TJournal Guest: Ernest Makarenko

The head of the municipal district of Novo-Peredelkino about Navalny, Putin, Durov, Okhlobystin and sodomites

Every week TJournal invites interesting Internet personalities to visit us. This time we talked with Ernest Manuelovich Makarenko, the head of the Moscow municipal district of Novo-Peredelkino and a deputy who became an Internet phenomenon thanks to his own microblog .

TJournal: Why are you so active on social networks? This is not typical for an official in Russia.

Ernest Makarenko: Not everyone has the desire, understanding and time for this.

Many people ask how you find time to tweet when you should be working.

You can see for yourself as I write. Typically in the evening or at night. Sometimes during working hours: when there is a break before a meeting, in the car, if not while driving, which also does not always happen.

Do you drive the machine yourself?

I can’t drive a company car all the time—it works for the machine. When possible, I take a driver; when not, I drive myself.

Our colleagues at Zuckerberg Calling have a favorite interview question: what kind of car do you drive?

Volkswagen Passat, seven years old. Station wagon, family car, large trunk.

Do you ski in Novo-Peredelkino?

I don’t go on mountain bikes, I go on cross-country trails, but I don’t need to drive a car - I leave the house and I’m already in a forest park.

As for social networks, the same Twitter - it is aggressive towards Russia, towards Russian statehood.

How can he be aggressive? It's just a platform.

Yes, I understand, but this is a platform where mainly people who are anti-Russian work.

Oppositional?

I cannot say that this is so much opposition to the government or party as opposition to the state.

What alternative is there? Pro-Westernism?

Absolutely right. These are people who hate Russia and the good things that happen in it. I believe Twitter requires a username. The anonymity that exists on Twitter now corrupts and promotes impunity. You can do any boorish and anti-state thing and you can get away with it.

But you can track it by IP.

It’s possible, but we don’t have a tracking system or laws that would punish this. How many times have I called on Twitter to punish the MDK?

So are their aggressive antics illegal?

There are so many things there that can be regarded as extremist and anti-state calls. An hour ago I posted a tweet about Ariel Sharon’s funeral: in Israel they will punish bloggers who spoke badly about him.

But they don’t say exactly how they will punish.

We don’t have this yet, but there should be such a system. When there is such a flow of lies and extremism, it must be stopped, because this activity is destructive.

Twitter is like that in general, and I didn’t want to get involved there. I always said that this is a swamp and I have nothing to do there. When I saw that Medvedev is the same on Twitter, Rogozin publishes something, and my fellow municipal deputies ask me why I’m not on Twitter. Then I somehow realized that people need to be informed more: this is also in the charter of the municipal assembly, Putin and Sobyanin constantly call for all government bodies to be as open and accessible as possible.

One of the tools for such openness is Twitter. I used to look at this swamp from the outside, but now I see it from the inside. This is a field of information war, real, and I, as the head of the municipal district, must be present here, because our forces of good are very few here. I decided for myself that I would defend my point of view here.

Over time, of course, I changed my style: I looked at what people responded to most.

And for what?

When I simply write about the district’s agenda, it is interesting to my residents. When I summarized federal news or published links, I acted unreasonably: you have already seen this news twenty times. But if I tell my point of view, it will be more interesting.

Some time ago there was a rumor that, due to scandals with officials during the State Duma elections, officials were very strongly scolded at the state level and told to keep their opinions low.

It seems that this was a recommendation, perhaps even from the government press service, to refrain from incorrect statements, assessments and insults.

But you don’t refrain from making assessments.

But I'm not insulting. There they talked about assessments bordering on rudeness; I try not to allow this to happen. When it comes to things that are offensive to my country, to the president, maybe even the Patriarch, why should I remain silent?

Where is the line, on one side of which there is something that you evaluate, and on the other side there is something that should not interest you?

There is no such edge. If this is not an ordinary event, then I do not see any restrictions for myself. If a topic worries me, if I have something to tell people or call for something, I am obliged to report it. There are many more topics than I have time to write about.

Why did you have such a harsh statement about the founder of VKontakte, Pavel Durov?

Yes, he created this resource, but he is just a hooligan and a person completely irresponsible to the state and to those people who are on this social network. There are a huge number of people on VKontakte, and what happens there in one way or another shapes their worldview, especially schoolchildren and even preschoolers.

I was told that access could be blocked. Well, what’s the point of blocking: if you block it on one computer, it will come in from another.

Why block access?

It's full of pornography, some kind of sodomist statements. Complete permissiveness: whatever you want, you do. And anyone can see it - including a child. This is criminal.

