https://www.facebook.com/ttcereteli?sk=wall
Sergey Dyagilev's Photos
Друзья - это люди, которые хорошо нас знают, но все равно любят.
By: Sergey Dyagilev
LikeUnlike · · Share · 3 minutes ago
Tatiana Tsereteli: ..верно!..это настоящие друзья!!..увы..таких очень мало!!....на вес золота!..Друзья,БЕРЕГИТЕ И ЛЮБИТЕ СВОИХ ДРУЗЕЙ,со всеми изъянами..)*
Never expect. Never assume. Never ask. And never demand. Just let it be. If it's meant to be, it will happen :)
LikeUnlike · · Share · about an hour ago · Shared with: Public
Write a comment...
Ханжа — это человек, который больше расстраивается не из-за своих грехов, а из-за удовольствия, которое другие люди умудряются получать от жизни.
LikeUnlike · · Share · about an hour ago · Shared with: Public
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
LRB · Peter Pomerantsev · Putin’s Rasputin
www.lrb.co.uk
The next act of Russian history is about to begin: Putin and Medvedev will pop off-stage into the Moscow green room, switch costumes, and re-emerge to play each other’s roles. Putin as president, again, Medvedev as PM. It’s the apotheosis of what has become known as ‘managed . . .
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova London Review of Books · 20 October 2011 vi...
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova London Review of Books · 20 October 2011 via www.lrb.co.uk on 10/13/11 Peter Pomerantsev Putin’s Rasputin 
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova London Review of Books · 20 October 2011 via www.lrb.co.uk on 10/13/11 Peter Pomerantsev Putin’s Rasputin
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova London Review of Books · 20 October 2011 via www.lrb.co.uk on 10/13/11 Peter Pomerantsev Putin’s Rasputin The next act of Russian history is about to begin: Putin and Medvedev will pop off-stage into the Moscow green room, switch costumes, and re-emerge to play each other’s roles....
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
Peter Pomerantsev · LRB
Peter Pomerantsev · LRB
Peter Pomerantsev Peter Pomerantsev spent four years producing TV programmes in Moscow, and wrote about the experience for the LRB in February. In the LRB Archive: Putin’s Rasputin · 20 October 2011 Diary: At Potemkin Productions · 3 February 2011
"Podcasts" via Mike Nova 13.10.2011 20:07 Кейс : Ознакомиться с делами: Лепрекон...
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
"Podcasts" via Mike Nova 13.10.2011 20:07 Кейс : Ознакомиться с делами: Лепрекон; Феррари; Ячейка общества via Горячие интервью (звук) | Эхо Москвы by info@echo.msk.ru (Эхо Москвы) on 10/13/11
"Podcasts" via Mike Nova 13.10.2011 20:07 Кейс : Ознакомиться с делами: Лепрекон; Феррари; Ячейка общества via Горячие интервью (звук) | Эхо Москвы by info@echo.msk.ru (Эхо Москвы) on 10/13/11
"Podcasts" via Mike Nova 13.10.2011 20:07 Кейс : Ознакомиться с делами: Лепрекон; Феррари; Ячейка общества via Горячие интервью (звук) | Эхо Москвы by info@echo.msk.ru (Эхо Москвы) on 10/13/11 Гости: Антон Орехъ , Тимур Олевский Ведущие: Ирина Воробьева Время гостей - 13 октября, 2011 via Радиопрограммы - Радио Свобода on 10/13/11 Что будет предпринимать украинская оппозиция после приговора Юлии Тимошенко?...
London Review of Books · 20 October 2011 Peter Pomerantsev Putin’s Rasputin The...
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
London Review of Books · 20 October 2011 Peter Pomerantsev Putin’s Rasputin The next act of Russian history is about to begin: Putin and Medvedev will pop off-stage into the Moscow green room, switch costumes, and re-emerge to play each other’s roles. Putin as president, again, Medvedev as PM. It’s the apotheosis of what has become known as ‘managed democracy’, and the ultimate triumph of the show’s writer-director, Putin’s chief ideologue and grey cardinal, Vladislav Surkov, the ‘Kremlin demiurge’....
London Review of Books · 20 October 2011 Peter Pomerantsev Putin’s Rasputin The next act of Russian history is about to begin: Putin and Medvedev will pop off-stage into the Moscow green room, switch costumes, and re-emerge to play each other’s roles. Putin as president, again, Medvedev as PM. It’s the apotheosis of what has become known as ‘managed democracy’, and the ultimate triumph of the show’s writer-director, Putin’s chief ideologue and grey cardinal, Vladislav Surkov, the ‘Kremlin demiurge’....
London Review of Books · 20 October 2011 via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11 London Review of Books · 20 October 2011 London Review of Books · 20 October 2011 Peter Pomerantsev Putin’s Rasputin The next act of Russian history is about to begin: Putin and Medvedev will pop off-stage into the Moscow green room, switch costumes, and re-emerge to play each other’s roles....
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
Facebook
Facebook
News"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova London Review of Books · 20 October 2011 via w "PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova London Review of Books · 20 October 2011 via w "PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova London Review of Books · 20 October 2011 via www.lrb.co.uk on 10/13/11 Peter Pomerantsev Putin’s Rasputin The next act of Russian history is about to begin: Putin and Medvedev will pop off-stage into...
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
https://fbcdn-profile-a.akamaihd.net/hprofile-ak-snc4/275834_100001419465102_259650741_q.jpg
Sergey Dyagilev
Ханжа — это человек, который больше расстраивается не из-за своих грехов, а из-за удовольствия, которое другие люди умудряются получать от жизни.
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
https://fbcdn-profile-a.akamaihd.net/hprofile-ak-snc4/260653_100002005782248_1393296287_q.jpg
Ammad Shah
Never expect. Never assume. Never ask. And never demand. Just let it be. If it's meant to be, it will happen :)
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
No Jobs Bill, and No Ideas
www.nytimes.com
Senate Republicans’ unanimous decision to kill President Obama’s jobs bill was a breathtaking act of economic vandalism, but they offer no plan of their own.
See more of Mike Nova's starred items ...
Get started with Google Reader
Mike Nova's starred itemsvia A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
Protesters Sweep Up Before Being Swept Out
blogs.wsj.com
Faced with an attempt to clear and clean the park they've occupied for nearly a month, participants in Occupy Wall Street took up mops and started cleaning the area.
A List's Facebook Wall 13 октября 2011 г., 12:46:51 RUSSIA and THE WES
via Russian Politics - Российская Политика's Facebook Wall by Russian Politics - Российская Политика on 10/13/11
A List's Facebook Wall 13 октября 2011 г., 12:46:51 RUSSIA and THE WES 
A List's Facebook Wall 13 октября 2011 г., 12:46:51 RUSSIA and THE WES
A List's Facebook Wall 13 октября 2011 г., 12:46:51 RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД 13 октября 2011 г., 12:46:51 | A List RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД "Публицисты и Комментаторы" via Mike Nova in Google Reader Самыми критикуемыми губернаторами стали главы Чечни, Московской области и Краснодарского края - Thursday, October 13, 2011 - (author unknown) Тедеева выдворили...
