In the meantime, in St. Petersburg

[Rhiannon12866]

41. Scares the hell out of me, too - this is one international nightmare

And I have been to what was then-Leningrad, went to the USSR in the late '80s with my grandmother who joined a peace group. Her town had a "sister town" in the Caucasus Mountains and this was the initial visit there. But we visited all over, meeting with Russia peace groups and seeing major sights and Leningrad was the last stop.

It's a beautiful port city, but we were well aware of the history. The Siege of Leningrad was the worst of the war, they were cut off - for 900 days as you say - and thousands suffered, starved ad died. There are statues and plaques all over commemorating the horrors of that war and those who were lost - they are all over Russia, actually.

So those we met had no wish to ever experience war again, "never again" seemed to be the prevailing mentality. Since our visit occurred shortly before Gorbachev's meeting with Reagan in Reykjavík, people were hopeful, but anxious, since Reagan was so tough that he caused the Russian hard liners to clamp down on Gorbachev's more progressive polices.

And I still remember one older lady who had served as a nurse during WWII who said "Please, when you go back, tell your president that we want peace." So I truly believe that the Russian people have no wish for another war.