#Yevgeny Medvedev

[monticello-and-the-holy-grail]

[thomasthetankieengine]

hyperions-fate naively believing that "unending wars, occupations, drone assassinations, kidnappings and renditions, black site torture camps, strategies of ethno-sectarian tension, and all kinds of criminality" were only invented or regarded as acceptable methods of foreign policy since 1994. The only thing new about any of that are specifically drone assassinations as opposed to the apparently good old ways where you assassinated people with knives, swords, guns, or poison.

Trying to claim that Russia especially had to learn about forever wars, torture, kidnappings, prison camps, and ethnic hostility from "Western powers" is especially funny because… well…

Hyperion, buddy, do you not know what the Oprichnik and Cheka/OGPU/NKVD/KGB were?

Have you never heard of the Siege of Ryazan, Massacre of Novgorod, conquest of Siberia, Circassian genocide, Bloody Sunday, Red Terror, White Terror, Tambov rebellion, Katyn massacre, Medvedev Forest massacre, or Novocherkassk massacre? What about the numerous pogroms in the Russian Empire and during the Russian Civil War?

Are you somehow unaware of what happened to the Tsars, Feodor II, False Dmitry I, Ivan VI, Peter III, Paul I, and Alexander II? Or the other Russian royals, Saints Boris and Gleb or Alexei Petrovich, Tsarevich of Russia?

Are you unfamiliar with the fates that Boris Savinkov, Sidney Reilly, Alexander Kutepov, Yevhen Konovalets, Yevgeny Miller, Leon Trotsky, Andreu Nin, Noe Ramishvili, Yu Xiusong, and Raoul Wallenberg met at the hands of Soviet security forces?

From where I'm sitting, it sure doesn't seem like Putin and co. had to draw inspiration from the supposedly "new" tactics (though, of course, they were nothing of the sort) that Western countries had embraced c. 1994.

[mariacallous]

The arrests and violent interrogation of the four Tajikistani citizens suspected of carrying out the Crocus City Hall terrorist attack in Moscow last week appeared to mark the first time that Russian security agents have openly published footage of alleged terrorists being tortured. State media employees told the independent outlet Verstka that their superiors asked them to underscore the brutality with which the authorities had “dealt with” the suspects. Meanwhile, the officers themselves told journalists that they’re just responding to demand from the Russian people, who supposedly want to see “blood and revenge.” Meduza shares key points from Verstka’s reporting.

Caution: The following text contains descriptions of extreme violence.

‘This is just the beginning’

Hours after the first reports that the alleged perpetrators of the Crocus City Hall terrorist attack had been arrested, photos and videos of the suspects being tortured began appearing on Telegram channels associated with Russian law enforcement and security services. Two of the most widely shared videos — one showing a person cutting off Saidakrami Rachabalizoda’s ear and forcing him to eat it and the other showing Shamsidin Fariduni being electrocuted — have been viewed hundreds of thousands of times. Several of the users sharing the graphic footage, including neo-Nazi Yevgeny Rasskazov, offered to buy the knife used in the ear-cutting video. 

All four suspects were badly beaten before their first court appearance. One of them, Muhammadsobir Fayzov, was brought into the courtroom in a wheelchair and appeared to be nearly unconscious.

Russia’s state-funded and pro-government media has sought to play up the battered conditions of all four suspects during their court appearance. According to a source from a federal TV channel who spoke to Verstka, employees were told “not to say it outright but to emphasize” that the defendants’ “current appearances differ from the photos on their social media accounts.”

Security officials told Verstka directly that the publication of the torture videos “was sanctioned” and that they wanted the footage to spread as widely as possible. “Burned balls and a cut-off ear — that’s just the beginning. Next will be fingers getting cut off, one by one. It’s a prevention measure,” said an agent involved in the investigation. “Let these pansies know there are no virgins waiting for them in heaven. This kind of demonstration will make a lot of people think twice about consequences and keep them from making a bad decision.”

The source’s colleague had a slightly different explanation. “The population demands blood and revenge, so that’s what we’re showing them,” he said.

The public reaction from Russian officials seems to lend credence to the officers’ claims that the instructions to share the torture footage came from above. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has declined to comment on the videos, while Security Council Chairman Dmitry Medvedev has vowed to “kill everyone” who was involved in the terrorist attack. None of Russia’s security agencies have even reported launching any kind of internal review over the leakage of case materials.

‘This could hasten the return of the death penalty’

Federal officials who spoke to Verstka were less enthusiastic about the graphic videos going viral. “Maybe that really is the only way to deal with these kinds of terrorists, but aren’t we supposed to be getting away from Wagner-style approaches?” said a State Duma deputy from Russia’s ruling party. He continued:

Don’t we see something wrong with sledgehammers and cutting off people’s ears? These videos might not appease people — in fact, they may do the opposite. There are plenty of idiots in our country, including in the government, who are liable to torture people with electric shocks for anything from looking at them wrong to supposed “treason.”

The lawmaker also said that he fears the episode with the torture videos “could hasten the return of the death penalty”:

We’ve had various people in the government circling this idea for two years now. It’s good that people like Senator [Andrey] Klishas have continued speaking out clearly against the return of capital punishment. But these kinds of videos get people fired up. And even without this, I think, about 70 percent of citizens support the idea. And in the end, just to satisfy the momentary and emotional thirst for revenge among the majority, there might just be enough support to bring it back.

At the same time, another source close to the Kremlin said that he’s certain the federal authorities did not give their approval for the violent interrogation videos to be shared publicly. “I think the decision to publish them is linked to the unprecedented nature of the situation, and I don’t think we’ll see it happen again in the future,” he told Verstka.

[christinamac1]

"Brink of catastrophe" should Wagner Group "bandits" get their hands on nuclear weapons.

 An ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned the world wouldfind itself on the “brink of catostrophe” should Wagner Group “bandits” gettheir hands on nuclear weapons. Dmitry Medvedev, Russia’s Security CouncilDeputy Chairman issued the warning as Yevgeny Prigozhin and his mercenariesmarched towards Moscow, prior to their dramatic U-turn in order to “avoidbloodshed”.  Mirror 25th June…

[chunkletskhl]

Sibir Novosibirsk (in blue) and Traktor Chelyabinsk are in a tight race for one of the last playoff spots in the KHL’s East Conference -- here’s a little piece setting the last couple of weeks of the 2018-19 regular season! The players, from left to right: Vasily Demchenko, Vladimir Peshekhonov, and Yevgeny Medvedev (Image Source)

[sovietpostcards]

Yevgeny Medvedev. Illustrations for Vladislav Krapivin’s “The Three From the Carronade Square” (1979).

[driftwork]

names, mostly surnames (1)

let me apologise for this partial list of names in the library,  titles available on request...