Ukraine, Russia and the Eurasian Union - The Economist
via Russian Politics - Российская Политика's Facebook Wall by Russian Politics - Российская Политика on 10/13/11
Ukraine, Russia and the Eurasian Union - The Economist 
Ukraine, Russia and the Eurasian Union - The Economist
Telegraph.co.ukUkraine, Russia and the Eurasian UnionThe EconomistThe conviction of the opposition leader has chilled Ukraine's relations with the West. Might it create an opening for Russia? SEVEN years ago Yulia Tymoshenko, a populist politician dressed in orange, climbed onto a stage in a snow-covered Kiev and ...Tymoshenko fines to pay for Russian gas?UPI.comUkraine files new charges against jailed ex-PMBoston GlobeUkraine opens new case against TymoshenkoReuters Africaall 492 news articles »
Тамбовскому подростку грозят судом за оскорбление полицейского в Интернете
via Russian Politics - Российская Политика's Facebook Wall by Russian Politics - Российская Политика on 10/13/11
Тамбовскому подростку грозят судом за оскорбление полицейского в Интернете 
Тамбовскому подростку грозят судом за оскорбление полицейского в Интернете
Следственный комитет Тамбовской области возбудил уголовное дело в отношении 16-летнего подростка, которого подозревают в оскорблении сотрудника полиции в сети Интернет. Подростку грозит штраф в размере до 40 тысяч рублей или исправительные работы сроком до года.
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova London Review of Books · 20 October 2011 vi...
via Russian Politics - Российская Политика's Facebook Wall by Russian Politics - Российская Политика on 10/13/11
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova London Review of Books · 20 October 2011 via www.lrb.co.uk on 10/13/11 Peter Pomerantsev Putin’s Rasputin 
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova London Review of Books · 20 October 2011 via www.lrb.co.uk on 10/13/11 Peter Pomerantsev Putin’s Rasputin
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova London Review of Books · 20 October 2011 via www.lrb.co.uk on 10/13/11 Peter Pomerantsev Putin’s Rasputin The next act of Russian history is about to begin: Putin and Medvedev will pop off-stage into the Moscow green room, switch costumes, and re-emerge to play each other’s roles....
Berezovsky trusted Abramovich, court hears - Financial Times
via Russian Politics - Российская Политика's Facebook Wall by Russian Politics - Российская Политика on 10/13/11
Berezovsky trusted Abramovich, court hears - Financial Times 
Berezovsky trusted Abramovich, court hears - Financial Times
Daily MailBerezovsky trusted Abramovich, court hearsFinancial TimesBoris Berezovsky, the exiled Russian oligarch, never made a written agreement with his one-time protégé and now avowed enemy, Roman Abramovich, because he trusted him, a London court heard. ...BREAKINGVIEWS-Berezovsky-Abramovich duel not just about the pastTrustLawBattle of the billionaire wags: Abramovich and Berezovsky's other halves bring ...Daily MailAeroflot could have been drained to offshore companies - BerezovskyRAPSIRAC -Tne Moscow Newsall 7 news articles »
High Tide: From Fighting FCPA Secrecy To Bout Trial Opening Arguments - Wall Str...
via Russian Politics - Российская Политика's Facebook Wall by Russian Politics - Российская Политика on 10/13/11
High Tide: From Fighting FCPA Secrecy To Bout Trial Opening Arguments - Wall Street Journal (blog)
High Tide: From Fighting FCPA Secrecy To Bout Trial Opening Arguments - Wall Street Journal (blog)
High Tide: From Fighting FCPA Secrecy To Bout Trial Opening ArgumentsWall Street Journal (blog)(UPI, Arab Times, Gulf News, Gulf News) Exiled Russian businessman and former politician Boris Berezovsky was accused of money laundering at the Commercial Court in London during cross-examination. (The Independent) The uprisings this year that began ...
via www.facebook.com on 10/13/11
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova London Review of Books · 20 October 2011 via w
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova London Review of Books · 20 October 2011 via w
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova London Review of Books · 20 October 2011 via www.lrb.co.uk on 10/13/11 Peter Pomerantsev Putin’s Rasputin The next act of Russian history is about to begin: Putin and Medvedev will pop off-stage into the Moscow green room, switch costumes, and re-emerge to play each other’s roles....
Source: mike_nova
Published: 2011-10-13 17:53:30 GMT
via RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД by Mike Nova on 10/13/11
London Review of Books · 20 October 2011
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
London Review of Books · 20 October 2011
London Review of Books · 20 October 2011
Peter Pomerantsev Putin’s Rasputin The next act of Russian history is about to begin: Putin and Medvedev will pop off-stage into the Moscow green room, switch costumes, and re-emerge to play each other’s roles. Putin as president, again, Medvedev as PM. It’s the apotheosis of what has become known as ‘managed democracy’, and the ultimate triumph of the show’s writer-director, Putin’s chief ideologue and grey cardinal, Vladislav Surkov, the ‘Kremlin demiurge’....
Peter Pomerantsev · Putin’s Rasputin · LRB 20 October 2011
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
Peter Pomerantsev · Putin’s Rasputin · LRB 20 October 2011
Peter Pomerantsev · Putin’s Rasputin · LRB 20 October 2011
Putin’s Rasputin Peter Pomerantsev You are invited to read this free essay from the London Review of Books. Register for free and enjoy 24 hours of access to the entire LRB archive of over 12,500 essays and reviews. The next act of Russian history is about to begin: Putin and Medvedev will pop off-stage into the Moscow green room, switch costumes, and re-emerge to play each other’s roles....
Blogger: User Profile: Putin watcher
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
Blogger: User Profile: Putin watcher
Blogger: User Profile: Putin watcher
Putin watcher Gender:Male Industry:Law Occupation:Attorney Location:United States About Me Dr. Partlett holds a law degree from Stanford University and a master's and doctorate in Russian studies from Oxford University. His scholarship explores experimental methodology, comparative revolution, and constitutional theory. His published research can be found at: http://works.bepress.com/william_partlett/.
Russia's World of Masks and Poses | Putin Watcher
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
Russia's World of Masks and Poses | Putin Watcher 
Russia's World of Masks and Poses | Putin Watcher
Russia's World of Masks and Poses Vladislav Surkov - the chief Kremlin ideologist and perhaps Russia's answer to Talleyrand - apparently loves gangsta rap and was a former theater director. Peter Pomerantz tells us more in his insightful piece for the London Review of Books. In Soviet Russia you would have been forced to give up any notion of artistic freedom if you wanted a slice of the pie....
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova Ukraine, Russia and the Eurasian Union - Th...
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova Ukraine, Russia and the Eurasian Union - The Economist via News's Facebook Wall by News on 10/13/11
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova Ukraine, Russia and the Eurasian Union - The Economist via News's Facebook Wall by News on 10/13/11
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova Ukraine, Russia and the Eurasian Union - The Economist via News's Facebook Wall by News on 10/13/11 Ukraine, Russia and the Eurasian Union - The Economist Ukraine, Russia and the Eurasian Union - The Economist The Nation, PakistanUkraine, Russia and the Eurasian UnionThe EconomistMight it create an opening for Russia?...
Удальцова приговорили к десяти суткам ареста
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
Удальцова приговорили к десяти суткам ареста
Удальцова приговорили к десяти суткам ареста
Удальцова приговорили к десяти суткам арестаУдальцова приговорили к десяти суткам арестаСуд приговорил координатора Левого фронта Сергея Удальцова к десяти суткам ареста за участие в несанкционированном шествии после Дня гнева. Активист намерен опротестовать решение суда, он объявил сухую голодовку. Приговор вынесла судья Тверского мирового суда Ольга Боровкова. По словам очевидцев, она не стала выслушивать показания Удальцова и его адвоката.
