Why did what happened to us happen more than 20 years ago? Troubled times come to Russia with a certain frequency and, as it were, unexpectedly, because the illusion is created that stability maintains itself, that it is something unshakable. Our ancestors had the same feeling at the beginning of the 20th century - no one appreciated the empire until it shook and collapsed. The same thing happened in the 80s of the 20th century. Everyone sneered at “stagnation”, at “confidence in the future” and did not appreciate the positive things that were in the Soviet way of life. Until he collapsed. We are strong in hindsight, we harness for a long time, but we drive quickly. The story continues. The people are maturing. The state is maturing. And sooner or later the moment will come when we will catch up with ourselves. When our inner maturity matches our self-awareness and, vice versa: our self-awareness becomes sufficiently mature. I think we created the Izborsk Club precisely for this purpose, so that on a new basis, in a new unusual form, we could restore our own identity, the same identity that was carried by Russia through the centuries.