, Adorno, horkheimer, anderson, aristotle, greta adorno, marcuse, agamben, acampora and acampora, althussar, lajac kovacic, eric alliez, marc auge,  attali, francis bacon (16th c), aries, aries and bejin, alain badiou, beckett, hallward, barnes, bachelard, bahktin, volshinov, baudrillard, barthes, john beattie, medvedev, henri bergson, Jacques Bidet, berkman, zybmunt bauman, burgin, baugh, sam  butler, ulrich beck, andrew benjamin and peter osbourne, walter benjamin, ernest bloch, blanchot,  bruzins,  bonnet,  karin bojs,  bourdieu,  j.d. bernal, goldsmith,  benveniste, braidotti,  brecht,  burch, victor serge, andre breton, judith butler, malcolm bull, stanley cohen, john berger, etienne balibar, david bohm, gans blumenberg, martin buber, christopher caudwell, micel callon, albert camus, agnes callard,  castoridis, claudio celis bueno, carchedi and roberts, Marisol de la cadena,  mario blaser, nancy cartwright, manual castells, mark  currie, collingwood, canguilhem, mario corti, stuart hall, andrew lowe, paul willis, coyne, stefan collini, varbara cassin, helene cixous, coward and ellis, clastres, carr, cioren,  irving copi, cassirer, carter and willians, margeret cohen,  Francoise dastur, guy debord, agnes martin,  michele bernstein, alice, lorraine dastun, debaise, Gilles Deleuze, deleuze and gattari, guattari, parnet, iain mackenzie, bignall, stivale, holland, smith, james williams, zourabichvili, paul patton, kerslake,  schuster, bogue, bryant,  anne sauvagnargues, hanjo berresen, frida beckman, johnson, gulliarme and hughes, valentine moulard-leonard, desai,  dosse, duttman, d’amico,  benoit peters, derrida, hinca zarifopol-johnston, sean gaston,  discourse, mark poster, foucault,  steve fuller, markus gabrial, rosenbergm  milchamn, colin jones,  van fraasen,  fekete,  vilem flusser, flahault, heri focillon, rudi visker, ernst fischer,  fink, faye, fuller, fiho, marco bollo, hans magnus enxensberger, leen de bolle, canetti, ilya enrenberg,  thuan, sebastion peake, mervyn peake, robert henderson, reimann, roth,  bae suah,  yabouza, marco bellatin, cartarescu, nick harkaway, chris norris, deLanda, regis debray, pattern and doniger,  soame jynens, bernard williams, descartes, anne dufourmanteille, michelle le doeuff, de certaeu , deligny, Georges Dumezil, dumenil and levy,  bernard edelman, victorverlich, berio, arendt, amy allen, de beauvior,hiroka azumi,  bedau and humphreys,  beuad,  georges bataille, caspar  henderson,  chris innes,  yevgeny zamyatin,  louis aragon, italo calvino, pierre guirard,  trustan garcia, rene girard, paul gilroy, michal gardner,  andre gorz, jurgan gabermas, martin gagglund, beatrice hannssen, jean hyppolyte, axel honneth, zizek and crickett, stephen heath,  calentin groebner, j.b.s. haldane,  ian hacking,  david hakken,  hallward and oekken,  haug, harman, latour, arnold hauser, hegel, pippin, pinksrd, michel henry, louis hjelmslev,  gilbert hardin, alice jardine, karl jaspers, suzzane kirkbright, david hume,  thomas hobbes, barry hindus, paul hirst, hindess and hirst, wrrner hamacher,  bertrand gille,  julien huxley, halavais, irigaray, ted honderich, julia kristeva, leibnitz, d lecourt,  lazzaroto, kluge and negt, alexander kluge, sarah kofman, alexandre kojeve,  kolozoya, keynes,  richard kangston, ben lehman, kant,  francous jullien, fred hameson, sntonio rabucchi, jaeggi, steve lanierjones, tim jackson,  jakobson,   joeseph needham, arne de boever,  marx and engels, karl marx, frederick engels, heinrich,  McLellen , maturana and varuna,  lem, lordon, jean jacques-lecercle,  malabou,  marazzi,  heiner muller,  mary midgley, armand matterlart, ariel dorfman, matakovsky, nacneice, lucid,  victor margolis, narco lippi,  glen mazis, nair,  william morris,  nabis,  jean luc nancy,  geoffrey nash,  antonio negri,  negri and hardt, hardt, keith ansell pearson, pettman, william ruddiman, rheinberger, andre orlean, v.i. vernadsky,  rodchenko,  john willet, tarkovsky, william empson,  michel serres,  virillio, semiotexte, helmut heiseenbuttel,  plessner, pechaux, raunig, retort,  saito,  serres, dolphin, maria assad, spinoza,  bernard sharratt, isabelle stengers,  viktor shklovsky,  t. todorov,  enzo traverso, mario tronti,  todes, ivan pavlov,  whitehead, frank trentmann, trubetzkoy, rodowink, widderman, karl wittfogel, peter handke, olivier rolin, pavese,  robert walser, petr kral, von arnim,  sir john mennis,  ladies cabinet,  samuel johnson, edmund spenser,  efy poppy, yoko ogawa, machado,  kaurence durrell,  brigid brophy,  a. betram chandler, maria gabriella llansol, fowler,  ransmayr,  novick, llewellyn,  brennan, sean carroll,  julien rios, pintor, wraxall,  jaccottet, tabucchi,  iain banks, glasstone,  clarice lispector,  murakami, ludmilla petrushevskaya,  motoya, bachmann, lindqvist,  uwe johnson, einear macbride,  szentkuthy,  vladislavic, nanguel,  mathias enard,  chris tomas, jonathan meades,  armo schmidt, charles yu, micheal sorkin, vilas- matas, varesi, peter weiss,  stephenson, paul legrande,  virginie despentes, pessoa,  brin,  furst, gunter trass, umberto eco, reid, paul,klee, mario levero, hearn, judith schalansky, moorhead,  margert walters, rodchenko and popova, david king, alisdair gray, burroughs, ben fine, paul hirst, hindess,  kapuscinski, tchaikovsky,  brooke-rose, david hoon kim, helms,  mahfouz, ardret,  felipe fernandez-armesto,  young and tagomon,  aronson,  bonneuil and  fressoz, h.s. bennett, amy allen, bruckner brown, honegger, bernhard,  warren miller, albert thelen,  margoy bennett, rose macauley,  nenjamin peret, sax rohmer, angeliki, bostrom, phillip ball, the invisible commitee, bataille and leiris,  gregory bateson, michelle barrett and mary mcintosh, bardini, bugin, mcdonald, kaplan, buck-moores,  chesterman and lipman,  berman,  cicero, chanan,  chatelet,  helene cixous, iain cha,bers,  smirgel, norman clark, caird, camus,  clayre, chomsky, critchley,  curry,  swingewood,  luigi luca cavelli-sforza,  clark, esposito, doerner,  de duve, alexander dovzhenko, donzelot,  dennet, doyle, burkheim, de camp,  darwin,  dawkins,  didi-huberman, dundar, george dyson, berard deleuze, evo, barbara ehrenrich,  edwards,  e isenstein, ebeking, economy and society, esposito,  frederick gross,  david edgeerton,  douglas,  paul,feyerband,  jerry fodor,  gorrdiener,  tom forester, korsgaard,  fink,  floridi, elizabeth groscz, pierre francastel,  jane jacobs,  francois laplantinee,  gould,  galloway, goux,  godel, grouys, genette,  gil, kahloo, giddens,  martin gardner,  gilbert and dubar, hobbes,  herve, golinski, grotowski, glieck,  hayles, heidegger, huxley, eric hobsbawn, jean-louis hippolyte,  phillip hoare, tim jordan,  david harvey, hawking, hoggart,  rosemary jackson,  myerson,  mary jacobus, fox keller, illich,  sarah fofman, sylvia harvey, john holloway, han,  jaspers, yuk hui,  pierre hadot, carl gardner,  william james, bell hooks,  edmond jabes,  kierkegaard, alexander keen, kropotkin, tracy kidder,  mithen, kothari and mehta, lind,  c. joad,  bart kosko, kathy myers,  kaplan,  luce irigaraay, patrick ke iller, kittler,  catherine belsey,  kmar,  klossowski, holmes, kant, stanton,  ernesto laclau, jenkins, la mouffe,  walter john williams, adam greenfield, susan greenfield, paul auster, viet nguyen, jeremy nicholson,  andy weir, fred jameson,  lacoue-labarthe,  bede,  jane gallop, lacan,  wilden,  willy ley,  henri lefebvre, rob sheilds,  sandra laugier, micheal lowy, barry levinson, sylvain lazurus, lousardo, leopardo, jean-francois lyotard, jones,  lewontin,  steve levy,  alice in genderland,  laing, lanier, lakatos, laurelle, luxemburg,  lukacs, jarsh,  james lovelock, ideologu and consciousness, economy and society, screen, deleuze studies, deleuze and guattari studies,  bruno latour, david lapoujade,  stephen law, primo levi,  levi-strauss,  emmanuel levinas,  viktor schonberger, pierre levy, gustav landaur,  robin le poidevin,  les levidow, lautman, david cooper,  serge leclaire, catherine malabou, karl kautsky, alice meynall,  j.s. mill, montainge,  elaine miller, rosa levine-meyer, jean luc marion, henri lefebrve,  lipovetsky, terry lovell,  niklas luhmann,  richard may, machiavelli, richard mabey, john mullzrkey,  meyerhold, edward braun,  magri,  murray, nathanial lichfield, noelle mcafee,  hans meyer,  ouspensky, lucretius, asa briggs, william morris, christian metz, laura mulvey, len masterman,  karl mannheim, louis marin, alaister reynolds,  antonio  munoz molina,  FRAZER,  arno schmidt,  dinae waldman,  mark rothko, cornwall, micheal snow, sophie henaff, scarlett thomas,  matuszewski, lillya brik,  rosamond lehman , morris and o’conner,  nina bawden, cora sandel, delafield, storm jameson,  lovi , rachel ferguson,  stevie smith, pat barker, miles franklin, fay weldon,  crista wolff, grace paley, v. woolf, naomi mitchinson, sheila rowbotham,  e, somerville and v ross, sander marai,  jose  saramago,  strugatsky, jean echenoz, mark robso,  vladimir Vernadsky,  chris marker, Kim Stanley Robinson,  mario leverdo,  r.a. lafferty, martin bax, mcaulay, tatyana tolstaya,  colinn kapp,  jonathan meades,  franco fortini,  sam delany, philip e high, h.g. adler, feng menglong,  adam thorpe,  peeter nadas,  sam butler, narnold silver,  deren,  joanna moorhead, leonara carrington,  de waal,  hartt, botticelli,  charbonneau, casco