I understand. You literally don't know what else to say, so you have to at least attempt to say something that you think might sound witty. A real pity. And ye

I understand. You literally don't know what else to say, so you have to at least attempt to say something that you think might sound witty. A real pity. And yes, compared to Imperial Russia that was a Near-Absolute Monarchy with an Hereditary Emperor whose imperial style/form of address was "Emperor and Autocrat of All the Russias" the Soviet Union was a beacon of progressiveness.