After us, at least someone said a phrase. After us there may be a flood (the history of famous quotes by K. Dushenko). After us there might be a flood

After me, even a flood: Alexander Motyl brands New Putin’s Russia The article was originally published on the Kremlin Stooge website in March 2012***Once upon a time - say, in 1993, when Alexander Motyl’s book “Dilemmas of Independence: Ukraine After” was published

The flood is after us

“After us there might be a flood”
or 5 examples of predicting the future by non-saints and non-prophets.

The issue of predicting the future has always worried people. Here we will talk about several examples of predictions of the future made by a variety of people in different situations. I will not analyze at length, and will only give examples that seem obvious to me.

1. Open the book “Famous Aphorisms” and read:

“Apres nous le deluge” - After me (us) - even a flood!

Tradition attributes these words to the French king Louis XV, who once said that until his death he hopes to preserve the monarchy in France, and “after me, even a flood!”, then to his close associates, the Marquise Pompadour or Viscountess DuBarry.

It doesn’t matter which of them uttered the cynical words: in any case, they perfectly convey the extreme selfishness of the despotic rulers of France. It is not for nothing that we now use them when we want to express indignation at short-sighted, selfish and imprudent policies.

At least the good thing about this translation is that the word “me” is in there. Indeed, when the king says “we,” he means himself. And indeed, it is correctly indicated here in what cases this aphorism is now used.

However, let's remember that Louis 15 was the last French king from the Bourbon dynasty who was born and died a king. Under him, the people's suffering reached a high level, but Louis did not pay attention to this: he indulged in pleasures in the Deer Park. When they pointed out to him the danger posed by an extremely oppressed people, he replied: “The monarchy will last as long as we are alive.” After his death, the monarchy was swept away by the masses. The French Revolution, like a storm, swept away royal power and executed Louis 16. Michel Nostradamus, who foresaw this, painted a royal crown with the letter “B” (Bourbon), hanging on a thread over the stormy sea (by the way, Nostradamus himself lived under Valois). Thus, comparing the revolution with the water element.

So what did Louis 15, so little appreciated today, say? He said: “The monarchy will last as long as we live.” And he said the famous (let’s translate it exactly): “After me there will be a flood.” The prophetic content of these words is quite obvious. The word "flood" also has a biblical connotation - dividing life into before and after the flood. A flood is an event that completely destroys life and the order of things. This is exactly what happened in France.

2. Mikhail Evgrafovich Saltykov (Shchedrin) is not the most favorite writer of most people. It strikes too accurately and evilly at human nature, which does not change under socialism or capitalism. In the century following Shchedrin, a revolution took place in Russia, and Comrade Stalin came to power. Ascetic, in a soldier's overcoat, with a dry hand, smoking a pipe and cigarettes, he built barracks socialism. After his death, this socialism even tried to turn rivers.