pratolini,  murakami, aldiss,  guidomorselli, ludmilla petrushevskaya, ,schulz,  de andrade, yasushi. inoue, renoir,  amelie  nothomb,  ken liu,  prynne,  ANTIONE VOLODINE, luc brasso,  angela greene,  dorothea tanning,  eric chevillard,  margot bennett w.e. johns, conan doyle,  samuel johnson,  herge,  coutine-denamy, sterling, roubaud,  sloan, meiville,  delarivier manley, andre norton, perec, edward upward, tom mcCarthy,  magrinya,  stross,  eco, godden,  malcolm lowry,  derekmiller,  ismail kadare,  scott lynch, chris fowler, perter newman,  suzzana clarke,  paretky, juliscz balicki,  stanislaw maykowski, rajaniemi, william morris, c.k. crow,  ueys,  oldenburg,  mssrc chwmot,  will pryce,  munroe,  brnabas and kindersley, tromans,   lem, zelazny,  mitchinson, harry Harrison,  konstantin tsiolkovsky,  flammerion,  harrison, arthur c clarke, carpenter, john brunner,  anhony powell,  ted white, sheckley,  kristof, kempowski, shingo,  angelica groodischer,  rolin,  galeanom  dobin,  richard holloway,  pohl and kornbulth,  e.r. eddison,  ken macleodm  aldiss,  dave hutchinson,  alfred bester, budrys,  pynchon,  kurkov,  wisniewski_snerg, , kenji miyazawa,  dante,  laidlaw,  paek nam_nyong, maspero, colohouquon, hernandez,      christina hesselholdt, claude simon, bulgaakov,  simak,  verissimo,  sorokin,  sarraute,  prevert,  celan, bachmann,  mervin peake,  olaf stapledon,  sa rohmer,  robert musil,  le clezio,  jeremy cooper,  zambra,  giorgio de chirico,  mjax frisch,  gawron,  daumal,  tomzza,  canetti,  framcois maspero,  de quincy, defoe, green,, greene, marani,  bellatin,  khury, tapinar,, richmal crompton,  durrenmat,  fritz,  quintane,  volponi,  nanni balestrini,  herrera,  robert walser,  duras,  peter stamm,  m foster,  lan wright,  their theotokism  agustn de rojas, paul eluard,  sturgeon,  hiromi kawakomi,  sayaka murata,  wolfgang hilbig,  hmilton,  z  zivkovic,  gersson,  mallo,  bird,  chaudrey, Toussaint, Can Xue, Lewis Mumford, neitzsche, popper, zizek, scott westerfield, rousseau, lewis munford, tod may,  penelope maddy, elaine marks,  isabelle courtivron, leroi, massumi,  david sterritt, godard, millican and clark, macabe, negri,  mauss, maiimon, patrica maccormack, moretti, courtney humphries,  monad, moyn, malina, picasso, goldman, dambisa moyo,  merleau-ponty, Nicholson, knobe and nichols, poinciore, morris, ovid, ming, nail, thomas more, richard mabey,  macfarlane,  piscator,  louis-stempal,  negrastini, moore,  jacquline rose,  rose and rose, ryle, roszick, rosenburg, ravisson, paul ricoer,  rossler,  chantl mouffe,  david reiff, plato, slater, rowlands, rosa, john roberts,  rhan, dubios and rousseau, ronell,  jacques ranciere, mallarme,  quinodoz, peterpelbert, mary poovey, mackenzie, andrew price, opopper,  roger penrose, lu cino parisi,  gavin rae, parker and pollack,  mirowoski, perniola, postman, panofsky, propp, paschke and rodel, andre pickering, massabuau, lars svenddsen,  rosenberg and whyte, t.l.s. sprigger,  nancy armstrong,  sallis,  dale spender,  stanislavski,  vanessa schwartz,  shapin and shaeffer, sally sedgewick,  signs,  gabriel tarde,  charles singer, adam smith,  simondon,  pascal chablt,  combes, jon roffee, edward said,  sen,  nik farrell fox, sartre,  fred emery,  scholes, herbert spencer, ruth saw, spinoza,  raphael sassower, henry sidgewick, peter singer,  katarznya de lazari-radek,  piaget,  podach,  van der post, on fire, one press,  melossi and  pavarini,  pearl and mackenzie,  theirry paquot, tanizaki, RHS,  stone,  richard sennett,  graham priest,  osborn and pagnell, substance, pedrag cicovacki, schilthuizen,  susan sontag, gillian rose,  nikolas rose,  g rattery taylor, rose,  rajan,  stuart sim,  max raphael,  media culture and society,  heller- roazen,  rid, root, rossi, gramsci, showstack sasson, david roden,  adrew ross, rosenvallion, pauliina remes, pkato, peter sloterdijk, tamsin shaw, george simmel, bullock and trombley, mark francis,  alain supiot, suvin, mullen and suvin, stroma,  maimonides,  van vogt,  the clouds on unknowing, enclotic, thesis 11,  spivack,  kate raworth,  h.w. richardson,  hillial schwartz, stern, rebecca solnit, rowland parker,  pickering,  lukacs,  epicriud, epicetus, lucrtious,  aurelies,  w.j.oates,  thor Hanson,  thompson, mabey,  sheldrake,  eatherley,  plato, jeffries,  dorothy richardson,  arno schmidt,   earl derr biggersm  mary borden, birrel, arno schmidt,  o.a. henty,  berhard steigler,  victor serge,  smith,  joyce salisbury, pauer-studer,  timpanaro,  s helling, schlor, norman and welchman,  searle, emanuele severarimo,  tomasello, sklar, judith singer, walmisley,  thomas malthus,  quentin meilassoux,  alberto meelucchi,  mingione, rurnbull,  said, spufford and  uglow,  zone,  j.j.c. smartt, sandel, skater, songe-moller,  strawson,  strawson, strawson, raymond tallis,  toscano,  turkle,  tiqquin, diggins,  j.s. ogilivy, w.w. hutchings,  rackgam,  deiter roth,  dowell,  red notes,  campbell and pryce,osip brik, lilya brik, mayakovsky, zone, alvin toffker, st exupery, freya stark, warson, walsh, wooley, tiles and oberdick, timofeeva, richardson, marcuse,  marder,  wright,  ushenko, tolson, albebers and moholy- nagy, alyce mahon, gablik, burnett, barry, hill, fontaine, sanuel johnson,justin, block, taylor, peter handke, jacques rivette,  william sansom, bunuel and dali, tom bullough, aldius huxley, philip robinson, spendor, tzara,  wajcman, peter wohlleben,  prigogini,  paolo virno,  jeremy tunstall, theweliet,  taussig,  tricker,  vince,  thomss, williams,  vogl, new german critique,  e.p. thompson,  jean wahl, paul virilio, lotringer, christy wampole, verhaeghe, janet wolff, anna kavan, vergara,  uexkull,  couze venn, barry smart, vico,  vatimo, vernant, raoul vaneigem,  ibn warraq, vertov,  williams,  meiksins wood, norbert weiner, peter wollen,  h.g. wells,  michelle walker, , jeanne waelit  walters,  shaw and darlen, whorf,  ward and dubois,  john wright,  weinart, wolff, willis, wark, cosima wagner, j. weeks,  judith williamson,  welzbacher, erik olin wright, wittgenstein, kenny,  zeldin, wenders,  henry miller, wenkler, arrighi,  banks, innes, ushereood, kristeva, john cage, quignard,  t.f. powys, siri hustveldt, lem,  zelazny, mitchonson,  tsilolkovsky, toussaint, heppenstall, garrigasait, de kerangal, haine fenn, jean bloch,  geoff ryman, reve, corey, asemkulov, ernaux,  gareth powell, cory,  deleuze and guattari studies, cse, allain and souvestre, apolinaire, jane austen, john arden, aitmatov,  elizabth von arnim, paul auster, abish,  ackroyd, tom gunn, lorca, akhmatov, artuad,  simon armatige, albahari, felipe alfau, audem auden and soendor, varicco, barrico, bainbridge, asturias, ronan bennett, beckett, paul bowles, jane bowles, celine, bukowski,  wu ming, blissert,  kay boyle,  andrei  bely,  hugo barnacle,  BOLL,  isak dineson, karen blikson,  brodsky,  richmel crompton,  berry, barthleme,  mary butts, leonora carrington, cage,  chevhillard,  canetti,  cendres,  butor,  cortazar, danielewski,  bertha damon,  dyer, havier cercas, micheal dibden, marguerite duras, john donne, duras, durrell,  dorrie,  Fredric durrenmatt,  heppenstahl, eco, enzensberger, evanovich, fruentes,  farrell,  alison fell,  alisdair gray,  hollinhurst,  andre gide,  jean giono, gadda, henry green,  grass,  andre gorz,  william gibson,  joyce,  gombrowitz,  alex laishley, murakami,  herve guibert,  franz kafka,  juenger, junker, kapuscinski, laurie king,  kundera,  mcewan, ken macleod,  ian macdonald,  moers,  meades,  vonda macintyre,  nalmstom, maillert,  havier marias,  jeff noon,  anaus nin,  david nobbs,  peter nadas,  nabokov,  iakley, oates,  raymond queneau,  cesare pavese, paterson, ponge,  perte, perec, chinery, ovid,  genette,  kandinsky, robert pinget, richard piwers,  rouvaud, sloan, surrralist poetry, ilya troyanov, paul,raabe,  julien rios, arne dahl, pierre sollers, rodrigruez,  chris ross, renate rasp, ruiz, rulfo, tove jannsson, cabre,  vladislavic, tokarczuk, pessoa, jane bowles, calvino, lispector, lydia davis, can xue,  sebald, peter tripp,  hertzberg,  virginia woolf,  zozola, sorrentino, higgins,  v.w. straka, cogman, freud, jung, klein, winnecot, lacan,  fordham, samuels,  jung, freud, appignesai,  bjp, pullman, magnam, sybil marshall, mccarten,  galbraith, jewell,  lehmann,  levy,  levin, jung,  spinoza,  fairburn,  jung, sandler,  lacan,  laplanche,  pontalis, can, xue,  klein, cavelli, hawkins, stevens,  hanna segal, bollas,  welldon,  williams,  sutherland, buon,  symington,  morrison,  brittain,  sidoli, sidoli,  holmes, bowlby, winnecott,   bollas,  kalschiid,  malan, patrick casement,  anna frued, wittenburg,  liz wright,  fordham, fairburn, symington, sandler,  jung, balint,  coltart,  west, steiner,  van der post,  stern,  green,  roustang,  adrew samuels,  d.l. sayers,  salom, krassner,  swain,  rame and fo,  storr,  cogman,  hessen,  penelope fitzgerald,  cummings, richard holloway,  juhea kim,  glenville, heyer, cartland,  kim, cho,  atkinson,  james,  king, audten,  hartley,  du maurier,  bronte,  thomas, plath, leon,  camillairi, kaussar, fred fargas, boyd,  sjowall and wahloo,  pheby,  morenno-garcia, perrsson,  herron, nicola barker, arronovitch,  karen lord, stephen frosh, ernest jones, flamm o’brien, shin, mishra, chin jin-young and so on to the warm horizon

