Stories about Russia from June, 2006
Russia: Cheburashka Existed For Real
Konstantin Dlutskiy of Russian Marketing Blog writes about the cartoon character Cheburashka, its creator Eduard Uspenskiy and a new finding that claims that Cheburashka “actually did exist in reality.”
Russia: Article on Chechnya
Sean Guillory discusses (and recommends) an article by Anne Neistat, a researcher for Human Rights Watch, on her recent trip to Chechnya's capital Grozny.
Russia: Family Histories
Brigid of Laughter in the Dark post a moving story about sharing family histories with Katia, an archive employee in Smolensk.
Russia: Four Diplomats Killed in Iraq
Four Russian diplomats were taken hostage and killed in Iraq, one more died shortly after the attack. Yuri Mamchur of Russia Blog writes about the lack of coverage of the incident and posts a link to the video of the execution. Sean Guillory writes about the connection between these killings...
Russia: Justice Minister Replaces Prosecutor General & Vice Versa
TaliaXianne of Something In The Way She Moves tells “a true ‘only in Russia’ story“: minister of justice replaces prosecutor general – and prosecutor general replaces minister of justice.
Russia: Photographs Critiqued
Wu Wei writes about Simon Roberts’ photos of Russia published in Granta and some of the realities they convey: “I know what he means, but I'm not sure he really succeeds. Where is the dignity in most of these pictures when you know enough about the background.”
Russia: Ethnic Profiling on the Metro
Sean Guillory writes about the problem of ethnic profiling on Moscow's subway.
Russia: Moscow the Most Expensive City in the World
Sean Guillory writes about the cost of living in Moscow: though it has recently been declared the most expensive city in the world, the locals “know how to cut corners and navigate the city's costs with exactitude.”
Belarus: Stencil Graffiti
A new LJ community has been created: by_stencil – “Belarusian stencil REVOLUTION” (BEL, RUS) It includes photos of both political and apolitical stencil graffiti in Belarus. One photo is from Warsaw, however, taken near the Centrum metro station: “Stop Lukashenko,” says the writing in Polish, next to the portrait of...
Armenia: Mom Called Me Khachik
Nessuna has a public service advertisement and a translation of the ad that was produced by an Armenian radio station for distribution throughout the CIS to combat xenophobia in Russia.
Russia: Ethnic Chinese in the Soviet Union
J. Otto Pohl writes about the fate of the ethnic Chinese in the Soviet Far East.
Ukraine: Oil Stocks; Gas Situation
Wu Wei writes about the gas situation and implementation of “an EU system of oil stocks” in Ukraine.
Azerbaijan: Statue Protest
In light of a protest in Moscow against a statue of Heydar Aliev, the first Turkic Politburo member and the former President of Azerbaijan, Denise of neweurasia argues that Russia must take steps to treat its Azeri residents better to ensure a good image in Azerbaijan, if for no other...
Russia: Butovo Land Dispute
The recent land dispute between Moscow city authorities and residents of Butovo, a suburb just outside the capital's beltway (MKAD), included such dramatic elements as a tent camp, bulldozers and riot police. Ilya Yashin (LJ user yashin), leader of the youth wing of the Russian social-liberal party Yabloko, writes about...
Russia: Comparing the Chechen War to Iraq
Sean Guillory analyzes whether the war in Iraq can be compared to the war in Chechnya: “And I’m sure American politicians and policy makers would be delighted to have the problems Putin has in Chechnya. But as the current moment shows both Iraq and Chechnya are worlds apart. Still, a...
Russia: Books On Muslims In Russia
Sean Guillory examines English-language literature available on the subject of Muslims in the Russian Empire and Soviet Union.
Russia: Mandelstam and Tyutchev Translations
Alex(ei) of The Russian Dilettante's Weblog translates Russian poetry: Osip Mandelstam's Lamarck and Fyodor Tyutchev's Insomnia.
Russia: Vacation Destinations, Home & Abroad
Yuri Mamchur of Russia Blog writes about the myth of the hordes of Russians vacationing abroad, and about Sochi, “the only opportunity to enjoy the “Riviera” for many Russian businessmen and officials who either do not have enough time to go abroad or cannot leave Russia, because they will be...
Russia: Marilyn Monroe Moles Ad
Konstantin Dlutskiy of Russian Marketing Blog posts an ad of a Russian “Clinic of Aesthetical Medicine” that uses Marilyn Monroe – and her moles – as its model.
Russia: Causes of Death Statistics
The Poster of Ruminations on Russia cites Russians’ causes of death statistics from 1980 to 2004: “Delighted to see that less people are dying of “accidental alcohol poisoning” – that would be drinking themselves to death to you and I.”
Ukraine: “The Cars” With Ukrainian Voiceover; Local TV
LJ user didaio of Dnipropetrovsk writes about two recent viewing experiences: one good, another bad. The good one was The Cars with the long-awaited voiceover in Ukraine's national language – instead of (or in addition to) Russian; the bad one was the Ukrainian TV programming that all those who can't...
