You know, reading this, Russia doesn't seem all that different from America. It's a thing here in The States too. It's actually to say "Slow down and pay attention," because it's used for many situations. Cops checking for speeders, an accident or other hazardous conditions ahead, bikers or pedestrians on the side of the road, etc. Yeah. It seems the world over people try to shirk what laws they can, provided the risks and consequences are minimal. I think a lot of cultures have a draw to romantic images of dangerous criminal types, whether they be gangsters such as the Mafia or Yakuza, Pirates, Hackers, Mercenaries, what have you. There are probably a lot of reasons, but I think two of the biggest ones would be that rebels are often viewed as brave and daring, which are admirable traits even for scoundrels. Also, people the world over often feel that laws are restricting and sometimes even oppressive, even when they're logical or just. We all have a desire in ourselves to do whatever we want, whenever we want, and deep down we know it's not in our best interests to actually behave that way. So when we see other people do it, even in fiction, we find it compelling. Here, you don't call a police officer "Deputy" and you don't call a sheriff's deputy "Officer." When in doubt, just use "sir."Russian drivers don't like DPS policemen. If they noticed a post as they drove by (which is a skill in itself, given how DPS policemen are allowed to hide themselves in bushes and the like to monitor the road), they'd often notify drivers going the opposite way by "blinking" them with the headlights twice or thrice. It's a code that people learn from observation or by being told by the more experienced drivers; it's not written down in any documents or driving instructions.
It doesn't mean that Russians like to break laws - it mostly means that they don't mind them as long as nobody's there to point it out to them. It means speeding on highways beyond the speed limit (and buying the speedometer detectors, which are legal in Russia), crossing the road where there's no pedestrian crossing, finding ways to not pay for public transportation ticket ("What do you mean it's not the X route?") and not paying taxes for some sorts of work, among other things I'm not familiar with.
* Don't call a Russian policeman "officer". They aren't associated with the military in the country, despite having the same rank system.
This is a thought I had for a long time now, thanks to what the YouTube commentator Drift0r told his viewers about the US. People seem to have built sky-high barriers between the two nations, even though there's a lot we can learn from each other, including looking at one another and noticing what each nation alone won't in themselves. It's true that the dare most criminals possess is attractive, but given how many of them are on screens in Russia, it's more than just bandit charm: it's Russians cheering for both the idealistically good police and the mindlessly evil lawbreakers (the more if one is as well the other). This is one thing I love about English: you can address any man by using the respectful but not poetic "sir", and any(?) woman - by using "ma'am". Russians use the gender names as tone-neutral and you-based addresses: "Мужчина ([muzh-TSCHI-nah], "man"), pass the cash to the driver, please" or "Женщина ([ZHEN-schih-nah], "woman"), could you not step on my feet?". When you're not young enough for either of those ("women" are females above the age of thirty-something, but I in my 20 years of age am a "man" already), people use "молодой человек" [moh-loh-DOY tscheh-loh-VEHK] ("young man") or "девушка" [DEH-vush-kah] (a name for a young female adult, a rank higher than "девочка" [DEH-votsch-kah], "girl", who's younger than 16 or 18).Russia doesn't seem all that different from America.
When in doubt, just use "sir."
We would call black payment "paying under the table" here in the US. I don't think we have a name for the other two, but many places with cash tips are the same as your grey payment. Credit card tips are recorded, but sometimes it's up to the person being tipped to declare cash tips to be taxed. Yep! Tacking on a "sir" or "ma'am" is usually smiled upon. You can call an older man "sir" and be seen as respectful, while calling a younger man "sir" helps them feel respected and included. I've seen some younger women turn their nose up at being called ma'am because it makes them feel old, but everyone gets a healthy dose of "sir" and "ma'am" from me anyway. Take my respect, dammit!When I worked at the construction site, my first six weeks of work were unofficial, and so the payment to me wasn't declared anywhere (probably ascribed to buying a bit more materials); as such, I received what's called "black payment" (which is analogous in meaning to black market, with "white payment" being taxed over and "grey payment" being a combination of two - so you might make 80k in total, but the organization only pays taxes on the officially declared 30k).
This is one thing I love about English: you can address any man by using the respectful but not poetic "sir", and any(?) woman - by using "ma'am".
To clarify: the grey payment people get and serve is far beyond the scale of tips. "Sir is a term of respect. And you will have my respect - until you abuse it". I wonder how will such addressment live in Russia. Soon, I'll find out.but many places with cash tips are the same as your grey payment.
Take my respect, dammit!