[jatur]

1:07 about Dasha's childhood: she said there was nothing in her childhood that might be considered LGBT propaganda, except probably for the t.A.T.u. music band, still she was attracted only to the girls. She does not believe that some sort of content may change one's sexual orientation, anyway. One of the reasons why she decided to make her coming-out public, because she imagined herserf as a 13-14 years old, feeling attraction to other girls and how it could maybe help that girl to spend less time to realize and embrace the truth about themselves and not be afraid to become themselves, because of Daria's own experience.

3:02 - skipped

7:19 - skipped

8:00 about whether the day for her coming-out was chosen on purpose: it was a coincidence, they actually thought that the interview would be published a few days before, but something didn't work. Dasha felt relieved after this interview because finally she didn't need to worry about if her and Natasha are going to some places are too provocative, if those published photos are too revealing for their relationship.

8:54 was Natasha supportive of that decision: Natasha was supporting Dasha's decision, she herself has spent 10 years preparing herself for coming out, she said, eventually it was easier with Dasha, probably because she finally met her person, so she was not afraid after all that time.

9:36 how they met: Natasha did write to Dasha, congratulated her, Dasha responded, so they kept communicating that way, in the autumn Dasha arrived to Moscow, to see Natasha in the tournament. That was the moment. From then they knew they belong to each other. Dasha and Natasha both felt something towards each other, no matter if there's a law against them or not.

10:50 - How people reacted on the interview, where Daria came out: Yevgeny Kafelnikov thinks that Tartakova edited the interview and she set the girls up. Daria argued telling nothing was additionally edited in the interview, only Viktor and his team was editing the interview, Daria said that there were no questions that she was not prepared for. Daria just laughed when she heard Alexander Tikhonov's opinion. Biysultan Khamzayev said that Dasha's interview is a propaganda and she is going to commercialize it in the future, in order to get a citizenship. "That's the Judas lot" ("иудово племя"). Dasha's reaction: okay, so I can now open a direct message of any immigration agency and write here "hey, I fancy girls, give me a passport... pleeeease".

12:59 is Dasha afraid to return to Russia: Dasha is not afraid to return to Russia, though she is genually upset that Duma members consider someone saying truth about their personality as propaganda. She thinks she did nothing wrong, she just told the truth about herself.

13:49 about Zemfira's call and their friendship: Zemfira called her after Dasha's confession, she supported Dasha's decision. It was not the first time she called. Zemfira often visited Dasha's games, sitting, where relatives are sitting, together with Renata Litvinova. Their (Dasha and Zemfira's) friendship started through Anastasya Pavluchenkova, Zemfira asked her for Dasha's phone number to discuss Australian Open(?), where Medvedev was playing with Nadal and Zemfira was mostly the one talking during that call, asking different questions and replying herself. Zemfira had invited Dasha to her concert. Dasha had missed that opportunity and she is guessing that it will probably never happen in Moscow in the future, maybe in another country. Dasha wants to go to Zemfira's concert, especially with Zemfira older songs. Those are Dasha's favorite ones: "Прогулка", "Главное", "Прости меня, моя любовь", "Мачо" (Dasha has a strong association with Saint Petersburg when hearing this song, probably it is because Dasha was listening to this song when she first had arrived to St.Petersburg for tournament), "Мы разбиваемся", "Жди меня", "Жить в твоей голове".

20:20 peer pressure and wake-up calls: Dasha said that she felt wake-up calls about her orientation a long time ago (no specifics). But only recently she decided that there' only one life, and you need to live it like you want, no hidding, no pretending to be someone else, Natasha helped her with that, with Natasha Dasha finally felt to be ready for this change.

22:18 Dasha parent's reaction: Dasha's parents learned the truth about Dasha 2 years ago and was very supportive about it, her brother knew about it for the longer period of time, because they are brother and sister, after all. He was very supportive too. Dasha realise how lucky she is that the closest people in her life didn't reject her as it usually happens with LGBT members in Russia.

23:39 About LGBT community in Spain: He said very general things, nothing specific, he said that in time he just gotten used to it after many years on the road. Dasha's brother said he is not afraid of homophobia towards their parents, because they still live in Tolyatti.

25:56 Natasha about her own situation: Natasha's situation is more complicated, she didn't plan to tell anything to her mother, and once she did, her mother was not supportive at all, both her parents are more conservative. Natasha aknowledged the truth about her orientation 10-11 years ago. But she was trying to trick herself into believing that its just some stupid thoughts, and she is normal, she just never met a right person. She was struggling with these attempts a lot. She felt like she was trapped in the dark room with no doors, no windows, where the only thing to do is to jump on the walls. Note: Okay, it is maybe not so important but I found it cute, there's a moment where the three of them are drinking coffee in the kitchen and there's some beeping and Dasha suddenly jumps. Turns out, Dasha does not cook, Natasha do sometimes, Dasha's brother loves to cook and Dasha loves to eat :D

28:32 Natasha about her past engagement: According to Natasha, her ex-fiancee was asking her to put all her energy and her finances into his success, like her time is gone now, it is time for him to shine, so he was living on her finances all the time they were in relationship. She wanted to participate in some skating related shows and he didn't want that to happen.