Let's try to imagine that what follows is written about socialism in Russia and Comrade Stalin (emphasis mine - S.A.):“... the lips are thin, pale, covered with trimmed mustache stubble... Dressed in a military-style frock coat, buttoned up with all the buttons... all around is a landscape depicting a desert, in the middle of which there is a prison; above, instead of the sky, hung a gray soldier's overcoat... No questions are visible on his face; on the contrary, in all his features there appears a kind of soldierly, imperturbable confidence that all the issues had long been resolved... The very way of life of Gloomy-Burcheev was such that it further aggravated the horror inspired by his appearance. He slept on the bare ground, and only in severe frosts did he allow himself to take refuge in the fire hayloft; instead of a pillow, he put a stone under his head; he got up at dawn, put on his uniform and immediately beat the drum; smoked makhorka so stinking that even police soldiers blushed when the smell of it reached their noses... He also had a family; but while he was in charge of the city, none of the townsfolk saw either his wife or his children. There was a rumor that they were languishing somewhere in the basement of the mayor's house... Having drawn a straight line, he planned to squeeze the entire visible and invisible world into it, and with such an indispensable calculation that it was impossible to turn either back or forward, neither to the right nor to the left. Did he intend to become a benefactor of humanity? - It is difficult to answer this question in the affirmative. Rather, however, one might think that in his head there were no assumptions about anything at all. ... The virtuosity of straightforwardness, like a willow stake, lodged itself in his mournful head and sent out there a whole impenetrable network of roots and branches. It was some kind of mysterious forest, full of magical dreams. Mysterious shadows walked in single file, one after another, buttoned up, haircut, with a monotonous step, in monotonous clothes, everyone walked, everyone walked... They all had the same physiognomies, they were all equally silent and they all disappeared somewhere in the same way. Where? It seemed that behind this sleepy, fantastic world there existed an even more fantastic failure, which resolved all difficulties by the fact that everything in it disappeared - everything without a trace. When the fantastic failure absorbed a sufficient number of fantastic shadows, Gloomy-Burcheev, so to speak, turned over on the other side and began another similar dream. Again the shadows walked in single file, one after another, everyone walked, everyone walked... These holidays differ from everyday life only in the intensive marching exercise. Such was the outer structure of this nonsense. Then it was necessary to regulate the internal situation of living beings captured in it. In this regard, the imagination of Ugryum-Burcheev reached a truly amazing definition. Every house is nothing more than a settled unit, which has its own commander and its own spy (he especially insisted on a spy) and belongs to a dozen called a platoon. The platoon, in turn, has a commander and a spy; five platoons make up a company, five companies make up a regiment. There are four regiments, which form, firstly, two brigades and, secondly, a division; in each of these units there is a commander and a spy. Then follows the City itself, which from Foolov is renamed to the “eternally worthy memory of the Grand Duke Svyatoslav Igorevich, the city of Nepreklonsk.” Above the city reigns the mayor, surrounded by a cloud, or, in other words, the chief commandant of the land and naval forces of the city of Nepreklonsk, who enters into arguments with everyone and makes everyone feel his power. Near him... is a spy!! At night, the spirit of Gloomy-Burcheev hovers over Nepreklonsk and vigilantly guards the philistine dream... No god, no idols - nothing ... Everyone was present, every single one; the adults and the strong chopped and broke; the young and weak raked up the garbage and took it to the river. From dawn to dawn, people tirelessly pursued the task of destroying their own homes, and at night they took refuge in barracks built on the pasture, where household property was brought. They themselves did not understand what they were doing, and did not even ask each other whether this was really happening. They were aware of only one thing: that the end had come and that the incomprehensible gaze of a sullen idiot was following them everywhere, everywhere. ...Grustilov’s turn gave liberalism a new direction, which can be called centrifugal-centripetal-inscrutably-false. But it was still liberalism, and therefore it could not be successful, because the moment had already come when liberalism was not required at all. It was not required at all, not in any way, not in any form, not even in the form of absurdity, not even in the form of admiration for the authorities. Admiration for the boss! What does admiration for superiors mean? This means such admiration for him, which at the same time allows for the possibility of non-admiration for him! And from here to revolution - one step! With the assumption of office by the mayor of Ugryum-Burcheev, liberalism in Foolov ceased altogether, and therefore the martyrology did not resume. ... “Being overburdened with bodily exercises,” says the chronicler, “the Foolovites, out of fatigue, thought of nothing more than straightening their bodies, bent by work.” This continued all the time while Ugryum-Burcheev was destroying the old city and fighting the river. ... Exhausted, cursed and destroyed, the Foolovites, after a long break, breathed freely for the first time. They looked at each other and suddenly felt ashamed. They did not understand what exactly had happened around them, but they felt that the air was filled with foul language and that it was impossible to breathe in this air anymore. Did they have a history, were there moments in this history when they had the opportunity to show their independence? - They didn’t remember anything. They only remembered that they had the Urus-Kugush-Kildibaevs, the Scoundrels, the Wartkins and, to top off the shame, this terrible, this inglorious scoundrel! And all this was drowning, gnawing, tearing with teeth - in the name of what? His chest was filled with blood, his breath was taken away, his face was convulsively contorted with anger at the memory of the inglorious idiot who, with a stopper in his hands, came out of nowhere and with inscrutable impudence pronounced a death sentence on the past, present and future... And meanwhile he lay motionless in the sunniest sunshine and snored heavily . Now he was in full view of everyone; anyone could freely examine him and be convinced that he was a genuine idiot - and nothing more. When he destroyed, fought with the elements, put him to the sword, it could still seem that he personified something enormous, some kind of all-conquering force, which, regardless of its content, could amaze the imagination; Now, when he lay prostrate and exhausted, when his gaze, filled with shamelessness, was not heavy on anyone, it became clear that this “huge,” this “all-conquering” was nothing more than idiocy that had found no boundaries. ... “He” will give some kind of happiness! “He” will tell them: I ruined you and stunned you, and now I will allow you to be happy! And they will listen to this speech in cold blood! they will take advantage of his permission and be happy! A shame!!!"

