‘On the fact that to the virtues and merits of the civilized Westerner, there has, historically, been added – almost as his main virtue – a capacity for acquiring capital, whereas not only is the Russian incapable of acquiring capital, but he also loses what he has wantonly and by sheer folly. Nonetheless, we Russians often need money, so we are glad of, and greatly devoted to, a method of acquiring it such as roulette, whereby one may grow rich in a couple of hours without doing any work. This method, I repeat, has a great attraction for us, but since we play recklessly, and without taking any trouble, we almost invariably lose.
I would rather live a wandering life in a Kirghiz tent,’ I cried ‘than bow the knee to the German idol!’
‘What idol?’ exclaimed the General, now seriously angry.
‘The German method of amassing riches.’
Fyodor Dostoevsky, “The Gambler”, 1866
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