32:01 About Ukraine and February, 24: Dasha has a lot of friends who either was born/lives in Ukraine or/and have relatives here, she was shocked when she learned the first news, she hoped it would end very fast, and she was terrified by how the events went on after these first news. She thinks that day was the worst since many years before. She is appalled by how Russian people in their Stories, etc are publishing some happy times, she considers them finished people.

34:34 If people need to speak up about "special operation": Dasha is not blaiming people who are silent about the events, she understands that those people in Russia have reasons for that silence. She thinks that everyone deserves their right either to tell what they think or not.

36:48 - About the playing under neutral colors: It was humilating, Dasha didn't like how it was organized, some bag-shaped costumes of the same size for all of them, with their country colors taped, so they would be hidden, while other costumes were all colourful and of many variations.

39:08 Collective responsibility: Dasha thinks that national teams ban is the correct decision because those teams are connected with the government and are run by the state, but she can not tell the same about sportsmen individuals, like her. She partially accepts that decision, but not completely. She said her country took away her dream, she does not think she could ever play under Russian flag anymore. And that was her dream. She learned Russian anthem when she went to school with a dream. There's a one type of tounrment called Roland Garros, where when the sportsman wons their country's flag would be hoisted and their country's anthem would be playing. That what she was dreaming about. It will never happen.

41:56 About "Eсть тема" TV-show issue: After Dasha's interview a very humilating episode of the "Есть тема" TV-show was aired. Sofia Tartakova strongly advised Dasha not to watch it and announced very harsh comments on this show after what she was removed from another show, where she was a host airing on the same channel. Dasha thinks that after that issue tennisists would stop visiting this show at all, because in the past it was only because they had good relations with Sofia.

46:14 Dasha is calling to Sofia: Sofia had no doubt in Daria, she completely supports Daria's decision. Sofia also noticed that one of the comments on Daria's interview was from Adidas, while many Russian sportsmen were losing their international contracts, it was their official support of Dasha.

48:13 About Adidas decision: after Dasha's official coming out Adidas decided to bring back some very important commercials with Dasha which were recorded prior the "special operation" and Adidas at first decided not to use it as it was done for other Russian sportsmen, but after the interview they changed their mind for Dasha's piece.

52:08 About politics and sport in Russia: Dasha is very sorry for Kamilla Valieva who was supposed to have a potential for many medals. Dasha thinks that she was lucky to keep playing, and Kamilla has suffered most because of the government recent decisions.

54:03 About religion: Love will save the world: Dasha still believe in these words, according to her and Natasha, love still have potential, even though with each year it is harder to believe in this.

56:30 Her first big money: It was the third round(?) of the US Open. Dasha got upset that she had to pay 30% tax.Before the tax it was 100k-130k. Dasha has saved the money, left after taxes and she is still very careful with money. She only spends money for the people who she loves, she bought a new car for her mom a few years ago. She also once bought Chanel bag and then decided it is not her cup of tea. She was mostly happy she could afford such things. She also bought a flat for herself in Dubai. In 2018 year, which was the most successful for Dasha, she spent 600k for her team, her brother's salary, all required logistics, etc. About 100 people are really getting money for tennis in our country.

1:01:07 - How Andrey became a trainer: Andrey became a trainer after graduating as a lawyer, they were running some healthcare study group aside from his normal working schedule, plus, he was helping Dasha with all her logistic activities and training routine. So at some point he decided that it is time to become a professional trainer for his sister.

1:02:30 - About Tolyatti: this city lacks of sunlight and one of the worst parts of being a tennis player from Russia, because of the bad climate you always training inside while almost all tournaments are taking place outside, Russian sportsmen suffer from this difference a lot, as for Tolyatti or any other city aside from Moscow and St.Petersburg, the logistics are always painful, you always need to spend at least a day in transfer flights, through Moscow.

1:04:45 - How the country supports young sportsmen, what does it cost to raise a sportmen: If you started your training from 7 years, you will need someone to help and guide you before any government support would be there. Dasha told that her parents had to sell their house so she could keep going. According to Dasha, you need to spend at least 50k so your 15 years old child could visit all important tournaments and traninings. It is very expensive to go from Russia anywhere to Europe. In 2018 before Dasha got her first big money, her parents confessed they have almost nothing, her brother was going to sell his own flat for Dasha's carier.

1:14:18 - About Russian Tennis Federation: Dasha said that it was 10 on 90% between how much financial support she got from the federation in comparison to how much her parents has paid. Dasha thinks that Federation must become younger.

1:18:20 - Why Dasha almost stopped playing: When she was playing in 2019(?) with very bad results her ex-trainer said the words that almost destroyed her, he said that he couldn't pull her mentally anymore, so maybe she should try something else. If the Devil made an offer to Dasha, whether to have a few years of absolute success in tennis, to become a legend, or to spend her whole life with Natasha happily with nothing great in tennis, Dasha would have picked the second option, she does not want to end as Maradona.

1:28:14 Natasha is giving advice for LGBT people in Russia: She has adviced to be open about your nature, those people who really love you, they will understand, and you will feel better after that.

[ultrajaphunter]

(via What is the Russian party of war like? – Riddle Russia)

What is the Russian party of war like?

Andrey Pertsev on the key characteristics and goals of Russian public policy hawks

By

Andrey Pertsev

25 April 2022

Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the Russian elite has been divided into three major groups manifesting different attitudes to the war. The largest of them is the ‘party of silence’, which represents the majority of top federal officials, heads of state corporations and state-related businesses. They are aware of the disastrous economic consequences of the invasion but are unable to stand up to President Vladimir Putin. A small ‘peace party’ is represented by the oligarchs who rose to prominence under Boris Yeltsin. Roman Abramovich, Oleg Deripaska, Mikhail Fridman and Vladimir Lisin go as far as to voice abstract calls for putting an end to the war. The ‘war party’, advocating an escalation of the conflict, is the loudest and most noticeable among them.

The war party is represented by the head of the Chechen Republic, Ramzan Kadyrov; the Deputy Chairman of the Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev; the Chairman of the State Duma, Vyacheslav Volodin; the Director General of Roscosmos, Dmitry Rogozin; the Secretary of the General Council of United Russia, Andrey Turchak; and the businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin. Alexey Gromov, the First Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential Executive Office, is also part of the flock. Gromov is not a public figure, but one can get an insight into his beliefs by looking at those close to him, such as RT’s editor-in-chief, Margarita Simonyan, and her subordinates, who take an ultra-hawkish stance. The war party has no hierarchy, and its members are either unrelated or at odds with each other, like Volodin and Turchak. Nevertheless, all of its representatives occupy similar positions in Russia’s pyramid of power, and they are pursuing the same goal hand in hand, with one addressee in mind — Putin. It is worth taking a closer look at this party also because its members clearly aspire to and can achieve career advancement, irrespective of whether Putin’s regime survives or not.

The active and aggressive

The war party proves its militancy in word and deed. Its most radical representatives in the public arena are Kadyrov and Turchak. Both politicians have visited Ukraine: Kadyrov met with the Chechen fighters taking part in the invasion, while Turchak put up Russian flags and victory banners in Ukrainian towns and villages. Neither has shied away from commenting on the war, and both have criticised presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov for being too indecisive. Both Kadyrov and Turchak can be described as the vanguard of the war party, men who do not hesitate to attack members of the peace party or the party of silence, irrespective of their status or rank. In addition to Peskov, Vladimir Medinsky, an assistant to the President of the Russian Federation and a member of the Russian delegation in negotiations with Ukraine, has also suffered from the attacks of party militants.

The party’s media presence is ensured by Medvedev, Volodin and Rogozin. They regularly make public statements and, in a sense, set the tone for the Russian elite’s new style of self-presentation, which implies the transformation of its representatives into voluntary propagandists, jesters of the presidential court. The speeches by Rogozin, Volodin and Medvedev incite anti-Western sentiments in society. They serve as an additional reinforcement of Putin’s position. Therefore, he feels he can up the ante. Gromov, the Kremlin’s media gatekeeper, acts in a similar manner, but he doesn’t act on his own. Calls for an escalation of the war are voiced by TV hosts and participants as well as RT’s editor-in-chief, Simonyan.

