarization to the European values arose, though and not numerous, but rather educated and in a certain degree a cultural interlayer. Thereby, the foundation for appearance further in Russia of representatives of brainwork or intelligentsia was laid.
In XIX century, this interlayer increased with incorporating in it different representatives of not nobility. However, in comparison with mass of the downtrodden population this interlayer in the numerical relation was insignificant.
Thus, it is possible to state, on the one hand, growth of public and personal consciousness in Russia since the end of XVII century on the beginning of XX century, but, on the other hand, - not mass nature of this growth, in difference, for example, from Europe, the population which was educated rather quite good in the mass relation.
The main thing if to look more attentively, this is what for two hundred years in Russia between overwhelming part of the lower class of the population and an intellectual interlayer, more precisely, people of brainwork was formed an enormous gap.
These parts, heterogeneous on the level of consciousness, have represented in essence two different continents, more or less bonded by a stay place, language, some traditions and religion.
At this, the consciousness of the Europeanized highest layer of the Russian society, which joined to individualistic aspirations of the western society, captured it after an era of bourgeois revolutions in Europe, sharply contrasted with collectivist consciousness of the peasant population of Russia. Life of peasants was still patriarchal and mostly was based on communal housekeeping and collectivist aspirations. It, in particular, showed "walking in the people" of Russian intelligentsia to which "people" at best didn't react.
All this couldn't but make the state as extremely unstable, i.e. capable quickly to collapse in case of approach of these or those disastrous events.
Radical mismatch of level of consciousness of mass of the population and the ruling clique expressing in different interests, aspirations can't but lead to conflicts which are aggravated in case of resistance of confronting parties. It only remained to wait for these events which happened in the second decade of the XX century. Prolonged war led to counteraction of the people mobilized in army to a ruling layer and a fast collapse of the power, despite industrial rise, high culture, numerous force organs and considerable military capacity of the state.
All remaining causes of destruction of the Russian Empire, especially put forward by Marxists, with the emphasis on class fight, the leading role of the proletariat, don't withstand criticism.
They are, at least, as secondary because in the same way collapsed also the Ottoman Empire where, practically, there was no proletariat, and scrappy Austro-Hungary with its backward and heterogeneous distant regions in which approximately same gap between consciousness numerically of an insignificant elite, intellectuals and consciousness of the downtrodden mass of the main population was formed.
At the same time, it is necessary to mark that Germany has not collapsed, despite defeat in war, attempts of revolutionaries to make changes to a political system, similar to Russian changes.
There was it because general consciousness of the population, its cultural and educational level during more than thousand-year history of more or less uniform growth of the general consciousness in the presence of operating democratic institutes had no essential gap from the cultural and educational level of a ruling layer of the nation.
All this shows the prevailing role of consciousness over material conditions of beingness which looks for a support in them and without finding, starts destroying this beingness, unsuitable for it. It also happened in Russia, the Ottoman Empire and Austro-Hungary, unlike Germany and other developed countries with more uniform public consciousness which population has not given in on temptation of revolution.
Consciousness changes extremely slowly. Therefore, there was formed in Russia under a socialist flag after 1917, eventually, some kind of empire, which is similar Russian, but with a smaller gap in consciousness of a ruling layer which in the majority was out of the people, and of the population which cultural level for years of the Soviet power significantly increased.
The Soviet bureaucracy threw up all resources of the country not on rise of a standard of living of the population, not on uniform development of economy and culture, but on fight for world supremacy by means of a militaristic superpower - the Soviet empire.
However, this empire which selected for itself under the slogan of socialism the transfer of all property to the possession of the state, i.e., in fact, state capitalism, couldn't withstand long competition with more effective competitive economies of the developed countries.
Extension of contacts with the countries of the West and rather low level of life of the population of Russia under the name USSR, the growing lag in science and economy, unreasonable costs for race of arms led, eventually, to events 1991, completed by ruin of the power.
The basic reason of decay of the Soviet empire was the following: in consciousness of the population and ruling layers of the state gradually took roots the idea that transfer of managing to rails to competitive economy, similar of western, will be enough for increase of a standard of living and finding of universal happiness.
Self-conceit of ruling elite of the country with rather low level of consciousness, dominance in it of aspirations to own material enrichment, but not to the benefit of the country and the people led to rollback of Russia to the level of the secondary state and up to transformation it in a raw appendage of the West.