Let us add that with the establishment of this strange barracks system in Foolov, the mayor decides to divert the river. What distinguished real socialism? And, like Ugryum-Burcheev, he was also unsuccessful. The rivers could not be turned.

Here is the dialogue from this film:

- Mila Rutkevich will become a pediatrician. People will come to her from all over the Galaxy... Katya Mikhailova will win the Wimbledon tournament.

“I see,” said Katya Mikhailova. - You came up with everything.

- Why?

- Yes, because it’s impossible for everyone to become famous and great. It doesn't happen that way. We are ordinary.

“And in the future there will be no ordinary ones,” says Alice. - If you don’t believe me, ask Kolya. And it’s even better if you come to us yourself.

- But how? What if they don't let you in? - asks Fima.

“On your own,” says Sadovsky. - Year after year. And you will get there.

19 years after the film's premiere, on July 3, 2004, Maria Sharapova won the Wimbledon tournament. She was born two years after the film's premiere, when the film was in full swing and repeated, and won the hearts of the audience. The Wimbledon tournament has never been won by Russians before. It was something like a sweet dream that could never come true. And so the film points out: wait, she will grow up and win.

4. If you haven’t read Vladimir Voinovich’s novel “Moscow 2042,” then you should definitely read it. The novel, written in the late 80s, describes the future of Russia. In particular, the next president of Russia becomes a young KGB officer who worked in Germany in the 80s. He is young, progressive, and wants to change a lot. When he comes to power, he creates a new party. This party is a union of the CPSU and the KGB and is called the CPGB - the Communist Party of State Security. This party also includes the Orthodox Church, which has changed its ideals. Everyone sings the praises of the young reformer. He is called Genialissimo and all the world classics are attributed to his authorship. Then he is found to be too radical, and, so as not to interfere too much, he is launched into space, while on earth the Editorial Commission remains in charge on his behalf.

It all ends with the return of Solzhenitsyn on a white horse and the restoration of the monarchy and traditional Orthodoxy.

- Listen, I said. - Is it true what they say about you that you are a KGB major?

“Well, yes, sort of,” he agreed with pleasure. - More precisely, Major General. But what do you care? Do you really think I met you to inform on you? No, brother, I play other games and bet big.

…

He traveled all over the country and demanded to increase oil production, steel production, cotton yields, studied the problems of egg production of laying hens and observed the lambing of sheep. And since the country is large, you can’t see everything, he decided to use advanced technology and began making regular inspection flights on a spacecraft. And from there he monitored the movement of troops, the development of quarries, deforestation, the construction of individual objects and open-pit coal mining. He went into everything. Sometimes he even notices that workers somewhere have been smoking for too long, and directly from space he sends an order from the boss of these workers to remove them from work, demote them, or put them on trial. Or he will see that a car has exceeded the speed limit or violated the rules of overtaking, the number will be recorded and reported to the traffic police.

- And he was busy with such trifles? - I asked Iskrina.