Low prospects and high ambitions

Members of the war party have several traits in common that largely predetermine their behaviour. First and foremost, they have all reached the ceiling in their careers; they stopped climbing the ladder at some point and moved only horizontally. In the pre-war era, they could only slip to laudable but insignificant positions deprived of decision-making powers.

One of the members of the war party, Medvedev, the Deputy Chairman of the Security Council, exemplifies this pattern. In 2012, he was downgraded from the president’s chair to that of prime minister. In 2020, the second-highest official in the country at the time, Medvedev was dismissed and appointed to a hitherto unspecified position as Deputy Chairman of the Security Council. During the 2021 Duma campaign, Medvedev failed to move into the speaker’s chair, a move that was blocked by Putin himself. Now, the Deputy Chairman of the Security Council, who is sailing close to the wind by pre-war standards, may once again become a presidential favourite, the kind of hawk Putin might leave Russia to.

Kadyrov is trapped in the administrative hierarchy. On the one hand, he is afraid to leave his post as the leader of the Chechen Republic, since he is given free rein there. On the other hand, he would obviously not mind getting a decent job in one of the federal law enforcement agencies. He has been prevented real career advancement at the federal level by the siloviki, many of whom were directly involved in the wars in Chechnya. In Putin’s eyes, Kadyrov acquired a new status, that of a warrior who went to the front line and performed his role beautifully. Against this backdrop, the intentions of the siloviki may pale into insignificance.

Before the war, the career outlook for Turchak, the Secretary of the General Council of United Russia and First Deputy Speaker of the Federation Council, was dim. There were rumours that he might become the Governor of St Petersburg, and this seemed to be the pinnacle of his possible career. After the invasion, he equipped himself with aggressive rhetoric and went literally to the front line. Judging by his demeanour, Turchak clearly expects to be promoted, perhaps to the post of First Deputy Chief of Staff — or even Chief of Staff — of the Presidential Executive Office.

Before the war, the position of Chairman of the State Duma was seen as the peak of Volodin’s career. He felt comfortable in that chair; he adjusted the Duma apparatus to his needs and kept United Russia under control. Last spring, however, other candidates for the post of State Duma Chairman emerged, namely Alexey Gordeyev, a former Deputy Prime Minister, and Medvedev himself. Volodin kept his position due to a freeze on promotions, but his role was weakened significantly, and there was no outlook for him to move up the ladder before the war.

The Director General of Roscosmos, Rogozin, had also seen his career stall. He was Deputy Prime Minister before his appointment to the state corporation. Before that, he had been Russia’s permanent representative to NATO. Rogozin has been caught in perpetual horizontal motion, the wheel of life.

Other individuals, such as the businessman Prigozhin, also known as ‘Putin’s chef’, have also been drawn to the front line. Despite myths about his near omnipotence, Prigozhin’s influence is rather limited; he has a range of contracts with state institutions and state-owned corporations for cleaning services, and he provides food supplies to schools. Private military companies allegedly supervised by the businessman (Prigozhin himself denies this) have taken part in conflicts in Africa and Syria, and in 2014−2015 they fought in Donbas. In addition, Prigozhin controls a number of media outlets. He is quite influential but not so influential as businessmen from Putin’s immediate entourage. He is now going to Donbas in the hope of bolstering his gravitas.

Gromov, the First Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential Executive Office, media curator and former presidential Press Attaché has also reached his ceiling within the hierarchy.

Moreover, members of the war party seem to have nothing to lose in terms of property either. Their assets are not very impressive, although they are obviously very well off, as proved by the investigations conducted by the Anti-Corruption Foundation with regard to Medvedev, Rogozin and Volodin.

Another important trait manifested by the representatives of the war party is their ambition. All of the above-mentioned politicians and officials long to be promoted or reverse the downward trend. This key trait is closely related to the fact that they have nothing to lose. Unlike members of the party of silence, representatives of the war party are actively pursuing their interests and speaking out, since they have nothing to fear.

Finally, public exposure is also typical of them. Volodin and Rogozin were at one time quite successful public figures and politicians. And they made their careers largely due to publicity. Medvedev enjoyed public exposure during his presidency and premiership. Prigozhin was quite skilful in building his public image as a ‘grey cardinal’ and an ultra-patriot who never has to search for words. Turchak also strives to be a publicly recognised politician. This is what makes the voice of the war party sound so loud.

New figures gradually begin to join the war party: those who previously kept the silence mode. For example, last week the first deputy head of the Presidential Administration, the curator of the political bloc, Sergei Kiriyenko, spoke extensively about «Nazism» and visited the Donbass. Yet another member joins the war party and this is not the end of it.

Win-win game

The members of the war party are playing a win-win game. Regardless of the future political situation in Russia, they will either keep their positions (they would have kept their seats or been downgraded if it were not for the war) or be promoted.

The first and best-case scenario for the war party is the further escalation of hostilities, the snatching of some part of Ukraine by Russia or its proxies (i.e. the Donetsk People’s Republic or Luhansk People’s Republic), and the announcement of ‘victory’ and recognition of those who contributed to this ‘victory’. After the war, the system will inevitably be restructured, the staff promotion process will be restored, and the politicians and officials who have come to the (military or propaganda) forefront will be offered new opportunities. Putin is clearly in a belligerent mood, and most probably those who resonate with his sentiments will win the prize.

In the case of the second scenario, namely a ceasefire and the withdrawal of Russian troops to de facto pre-war positions, members of the war party will not lose their chance of being promoted. Putin’s views will not change anyway — i.e. Ukraine is anti-Russia, and NATO is threatening and encircling us. Politicians who publicly adhere to these views will still enjoy the president’s favours. In addition, warmongering characters have always made Putin look like the ‘only European’ in the Russian government and in Russia as a whole. The head of state and his entourage used to always distance themselves from the radical statements of individual Russian officials and MPs. Creating a militant backdrop against which Putin would look like a peacemaker could also be rewarding.

The third scenario, which so far does not look very likely, involves Putin stepping down as president, peace being made with Ukraine and the Russian regime gradually being democratised. As strange as it may sound, this scenario also opens a window of opportunity for members of the war party in the event that members of the top leadership are not put on trial and lustrated (if they are held accountable, the party of silence will not be spared either). The opposition-minded part of society is inclined to forgive other people’s sins. Some opinion writers, political analysts and journalists have managed to change camps over the years, but their opinions still matter for the audience disloyal to the authorities. Russians vote for former United Russia politicians if they publicly break with the ruling party and run as opposition candidates (for example, the former United Russia politician Yevgeny Urlashov won the 2012 mayoral election in Yaroslavl). It is likely that the members of the war party who publicly renounce their own words (provided that society still remembers those words) will be forgiven and granted an opportunity to continue their political careers. Since the war party consists of experienced politicians, most of them stand a good chance of staying in politics. It is easy to imagine Volodin leading a moderate-conservative party, Rogozin leading a right-wing nationalist project, and Medvedev recalling his former liberal aspirations. The issue of Western sanctions could also be resolved. Members of both the party of silence and the peace party are on sanctions lists. If these restrictions are lifted, they will most likely be lifted for all those who were not directly involved in the war and in giving orders. If sanctions are not lifted, then again, everyone will remain on the lists whether they have spoken in favour of escalation of the conflict or not.

Accordingly, being part of the war party is very beneficial for some Russian officials and politicians. But it must be kept in mind that the path towards escalation is one of personal gain, and not for the benefit of the entire Putin regime, and much less so for the country. While the careers of Volodin and Medvedev in pre-war Russia were in decline, and Turchak had reached the ceiling in his career, further conflict escalation flips the rules and gives them room for growth. Of course, if each of them had been promoted within the old pre-war system, they would have had far greater resources at their disposal, but members of the war party were not given that opportunity. In that sense, escalation is a bird in the hand of warmongering politicians. They have cornered Putin: as long as Russians support the war or are indifferent to it, the president cannot show any weakness. If the war party ups the ante, he must raise the stakes too.

In a sense, the war party increases the chances of the third scenario materialising. The worse the economic situation resulting from the continuation of hostilities, the higher the level of dissatisfaction. For Russia, an escalation of the conflict does not bode well; the more protracted the war, the longer it will take to rebuild the sanctions-stricken economy. The war party appears to be a party of personal gain for its members, but their personal interests are at odds with the interests of the country. From a strategic perspective, the ultra-patriots who are advocating conflict escalation turn out to be anti-patriots.

