Michael Idov’s ” The Hibertation” in the New Republic is a must read.
The New Republic
The Hibernation by Michael Idov
Meet Dmitri Medvedev, a docile president for a docile Russia.
Post Date Wednesday, April 23, 2008Minutes after the polls closed on March 2 in the westernmost Russian city of Kaliningrad–certifying a blowout victory by presidential candidate Dmitri Anatolyevich Medvedev, handpicked heir to Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin– the men of the hour made an appearance at a massive concert underway in Red Square. As broadcast by NTV, a television channel owned by Gazprom (where Medvedev chairs the board of directors), the scene looked like something out of Mission: Impossible. A low-placed camera tracked alongside Putin and Medvedev, dressed Kremlin Casual in a boxy leather jacket (Dima) and a parka (Volodya), as they strode, to a rock beat, across the convex cobblestone expanse of the square. The shot’s director, perhaps taking another cue from Tom Cruise movies, had removed background extras or anything else the eye could use to calibrate the heroes’ heights: Medvedev is 5’4″ to Putin’s 5’7″. The action duo climbed onto the stage, and Medvedev–a professed headbanger who had had a box reserved at the Led Zeppelin reunion show in London on the day Putin named him his successor–got to live out a rock ‘n’ roll moment. He grabbed the mic and yelled “Privet, Rossiya! Privet, Moskva!” (the Russian equivalent of “Hello, Cleveland”). The square went wild. His fervor subsiding, the president-elect segued into an anodyne victory speech about the need to “fortify stability” and “improve quality of life.” The crowd began chanting “Con-grats! Con-grats!”–an unusually impersonal choice of a mantra. Medvedev passed the microphone to his benefactor, and the chant immediately changed. “Pu-tin! Pu-tin! PU-TIN!!!” Medvedev politely smiled.
This episode is likely to repeat, in one form or another, throughout the first months and even years of Medvedev’s rule. If it seems as if Russia has elected a man nobody knows anything about, it’s because Russia, with a complacency easily mistakable for contentedness, didn’t really elect Dmitri Medvedev at all. It reelected Vladimir Putin, in the way Tibetan monks pick the same Dalai Lama each time, regardless of the human form he’s taken. The rubber- stamping of the Kremlin candidate illuminates a useful truth about Russian society: Putin’s stifling regime and the country’s oil-fueled prosperity are viewed not as unrelated phenomena but as cause and effect. Medvedev, even as he formally represents the end of that regime, is also its ultimate triumph.
I agree with Chris (and others) about taking everything one reads outside one’s area of competence with a grain of salt precisely because one sees how often the coverage of areas one knows about is faulty or misleading.
All in all, I prefer to be skeptical rather than totally cynical about what I read, since most of the journalists and writers I know in person actually try hard to get the story right. Often they don’t get it right because of lack of knowledge, time constraints, editorial pressures and so on. As the saying goes, journalism is the first draft of history. And first drafts, besides the occasionally brilliant gem, also contain plenty of holes and mistakes.
What bothers me more than journalists trying to report from the ground is to hear media “pundits” expound on things they don’t know much about. They became well known by writing or commenting on particular subjects they had some expertise, but that does not make them experts on other subjects–and yet their opinions on those subjects are sought and too often they gladly take the bait. What does a columnist covering US domestic politics really know about Indonesia, global warming, small-unit tactics or Venezuela?
“By the way, Sean, I can’t say I’ve ever felt disappointed that you published pieces by other people here, my differences with M. Averko notwithstanding. I’m guessing, but perhaps part of the reason that you did it is that it’s hard to generate original content on one’s own for a blog – the same may be true of a newly launched magazine like ‘Russia!’
Here is the offending piece by LR. As with Averko’s pieces at SRB, it’s not really worth getting up in arms about. Marketplace of ideas and all that.”
****
Far more tue of Allin’s views on so called “Russophobia” and a number of other matters.
That’s: true
AT really left himself open with a not so detailed commentary about so-called “Russophobia”.
There’s a more accurate, though not completely perfect term and numerous examples to firmly substantiate it.
As now Tibet is a must in every written piece – here are my 5 koopeek to the international journalism.
from Sky.
Olympic Torch Snuffed Out In Paris
Updated:14:51, Monday April 07, 2008
The Olympic torch has had to be extinguished three times amid protests by anti-China demonstrators in Paris.
….
The torch had to be extinguished three times and re-lit twice amid safety fears caused by the demonstrations.
Two campaigners brandishing a Tibetan flag were arrested for trying to bar the torch’s path.
……
And two members of media rights group Reporters Without Borders (RSF) – which disrupted the lighting of the flame in Athens – were held for trying to vault over the security cordon protecting the torch.