Был сегодня в Тверском суде г. Москвы. Дал свидетельские
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
Был сегодня в Тверском суде г. Москвы. Дал свидетельские
Был сегодня в Тверском суде г. Москвы. Дал свидетельские
Был сегодня в Тверском суде г. Москвы. Дал свидетельскиеБыл сегодня в Тверском суде г. Москвы. Дал свидетельскиеБыл сегодня в Тверском суде г. Москвы. Дал свидетельские показания. Инициатива была моя.Сказал что знаю всех трех активистов "Другой России" и "Стратегии-31" : Руслана Хубаева, Кирилла Унчука и Игоря Березюка, что они мои младшие товарищи.
See more of "PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova ...
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike NovaТимошенко вернули старое дело - Газета.Ru
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
Тимошенко вернули старое дело - Газета.Ru
Тимошенко вернули старое дело - Газета.Ru
Тимошенко вернули старое дело - Газета.RuТимошенко вернули старое дело - Газета.RuКомсомольская Правда в МолдовеТимошенко вернули старое делоГазета.RuЭкс-премьер Украины Юлия Тимошенко стала фигурантом очередного уголовного дела, об этом стало известно в четверг. Ранее во вторник она была приговорена к семи годам тюремного заключения по так называемому «газовому делу». «Главным следственным управлением СБУ возбуждено уголовное дело в ...Против Юлии Тимошенко возбуждено новое уголовное делоКомсомольская правдаВ Москве не видят оснований для реанимирования в России
Russia's World of Masks and Poses
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
Russia's World of Masks and Poses
Russia's World of Masks and Poses
Russia's World of Masks and PosesRussia's World of Masks and PosesVladislav Surkov - the chief Kremlin ideologist and perhaps Russia's answer to Talleyrand - apparently loves gangsta rap and was a former theater director. Peter Pomerantz tells us more in his insightful piece for the London Review of Books. In Soviet Russia you would have been forced to give up any notion of artistic freedom if you wanted a slice of
News Review – Обзор Новостей - Links
via RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД by Mike Nova on 9/29/11
CURRENT EVENTS - ТЕКУЩИЕ СОБЫТИЯ:
"Top Stories - Главные..." via Mike Nova
Top Stories – Главные новости | Главные новости – Новости Google
"Russian Politics - Российская Политика" via Mike Nova
Russian Politics - Российская Политика's Facebook Wall
"Публицисты и Комментаторы" via Mike Nova
"Русский национализм - Russian nationalism" via Mike Nova
"Global Voices - Russia - FUSSR" via Mike Nova
World | Russia | Russia Blogs | Opposition in Russia |
Мир | Россия | Блоги | Оппозиция в России | "Russian Press" via Mike Nova
Videonews Uploads | Видеоновости Uploads
VIDEO NEWS - Videonews Uploads – Wires - Videonews Uploads – 2 - "PBS on Russia" via Mike Nova
Video Links - VIDEO NEWS LINKS
Видео-Новости - Видеоновости Uploads –2 - Видео – Ссылки - Видео – Оппозиция в России
London Review of Books · 20 October 2011
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
London Review of Books · 20 October 2011
London Review of Books · 20 October 2011
Peter Pomerantsev Putin’s Rasputin The next act of Russian history is about to begin: Putin and Medvedev will pop off-stage into the Moscow green room, switch costumes, and re-emerge to play each other’s roles. Putin as president, again, Medvedev as PM. It’s the apotheosis of what has become known as ‘managed democracy’, and the ultimate triumph of the show’s writer-director, Putin’s chief ideologue and grey cardinal, Vladislav Surkov, the ‘Kremlin demiurge’....
Peter Pomerantsev · Putin’s Rasputin · LRB 20 October 2011
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
Peter Pomerantsev · Putin’s Rasputin · LRB 20 October 2011
Peter Pomerantsev · Putin’s Rasputin · LRB 20 October 2011
Putin’s Rasputin Peter Pomerantsev You are invited to read this free essay from the London Review of Books. Register for free and enjoy 24 hours of access to the entire LRB archive of over 12,500 essays and reviews. The next act of Russian history is about to begin: Putin and Medvedev will pop off-stage into the Moscow green room, switch costumes, and re-emerge to play each other’s roles....
Blogger: User Profile: Putin watcher
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
Blogger: User Profile: Putin watcher
Blogger: User Profile: Putin watcher
Putin watcher Gender:Male Industry:Law Occupation:Attorney Location:United States About Me Dr. Partlett holds a law degree from Stanford University and a master's and doctorate in Russian studies from Oxford University. His scholarship explores experimental methodology, comparative revolution, and constitutional theory. His published research can be found at: http://works.bepress.com/william_partlett/.
Russia's World of Masks and Poses | Putin Watcher
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
Russia's World of Masks and Poses | Putin Watcher
Russia's World of Masks and Poses | Putin Watcher
Russia's World of Masks and Poses Vladislav Surkov - the chief Kremlin ideologist and perhaps Russia's answer to Talleyrand - apparently loves gangsta rap and was a former theater director. Peter Pomerantz tells us more in his insightful piece for the London Review of Books. In Soviet Russia you would have been forced to give up any notion of artistic freedom if you wanted a slice of the pie....
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova Ukraine, Russia and the Eurasian Union - Th...
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova Ukraine, Russia and the Eurasian Union - The Economist via News's Facebook Wall by News on 10/13/11
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova Ukraine, Russia and the Eurasian Union - The Economist via News's Facebook Wall by News on 10/13/11
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova Ukraine, Russia and the Eurasian Union - The Economist via News's Facebook Wall by News on 10/13/11 Ukraine, Russia and the Eurasian Union - The Economist Ukraine, Russia and the Eurasian Union - The Economist The Nation, PakistanUkraine, Russia and the Eurasian UnionThe EconomistMight it create an opening for Russia?...
Удальцова приговорили к десяти суткам ареста
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
Удальцова приговорили к десяти суткам ареста
Удальцова приговорили к десяти суткам ареста
Удальцова приговорили к десяти суткам арестаУдальцова приговорили к десяти суткам арестаСуд приговорил координатора Левого фронта Сергея Удальцова к десяти суткам ареста за участие в несанкционированном шествии после Дня гнева. Активист намерен опротестовать решение суда, он объявил сухую голодовку. Приговор вынесла судья Тверского мирового суда Ольга Боровкова. По словам очевидцев, она не стала выслушивать показания Удальцова и его адвоката.
Был сегодня в Тверском суде г. Москвы. Дал свидетельские
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
Был сегодня в Тверском суде г. Москвы. Дал свидетельские
Был сегодня в Тверском суде г. Москвы. Дал свидетельские
Был сегодня в Тверском суде г. Москвы. Дал свидетельскиеБыл сегодня в Тверском суде г. Москвы. Дал свидетельскиеБыл сегодня в Тверском суде г. Москвы. Дал свидетельские показания. Инициатива была моя.Сказал что знаю всех трех активистов "Другой России" и "Стратегии-31" : Руслана Хубаева, Кирилла Унчука и Игоря Березюка, что они мои младшие товарищи.
See more of "PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova ...
