What Russians Think About Prosperity in Russia

Does luck matter for becoming prosperous?
Russia's news agency RIA Novosti reports that the Russian population considers rich those people who earn 5-10 thousand rubles ($170-330) per month. This opinion is supported by 24 per cent of the Russian population questioned by the Public Opinion foundation.

According to the poll results, 13 per cent of Russians say about a man that he has much money in case if the man earns over 50 thousand rubles ($1,700) per month. The opinion poll was conducted on August 2, 2003 among 1.500 urban and rural respondents.

57 per cent of the respondents said that they have no acquaintances "having much money".   29 per cent of the questioned say they are people with average incomes; at that 68 per cent do not believe in the possibility of having much money. As for the youth, 41 per cent of boys and girls still hope they will be rich.
 
24 per cent of Russians say that those people who are "hardworking, firm of purpose and self-confident" have every chance to have much money. 20 per cent of the respondents say that the professions of officials, businessmen and financiers bring much money. At the same time, 21 per cent of the questioned say that only criminals may have much money in this country.  
 
It is interesting that 15 per cent of the respondents say that people "with good resources such as health, youth, acquaintances and initial capital" can become prosperous. Only 2 per cent of the respondents say that luck plays an important part in making people prosperous. In general, 56 per cent of the respondents are sure that it would be better for Russia if the number of prosperous people was higher.