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[zashamalkin]

New Match interview with Geno-12/1/20

The Match TV observer talks with Pittsburgh forward Yevgeny Malkin, who recently came to our studio, where he gave a bombing interview. But can you imagine how thrifty we are? One more interview remained in our store, and we decided to post it on the All-Russian Hockey Day."

- Eugene, not so long ago you intrigued the public when you posted a photo on Instagram. You are sitting opposite the actors Igor Vernik and Andrey Burkovsky, giving the signature: "Filming a movie!" What will your role be?

- This is how it happens - you put it out, and people don't understand it that way! It was just a joke! We were invited to the theater, and after the performance we went backstage to say hello and chat with friends. A friend took a picture of us, and such an unusual shot turned out.

And you must somehow intrigue the audience! I also dream of catching my hype in this life!

Do you believe the NHL season kicks off on January 1?

“I don’t believe in this date. Most likely moved to mid or late January. But these are my feelings. Because January 1 is close, and so far there is no specifics. Even we haven’t been announced yet when the training camp will open. What can we say about the press? There is also no information there. But there is nothing left. I think they just won't have time.

The KHL postponed the Week of Stars for a year, the IIHF canceled 28 tournaments. How has the coronavirus affected the 2020/21 hockey season?

- The last time this situation arose during a lockout in 2012. You then played for Magnitka, and at the beginning of January you returned to America. What prevented you from asking for rent in the KHL?

- I thought about it ... Maybe play? But they simply do not allow it - the contract is large, and there is a risk of injury. This is hockey, and you can break out of the blue. Imagine what the NHL announces - we start in mid-January. And you are already walking on crutches.

I am even afraid of such a situation myself. Now, if the NHL announces that there will be no season - of course, you can think about something and play in Russia, if possible.

But I hope that the league will announce its plans in the near future and the season will be saved. Although there is no specifics, and it's a little scary. You just don't know how to prepare. It seems like I want to train to the fullest. But you don't understand what date to bring yourself to.

- And how are you doing these days?

- Three or four players gathered. As usual, we skate to Morozovo with a coach. Ice for an hour. I also go to the gym at home, squat. While easy, in easy mode.

… It should be emphasized here that we spoke with Gino about three weeks ago. Maybe now he has changed the format of training, or at the start of the new NHL season, he got some insight. But until recently, there was an information vacuum in this topic.

- You were surprised when the youth team of Russia was taken to the Eurotrip, and she broke everyone there?

- Yes, I just have no words! In general, I think that the Eurotour should be a youth tournament. It is clear that the youth world championship is usually held on New Year's Eve. This is a special case. But one more competition won't hurt.

And the more you give young people to play, the easier it is for them to open up. The KHL club is headed by a foreign coach. He realizes that he doesn't have much time. He wants to do the result right now. He doesn't want to pretend to young people. Especially foreign specialists do not need it.

Some of them came just to make money. Someone wants to win the Gagarin Cup, but he was given a year or two for that. Of course, young people make mistakes, they get nervous, they are not so hard on the ice. And the coach is afraid to put the young even in the fourth link. It's easier for him to stick older and more reliable players there.

Well, the Eurotrip showed that young people need to be given more chances, and then they will have more confidence. Now we have won the Karjala Cup. Something is already happening in the KHL clubs, and on this wave they will shoot at the youth world championship.

Confidence is the thing. She's easy to lose, but scored a couple of goals, especially for the national team - and found her right away. Your wings grow behind your back, and you show hockey on a completely different level. Don't be afraid when you attract young people! This is our future, and sometimes even the present.

- The story with  Artem Dziuba showed that a hacked phone can seriously affect your life. How do you make sure someone doesn't hack you?

- We live in such a world that not just a hacked phone, but an inadvertently spoken word can break your life. See what's going on in America.

And how can you insure yourself against phone hacking? You just try not to make any mistakes. Do not store unnecessary information on your phone. But the world is such that even one word in someone's address can cause a fire. Say something about some movement or minority, and you don't know how millions of people will perceive it.

I don't know where this world is heading. But the topic is deep. However, I believe that a person should always have a second chance. You can always say that you were wrong and want to apologize.

- Recently you met with  Fedor Emelianenko . Has he impressed you?

- It was a short meeting, we crossed paths in Sanduny. We sat in different booths, went to the steam room to take a steam bath, and met there. And then they went out and took pictures in the foyer.

Fedor is very modest, charming. I can compliment him a lot! We exchanged phones. He said to call anytime. A very friendly person. And he is really the Emperor, as he is called. He speaks little, but everything is on the case.

- Recently, Match TV voted for the best athlete. Do you think Alexander Ovechkin deservedly won it, and for whom did you vote?

- In general, my name was also in the voting. Who should I vote for? For myself, clicked-clicked, gained three percent.

Ovechkin won, so everything is deserved. The man has won everything in hockey - both the Stanley Cup and individual prizes. In reality, I think he is the most recognizable sportsman in Russia.

- Who do you root for in figure skating?

- Weird question! I am always rooting for Russians. And individually - not for anyone. Somehow you need to follow this sport in order to understand. I only watch this topic when they perform at the Olympics. I root for both  Medvedev and  Zagitova ... Of course, there is a lot of competition between them. I know such scandals happen there! They change coaches, then go abroad, then return. They have a serious Santa Barbara there!

But I wish them all the best. The main thing is to do without injuries. In fact, they are all great, they won all the tournaments. And our figure skating is very strong in Russia. It has always been and will be number one. I know that people watch and love this sport. And the ratings are off scale there. And take only the first places!

- What do you think about the 2022 Olympics in Beijing, where NHL players can take part? You have participated in three Games, but have not won a single medal.

- I try not to talk a lot about it. Yes, there are three Stanley Cups. But, of course, you also think about Olympic gold. I understand that time is slowly running out. I hope that I will still be able to go to the Winter Games. And I really believe that this Olympics, first of all, will take place, despite the difficult time. And I believe that I will be in good shape, and I will be invited to the squad. There are many great players in Russian hockey. God grant that everything will turn out right, we will get together and show an excellent game. But it's too early to talk about it now. The only thing you can do right now is to keep yourself in optimal shape and do without injury.

[goalhofer]

2020-21 K.K. Amur Roster

Wingers

#11 Nikita Yazkov (Novokuznetsk, Russia)

#15 Yegor Domnichev (Yaroslavl, Russia)

#17 Vladimir Butuzov (Prokopyevsk, Russia)

#20 Hynek Zohorna (Havlickuv Brod, Czech Republic)

#45 Valentin Pyanov (Novosibirsk, Russia)

#59 Maxim Kapiturov (Chelyabinsk, Russia)

#61 Alexander Gorshkov (Surgut, Russia)

#65 Nail Yakupov (Nizhnekamsk, Russia)

#71 Vladislav Ushenin (Magnitogorsk, Russia)

#72 Danil Fyodorov (Moscow, Russia)

#90 Alexander Polunin (Moscow, Russia)

#93 Danil Faizullin (Kazan, Russia)

Centers

#7 Sergei Ivanov (Khabarovsk, Russia)

#12 Kirill Rasskazov (Omsk, Russia)

#13 Artyom Zhelezkov (Nizhny Tagil, Russia)

#28 Denis Golubev (Magnitogorsk, Russia)

#79 Vyacheslav Ushenin (Magnitogorsk, Russia)

#80 Tomas Zohorna (Havlickuv Brod, Czech Republic)

#84 Alexander Kuznetsov (Moscow, Russia)

Defensemen

#3 Nikita Aleksandrov (Kurgan, Russia)

#6 Valeri Vasiliev (Moscow, Russia)

#23 Yuri Sergienko (Oskemen, Kazakhstan)

#27 Dominik Masin (Mestec Kralove, Czech Republic)

#34 Pavel Turbin (Omsk, Russia)

#43 Maxim Ignatovich (Novosibirsk, Russia)

#47 Michal Jordan (Zlin, Czech Republic)

#52 Sergei Tereschenko (Magnitogorsk, Russia)

#55 Gleb Koryagin (Moscow, Russia)

#78 Pavel Medvedev (Tolyatti, Russia)

#82 Alexander Gopiyenko (Khabarovsk, Russia)

#88 Nikita Kamalov (Novokuznetsk, Russia)

