# picking fleas in my trousers



## pubman

At a meeting Krusckev accuses Lavrenti Beria of being a traitor or similar.

Lavrenti Beria say's in reply "Nikita Sergeyvich why are you picking fleas in my trousers"

This translation is from Wikipedia. My question is this,

Is it a common phrase in Russia that has been badly translated and if so what does it mean.


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## WordOrder

I hear it first time. I don't think this is a common phrase. It'll likely be _искать блох в штанах_ in Russian. I think it's possible to determine its meaning from the context of the original article. May be it means something like _faultfinding_. Just a suggestion.


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## morzh

I would like to see the original of it in Russian.
I never heard this expression before. 

There exists a similar one, "ловить блох" (catch fleas) meaning almost the same as "nitpicking". But I never saw it used together with 'штаны" (trousers). It is possible Beriya modified and combined some sayings, which is a normal thing to occur when one is under great stress (he was arrested and realized what was about to transpire).


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## pubman

Thank you WordOrder and morzh.

Unfortunately I don't have the original Russian text. The question actualy arose in the Spanish forum so I will report back with your suggestions.

Many thanks


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## Maroseika

Here is like it has happened according to Khrushchtov:

Я ... попросил слова у председательствующего Маленкова и предложил обсудить вопрос о Берии. ...Он встрепенулся, взял меня за руку, посмотрел на меня и говорит: "Что это ты, Никита? Что ты мелешь?" (What's up, Nikita? What a nonsense you are talking?).

As you can see, nothing about trousers and its content. Even he _tutea _ to Khrushchtov, so the quotation from Wikipedia (where he adrresses to him using the full name - Никита Сергеевич - looks strongly misquoting the original.


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## pubman

Thank you very much Maroseika,

That's very helpful, thank you for taking the time to look up the original text


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## elemika

Здесь ссылаются на рассказ Микояна о событиях 26 июня 1953 года: "…После обмена мнениями, когда  особенно резко выступил Хрущев и мы все выступили в том же духе, было  принято решение в отношении Берии. Сначала он не понял серьезности дела и  нагло сказал: "Что вы у меня блох в штанах ищете?" Но потом до него  дошло. Он тут же, в комнате Президиума ЦК, был арестован".
см


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## pubman

Sorry elemika, I don't speak any Russian. Te question was raised in the Spanish to English forum where I normally hang out out. We were trying to translate the title into Spanish from English from Russian.

Regards


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## elemika

Your phrase "picking fleas in my trousers" is a literal translation of the original Beria's phrase "Что вы у меня блох в штанах ищете"

According to Mikoyan's evidence , it was said when Beria was being arrested.
It was an absolutely unexpected thing to him so his phrase was  an invalid idiom: a some mix of ловить блох (to pick the fleas), искать вшей (search louse) and so on...


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## Saluton

That original idiomacy is typical of Russian-speaking people from the South.


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## Maroseika

Saluton said:


> That original idiomacy is typical of Russian-speaking people from the South.



Do you mean Beria or Mikoyan? After all, we know this apocripha only from the latter.


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## morzh

Saluton said:


> That original idiomacy is typical of Russian-speaking people from the South.



Russian spoken practices of "people from South" are vastly different. Mikoyan was Armenian, Beriya - from Georgia (don't know what ethnicity - there are few). I can easily discern an Azeri from a Georgian, or a person from Dagestan (doesn't matter what ethnicity) from the previous two. They all speak very different Russian languages. So applying universal "Southern people spoken habits" isn't right.


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## Saluton

morzh said:


> I can easily discern an Azeri from a Georgian, or a person from Dagestan (doesn't matter what ethnicity) from the previous two.


You mean, even by written speech? I'm sure anyone (any man, for that matter) from the Caucasian countries could have said "что вы у меня блох в штанах ищете", rather than a Russian or even an Ossetian or a Dagestani. The speech of people from those countries is usually more vivid, more picturesque than that of Russians.


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## Maroseika

The phrase looks clumsy whoever would say it, and for me it has nothing to do with the Cacausian "vivacity". Taking into account we know it only from Mikoyan, he has thought it up himself. The meeting lasted very long time, even with a lunch break, there was no spontaneity, and therefore no basis for such a "vivid" reaction.


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## Saluton

Anyway, that's off topic. I don't want to keep arguing.


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## Ben Jamin

morzh said:


> Russian spoken practices of "people from South" are vastly different. Mikoyan was Armenian, Beriya - from Georgia (don't know what ethnicity - there are few). I can easily discern an Azeri from a Georgian, or a person from Dagestan (doesn't matter what ethnicity) from the previous two. They all speak very different Russian languages. So applying universal "Southern people spoken habits" isn't right.


 Beria was Megrelian.


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