The fact that you can do whatever you want there?

I believe that such open social networks should not contain pornography or anything like that.

Can’t the child find this on another site?

VKontakte is very popular and actually stimulates and develops this. The company's policy is that this will not be stopped. There were some legal claims against their activities regarding immoral things. I understand perfectly well that Durov is the creator of the company, but he runs it anti-state. This is a crime against our youth.

This needs to be stopped: for example, the board of directors can remove him from management and appoint a person who will restore order there, which is why I proposed such a candidate.

Durov should resign from his post, since VKontakte has a lot of young people and it should be headed by an Orthodox person. For example, Ivan Okhlobystin.

— Ernest Makarenko (@ErnestMakarenko) January 10, 2014

I said that the company should be headed by a spiritual person - not by rank, but by worldview.

Do you consider Okhlobystin spiritual?

This could be, for example, Vsevolod Chaplin from the Moscow Patriarchate. Now they were talking about Okhlobystin, his statements about gays and proposals for laws. This is being discussed everywhere: for example, the government of Tatarstan is now discussing the possibility of returning these articles. This is what should protect our state from decay.

How was your relationship with Alexei Navalny? Do you understand that part of your microblog's surge in popularity is due to its media support?

I can’t say that the growth was sharp, but, of course, these retweets from Navalny contributed to more people recognizing me. They said that he promoted me. Nothing like that, no one promoted me. His participation, like the participation of other top bloggers, helped in one way or another - these are basic technologies.

Why did Alexey do this? Maybe because I was not afraid or embarrassed to say what I thought was necessary about his position. I repeatedly expressed complaints to him during the mayoral campaign, and expressed my complaints about his statements on Twitter. I'm probably one of the few who do this.

Have you personally communicated with him?

Probably twice: we met him briefly at a meeting of the council of municipalities before the elections, and then we saw him here in Novo-Peredelkino, when he had a campaign speech.

And how did it go?

I asked Alexey questions when the audience was already warmed up, and he introduced me to them with the words “United Russia came to us.” Some took it with hostility, others reacted adequately. I was able to ask a few questions , but was unable to continue the dialogue live because Alexey ended it. We continued it on Twitter.

Do you think he fears you as a political rival?

You need to ask him this. He and I haven't been having a lot of back-and-forth on Twitter lately. Sometimes he retweets me, saying that he does it for fun.

What happened to Maxim Katz?

Maxim Katz made several statements that Ernest Makarenko’s Twitter is not run by Ernest Makarenko.

A year and a half ago, one person boasted to me that with the help of Navalny he would promote the vile Edros, I did not believe it. It turned out http://t.co/WXrkBDRO5l

— Maksim Katz (@max_katz) January 13, 2014

In general, as far as I know, many bets were made on the topic of Ernest Makarenko in circles around the mayor. Like, is it possible to divorce like this?

— Maksim Katz (@max_katz) January 13, 2014

It’s clear that Twitter is not run by the deputy himself. Well, it’s unlikely that anyone really thought it was him

— Maksim Katz (@max_katz) January 13, 2014

And in fact?

Of course, I'm leading it. No, you are leading him!

Well, I only posted one tweet!

Sorry, now you are documented! (laughs)

Who really runs my Twitter? Interview from @niketas in the evening on @tjournalru http://t.co/AdzJXT9CCk

— Ernest Makarenko (@ErnestMakarenko) January 15, 2014

So what does Katz think?

I don't know what he thinks. I got the impression that after the end of Alexei Navalny’s election campaign for mayor of Moscow, Maxim’s popularity on Twitter decreased, and he started a completely absurd scandal, saying that Makarenko never had his own Twitter, and that serious people even made bets, and now another confirmation - it seems to me that he was just trying to increase his rating.

The Reedus article that Katz mentions says that you, as an established Internet figure, are going to be promoted further to the Moscow City Duma.

(conspiratorially) Maybe for president?

Good question. Do you have presidential ambitions?

(calmly) No. We have the best president. Usually on Twitter I write with irony - I’m generally an ironic person in life - but here I say it completely seriously. I am convinced that Vladimir Putin should remain at the head of our state for a long time, and since such a person is in our power, I perfectly assess my capabilities. Even if I had presidential ambitions, they would not have been under a president like Vladimir Putin.

In order for our state to strengthen and develop, we must mature to the realization that it must be monarchical, and I see Vladimir Putin in the role of emperor. I say this completely seriously.

I was asked to ask a question: how do you feel about the fact that Putin has no sons-heirs?

I think this is a secondary issue.