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike NovaТимошенко вернули старое дело - Газета.Ru
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
Тимошенко вернули старое дело - Газета.Ru
Тимошенко вернули старое дело - Газета.Ru
Тимошенко вернули старое дело - Газета.RuТимошенко вернули старое дело - Газета.RuКомсомольская Правда в МолдовеТимошенко вернули старое делоГазета.RuЭкс-премьер Украины Юлия Тимошенко стала фигурантом очередного уголовного дела, об этом стало известно в четверг. Ранее во вторник она была приговорена к семи годам тюремного заключения по так называемому «газовому делу». «Главным следственным управлением СБУ возбуждено уголовное дело в ...Против Юлии Тимошенко возбуждено новое уголовное делоКомсомольская правдаВ Москве не видят оснований для реанимирования в России
Russia's World of Masks and Poses
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
Russia's World of Masks and Poses
Russia's World of Masks and Poses
Russia's World of Masks and PosesRussia's World of Masks and PosesVladislav Surkov - the chief Kremlin ideologist and perhaps Russia's answer to Talleyrand - apparently loves gangsta rap and was a former theater director. Peter Pomerantz tells us more in his insightful piece for the London Review of Books. In Soviet Russia you would have been forced to give up any notion of artistic freedom if you wanted a slice of
В Москве не видят оснований для реанимирования в России дела Юлии Тимошенко - Ра...
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
В Москве не видят оснований для реанимирования в России дела Юлии Тимошенко - Ра...
В Москве не видят оснований для реанимирования в России дела Юлии Тимошенко - Ра...
В Москве не видят оснований для реанимирования в России дела Юлии Тимошенко - Радиостанция ЭХО МОСКВЫВ Москве не видят оснований для реанимирования в России дела Юлии Тимошенко - Радиостанция ЭХО МОСКВЫКонтрактиВ Москве не видят оснований для реанимирования в России дела Юлии ТимошенкоРадиостанция ЭХО МОСКВЫОно прекращено за истечением срока давности, - напомнил Интерфаксу информированный источник, знакомый с ситуацией.
«Горький вкус свободы». Анна Политковская
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
«Горький вкус свободы». Анна Политковская
«Горький вкус свободы». Анна Политковская
«Горький вкус свободы». Анна Политковская«Горький вкус свободы». Анна ПолитковскаяВ современном мире, полном цинизма и коррупции, мы отчаянно нуждаемся в смелых, честных и порядочных людях, утверждает режиссер Марина Голдовская. Именно таким человеком, по ее мнению, была Анна Политковская, журналист «Новой газеты», погибшая от рук наемных убийц 7 октября 2006 года. Марина Голдовская сняла об Анне Политковской полнометражный документальный фильм «Горький вкус свободы» (A Bitter Taste of Freedom), премьерные показы которого прошли в...
В Лондоне прошли первые слушания о причинах смерти Александра Литвиненко
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
В Лондоне прошли первые слушания о причинах смерти Александра Литвиненко
В Лондоне прошли первые слушания о причинах смерти Александра Литвиненко
В Лондоне прошли первые слушания о причинах смерти Александра ЛитвиненкоВ Лондоне прошли первые слушания о причинах смерти Александра ЛитвиненкоЛондонский судья-коронер, рассматривающий дело об убийстве бывшего сотрудника ФСБ России Александра Литвиненко, не исключил, что обстоятельства его гибели может рассмотреть английский Высокий суд. Как сообщает Би-би-си, в четверг в Лондоне прошли первые слушания по вопросу об установлении причин смерти Литвиненко в 2006 году....
Цены в России замерли на квартал
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
Цены в России замерли на квартал
Цены в России замерли на квартал
Цены в России замерли на кварталЦены в России замерли на кварталВторой раз в новейшей истории России потребительские цены не растут в течение трех месяцев подряд. А по данным, представленным 12 октября Росстатом, и в первой декаде октября инфляция оказалась нулевой.
Ukraine, Russia and the Eurasian Union - The Economist
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
Ukraine, Russia and the Eurasian Union - The Economist
Ukraine, Russia and the Eurasian Union - The Economist
Ukraine, Russia and the Eurasian Union - The EconomistUkraine, Russia and the Eurasian Union - The EconomistThe Nation, PakistanUkraine, Russia and the Eurasian UnionThe EconomistMight it create an opening for Russia? SEVEN years ago Yulia Tymoshenko, a populist politician dressed in orange, climbed onto a stage in a snow-covered Kiev and galvanised 150000 protesters against the rigged victory of Viktor Yanukovych in the 2004 ...Russia's Putin and Medvedev confront American LebensraumCanadian
New Charges Possible Against Former Ukraine Prime Minister
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
New Charges Possible Against Former Ukraine Prime Minister
New Charges Possible Against Former Ukraine Prime Minister
New Charges Possible Against Former Ukraine Prime MinisterNew Charges Possible Against Former Ukraine Prime MinisterThe new charges come amid international condemnation over the persecution of Yulia V. Tymoshenko, and will likely darken hopes among her supporters that she could soon be released from prison.
Russia Blogs's Facebook Wall by Russia Blogs: Russia: LiveJournal Loses 23 P...
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
Russia Blogs's Facebook Wall by Russia Blogs: Russia: LiveJournal Loses 23 P...
Russia Blogs's Facebook Wall by Russia Blogs: Russia: LiveJournal Loses 23 P...
Russia Blogs's Facebook Wall by Russia Blogs: Russia: LiveJournal Loses 23 Percent of the Audience in 2011 | Россия: ЖЖ теряет 23% аудитории в 2011г. | via Russia Blogs's Facebook Wall by Russia BlogsRussia Blogs's Facebook Wall by Russia Blogs: Russia: LiveJournal Loses 23 Percent of the Audience in 2011 | Россия: ЖЖ теряет 23% аудитории в 2011г.
See more of "PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike Nova ...
Get started with Google Reader
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike NovaЛюдмила Алексеева о комиссии Макфола-Суркова: Это бесплодная работа - via Russi...
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
Людмила Алексеева о комиссии Макфола-Суркова: Это бесплодная работа - via Russi...
Людмила Алексеева о комиссии Макфола-Суркова: Это бесплодная работа - via Russi...
Людмила Алексеева о комиссии Макфола-Суркова: Это бесплодная работа - via Russian Politics - Российская Политика's Facebook Wall | США и дело Магнитского | Замгоссекретаря США: Мы будем отказывать в визе фигурантам "списка Магнитского" | Администрация США не поддержит предложенный конгрессом "список Магнитского" | «Глубина вранья чиновников дошла до абсурда» - Новые Известия | Russia: Putin Gets Twitter Hashtag for His Birthday · Global VoicesЛюдмила Алексеева о комиссии Макфола-Суркова: Это бесплодная работа
Tymoshenko Prison Sentence Strengthens Russia's Hand in Ukraine - BusinessWe...
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
Tymoshenko Prison Sentence Strengthens Russia's Hand in Ukraine - BusinessWe...
Tymoshenko Prison Sentence Strengthens Russia's Hand in Ukraine - BusinessWe...
