EDITOR’S NOTE: John Berry of Bangor, a student at Roger Williams College in Rhode Island, is spending a semester at the Moscow Linguistic University. This is one in a series offering his observations of life in Russia during this time of change.

By now I am sure that the typical American is perhaps a little skeptical about the situation in Russia. Let me assure you that life in Russia is not as bad as our media portray it. It is worse.

The rumors that Russians do not have any food or clothing are false. Moscow shops are not exactly a Shaw’s Supermarket or Neiman Marcus, but there is enough to go around. Most products, in fact, are sold on the street corners. So what is the problem if there is a lack of necessities? Why are we giving them more? The Russians did not dally in learning the principles of capitalism, and the problem (like many problems) stems from money.

I have been in Moscow for about two weeks and I have found that I can live like a king on about $25 a week. I spend this on food, cabs, restaurants and other amenities. Moscow is far cheaper for an American (if you stay out of the hard currency stores) than living at home., until one realizes that $25 is the equivalent of an average Russian’s salary for five months.

To help put this in perspective, consider that today I have purchased a Coke for myself, a pack of Marlboro cigarettes and another Coke for a Russian friend. The Cokes were 75 rubles apiece and the cigarettes were 100 rubles. This is the equivalent of $2.50, which isn’t a huge bite out of my wallet. Nonetheless, this purchase would take two weeks’ salary for the average Russian worker.

The unbelievable aspect of all this is that when the government freed the market, prices shot through the roof while salaries for Russians essentially stay stagnant. Imagine if one day you awakened to find that a pack of cigarettes and a couple of Cokes cost $250. One would tend to be a little perturbed, at the very least.

We have sold them the American dream, and many Russians seem willing to endure incredible hardship to become western.