- Well, why trifles? she objected dissatisfied. He did everything. Don’t forget that according to his idea and under his leadership, we built communism. Moreover, within just one year after the August Revolution. These space inspections turned out to be so effective that in the end it was decided to leave the Genialissimo in space forever and divide power into heavenly and earthly ones. The Genialissimo from above exercises general leadership, and earthly affairs are managed by the Supreme Pentagon and the Editorial Commission.

…

And the angriest of them all was his closest friend, the Vice-Chairman of the Supreme Pentagon and the Chairman of the Editorial Committee.

- Horizon Timofeevich? - I asked.

“It’s him,” Edik nodded. - He, of course, could not overthrow the Genialissimo, because he had already become a symbol, an object of universal worship, a sacred cow, but a more cunning solution was found. One day, when Genialissimo went into space for another inspection, they decided not to return him from there. Let him fly there, we will pray for him, erect monuments to him, award him with orders, send him all sorts of greetings and reports, and here on Earth we will manage in our own way.

…

Under the name of the newspaper it was written that it was an organ of the Communist Party of State Security. So this is what the abbreviation I saw on one of the slogans meant - CPGB!

As I write this, in August 2007, about two weeks ago, news outlets announced that Russian President Vladimir Putin, at the end of his second presidential term, was considering going into space as a space tourist. The Unity Party is becoming more and more like the CPSU, and the FSB, the successor to the KGB, is increasingly involved in everything - even transport problems or power outages.

5. In Vasily Zvyagintsev’s novel “The Right to Death” there is the following text:

- Better answer, frankness for frankness, why was it necessary to establish a cryptocracy in Russia?

Here the shock was stronger. However, G.M.’s external reactions remained extremely restrained. Strong man.

- As you said?

- Cryptocracy. Secret power. Irina, come here, please... Introduce Georgy Mikhailovich to your research.

Irina appeared, already dressed in a business suit, looking like a university assistant professor, with a stack of computer printouts in her hands.

And within fifteen minutes she gave all the necessary arguments in favor of our hypothesis.

- ...From which we concluded: between 2020 and 2030, power in Russia completely changed its form and essence. In reality, a well-conspiracy group or caste, like the notorious “Elders of Zion,” rules. No, no, this is only for comparison purposes, for clarity. We, of course, do not imagine the true mechanism of its functioning, but there are too many indirect signs. Moreover, what should be noted is that this power is surprisingly effective and at the same time quite humane. In thirty years it has not degenerated into an autocracy or dictatorship. It is there, and yet it is as if it is not there. Both the economy and civil liberties are thriving. It is not clear how this is possible... History knows something similar, but such experiments always ended in the same way. Any secret rulers sooner or later wanted to become obvious, the consequences, as a rule, were sad. Either for them, or for their subjects..

From the novel "Play Time":

….

The colonel heard something about the club back in Africa. There were quite a few Russians serving in the corps, and I had occasion to meet with employees of Russian military missions in relatively civilized countries.

Sooner or later, the conversations, fueled by local wines or domestic vodka, touched on this too. Like, there is such a super-elite club, getting into which is much more difficult, but more useful for your career than marrying the daughter of the Minister of War.

Who and how they are admitted there is a mystery shrouded in darkness. However, information somehow seeps through, like water through the walls of karst caves. At the same time, turning into bizarre fantasies of nature, like stalactites and stalagmites.

They said that sometimes captains also get there, but honored generals shamefully fail in the running. That club members can live better on full board than government members at their dachas. That careers are drawn up at the card table and issues of war and peace are decided.

…

He was given a much more respectable badge of “full-fledged Knight” than a candidate and was finally allowed access to truly secret information. Including complete lists of "brothers".

He looked at the long columns of surnames on the screen (not alphabetical, but chronological) with the briefest biographical information and immediately understood everything.

The truth was a little shocking even for him. The “club” had existed for more than thirty years and during this time it had turned not even into a “shadow government,” as the colonel guessed from certain signs, but into a completely independent, comprehensive system of power in Russia.