Tymoshenko Prison Sentence Strengthens Russia's Hand in Ukraine - BusinessWeek US and Russia have resolved trade issues such as intellectual property rights США и Россия разрешили торговые вопросы, включая права интеллектуальной собственности Российские предприниматели рассчитывают на магию Кремниевой долины Холуево ждет ПутинаTymoshenko Prison Sentence Strengthens Russia's Hand in Ukraine - BusinessWeek US and Russia have resolved trade issues such as intellectual property rights США и Россия разрешили торговые вопросы, включая права
RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД
RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД
"Публицисты и Комментаторы" via Mike Nova in Google Reader Самыми критикуемыми губернаторами стали главы Чечни, Московской области и Краснодарского края - Thursday, October 13, 2011 - (author unknown) Тедеева выдворили из Южной Осетии после конфликта с властями - Thursday, October 13, 2011 - (author unknown) Политолог Андрей Пионтковский – о перспективах российско-американской "перезагрузки" - Радио Свобода - Thursday, October 13, 2011 - (author unknown) Борис Березовский может владеть "Трансаэро" - Росбалт.RU - Thursday, October 13, 2011 - (author unknown) Если бы Березовского не было, его следовало бы выдумать - Newsland - Thursday, October 13,...
RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД
RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД
(title unknown) via Russia Blogs's Facebook Wall by Russia Blogs on 10/12/11 RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД: 18:10 09.10.2011 - Рейтинг публичности власти - Putin Becomes. east-and-west-org.blogspot.com Putin Becomes a Twitter Sensation blogs.wsj.com Vladimir Putin has never sent a tweet, but on his 59th birthday, the Russian prime minister became a Twitter sensation, with a hashtag devoted to his birthday rising near the top of global trends....
RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД
RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД
"A List-FbW" via Mike Nova in Google Reader Путин, Макаревич, Холуёво... | Живой Журнал - Thursday, October 13, 2011 - A List Mr. Freeman идет в политику | Живой Журнал - Thursday, October 13, 2011 - A List Андрей Макаревич и политическая сатира. http://www.livejournal.ru/themes/id/37624 - Thursday, October 13, 2011 - A List Voca People ворвались в студию ДОЖДЯ - Thursday, October 13, 2011 - A List Европейские политики наладили переписку с камерой Ю.Тимошенко - РБК - RBC.Ru - Thursday, October 13, 2011 - A List
RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД
RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД
(title unknown) via Russian Politics - Российская Политика's Facebook Wall by Russian Politics - Российская Политика on 10/12/11 Меринов Алексей's photos ...скопилось большое количество картинок " к выборам". Как когда-то уже публиковавшихся, так и "свежака". А что их , "солить"-то
RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД
RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД
"Russia Blogs-FbW" via Mike Nova in Google Reader Макфол обещает поддерживать гражданское общество России | Кремль требует от Един... - Thursday, October 13, 2011 - Russia Blogs "Броня крепка!" (с) ВНИМАНИЕ!! СБОРНИК!!! - Thursday, October 13, 2011 - Russia Blogs Every Day Carry - Thursday, October 13, 2011 - Russia Blogs Amnesty Int'l: Free Tymoshenko | МИД вновь пригрозил ответным списком | Puti... - Thursday, October 13, 2011 - Russia Blogs FITCH FLUBS DEBT WARNING AS SOVCOMFLOT PRESSURES RATING AGENCY - Thursday, October 13, 2011 - Russia Blogs
RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД
via A List's Facebook Wall by A List on 10/13/11
RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД
RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД
title unknown) via Russian Politics - Российская Политика's Facebook Wall by Russian Politics - Российская Политика on 10/12/11 Russia: Putin Gets Twitter Hashtag for His Birthday · Global Voices globalvoicesonline.org Global Voices is an international community of bloggers who report on blogs and citizen media from around the world.
via RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД by Mike Nova on 10/13/11
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike NovaLondon Review of Books · 20 October 2011
via www.lrb.co.uk on 10/13/11
Peter Pomerantsev
The next act of Russian history is about to begin: Putin and Medvedev will pop off-stage into the Moscow green room, switch costumes, and re-emerge to play each other’s roles. Putin as president, again, Medvedev as PM. It’s the apotheosis of what has become known as ‘managed democracy’, and the ultimate triumph of the show’s writer-director, Putin’s chief ideologue and grey cardinal, Vladislav Surkov, the ‘Kremlin demiurge’. Known also as the ‘puppetmaster who privatised the Russian political system’, Surkov is the real genius of the Putin era. Understand him and you understand not only contemporary Russia but a new type of power politics, a breed of authoritarianism far subtler than the 20th-century strains. More
Peter Pomerantsev · Putin’s Rasputin · LRB 20 October 2011
via www.lrb.co.uk on 10/13/11
The next act of Russian history is about to begin: Putin and Medvedev will pop off-stage into the Moscow green room, switch costumes, and re-emerge to play each other’s roles. Putin as president, again, Medvedev as PM. It’s the apotheosis of what has become known as ‘managed democracy’, and the ultimate triumph of the show’s writer-director, Putin’s chief ideologue and grey cardinal, Vladislav Surkov, the ‘Kremlin demiurge’. Known also as the ‘puppetmaster who privatised the Russian political system’, Surkov is the real genius of the Putin era. Understand him and you understand not only contemporary Russia but a new type of power politics, a breed of authoritarianism far subtler than the 20th-century strains.
There is something cherubic in Surkov’s soft, smooth face, something demonic in his stare. He trained as a theatre director then became a PR man; now his official role is ‘vice-head of the presidential administration’, but his influence over Russian politics is unsurpassed. He is the man behind the concept of ‘sovereign democracy’, in which democratic institutions are maintained without any democratic freedoms, the man who has turned television into a kitsch Putin-worshipping propaganda machine and launched pro-Kremlin youth groups happy to compare themselves to the Hitler Youth, to beat up foreigners and opposition journalists, and burn ‘unpatriotic’ books on Red Square. But this is only half the story.
"Podcasts" via Mike Nova13.10.2011 20:07 Кейс : Ознакомиться с делами: Лепрекон; Феррари; Ячейка общества
via Горячие интервью (звук) | Эхо Москвы by info@echo.msk.ru (Эхо Москвы) on 10/13/11
Гости: Антон Орехъ , Тимур Олевский
Ведущие: Ирина Воробьева
Время гостей - 13 октября, 2011
via Радиопрограммы - Радио Свобода on 10/13/11
Что будет предпринимать украинская оппозиция после приговора Юлии Тимошенко? В программе участвует депутат Верховной рады Украины Остап Семерак.
via Радиопрограммы - Радио Свобода on 10/13/11
По просьбе трудящихся из КГБ - 13 октября, 2011
via Радиопрограммы - Радио Свобода on 10/13/11
GlobalNews: 13 Oct 11 PM Hunger in North Korea
via Global News on 10/13/11
Aid-workers kidnapped in Kenya / Food-shortages in Sudan trigger protests / Selling Spain's unwanted homes / Testing the DNA of the Black Death.
13.10.2011 19:08 Особое мнение
via Горячие интервью (звук) | Эхо Москвы by info@echo.msk.ru (Эхо Москвы) on 10/13/11
Гости: Максим Шевченко
Ведущие: Ольга Журавлева
13.10.2011 18:00 Большое "Эхо"
via Горячие интервью (звук) | Эхо Москвы by info@echo.msk.ru (Эхо Москвы) on 10/13/11
Ведущие: Оксана Пашина
13.10.2011 17:56 Интервью : Компания "Авиа Нова"
via Горячие интервью (звук) | Эхо Москвы by info@echo.msk.ru (Эхо Москвы) on 10/13/11
Ведущие: Станислав Анисимов
Принципы инвестирования «А1», предполагают доверия к партнёрам...
via BBSeva from BBCRussian on 10/13/11
New law which gives more rights to KGB has been proposed in Belarus; In Poland 19 people were arrested in connection with Breivik case. Japan tries to increase tourism by offering free flights to the country
See more of "Podcasts" via Mike Nova ...