….
Three RSF members climbed up the steel tower and unfurled a 13ft flag showing the five Olympic rings turned into handcuffs.
They then handcuffed themselves to the structure more than 200ft in the air.
Sky News Europe correspondent Greg Milam said …
“It’s clearly a massive blow to the organisers – the demonstrations along the route have had the desired effect.”
So brainwashed by their own reporting, these Reporters Without Brains are hanging in the air like crazy shimpanzes.
For sure – they got desired effect.
PS. It was Idov – not me – who started that Tibet show. Right in his first paragraph (out of three I read).
I heard a troll, trolling in the wilderness, “Prepare ye the way of the Troll. Make safe in the desert a trollway, for our troll.”
“What bothers me more than journalists trying to report from the ground is to hear media “pundits” expound on things they don’t know much about.”
Exactly. Like now Charles Krauthammer thinks he’s an expert on Iraqi politics. When he did his PhD in Arab Studies?
As some have shown, the Phd isn’t the end all to having great insight.
There’re a good number of shit as well as quality commentary coming from Phds.
Ditto the non-Phds.
Bravo! “Insight” finally spelled correctly!
Kolya, sorry: I mean, how does the QUALITY of the coverage of Russia compares with the coverage of, say, China or the Middle East?
Was in a rush and didn’t read properly. How does the coverage compare? I don’t know. Good question.
Instinctively, I’d have thought good coverage of any foreign turf depends first and foremost on good coverage by the host country media. Because like it or not, and regardless of their pretentions, foreign correspondents are largely aggregators of host country stuff for a home audience. The job is to grab stories with a home-audience angle and “enrich” them with further research and interviews. The best lean to the enriching, and the worst lean to, well, making up quotes from “diplomatic sources” or whatever.
The problem in judging coverage of one country vs another is that not a lot of us have a special fixation for, say, both Russia AND China. So how would anyone make a subjective comparison?
And objective comparisons are out of the question because the variables differ too much. How would one weight the results of the US military’s big PR machine in Iraq, for instance?
”As some have shown, the Phd isn’t the end all to having great insight.”
”Ditto the non-Phds.”
Indeed. And as others have shown, having none often means the same thing. By the way are you Mike Averko, and as such shouldnt these comments be attributed to your grand total of 8.5 million?
”Exactly. Like now Charles Krauthammer thinks he’s an expert on Iraqi politics. When he did his PhD in Arab Studies?”
That ugly man just drives me mad. He’s all over the place, even in my newspaper The Irish Times. I think they put him there for a laugh or to fill space.
“Instinctively, I’d have thought good coverage of any foreign turf depends first and foremost on good coverage by the host country media.”
Also, foreign media, by virtue of “human nature,” tend to gravitate to media in the host country that reinforce what they already believe and/or are otherwise accessible to them. Western journalists in Russia, for example, are not going to hang around with the Russian journalists who write for Zavtra, whom they would regard as crazy and vice versa. (Speaking of Zavtra, Prokhanov is a prolific novelist, but he is almost never described as such in the brief instances he is mentioned in the Western press. Instead, he’s the “right-wing editor of Zavtra,” which is sort of like calling Celine “a right-wing editor.” True, but it kind of misses stuff. Anyway…)
In the Russian case, this is compounded by the long Westernizer vs. Slavophile national psychosis of inordinate love or inordinate loathing of the largely imaginary West. Russian journos who court Westerners are likely to fall into the former camp, because people in the latter do not pander to Westerners for obvious reasons. This is largely why Solzhenitsyn (and R. Medvedev and A. Zinoviev) has vanished from Western pop consciousness and media.
Thus, the Western journo is treated to a display of the whole range of psychotic zapadnichestvo, which is incorporated into the journo’s work as an informed insight.
“IRISHMAN on April 7, 2008 8:47 am ‘As some have shown, the Phd isn’t the end all to having great insight.”
‘Ditto the non-Phds.’
Indeed. And as others have shown, having none often means the same thing. By the way are you Mike Averko, and as such shouldnt these comments be attributed to your grand total of 8.5 million?”
***
From the looks of things at SRB, that last point applies to Chris Doss.
The first point most certainly doesn’t apply to yours truly.
Speaking of psychosis.