It’s just that Putin is over 60 years old.

There are different methods of inheritance; in the future, a solution will be found on how to transfer power. Now I see Vladimir Putin in the role of monarch.

The TrendMedia agency was mentioned in the Reedus article. Did any of them tell you how to use social networks, did they give lectures?

I saw some of them, I communicate on the Internet, I met some of them on a certain Instagram forum. I came, took pictures, took part in the competition and even took second place in one of the categories. I do not communicate with them regarding any promotion - perhaps unfortunately.

What about the fact that you are tipped to join the Moscow City Duma?

Do you know why this all happened? Are there fakes under my account? It’s unlikely that anyone will agree to mow under me for free.

Maybe like Navalny - for fun.

Several accounts appeared at once. I am outraged by their behavior - they disorient people. And this article, I suspect, was directed primarily against me.

Discredit?

Yes. A certain municipal deputy suddenly gained some popularity. I communicate with colleagues, they have much more readers - 50-60 thousand readers each. Maybe I became interesting to readers, but they started creating fake accounts for me, aggressively attacking me. Now this article.

Forgive me for some pathos, but I am one of the few who represent the forces of good in that swamp of the Internet. And I consistently defend the position of our statehood, our president, patriarch and the Russian Orthodox Church in general. The same people write against “United Russia”, against Putin, against strengthening our defense capability, against everything good in Russia and pour out a sea of ​​hatred and streams of lies in almost the same words. I counteract this as best I can by expressing my assessment.

Then it is strange that such an article appears on Reedus, known as a pro-state and even “Orthodox” media. They almost have priests in their editorial office, they told me.

This is the first time I've heard about this. I'm very surprised. I don’t want to get into the weeds and figure it out now, but I see that streams of dirt and hatred are pouring out on me.

I don’t quite understand why you consider this article to be discrediting, and not your promotion.

Because they say, “Look, this is a clown, for whom they write something.”

Well, it's not Reedus, it's Katz.

Is Katz close to them?

I do not know, maybe. Do you have a desire to be elected to the Moscow City Duma?

I think it’s too early to even talk about this now. I don’t work on Twitter for this, but to express my position as a deputy and a citizen. Of course, I have some ambitions and prospects in terms of business for the city.

Simultaneously with this publication, a new fake account appeared. I conclude that these are links in the same chain.

I’m not saying that I’m a top blogger, but I’ve become a bone in the throat of our enemies, and someone wants to nip my position in the bud so that they pay less attention to me.

You had a photograph against the background of the inscription “I am the President of Ukraine.” Can you suggest some kind of solution to the crisis in Ukraine?

I think there are people in our and the Ukrainian state who can solve it.

In any case, this is a war against the Slavic peoples, against Orthodoxy, and the interest of our state - as well as the people of Ukraine - is that these idiotic destructive changes do not occur and our division does not occur. I don't have any magic pill.

Another reader asked if you have a wife and how you would describe your ideal life partner.

I think it’s not entirely right for me to talk about this. What I consider necessary to publish about my personal life, I publish on Instagram, sometimes on Twitter, but I believe that there are some boundaries that should not be crossed. There must be privacy. I have a very negative attitude towards some of our pop stars who flaunt it. I do not consider it necessary to discuss this topic, especially since I am a municipal deputy, and I do not think that these questions will be of interest to the majority of your readers.

If you could make one law, what would it be?

If only one, then it would be a constitutional reform aimed at creating a monarchy in our state. If two laws are possible, then the second would be directed against sodomites.

What are sodomites?

Well, you know perfectly well what it is. The term comes from Sodom and Gomorrah. Gays and that's all. I don't even want to talk about this abomination.

Well, if this is an enemy and you need to fight him, you need to know him by sight.

Come on, I don’t know! It’s just that this word is so churchly, evangelical. Nowadays it is customary to speak in other terms, but in fact these are people committing an action that is contrary to God. If it's against God, it shouldn't be.

We need to pass a law in this regard and stop discussing it in the media. At all times, this topic was sinful and was considered indecent for discussion in society. It is thanks to the media that she is now widely heard and looks like something natural. This must be stopped. It is unacceptable in Orthodox Russia to hold events, rallies and marches of these sodomites, and this topic cannot be released into the public space at all. Otherwise, we will come to the point where, as in America, we will almost consider pedophilia normal.

I just wanted to ask you about the American initiative: Colorado recently made it legal to buy marijuana for recreational purposes. In Russia, there is now also a discussion about legalizing soft drugs: it seems like you can buy alcohol and cigarettes, but you can’t buy marijuana. Have you tried drugs?