Elite of Russia did not take into account that the world had been divided long by the western monopolies, therefore Russia, which was till recently as a world superpower, was out of work though its allegedly ineffective economy had been quickly destroyed by due to western tips.
As a result, Russia turned with the large supplies of raw materials actually into the semi-colony of the West, having lost both markets of sales, and production for sale, except some types of raw materials.
The ruling elite of Russia which imbibed in itself doubtful values of consumer economy of the West was being transformed to the compradors transferring the stolen richness of the country to offshores and western banks, governing structures of the country at all levels wallowed in corruption, like the most backward countries of the world. The population lost any perspectives on the future, there emerged outflow of its most competent and outstanding representatives into other countries.
There is already much written about all this. Therefore, it is possible to state the following.
Lag of Russia from the West in level of development of consciousness on some hundreds of years does not allow it to become by the equivalent partner of the western countries. These countries will always despise it as the highbrow intellectual despises the plumber.
Whether there is an output from this of the subordinate and pathetic state?
The response can be one: the real output consists only in development of consciousness, in detection and cultivation in it its most valuable features which will allow Russia to refuse from consumer values.
Russia shouldn't pass that way which led the West to decline, gradual degradation in the acid environment of the consumer economy doing of people as puppets. Besides the West promptly comes nearer to the end so as without continuous extension of the consumer capitalist economy it can't exist, and the limit to this extension already actually came.
Another question: is it possible this process of bringing of consciousness up to refusal from consumer values in the current conditions for Russia?
China here is not an example as far as China as well as the USA, is in the general system of the world economy, China is also subordinate to it, being depending on the international monopolies, and also in the consciousness follows to the stereotypes of the western life that we also watch.
The answer on this question can give only practice.
Anyway, even if it is impossible, all the same it is necessary to aspire to this aim.
Probably, the mission of Russia consists in this aspiration, which is based on its fundamental difference not in level, but in quality of until recently patriarchal public consciousness which is more inclined not to individualism, not to a pragmatism.
Tendency of this consciousness was determined by historical conditions, by the territory, by the mixed and heterogeneous population connected, however, by the general interests, the general culture. All this, including also the gap in hundreds of years from quickly developing countries of Western Europe, and many other things together still hold overwhelming mass of the population in the frames of conscious and collective actions.
The high level of culture and education of the modern population of Russia, technological achievements, collectivist consciousness in mass of population, not wishing to recognize pathetic consumer values of the West in exchange for which the West actually demanded to liquidate independence of the country, to force citizens of Russia to own, in fact, slave way of life which main line is obedience and robotizing of all citizens, is quite real basis for overcoming of pull to consuming for the sake of higher values.
Unfortunately, it is necessary to state that danger of obvious reducing of periods between critical events in our world which carries to some fundamental and quite fast overturn of all our beingness owing to closeness of the point, so-called, singularities [1], is quite high. However, very few people know about it and who knows, is complete of scepticism, thinking silently: lived always and further we will live somehow. An, no! Life isn't infinite not only at the person.
Formation, which was close to state, arose in the form of thirteen staffs: Virginia, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Northern Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia about middle of XVII century of our era on east coast of North America.
This formation actually laid the foundation to the new state which received further the name the United States of America (USA). We can therefore consider that this state exists for almost 400 years, which is not so little.
Fundamental difference of this state from Russia consists in that what the pursued deviators from the set religions of the countries and numbed traditions, the sectarians of all colors simply dissatisfied with the life in the Old World from the different states gathered there.
It was Lutheran Germans, Mennonites, English Catholics, French Huguenots. Numerous colonies were created by the Dutch, Swedes, Poles, Italians. The Jews who were pursued actually in the majority of the countries of the Old World too have directed on the new homeland. The Dutch have delivered Blacks from Africa having laid the foundation to slaveholding on the continent.
To decide on separation with the homeland, to go to uncertainty not only adventurers and losers could, but also the majority of strong people, dissatisfied with the current life, aiming not simply to the better life, but - to radical changes, to liberty, to arrange of own world which will be others than the former.
Such people should be not simply vigorous, but also they should be with the highest level of consciousness for appropriate time of their arrival in the new country, i.e. with own understanding of life, with aspirations differing from the standard, with new plans, projects. Their consciousness, its dissatisfaction and corresponding to it aspirations have required not simply to exist in the flow of time, in the present, but to direct in the future having reorganized the world under itself.
