I like Russia - as much as the abused may like the abuser.

There is a song by the Russian band Nol', not sure if you've heard it or not, but I remember this one verse from it:

"Как ненавижу, так и люблю свою Родину

И удивляться здесь, право, товарищи, нечему.

Такая она уж слепая, глухая уродина,

Ну а любить-то мне больше и нечего."

which roughly translates to, for those who don't read Russian, "I hate my homeland as well as I love it, and it's really not that surprising. She's a blind and deaf freak, but I really have nothing else to love".

On a more serious note, I've left about half a decade ago, and it seems that Russia is just heading towards a point of no return, with a cult of Putin's personality being plastered all over the walls. A fair few of my friends, those who had the opportunity, of course, had also moved to the West, to Russian enclaves like Brighton Beach, for example. I've been there a year or two back, and it feels like I've traveled back into the 90s, even though I was too young to remember anything back then. I have friends in Boston, Toronto, and Frankfurt who have moved just a few years after I did, and they do not regret their decision.

Quick question - what makes you stay there? Is it friends/family, financial situation, or just a lack of opportunity to move places?