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike NovaLondon Review of Books · 20 October 2011
via www.lrb.co.uk on 10/13/11
Peter Pomerantsev
The next act of Russian history is about to begin: Putin and Medvedev will pop off-stage into the Moscow green room, switch costumes, and re-emerge to play each other’s roles. Putin as president, again, Medvedev as PM. It’s the apotheosis of what has become known as ‘managed democracy’, and the ultimate triumph of the show’s writer-director, Putin’s chief ideologue and grey cardinal, Vladislav Surkov, the ‘Kremlin demiurge’. Known also as the ‘puppetmaster who privatised the Russian political system’, Surkov is the real genius of the Putin era. Understand him and you understand not only contemporary Russia but a new type of power politics, a breed of authoritarianism far subtler than the 20th-century strains. More
Peter Pomerantsev · Putin’s Rasputin · LRB 20 October 2011
via www.lrb.co.uk on 10/13/11
The next act of Russian history is about to begin: Putin and Medvedev will pop off-stage into the Moscow green room, switch costumes, and re-emerge to play each other’s roles. Putin as president, again, Medvedev as PM. It’s the apotheosis of what has become known as ‘managed democracy’, and the ultimate triumph of the show’s writer-director, Putin’s chief ideologue and grey cardinal, Vladislav Surkov, the ‘Kremlin demiurge’. Known also as the ‘puppetmaster who privatised the Russian political system’, Surkov is the real genius of the Putin era. Understand him and you understand not only contemporary Russia but a new type of power politics, a breed of authoritarianism far subtler than the 20th-century strains.
There is something cherubic in Surkov’s soft, smooth face, something demonic in his stare. He trained as a theatre director then became a PR man; now his official role is ‘vice-head of the presidential administration’, but his influence over Russian politics is unsurpassed. He is the man behind the concept of ‘sovereign democracy’, in which democratic institutions are maintained without any democratic freedoms, the man who has turned television into a kitsch Putin-worshipping propaganda machine and launched pro-Kremlin youth groups happy to compare themselves to the Hitler Youth, to beat up foreigners and opposition journalists, and burn ‘unpatriotic’ books on Red Square. But this is only half the story.
In his spare time Surkov writes essays on conceptual art and lyrics for rock groups. He’s an aficionado of gangsta rap: there’s a picture of Tupac on his desk, next to the picture of Putin. And he is the alleged author of a bestselling novel, Almost Zero. ‘Alleged’ because the novel was published (in 2009) under the pseudonym Natan Dubovitsky – Surkov’s wife is called Natalya Dubovitskaya. Officially Surkov is the author of the preface, where he denies being the author of the novel, then makes a point of contradicting himself: ‘The author of this novel is an unoriginal Hamlet-obsessed hack’; later, ‘this is the best book I have ever read.’ In interviews he has come close to admitting to being the author while always pulling back from a complete confession. Whether or not he actually wrote every word of it he has gone out of his way to associate himself with it.
The novel is a satire of contemporary Russia whose hero, Egor, is a corrupt PR man happy to serve anyone who’ll pay the rent. A former publisher of avant-garde poetry, he now buys texts from impoverished underground writers, then sells the rights to rich bureaucrats and gangsters with artistic ambitions who publish them under their own names. The world of PR and publishing as portrayed in the novel is extremely dangerous. Publishing houses have their own gangs, whose members shoot each other over the rights to Nabokov and Pushkin, and the secret services infiltrate them for their own murky ends. It’s exactly the sort of book Surkov’s youth groups burn on Red Square.
Born in provincial Russia to a single mother, Egor grows up as a bookish hipster disenchanted with the late Soviet Union’s sham ideology. In the 1980s he moves to Moscow to hang out on the fringes of the bohemian set; in the 1990s he becomes a PR guru. It’s a background that has a lot in common with Surkov’s, the details of which were barely known until an article in Novoye Vremya earlier this year set the record straight. He was born in 1964, the son of a Russian mother and a Chechen father who left when Surkov was still a young child. Former schoolmates remember him as someone who made fun of the teacher’s pets in the Komsomol, wore velvet trousers, had long hair like Pink Floyd, wrote poetry, was a hit with the girls. He was a straight-A student whose essays on literature were read aloud by teachers in the staff room: it wasn’t only in his own eyes that he was too smart to believe in the social and political set-up around him.
In the 1980s and early 1990s Russia was experimenting with different modes at a dizzying rate: Soviet stagnation led to perestroika, which led to the collapse of the Soviet Union, liberal euphoria, then economic disaster. How to believe in anything when everything around you is changing so fast? Surkov abandoned a range of university careers from metallurgy to theatre directing, put in a spell in the army, went to bohemian parties, had regular violent altercations (he was expelled from drama school for fighting). Surkov, it said (or allegedly said) in one of the US diplomatic cables released by WikiLeaks, had always thought of himself as an unrecognised genius, but it took him a while to find his metier.
He trained at a martial arts club with Mikhail Khodorkovsky, then one of Russia’s emerging young business stars. Khodorkovsky took him on as a bodyguard, saw he had more use for his brains than his muscles and promoted him to PR manager. He became known for his ability not only to think up ingenious PR campaigns but to manipulate others into getting them distributed in the major media with a mixture of charm, aggression and bribery. ‘Surkov acts like a Chekist of the 1920s and 1930s,’ Dmitry Oreshkin, a political analyst, said. ‘He can always sniff out your weak spot.’ Top jobs followed at banks and TV channels. In 1999 he was invited to join Yeltsin’s presidential administration. Looking more like a designer than a bureaucrat, he stood out from the rest. He was one of the key spin doctors behind the promotion of Putin for president in 2000. Since then, while many of his colleagues have fallen from grace, Surkov has managed to stay in the game by remaking himself to suit his masters’ needs. ‘Slava is a vessel,’ according to Boris Nemtsov, a prominent opposition politician: ‘Under Yeltsin he was a democrat, under Putin he’s an autocrat.’
At one point he began to fear that success would be his undoing: there was speculation that he had presidential ambitions, a dangerous rumour, especially in political circles, and he immediately leaked the fact of his Chechen father, which he had previously kept secret, in order to rule himself out of higher office, or so it’s said. It was his way of saying ‘I know my place.’ One of his former bosses described him as ‘a closed person, with many demons. He is never on the level with people. He needs to be either above or, if need be, below: either the boss or the slave.’
The most interesting parts of Almost Zero come when the author moves away from social satire to the inner world of his protagonist. Egor is described as a ‘vulgar Hamlet’ who can see through the superficiality of his age, but is unable to have any real feelings for anyone or anything: ‘His self was locked in a nutshell … outside were his shadows, dolls. He saw himself as almost autistic, imitating contact with the outside world, talking to others in false voices to fish out whatever he needed from the Moscow squall: books, sex, money, food, power and other useful things.’ The novel refers to Hamlet over and over again – even though Prospero might have been more apt – while the main protagonists are compared to the Players, ‘prepared to perform pastoral, tragedy or something in between’. The novelist Eduard Limonov describes Surkov himself as having ‘turned Russia into a wonderful postmodernist theatre, where he experiments with old and new political models’. There’s something in this. In contemporary Russia, unlike the old USSR or present-day North Korea, the stage is constantly changing: the country is a dictatorship in the morning, a democracy at lunch, an oligarchy by suppertime, while, backstage, oil companies are expropriated, journalists killed, billions siphoned away. Surkov is at the centre of the show, sponsoring nationalist skinheads one moment, backing human rights groups the next. It’s a strategy of power based on keeping any opposition there may be constantly confused, a ceaseless shape-shifting that is unstoppable because it’s indefinable.
