European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - September 08, 1977, Darmstadt, Hesse Page 20 the stars and stripes thursday september 8,1977 the soviet Union modern living " " a Moonshine and Nixon by Charles m. Madiga United press International Veronica Brauns thought she was prepare for just about anything when she signed on As guide for an american photo exhibition that i touring the soviet she was shaken to the soles of her sneak ers when one of the locals in Novosibirsk asked her if it was True that Richard Nixon was on the Moon july 4,wishing America a Happy birthday. I could t believe it she said. " i feel like i work for Rumor Brauns 22, who left the University of California at Ber Keley to join 21 other Young americans As guides for the tour has been on the Road in the soviet Union for the past five and a half months. She and her friends say the user is everything you have heard it is. Then again it s not. They have found a land of warm people and cold climates of Comfort an contradiction. One old Man asked me if it was True that everyone in the United states wore his clothes for a week and then tossed them away she said. I think they read a Little item in. The newspaper about the United states and then they blow it All out of proportion. They Are fascinated by the United states and they want to know about she and Kathy Rose 27, of Washington d.c., and Robert Taylor 25, of Manhattan Beach California took a break from setting up the exhibit to talk about their experiences in the soviet Union. The exhibit is a Story in itself. Sponsored by the Agency it is a moveable feast of american photography housed inside a massive geodesic dome. In Moscow for a final one month run it has already visited Kiev Alma Ata Tbilisi Ufa and Novosibirsk. And at each Stop the interpreters and tour guides have been Able to pick up a Little More of the Puzzle that is life in the soviet Union. I m surprised by the Standard of living Here Taylor said. Both on the Good Side and the Taylor said he visited one apartment that had one room a Small Kitchen and a filthy Bath. A worker lived there with his wife and child. But in another Case Taylor visited the Well decorated three room apartment of an artist Friend. Taylor said he was surprised by the shallow Ness of soviet knowledge about foreign affairs and politics. But he said another widely held Conception that life is grim is wrong. People Here Aren t As Gray and lifeless As we have been led to believe he said. They do have Good times and they Are Happy with what they have. You have to understand that they Don t do things the Way we do them in the United states. They just can t run out and buy things. There s a Little Story behind every thing. They save up their Money and have a Friend put an item aside then they buy it. They Are pleased with Little acquisitions other people would take for the Young americans have also seen the Darker Side of life in the soviet Union. People Are afraid to talk to them and the friendships that develop Are Brief. I like to invite people in for Coffee and to talk to them but they say no. I ask them Why not and they say you know Why not Taylor said people Are very very uneasy about it i have been sit Ting with a Friend when a stranger walks by and looks at us. Later the Friend told me he was questioned by the authorities and told not to associate with Kathy Rose ran into the same problem during one of the shows. She was working with a warm group that wanted to talk about the United states. Suddenly this Bland person Middle aged came up and started shouting Why Are you talking about the United states Why Are you talking about the politics this is a photo exhibit. Talk about she and her husband found a better Way to meet the people. We called them our adventures she said. We would take Public transportation As far away As we could get from any City and then we would one such trip took her to the Home of a soviet family in Sukhui. We went far out into the Countryside where the natives had never seen a foreigner she said. They did t know anything about what they could or could t say. It was marvelous. They had a still and we drank homemade mrs. Rose said one of the aspects of soviet life that de pressed her was the profligate waste of natural i m afraid that within the next 10 to 20 years the soviet Union will be facing the same kind of pollution problems we have in the United states then there s Mission Contra by Douglas Stanglin United press International he customs officer at Moscow s Sheremetyev Airport dug through the Small pile of a traveler s books plucked out two and set them on the counter. Bad books he mumbled. Very customs officials confiscate dozens of Playboy magazines daily but this was uneven bigger catch. Spiteful anti soviet literary garbage Tass Calls such publications brought in by Western tourists. The two books Are the russians and Russia the people and the Power prime candidates for any would be list of soviet worst Sellers. During a recent one hour period Airport officials were seen snaring at least three paperback copies of the russians he Drick Smith s Book on Day to Day life in the soviet Union. One copy filched from the suitcase of an american news correspondent prompted a heated discussion among half a dozen soviet officials before a smartly uniformed senior officer handed it Back apparently deciding any bad publicity would t be Worth it. In Tbilisi a tourist guide asked to borrow an american journalist s copy to read chapter on women in the user. The next Day she returned the Book Duffily denouncing it As anti soviet slander. The Smith Book and Russia written by Robert Kaiser apparently touch sensitive soviet nerves because they largely steer Clear of High level poli browsing for a Book in Moscow Safe from one sided reports. Tics but outline such daily Embarrass ments As the Scarcity of consumer goods and the favored treatment of party officials. In january the communist party daily Prado chided Smith former Moscow Cor respondent of the new York times and Kaiser who covered Russia for the Wahington Post for giving what it called distorted views of the soviet Union. Who in two or three years will remember the books pravda asked. American readers apparently. According to the publishers the rus sians has sold 95,500 copies in hardbound editions and there Are almost 630,000 paperback copies in print. Russia has sold 25, 000 copies in hardbound editions in the u.s., and there Are another 15,000 copies in print in Canada. In the August Issue of monthly Magazine of the Union of writers of the user the two trained Bourgeois journalists come in for even More abuse. The Magazine said the Only purpose of these books is to cause suspicion and no Confidence toward the soviet state soviet politics and toward the it said the books were written at the order of and financed by a certain category of Large capital in the United states. In a theme often expressed in the soviet press the article said the two american reporters arrived i the soviet Union having already formed the concept of life in the soviet society and with the task to dig up More facts confirming this Namya said the gloomy glances of the two reporters focus on the imperfections and shortcomings always presuming direct or indirect comparison with Ameri Ca in which naturally everything it noted however that the two authors differed in their assessment of d6te, and suggested Smith s Book sold More copies because his View was closer to the positions of the most reactionary and frenzied circles of the regardless it charged that both were extremely one sided and said they raised again the level of the sea of but soviet readers apparently Are Safe from any one sided reports on such mat ters As soviet censorship or Freedom of the press. Both books Are banned in the soviet Union
