Stories about Russia from August, 2010
Russia: Video Depicting the Real Details of Putin's Trip
Far East bloggers share video depicting [RUS] details of Vladimir Putin's recent trip to Russia's Far East [EN] on Lada Kalina, a new model of the Russian car factory. The video shows that prime-minister took with him 3 cars of the same color, and one of them is broken already, while there...
Russia: Bloggers Outraged by Putin's Interview
Recent interview [RUS] of Vladimir Putin to Kommersant newspaper outraged many bloggers. They accuse Putin of a lie [RUS], ignorance [RUS], deliberate substitution [RUS] of the terms “police state” and a “state governed by a rule of law.” Other bloggers condemn [RUS] his attitude towards protesters: “You went out [on...
Russia: Online Cooperation as an Alternative for Government?
Gregory Asmolov analyzes causes of the highly successful cooperation within the Russian online community during the recent wildfires crisis and examines whether online collaboration can provide a sustainable alternative for the government in the future.
Russia: Adventures of Israeli Blogger in Russian Hospital
Sometimes it takes a foreigner blogging about her experiences in a hospital to pinpoint the "shocking truth" about your country.
Russia: The Mirny Diamond Mine
Siberian Light writes about the Mirny Mine, “the largest open pit diamond mine in the world, and […] the second largest excavated hole in the world.”
Russia: Mari Paganism and Charges of “Extremism”
OpenDemocracy.net reports: “In their remote forest republic 400 miles east of the Moscow, the pagan Mari people are once again being harassed by the authorities. […] Ethnically kin to the Finns and Hungarians, their profoundly ecological religious worldview challenges Russian-led designs on their republic’s natural resources.”
Russia: Interview With RT's Peter Lavelle
An interview with RT's Peter Lavelle – at Sublime Oblivion.
Russia: “Jailbird Moms”
A Good Treaty writes about two Russian “jailbird moms” – Anna Shavenkova and Yulia Kruglova: “Two court cases in recent weeks have given Russia’s bruised citizenry a few additional reminders that the world is a cruel, extremely stupid place to live. Both these cases involve mothers of young children, but...
Russia: Lake Baikal and James Cameron
Vadim Nikitin of FPA's Russia blog believes that Lake Baikal would be a “good fit” for James Cameron's “passionate environmental activism.”
Russia: West Nile Virus Hits Volgograd Region
LJ user alliruk writes [RUS] that the South of Russia may turn into Africa because of the global warming. After listing recent unusual epidemics outbreaks in the Volgograd region, he mentions the recent West Nile Virus [EN] outbreak that had already killed six people [EN].
Russia: Khimki Forest and Bono's “Intervention”
Natalia Antonova comments on Bono's role in the resolution of the Khimki forest situation during his visit to Moscow earlier this week: “There was an “intervention” on behalf of Bono in regards to the destruction of the Khimki forest? Where is the evidence of this intervention?”
Moldova: Mock Independence Day Greetings
A compilation of mock Independence Day greetings to Moldova's interim president, reflecting the current geopolitical situation – at Morning in Moldova.
Russia: Blog Roundup at SiberianLight
Russia Blog Roundup has become a regular feature at Siberian Light again; Aug. 27 installment is here.
Russia: Bono Sings Together with Opposition Musician
Bono's (U2) visit to Russia [EN] turned out to be a highly politicized event. Some complain [RUS], Bono didn't tell Medvedev about the Khimki Forest Park, some admire his joint performance [RUS/EN] with Yuri Shevchuk, an opposition musician. Oleg Kozyrev asks [RUS], “What if Bono could spend part of his energy...
Russia: Noize MC's New Song
RFE/RL's The Power Vertical writes about rapper Noize MC's new song: “After spending 10 days in jail for performing a song mocking police at a music festival in Volgograd, the irrepressible rapper has released a new [song and video, RUS] — mocking the police.” Robert Amsterdam's blog calls the new...
Russia: “Where's Your Rabbi?”
Oleg Klimov posts two photos from Birobidzhan in Russia's Jewish Autonomous Region – and shares this short conversation (RUS) with a guard at the local synagogue: “‘Where's your rabbi?’ – ‘He left for Israel a long time ago…'”
Russia: Porsche Cayenne and Firefighting
The Moscow Diaries re-posts LJ user fichetto‘s photos (RUS) of a 2007 Porsche Cayenne of Yevgeny Chernyshev, head of Moscow's firefighting service – “retrofitted to…fight fires?”
Russia: Soviet History and Tetris
Siberian Light shares “A Complete History of the Soviet Union, Arranged to the Melody of Tetris” video, found via Global Dashboard.
Russia: Kaliningrad Politics
RFE/RL's The Power Vertical and A Good Treaty (here and here) cover the Kaliningrad governor situation.
Russia: It's not the Kremlin
THIS summer Russians faced several state attempts to "filter" (selectively block) websites. And as in many other things, Russia has gone its own way with a slightly more complicated technique: regional filtering.
Russia: Blog Posts on Hospital in Russian Town Lead to Debates on Russian Healthcare
A blogger from Israel with Russian roots was unfortunate enough to get sick while visiting her relatives in Russia. Her recollections and pictures of a hospital in the city of Voronezh [ENG] provoked heated debates on the state of Russian health care.