This fusion of despotism and postmodernism, in which no truth is certain, is reflected in the craze among the Russian elite for neuro-linguistic programming and Eriksonian hypnosis: types of subliminal manipulation based largely on confusing your opponent, first developed in the US in the 1960s. There are countless NLP and Eriksonian training centres in Moscow, with every wannabe power-wielder shelling out thousands of dollars to learn how to be the next master manipulator. Newly translated postmodernist texts give philosophical weight to the Surkovian power model. François Lyotard, the French theoretician of postmodernism, began to be translated in Russia only towards the end of the 1990s, at exactly the time Surkov joined the government. The author of Almost Zero loves to invoke such Lyotardian concepts as the breakdown of grand cultural narratives and the fragmentation of truth: ideas that still sound quite fresh in Russia. One blogger has noted that ‘the number of references to Derrida in political discourse is growing beyond all reasonable bounds. At a recent conference the Duma deputy Ivanov quoted Derrida three times and Lacan twice.’ In an echo of socialism’s fate in the early 20th century, Russia has adopted a fashionable, supposedly liberational Western intellectual movement and transformed it into an instrument of oppression.
In Soviet times a functionary would at least nominally pretend to believe in Communism; now the head of one of Russia’s main TV channels, Vladimir Kulistikov, who used to be employed by Radio Free Europe, proudly announces that he ‘can work with any power I’m told to work with’. As long as you have shown loyalty when it counts, you are free to do anything you like after hours. Thus Moscow’s top gallery-owner advises the Kremlin on propaganda at the same time as exhibiting anti-Kremlin work in his gallery; the most fashionable film director makes a blockbuster satirising the Putin regime while joining Putin’s party; Surkov writes a novel about the corruption of the system and rock lyrics denouncing Putin’s regime – lyrics that would have had him arrested in previous times.
In Soviet Russia you would have been forced to give up any notion of artistic freedom if you wanted a slice of the pie. In today’s Russia, if you’re talented and clever, you can have both. This makes for a unique fusion of primitive feudal poses and arch, postmodern irony. A property ad displayed all over central Moscow earlier this year captured the mood perfectly. Got up in the style of a Nazi poster, it showed two Germanic-looking youths against a glorious alpine mountain over the slogan ‘Life Is Getting Better’. It would be wrong to say the ad is humorous, but it’s not quite serious either. It’s sort of both. It’s saying this is the society we live in (a dictatorship), but we’re just playing at it (we can make jokes about it), but playing in a serious way (we’re making money playing it and won’t let anyone subvert its rules). A few months ago there was a huge ‘Putin party’ at Moscow’s most glamorous club. Strippers writhed around poles chanting: ‘I want you, prime minister.’ It’s the same logic. The sucking-up to the master is completely genuine, but as we’re all liberated 21st-century people who enjoy Coen brothers films, we’ll do our sucking up with an ironic grin while acknowledging that if we were ever to cross you we would quite quickly be dead.
This is the world Surkov has created, a world of masks and poses, colourful but empty, with little at its core but power for power’s sake and the accumulation of vast wealth. The country lives by the former wannabe theatre director’s script. Surkov’s victory appears total. But it isn’t, quite. Almost Zero isn’t the only recent bestseller written by a member of the country’s political and economic elite. In January, his old friend Khodorkovsky, the jailed oil tycoon turned prominent political dissident, published a collection of his essays and interviews. Surkov and Khodorkovsky have a complicated personal history. Khodorkovsky, it’s said, never completely trusted Surkov, so when the young PR manager asked to become a full partner in his oil and banking company Khodorkovsky refused. The two fell out, and many argue that their mutual enmity was a factor in Khodorkovsky’s imprisonment. Now their two books represent the intellectual axis dividing Russia. Khodorkovsky’s essays deal mainly with his thoughts about the country’s political future. He’s become a social democrat during his time in prison, and denounces the rapacious capitalism that allowed him to make his fortune. His ideas aren’t original: what is striking is the book’s tone – calm, dignified, measured. Khodorkovsky neither attacks his jailers nor bends his knee to them, but bending his knee is what he is supposed to do.[*]
As far as the Kremlin is concerned, the ideal scenario, the one most of the other oligarchs have followed, would be for Khodorkovsky to break, beg for mercy, sign a fake confession: the old KGB strategy. He refuses to do any of this, which has made him a rallying figure for liberals. Nobody thinks he was purer in heart than any of the other billionaires of the 1990s, but his behaviour now, in the context of Surkovian conformism, is impressive. The recent trial that sentenced him to a further six years in prison saw him accused of somehow stealing his own company’s oil. On top of that, the judge announced in his closing statement that two former ministers who had given evidence supporting Khodorkovsky had actually given evidence against him. Black was turned to white, white to black. The very absurdity was the point: the Kremlin was saying it had complete control over reality and that whatever it said, however ridiculous, was the truth.
Since the Khodorkovsky trial there have been a few unexpected whelps of protest from formerly loyal subjects. First a glamorous ballerina, not known for her political bravery, resigned from the party Surkov created when her signature was included on a public document denouncing Khodorkovsky. Then the press officer at the court where Khodorkovsky was sentenced tearfully admitted that the judge had been forced to read a closing statement prepared by the Kremlin. Most recently, Mikhail Prokhorov, most famous of the as yet unjailed oligarchs, denounced Surkov as a ‘puppetmaster’, since when Prokhorov has been stripped of his membership of the President’s Commission for Modernisation. The photograph of Khodorkovsky staring out from behind prison bars on the cover of his Collected Essays has changed its meaning. When he was arrested in 2003 it was this image that announced Putin’s pre-eminence, taming the powerful oligarchs overnight. ‘You’re only a photograph away from the cover of Forbes to a jail cell,’ the picture said, and it would have been Surkov’s business to make sure the image was distributed as widely as possible. Eight years later, Khodorkovsky is still behind bars, but the image now says something more like: ‘While I am behind bars, then all of Russia is a prison.’
In a neat instance of calling black white, the Surkov-controlled media refer to liberal supporters of Khodorkovsky as the ‘demoshiza’ (short for ‘democratic schizophrenics’), when it is the Surkovian ideology that is, in the vulgar sense, schizophrenic: it’s Khodorkovsky’s supporters who demand consistency. The ‘demoshiza’ tag also serves a useful purpose in conflating ‘democracy’ with ‘mental illness’. The word ‘democratic’ has an unhappy status in Russia: it is mainly used as an uncomplimentary synonym for ‘cheap’ and ‘low-grade’: McDonald’s has ‘democratic’ prices, the door policy at a particularly scuzzy club can be described as ‘democratic’ – i.e. they let anybody in. A few restaurants are proud of their ‘democratic’ tags: run by the children of former Soviet dissidents, they are places where the town’s liberal artists, filmmakers, journalists and other ‘demoshiza’ smoke, drink, eat and prance all night.
