For the first, given the extremes of poverty and homelessnes people can see on the streets, it not that shocking that the reasonably well-off top 19% thought they might be in the top 1%-- on a global scale, they certainly are. That this large a number of folks already feel that privileged is not necessarily that daunting-- it means that with the right appeal, they may be willing to take on the tax burden to match their self-recognized (and even exaggerated) privilege. ---
On polls, over half of Russians say they consider themselves middle class.