Hi all,
I’m the author of the article (and yes, a reader of this blog). Thank you so much for the massively informed discussion, and for pointing out a couple of slip-ups (such as Putin not technically being the head of United Russia last December – just at the head of its ballot as Delegate One, гарант etc ).*
I’m obviously not here to debate or defend my own writing, I just wanted to quickly clear up two minor issues that have to do with me personally, or rather some posters’ perceptions of who I am. First, reading into my “Baltic heritage” for clues to my stance on Russia is awfully naive. Even someone with the most cursory awareness of the Baltics should be able to guess that a Latvian named “Michael Idov” is not an ethnic Lett. Russian is indeed my native language, and I regularly write for Afisha, Bolshoi Gorod etc. So I make a terrible poster boy for “Western journos.” I’d rather be judged against, say, Tatyana Tolstaya’s latest Times op-ed
Second, I hope you’re not seriously thinking that publishing La Russophobe was tantamount to endorsing or even tolerating her views. It was, however, the absolute fastest way to demonstrate that RUSSIA! was not a Kremlin-financed propaganda exercise (which, a year ago, was the default view of many).
Finally, I completely agree with Chrisius Maximus’s point about the inherently skewed Western-reporter perspective (that any Westerner writing about Russia finds himself mobbed by eager Zapadniki). That’s why I didn’t use any as my sources. Unless you count Marat Guelman, who plays his own rather complicated game.
That’s all – thanks again.
Michael
*Ironically, hours ago UR announced that it will nominate Putin to replace Gryzlov. Tomorrow’s news today, gentlemen!
The thing is though Chris, there is a really broad spectrum to deal with and to absorb. Set aside circulation numbers and who reads what. The fact is it’s a hell of a buffet.
This is what’s frustrating. There’s a lot of crap of course. That’s true everywhere. But there are good journos in Russia doing a fine job. But unless you’re writing for Novaya Gazetta or, well, doing the Ekho Moskva/Moscow Times thing, the expat corros ignore you.
A trivial example. There was a homeless dog who used to hang around one of the metro stops. People looked after it with scraps of food. Some guy killed the dog. Citizens called the cops and the guy was arrested and ultimately jailed. And now there’s a modest memorial at the station on behalf of all stray dogs. (I don’t know any of the details of this. A visiting in-law just told me the story over dinner. He might have the details wrong. But never mind….)
It’s an ordinary human interest story revealing something about ordinary humans in Russia. If it happened at Oxford Circus tube stop in London, the AP would undoubtedly pick it up. But not in Russia. Doesn’t fit the agenda.
fh, I like your politcorrect language
The job is to grab stories with a home-audience angle and “enrich” them with further research and interviews.
Nice term – “enrich”
But you point it right – it’s about angle…
About Idov and his “old-fashion” reporting.
Here is what I see as REAL old-fashion reporting.
http://hitch-hiker.livejournal.com/
Artem is from Moscow and as you can see – a hitch-hiker. I recommend his LJ not because of reporting style (very good though) but because his insights into post-CCCP.
Sorry, it’s in Russian.
WARNING: It’s long and interesting reading!
Just to give you an idea of what he covered:
Мои скитания
Северный Кавказ (июль 2007)
Часть 1. Каспийский берег
Часть 2. Тропами имама Шамиля
Часть 3. На стыке гор Чечни и Дагестана
Часть 4. Дорога в Чечню
Часть 5. Грозный-Гудермес
Часть 6. Поездка в Ичкерию
Часть 7. Ингушетия
Часть 8. Северная Осетия
Закавказье (июню-июль 2007)
На холмах Грузии. Батуми – Кутаиси – Гори
На холмах Грузии. Тбилиси – Кахетия. Итоги “революции роз”
Азербайджан. Баку и Апшеронский полуостров
Иракский Курдистан (июнь 2007)
Иракский Курдистан – страна, которой нет (часть 1)
Иракский Курдистан – страна, которой нет (часть 2)
Турция (май-июнь 2007)
Часть 1. Анталья – Кютахья
Часть 2. Стамбул – Измир
Часть 3. Анкара – озеро Туз – Каппадокия
Часть 4. Диярбакыр – гора Немрут – Урфа
Часть 5. Ван – Трабзон
Польша (декабрь 2006 – январь 2007)
Что такое Hospitalityclub. Дорога до Бреста
На границе. Варшава
Краков. Бохня. Освенцим
Вроцлав. Познань. Польский язык
Торунь. Гданьск. Гдыня. Польша и ЕС
Белоруссия (октябрь-ноябрь 2006)
Москва-Минск. Интродукция
Минск. Город побежденной революции. Часть 1
Минск. Город побежденной революции. Часть 2
Мир и Несвиж. Два объекта ЮНЕСКО за один день
Бобруйск. Мекка «падонков» и высококультурный город
Могилев. Поле битвы и последняя столица Империи
Украина-Молдавия-Приднестровье (июнь-июль 2006)
Путешествие в оранжевый Киев – часть 1
Путешествие в оранжевый Киев – часть 2
Киев – Львов: автостоп по-украински
Львов: в логове бандеровцев
Львов – КПП Россошаны: однажды на Диком Западе
Молдавия: на задворках Европы
Приднестровье: осколок империи
Одесса-мама
Россия (лето 2005)
Избранные фотки: от Куликова поля до Улан-Удэ
Москва – Груша
Грушинский фестиваль
Самара
Самара – Волгоград
Волгоград
Волгоград-2
Волгоград-Тамбов
Тамбов
Тамбов-Куликово поле
Куликово поле
Москва-Питер
Москва-Питер (2-я часть)
США (лето 2004)
Camp America (Автостопом по США)
“Finally, I completely agree with Chrisius Maximus’s point about the inherently skewed Western-reporter perspective (that any Westerner writing about Russia finds himself mobbed by eager Zapadniki).”