Goalies

#18 Yevgeni Alikin (Perm, Russia)

#30 Evgeni Kiselev (Moscow, Russia)

#94 Marek Langhamer (Moravska Trebova, Czech Republic)

[summarychannel]

Wagner militias seek help from the army after the entry of huge Ukrainian forces, in preparation for the counter-attack New news of the Russian-Ukrainian war, presented by this episode of Samri channel.And starting with Dmitry Medvedev, deputy head of the Russian National Security Council, who said in televised statements that the attempt by the German authorities to arrest Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to the arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court, means declaring war on Russia, and that this will be answered by bombing the German parliament building and office. German chancellor with missiles. On the other hand, the European Union leaders approved at their recent meeting in Brussels a new military aid package for Ukraine that includes one million artillery rounds to be delivered over the next year. Despite this, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned Western leaders that the reluctance to support Kiev with modern fighters and long-range missiles only prolongs the war and gives Russia an opportunity to rearrange its ranks.Finally, Yevgeny Prigozhin, commander of the Russian Wagner Combat Group, said that about 200,000 Ukrainian reserve forces are currently being prepared to launch a major counterattack against Russian forces in Ukraine, calling on the leadership of the Russian Ministry of Defense to move quickly to confront this scheme.

[mariacallous]

How do members of Russia’s bureaucratic apparatus deal with the stress of waging a war? With their remedy of choice — alcohol. The independent outlet Verstka recently published a report about the drinking habits of Russia’s government officials, including their preferred type of vodka and whether Putin himself drinks at all. Meduza in English is publishing an abridged translation of the story.

In Russia, if you’re of deputy governor or higher rank, you drink. A lot. While Verstka’s sources disagreed on the exact definitions of alcoholism, they all said that those close to the Kremlin, in the Federal Assembly, and regional authorities drink on a regular basis. “They frequently miss meetings, show up drunk to events, and take illicit substances,” said one source.

“Let’s put it this way: Now, more than ever, employees in the president’s administration start their day with a glass of vodka — some even drink a bottle with breakfast,” says one source.

Another source tells Verstka that one regional governor has a particularly severe drinking problem and is completely unable to function without alcohol. His addiction is so severe that he’s even missed invitations from Putin for Federal Assembly meetings. On most mornings, someone is specifically tasked with searching for him or waking him with phone calls. When he does make it to meetings, he barely participates, instead “sitting there like a zombie.” According to the source, the governor’s drinking songs of choice are Soviet victory songs, the band Lyube (reportedly Putin’s favorite), and songs depicting Russian criminal culture. “He always drank, but never to this extent,” said one source, who explains that the governor’s recent behavior is caused by “the stress of the news, and pressure from both the Kremlin and local elites.”

In correspondence with Verstka, one regional governor from the Urals said that, since the moment the war started, he’s been drunk. He also said it’s been impossible for him to give up drinking — but he considers that “pretty normal.” After news broke of the Ukrainian counteroffensive, the deputy governor completely stopped responding to Verstka.

The tale of alcoholism within the Russian government wouldn’t be complete without mentioning the former President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev. Rumors about his drinking habits spread especially quickly after he started fiercely criticizing the West, and those against the war.

Many hide their struggle with alcoholism. One especially infamous case is that of Russia’s Emergencies Minister Yevgeny Zinichev, who died during a civil defense exercise in the Arctic city of Norilsk in September 2021. Spokespeople for the Emergency Situations Ministry said that Zinichev died while trying to save a filmmaker participating in the exercise with him, who also died during the incident. The truth is, however, that the minister and those accompanying him were all drunk, and it was actually the director that tried to save Zinichiev, who had slipped and fell into the water. “State media called Zinichiev’s death heroic. Wouldn’t it have been better if they had written the truth?” remarked one source.

Pick your poison

While Putin emphasizes his commitment to a healthy lifestyle, his government banquets tell a different story. One regional deputy governor tells Verstka that each guest drinks an average of 1.5 to two bottles (before, guests just got one).

Russian bureaucrats’ preferred alcoholic beverages? Cognac, champagne, and wine, according to a list of alcohol recently purchased for government functions. One order also included 5 million rubles (around $59,600) worth of vodka — imported from Spain, France, and Italy. “Neither the war, nor the sanctions that followed, have been able to stop the conveyor belt of alcohol coming into Russia. On the contrary, many Western companies that said they’d pull out of the Russian market never made good on their promises,” said one source. Such companies include the French whiskey, rum, and cognac manufacturer Pernod Ricard, and the Czech brewery Budweiser Budvar. Almost every government office in Moscow is stocked with ultra-expensive alcohol, like Remy Martin Louis XIII Grande Champagne premium cognac, and luxury varieties of Château Margaux wine.

There are even high-level officials and businessmen that distill their own alcohol, like the oligarch Gennady Timchenko. And who can forget about Medvedev and his moonshine? According to some sources, Medvedev would gift his homemade brew to members of the government and foreign leaders.

After the start of the counteroffensive, and the arrest warrant against Putin, bureaucrats and members of the elite started to drink hard liquor, such as Grey Goose from France and Belvedere from Poland, according to sources from the Moscow authorities. “The scariest part — now even women have started drinking without shame,” said one source.

What about Putin?

Six months into the war, Putin decided to address the issue of alcoholism across Russia — something he’s done on only a few occasions. “We shouldn’t sweep things under the rug [...], we must address the most severe issues,” said Putin. Later, in a meeting with another governor, he said that “we shouldn’t ban anything, we shouldn’t raise the prices too much.” On the contrary, he said there should be “propaganda to encourage a healthy lifestyle,” and “improve exercise infrastructure.”

Putin is alleged to be particularly concerned about the drinking habits of those in his inner circle who try to drink away the stress of sanctions and war — the President says they should be able to easily carry out their work sober.

According to social media, the President himself almost never drinks. One source reveals that he “looks at those who drink, get drunk, who aren’t alert first thing in the morning, with disdain.” Despite this assessment, some sources say he’s somewhat of a wine connoisseur, and is also quite a fan of beer. An investigation by the Anti-Corruption Foundation even found that Putin’s palace boasts a sort of “beer terrace” on the property.

So what do bureaucrats get up to when they’re not indulging?

While alcohol is definitely the most popular form of escapism, it’s far from the only one. According to a source close to Verstka, bureaucrats can be divided into three different groups based on how they cope with the stress of war. “The majority are those who follow Putin blindly, do their work quietly, and make sure not to say anything, or even think anything, that appears as though they are questioning their tasks,” said the source.

The second group includes those who believe the country has “found itself at a dead end, and believe there’s no point in working anymore.” Most of those in this group are “honest workers,” who have spent “years building their reputations.” Now, they just work in order to fulfill their basic responsibilities. In terms of their interests, they prefer “alcohol, sports, and sex.”

“Many guzzle down vodka,” said one source, “One of my friends has taken to running marathons, while another has managed to hit on almost every woman that works for him.”

The third group finds solace in “good deeds,” making themselves feel better by, for example, “supplying a grandmother with firewood for the winter, or fixing her pathway,” said one source.

These government officials reportedly “saw that things were going to shit, jumped to fix them, but quickly realized that their ability to do so is extremely limited. That’s why, with few exceptions, they’re either stealing like there’s no tomorrow, indulging in alcohol and sex, or taking up sports.”

Another source remarked, “most understand their work is meaningless. That’s why this job simply cannot be done sober.”

[newswireml]

Putin vows to strengthen Russia's nuclear forces after suspending role in New START treaty#Putin #vows #strengthen #Russias #nuclear #forces #suspending #role #START #treaty

Dmitry Medvedev, the former Russian president who along with President Barack Obama renewed the START deal for another five years in 2019, defended Russia’s right to use nukes if necessary. “If the United States wants to defeat Russia, then we have the right to defend ourselves with any weapons, including nuclear weapons,” he said on his Telegram channel Wednesday. However, Major-General Yevgeny…

[mubashirnews]

Former commander of Russia's Wagner Group apologises for fighting in Ukraine after fleeing to Norway | World News

A former commander of Russia’s notorious mercenary Wagner Group who is seeking asylum in Norway has apologised for fighting in Ukraine. Andrei Medvedev said he wanted to speak out about his experiences in the war – and within the private group owned by millionaire Yevgeny Prigozhin, who has ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin – so “the perpetrators are punished” for their crimes. “Many…