I found myself in one of them late one night, having finally, after a month of phone calls, begging, blackmailing and pleading, managed to get a ticket to see the theatre version of Almost Zero, the most exclusive play this deeply theatrical city has ever seen. Official tickets started at $500. Black market tickets were going for four figures. The final price? Two bottles of champagne and the opportunity for one of the theatre’s leading actresses to use my parents’ London home rent-free. It turned out that the fee wasn’t even worth a proper seat. The ushers let me in after the lights were dimmed. They gave me a cushion and told me to sit on the floor by the front row. My head spent the night knocking against the perfumed thigh of an impossibly perfect model, her brutal-looking husband seeming none too pleased. The audience was full of these types: the hard, clever men who rule the country and their stunning female satellites. You don’t usually find them at the theatre but they were there because it was the thing to do: if they ever bumped into Surkov they could tell him how much they liked his fascinating piece. The other half of the audience were the city’s artistic leaders: impresarios, directors, actors. They had a similar reason to be present: Surkov is famous for giving grants to theatres and festivals. It wouldn’t do not to have seen the play.
‘I would never go to something like that,’ a well-known journalist told me in the ‘democratic’ bar. ‘I wouldn’t want to touch anything Surkov is part of. And what about that shit Serebrennikov? Who’d have thought he’d sink to something so low? Sucking up to the Kremlin that way.’ Serebrennikov is the play’s director. He is famous for staging scandalous, subversive pieces and for always wearing sunglasses. Many think him a genius. His collaboration with Surkov is the equivalent of Brecht putting on a play by Goebbels. There are those in Moscow who will never forgive such a partnership. But Serebrennikov has found a crafty way through this most delicate situation. His staging of Almost Zero has transformed the novel. His Egor is a Faustian hero who has sold his soul to the devil but now wants it back. His shiny, empty life, with its parties, easy sex and casual humiliations, is a living hell. This Egor is emotional and wracked with self-loathing, quite the opposite of the cold hero of the novel. In passages that were added in, Serebrennikov’s actors talk straight at the audience, accusing it of being at ease in a world of nepotism, corruption and violence. The bohemians in the audience laughed uncomfortably. The hard men and their satellites stared ahead unblinking, as if these provocations had nothing to do with them. Many left at the interval. Thus the great director pulled off a feat entirely worthy of the Age of Surkov: he pleased his political masters – Surkov sponsors an arts festival that Serebrennikov runs – while preserving his liberal integrity. One foot in Surkov’s camp, the other in Khodorkovsky’s. A fine performance.
‘Life in Russia,’ the journalist told me in the democratic bar, ‘has got better but leaves a shitty aftertaste.’ We had a drink. ‘Have you noticed that Surkov never seems to get older? His face has no wrinkles.’ We had more drinks. We talked about Surkov’s obsession with Hamlet. My companion recalled an interpretation of the play suggested by a literature professor turned rock producer (a very Moscow trajectory).
‘Who’s the central figure in Hamlet?’ she asked. ‘Who’s the demiurge manipulating the whole situation?’
I said I didn’t know.
‘It’s Fortinbras, the crown prince of Norway, who takes over Denmark at the end. Horatio and the visiting players are in his employ: their mission is to tip Hamlet over the edge and foment conflict in Elsinore. Look at the play again. Hamlet’s father killed Fortinbras’s father, he has every motive for revenge. We know Hamlet’s father was a bad king, we’re told both Horatio and the players have been away for years: essentially they left to get away from Hamlet the father. Could they have been with Fortinbras in Norway? At the end of the play Horatio talks to Fortinbras like a spy delivering his end-of-mission report. Knowing young Hamlet’s unstable nature they hired the players to provoke him into a series of actions that will bring down Elsinore’s rulers. This is why everyone can see the ghost at the start. Then when only Hamlet sees him later he is hallucinating. To Muscovites it’s obvious. We’re so much closer to Shakespeare’s world here.’ On the map of civilisation, Moscow – with its cloak and dagger politics (designer cloak, diamond-studded dagger), its poisoned spies, baron-bureaucrats and exiled oligarchs who plan revolutions from abroad, its Cecil-Surkovs whispering into the ears of power, its Raleigh-Khodorkovskys imprisoned in the Tower – is somewhere near Elsinore.
via www.lrb.co.uk on 10/13/11
Peter Pomerantsev spent four years producing TV programmes in Moscow, and wrote about the experience for the LRB in February.
Blogger: User Profile: Putin watcher
via www.blogger.com on 10/13/11
Dr. Partlett holds a law degree from Stanford University and a master's and doctorate in Russian studies from Oxford University. His scholarship explores experimental methodology, comparative revolution, and constitutional theory. His published research can be found at: http://works.bepress.com/william_partlett/.
Russia's World of Masks and Poses | Putin Watcher
via putinwatcher.blogspot.com on 10/13/11
Vladislav Surkov - the chief Kremlin ideologist and perhaps Russia's answer to Talleyrand - apparently loves gangsta rap and was a former theater director. Peter Pomerantz tells us more in his insightful piece for the London Review of Books.
In Soviet Russia you would have been forced to give up any notion of artistic freedom if you wanted a slice of the pie. In today’s Russia, if you’re talented and clever, you can have both. This makes for a unique fusion of primitive feudal poses and arch, postmodern irony. A property ad displayed all over central Moscow earlier this year captured the mood perfectly. Got up in the style of a Nazi poster, it showed two Germanic-looking youths against a glorious alpine mountain over the slogan ‘Life Is Getting Better’. It would be wrong to say the ad is humorous, but it’s not quite serious either. It’s sort of both. It’s saying this is the society we live in (a dictatorship), but we’re just playing at it (we can make jokes about it), but playing in a serious way (we’re making money playing it and won’t let anyone subvert its rules). A few months ago there was a huge ‘Putin party’ at Moscow’s most glamorous club. Strippers writhed around poles chanting: ‘I want you, prime minister.’ It’s the same logic. The sucking-up to the master is completely genuine, but as we’re all liberated 21st-century people who enjoy Coen brothers films, we’ll do our sucking up with an ironic grin while acknowledging that if we were ever to cross you we would quite quickly be dead.
via RUSSIA and THE WEST - РОССИЯ и ЗАПАД by Mike Nova on 10/13/11
"PERISCOPE - ПЕРИСКОП" via Mike NovaUkraine, Russia and the Eurasian Union - The Economist
via News's Facebook Wall by News on 10/13/11
Ukraine, Russia and the Eurasian Union - The Economist
Ukraine, Russia and the Eurasian Union - The Economist
The Nation, PakistanUkraine, Russia and the Eurasian UnionThe EconomistMight it create an opening for Russia? SEVEN years ago Yulia Tymoshenko, a populist politician dressed in orange, climbed onto a stage in a snow-covered Kiev and galvanised 150000 protesters against the rigged victory of Viktor Yanukovych in the 2004 ...Russia's Putin and Medvedev confront American LebensraumCanadian National NewspaperUkraine ties jailed Tymoshenko to new criminal investigationReuters AfricaNews Analysis: Ukraine Pushed Toward Russia's ArmsThe...
New Charges Possible Against Former Ukraine Prime Minister
via News's Facebook Wall by News on 10/13/11
New Charges Possible Against Former Ukraine Prime Minister
New Charges Possible Against Former Ukraine Prime Minister
The new charges come amid international condemnation over the persecution of Yulia V. Tymoshenko, and will likely darken hopes among her supporters that she could soon be released from prison.
