Sincerely, Ivan

The letters to the editor of Pravda serve as an important forum for Soviet citizens to air pet peeves, make suggestions and scold their less virtuous countrymen. "Every day in the school snack bar, Sasha gets change from a five-ruble bill," wrote a schoolteacher from the Moscow region earlier this year, complaining about how children today do not appreciate the value of a hard-earned ruble. "The parents aren't interested in how their children spend the remaining money." A lieutenant colonel stationed in Lithuania urged parents not to send money to their army sons, already well cared for. "An unending stream of money orders comes to us, and such amounts!" fumed the officer, adding that the funds too often financed "drinking bouts."

As a public service, Pravda editors often look into reader complaints. "I have long dreamed of buying a samovar," wrote one frustrated consumer from Stavropol. "How often have I searched in stores with, alas, no results." A resident of Zaporozhye wrote that her stores carried a model for 25 rubles, but added: "It looks like a galvanized bucket with a spigot." Pravda approached the proper ministry for an explanation and printed its response: 28 models were available, and "much is being done to improve their external appearance," said a spokesman, adding that samovars had not been overlooked in the latest Five-Year Plan. By 1985, he predicted, 2 million samovars will be shipped to stores annually.

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