And it is valid, immigrants from English Calvinists - puritans, having arrived to America by the ship "Mayflower" in 1620, at once have concluded among themselves the agreement in which their ideas of democracy, self-government, civil liberties were reflected. Similar agreements were concluded by immigrants and in other colonies. Further provisions of these agreements found the reflection in (1788) the Declaration on the independence of the USA which made a basis of the Constitution of the country.
The population of the USA, quite homogeneous concerning rather high level of consciousness, in comparison with remaining countries of the world could quickly enough, without long swinging to begin process of economic development. This accelerated process proceeded on the basis of created here, unlike all remaining countries of the world, of democratic society of equal opportunities in which, a lot of things depended, really, from qualities of the person, but not from attendant circumstances.
However some external and internal factors were hindered by this. Americans had to exempt itself at first from importunate guardianship of England, having won against it war for independence (1775-83), and then to overcome alienation of the South and North of the country with canceling of slavery as outcome of Civil war of 1861-65.
It is curious that canceling of slavery in the USA on time coincides with canceling of serfdom in Russia.
There is nothing surprising that, possessing the most "advanced" population in the world and the most democratic institutes, having recognized a private property as sacred and having got a chance under the custody of the adopted laws to be engaged by free production and sale of goods, through short time - already in the twenties of XX century - the USA became the leading industrial power of the world.
It is known that towards the end of the 20th years of XX century the USA was practically made even in production of an industrial output with all remaining world. At these rates of economic growth in the USA were the highest in the world.
Thus, approximately during 300 years from the moment of appearance of 13 states of America, this new state moved forward economically on the first place in the world.
To save this first place and to this day wasn't simple for the USA. At first the problem of Germany emerged, which together with Japan carried the long, bloody fight by all means for world supremacy with allies which basis made the USSR and the USA.
Then the Soviet Union became by the opponent of the USA. The Soviet Union managed to be advanced in the rank of the superpower competing with the USA thanks to exclusive use of all resources of the enormous country at oblivion of interests of its population in the conditions of rigid dictatorship.
However, the low level of consciousness of the leading interlayer of the USSR and the utopian plans following from this; inability of uncompetitive Soviet economy to get closer to the economic, technological, vital and cultural level, which was achieved by the leading powers of the world, was led to the ruin of the main rival of the USA, having left this state in the rank of already single superpower in the world.
All resources of the world actually fell into hands of this state now.
Thus, mission of the USA, on the one hand, consists in demonstration of superiority of the power with population having initially the highest mass consciousness, developing in process of development of the country more and more and capable therefore to give to the state such acceleration in case of which it becomes by world leading.
On the other hand, the mission of the USA consists in demonstration, eventually, qualitative worthlessness of the idea of public consciousness putting at the forefront individualism, proprietary aspirations, psychology of consumption, which produce an economic miracle, but gradually deprive each person of this society of liberty, stopping thereby development of his consciousness [2]. As a result, under influence of the false values promoted in every way by the state, society quickly decays, human life loses meaning and the end to everything comes [3].
We will give some statistical data confirming parasitic character of the present America and sequential degradation of the population of this country.
Making about 5% of population the USA take away at least 40% of world resources in own use.
About a half of able-bodied population of the USA exists on an annuity or on welfare and Americans quite arranges this idleness.
The declared purchasing power of the main currency of the world - dollar - is much more, than its real value provided by potential of the USA. Thus, the uprated course of purchasing power of dollar allows the USA to throw continuously for own use any resources of the world practically in any quantity, without putting any work. That is the high level of life of the population of the USA means automatic lowering of the level of life in developing countries by which the USA, in fact, in every possible way hinder to develop, in particular, by means of enslaving loans.
The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, created under the auspices of the USA and international banks and monopolies gave the chance for these organizations to become by the principal regulators of the prices and omnipotent creditors in the world who set the prices, favorable to themselves for raw materials from underdeveloped countries. They enslaved whole states by provision of loans on certainly unprofitable or even impracticable conditions, deceiving or bribing elite of these countries and using military force in case of disagreement of these countries with agreements enslaving for them.
As a result, the USA and their allies extend poverty and hunger in the majority of the countries of the world for the sake of own prosperity. Actually, all these actions carry not only the USA, but also the whole world to the doom if only not to counterpose to this the new aspirations, which are opposite to their false values.
Bibliography
1. Diakonoff I. M. The paths of history. From early human up to the present day. KomKniga. Moscow. 2007.
2. Nizovtsev Y. M. In what, how and for what liberty is acting. 2014. www.litres.ru
3. Nizovtsev Y. M. Our true life is endless. 2014. www.litres.ru