No, thank God.

How do you feel about smoking?

In my youth, I once dabbled - I didn’t smoke, but I dabbled. But now I don’t smoke, I’m against smoking and I’m categorically against any drugs. I am indignant when people sometimes allow themselves to smoke in public or indoors with non-smoking people.

Marijuana is the first step towards allowing harder drugs. It is unacceptable.

How do you feel about alcohol?

You know, I don't consider alcohol a drug. Today's vodka, which is diluted alcohol - and before 1917 it was moonshine - is a real drug. Medicine says that diluted alcohol is very destructive to the body.

In short, vodka is evil.

Well, yes. But I'm not a prude, I drink - on holidays. I can afford some good strong drink. I'm not saying expensive, but good. And without zeal.

Even wine in certain doses can promote some kind of healing. I don’t consider wine a drug - of course, if it is not consumed in large doses.

By the way, about horses: are you involved in equestrian sports? When Ernest Makarenko is mentioned, they usually publish a photo of you on a horse.

I don’t go in for horse riding, but we have a small stable here in the area and sometimes I manage to ride a horse. This was one such occasion that I used to take a photograph.

What money do you live on? You once said that you helped restore the temple.

(humbly) At one time, with the blessing of the late Patriarch Alexy, I created a community at the Church of the Annunciation, which was then destroyed almost to the ground: only the ruins of the walls stood. We gathered the community, looked for sponsors and restored the temple.

For many years I have been the head of the temple, and this was my main job, practically my life’s work - service. I came to work at the temple, and this practically became the meaning of my life. This was in 1991.

At the end of the 80s, I worked in commercial organizations and purchased a cooperative apartment in Novo-Peredelkino. I wanted to exchange an apartment with someone in Kuntsevo - my mother is there, but why would I need Peredelkino when my work is in the center. I went to look at the house so that I could explain it to those with whom I would exchange, but when I came here with my family, we discovered a destroyed temple inside the courtyard. Without saying a word, we realized that we would move here, live and restore the temple.

With God's help, the temple was recreated and this really became my life. With the blessing of His Holiness the Patriarch, I now continue to fulfill on a voluntary basis the role of chairman of the city council of the temple. And my main place of work, where I receive a salary, is at the council.

We have an excellent Sunday school, there are amazing performing groups - choral, fine arts, and theater. The school exists in construction sheds. We have now completed all the formal work on the project to build a church house, and we are looking for donors so that it can be built. One of the district’s entrepreneurs donated a million, parishioners raised about one and a half million - but this is a drop in the ocean, more money is needed.

What do you do in your free time?

Lately, Twitter has taken up most of my free time. And so - family, cinema, theater, travel.

Where do you go on vacation?

Everything is on Instagram! (laughs) This year I was in Greece for several days.

Where would you like to go?

To the North Pole. I've been there three times. That place on Earth where you are drawn to come again - I would gladly go again, and again. I talked with our respected TV presenter Nikolai Nikolaevich Drozdov: we met at the North Pole and briefly met in Moscow. He had been there a huge number of times and also said that he would be happy to return there. Amazing magnetism.

A place that fascinates. Reserve of human souls. Everyone who works there at the drifting stations, at the borders, are unique people. Sincere, real. It’s interesting and interesting to communicate with them: there isn’t much of the urban dirt that exists in Moscow.

There's snow there. Purely.

It goes without saying, but people go there not for money, but at the behest of their souls. When such people meet there, a very attractive company is created. We are still friends with all the people whom fate brought together at the North Pole.

Why do you have such an original name and patronymic? Weren't you named after Che Guevara?

They named him Ernest because Hemingway was very popular at that time. And in fact, the passport officer made a mistake in the middle name - in fact, the father’s name is Manuil. But that’s how it got used to, and I got used to it.

Which three sites do you start your day with?

I rarely start my day by visiting websites, but when I go online, I usually read the news. "Gazeta.ru", LifeNews. Another church website is Pravoslavie.ru, which I recommend to everyone, a very interesting resource even for non-church people.

The Holy Trinity

Sites where Ernest Makarenko starts every morning

"Gazeta.ru", online media

LifeNews, TV channel and online media

"Pravoslavie.ru", Orthodox Internet portal

#Interview #Pavel_Durov #Guest_TJournal #Vladimir_Putin #Alexey_Navalny #Patriarch_Kirill #Ernest_Makarenko #Sergey_Sobyanin #Maxim_Katz #Ivan_Okhlobystin #head of the municipal_okrug_Novo_Peredel