I don’t think that Vladimir Putin, Sergei Ivanov, Sergei Medvedev and others constitute some kind of organization, or formed one before (although who can know for sure, except themselves?). However, the fact is that in today's Russia the government has “changed its form and essence.” That decisions are made not by those bodies that are directly intended for this, but behind their backs, and they themselves only “rubber stamp” the already proposed decisions.

In this cycle of novels, the matter, like Voinovich’s, ends with the restoration of autocracy.

After us there may be a flood (the history of famous quotes by K. Dushenko)

In issue No. 2 of the magazine “We Read Together” (September) an article by Konstantin Dushenko “After Us, Even a Flood” was published. It continues the magazine’s regular column “The History of Famous Quotes.”

History of famous quotes

5 Nov In 1757, one of the largest battles of the Seven Years' War took place at Rosbach (Saxony). The Prussian army, led by Frederick the Great, completely defeated the much larger French army led by Marshal de Soubise. Just at this time, the artist Georges Latour painted - in the presence of the king - a portrait of Louis XV's favorite Jeanne Antoinette Poisson, Marquise de Pompadour. The news of the defeat greatly depressed the monarch. The Marquise hastened to console him: “Don’t be upset, otherwise you’ll get sick; after us there might be a flood!” Latour's story appeared in print only in 1874, but the same version was set out in the Memoirs of the Marquise de Pompadour's maid, Madame Duosset, published in 1824.

It was no coincidence that the Marquise started talking about the flood - at that time everyone was talking about it. In 1758, the comet of 1682 was expected to return, i.e. Halley's comet, and since ancient times the comet was considered a harbinger of misfortunes and disasters. The Age of Enlightenment, instead of dispelling these fears, gave them scientific justification. The famous mathematician Pierre de Maupertuis predicted in his “Letter on Halley's Comet” that its arrival would entail the end of the world or, at least, a global flood. Aug 18 In 1758, the enlightenment philosopher Gabriel Bonneau de Mably, in his 6th “Letter on the Rights and Duties of the Citizen,” spoke of the members of the Parisian parliament (parliament was then the highest court and registered laws): “They care little about the future: after them [will come ] flood". Therefore, the phrase about the flood managed to become a common word. If the Marquise de Pompadour uttered it, she was hardly the first.

Meanwhile, the ancient Greeks already had a saying that was very similar in meaning. This is a line from an epigram by Strato, a poet of the 2nd century. AD: “Drink and love! After death, let Deucalion wash my bones!” In Greek mythology, Deucalion played the role of the biblical Noah: when Zeus, angry with people, sent a global flood to the earth, Deucalion, on the advice of Prometheus, built a large box (“ark”). A nine-day flood destroyed all of humanity, but Deucalion and his wife escaped and created new people from stones.

However, in the future, the Greeks and Romans did not expect a global flood, but a global fire. There was a popular saying: “When I die, let the earth burn with fire!” - a verse from the lost tragedy of Euripides. According to legend, he was quoted by the Roman Emperor Tiberius. And another emperor, Nero, when this verse was said in his presence, allegedly exclaimed: “No! As long as I live!” This is what Suetonius says in his Lives of the Twelve Caesars, and then goes on to tell the story of the great fire of Rome in 64 AD, directly calling Nero the arsonist. In Suetonius, Nero looks at the fire of the great city from a high tower and in theatrical attire, with a cithara in his hands, sings the “Song of Troy”, burned by the Greeks. It's too good to be true; Historians have long stopped believing in the legend of Nero the Arsonist. It is only known for certain that when rebuilding Rome, Nero took care of the fire safety of the city.

The slogan “After me, chaos” was attributed to Charles de Gaulle on the eve of the 1965 French presidential elections. A week before the second round of voting, de Gaulle explained: “I did not say: “I”, and I did not say: “chaos”. I just said and repeat: if on December 19 the French people decide to remove de Gaulle, it will be a huge misfortune for the country.” The people voted for de Gaulle, and a huge misfortune was avoided.

But it is unlikely that it will be possible to avoid a flood. The climate is warming, the level of the World Ocean is slowly but surely rising; continents move, collide and fragment... But all this will certainly happen after us.

Konstantin Dushenko