On the benefits of Makarevich for the Fatherland

On August 27, in Moscow, on the central street of the city, another revealing banner was posted with portraits of writers Dmitry Bykov, Lyudmila Ulitskaya and Viktor Shenderovich and artists Diana Arbenina and Andrei Makarevich

In 1997, Makarevich sang a hit with the words “do not bend under a changeable world”, and in 2014-proved that the words do not disperse from business /photo: Roman Poderni /ITAR-TASS

In 1843, Queen Victoria granted the famous English poet William Wordsworth the title of poet-laureate. By tradition, this was the position of a court poet who imposed certain obligations on the chosen one, for example, to write poetry on events in a royal family and the state. As legend says, Wordsworth, learning about the queen's desire to provide him with such mercy, made it clear that to compose the Odes on duty in her honor was not included in his plans. And Victoria agreed to live without his glory, realizing that in the emerging new world, creative people of such a large caliber are the main pearls in her crown.

Alas, the priorities of the modern state are still unknown to our legislators. Being carriers of archaic - mythological - consciousness, they sincerely believe that they can personally grow talents, like homunculi in test tubes, or, like evil wizards, depriving the guilty of a creative gift, taking away the treasured talisman from them. Is this not the essence of the unstable Duma campaign against Andrei Makarevich demanding to deprive his state awards? In the loyal frenzy, the initiators of this pogrom bacchanalia do not suspect that they risk punishing themselves, and at the same time the president, who is so diligently serving.

Andrei Makarevich was, there is and will be a wonderful musician who earned folk love before and without any official awards. The awarding of his state aid was an honor, first of all, for the state itself, for the new democratic Russia. If a shameful precedent of the rewards for the sake of the political conjuncture is created, the State Prize will finally and irrevocably lose its prestige in the eyes of society and inevitably degrade, turning into a dull ideological "Feast of obedience."

"

Makarevich Gospremi awarding was an honor, first of all, for the state himself

"

Honestly, in this unsightly story, the reaction of like -minded people, those who, together with Makarevich, went to the march of peace, against the war with Ukraine, is no less depressing me. I constantly stumble in social networks on evil remarks about the insufficient resistance of Makar, on reposts of his performances of 10 years ago, where he spoke in support of Putin and Medvedev, etc. I understand how strong the need for adamant and unndrustable fighters with tyranny is now strong, but in fact it turns out that we follow the same pogrom logic, looking for stains on the Riza of the Creator. In the end, why are we fighting for: for freedom of political beliefs or for unanimity with the opposite sign? What is our civic duty: to reproach the persecuted musician that he is not Spartak and not Mutius Stiawol, or by all means to support him at such a difficult time for him?

Our civil society will have a difficult task to re -prove common truths - such as the one that the muse, and not rusty rockets determine the international rating of the modern state. And the star hour of the current Russian president was not at the time of the annexation of Crimea, but when he listened to Paul McCartney's songs, sitting on Red Square next to Andrei Makarevich.