^
Having never been to Russia I can't answer that question. But America isn't a homogeneous place. I've lived a bunch of places in the States, and it really just depends on where you are and what you want to do.
Taking two extremes... In Alaska people pretty much do what they want. Government interference is pretty minimal. In some places, you don't even have to register your car if it's 8+ years old. Whereas in New York (upstate), everything is either illegal or expensive and there are fees and permits and licenses out the ass. Can't even go to a park after dark because the parks all close at dusk. Just sitting in your car for a few hours reading a book will have cops driving by to see if you're a drug dealer or something. NYC is worse.
Having never been to Russia I can't answer that question. But America isn't a homogeneous place. I've lived a bunch of places in the States, and it really just depends on where you are and what you want to do.
Taking two extremes... In Alaska people pretty much do what they want. Government interference is pretty minimal. In some places, you don't even have to register your car if it's 8+ years old. Whereas in New York (upstate), everything is either illegal or expensive and there are fees and permits and licenses out the ass. Can't even go to a park after dark because the parks all close at dusk. Just sitting in your car for a few hours reading a book will have cops driving by to see if you're a drug dealer or something. NYC is worse.