On Russian Nature (Via Chernobyl)

Last week marked the 25th anniversary of the Chernobyl disaster. 

“But here’s where the interesting part starts for you, for a writer. How long do you think we remembered that moment? Maybe a few days, at most. Russians just aren’t about to start thinking only of themselves, of their own lives, to think that way. Our politicians are incapable of thinking about the value of an individual life, but then we’re not capable of it either. Does that make sense? We’re just not built that way. We’re made of different stuff.”

 “Voices From Chernobyl,” by Svetlana Alexievich. Translated by Keith Gessen. From “Monologue About the Shadow of Death Chapter,” page 190, Viktor Latun, photographer.