WOOT!
“Speaking of psychosis.”
The above quoted is akin to the healer in need of healing.
Also, foreign media, by virtue of “human nature,” tend to gravitate to media in the host country that reinforce what they already believe and/or are otherwise accessible to them.
Sure. It’s all about human nature really.
Now that Mr Idov has joined us, I probably ought to clarify that I’m being somewhat uncharacteristically negative about general western coverage of Russia precisely because I felt his piece was exceptionally good. And, sure, I get the constructive deployment of La Russophobe for repositioning purposes.
But what’s the deal with saying Medvedev’s gay without any evidence?
“Second, I hope you’re not seriously thinking that publishing La Russophobe was tantamount to endorsing or even tolerating her views. It was, however, the absolute fastest way to demonstrate that RUSSIA! was not a Kremlin-financed propaganda exercise (which, a year ago, was the default view of many).”
***
By giving that anonymously bigoted entity a platform, it shows a qualitative cheapening of how the topic is covered.
Calling people by their name and referring to them as a “scumbag” in formal blog posts isn’t what many have in mind as constructive criticism.
What’s somewhat cowardly is how some state agreement, while not critiquing those like JRL, which prop such an entity over some others.
Ivanov – You’re right about Artem. Good stuff. Like it a lot. It raises another point. Most news content, whether in Russia or in the States, isn’t political. But most international coverage is. This too distorts.
”From the looks of things at SRB, that last point applies to Chris Doss.”
This from the man who posted a record 6 comments in a row at one thread at SRB, and has posted 4 in a row on about 30 occasions. Talk about kettles calling the pot black. Just as well Andy hasnt been counting like Sean.
”What’s somewhat cowardly is how some state agreement, while not critiquing those like JRL, which prop such an entity over some others.”
Here we go again. Havent you gotten over all this yet? What about Operation Kick Ass 2008?
”There was a homeless dog who used to hang around one of the metro stops. People looked after it with scraps of food…etc”
I read that story before in the MT, and it was cute and sad. There was one reporter for British Sky News a few years ago called Andrew Wilson who was based in Moscow. He seemed to love the place, and every second story was something very positive about Russia -one story was actually about metro dogs and how the authorities choose not to kill them (even giving them veterinary care when injured) because they keep the numbers of rats very low. But Wilson and his ilk are few and far between. Its all about market, and most westerners will simply tune out of a good news piece about Russia, but will tune in for a bad news piece. Its a bit unfair I guess, but thats the way it seems to be.
fn – I warned you!
So don’t complain if you spent the night in front of monitor
Ps. Would be interesting to compare his view of US with inside view of aborigens.
most westerners will simply tune out of a good news piece about Russia, but will tune in for a bad news piece. Its a bit unfair I guess, but thats the way it seems to be.
But is it Russian problem, IRISHMAN? Russians has no control over this “tuning”….
“IRISHMAN on April 7, 2008 2:01 pm ‘From the looks of things at SRB, that last point applies to Chris Doss.’
This from the man who posted a record 6 comments in a row at one thread at SRB, and has posted 4 in a row on about 30 occasions. Talk about kettles calling the pot black. Just as well Andy hasnt been counting like Sean.
‘What’s somewhat cowardly is how some state agreement, while not critiquing those like JRL, which prop such an entity over some others.’
Here we go again. Havent you gotten over all this yet? What about Operation Kick Ass 2008?”
****
The last point is going much better than the above quoted trolling.
A BBC appearance and recent Counterpunch articles, with motfre to come.
Meantime, the above quoted disingenuously glosses over the number of posts made by Doss here.
Likewise with Doss’ cowardly exit from SL, after I busted him on his slimeball trolling at that venue.
JRL has bullied people into conformity. What happened to a short lived “Media Watch” feature that was said to have received a good reception? Ditto the forced apologies to Gessen, Lipman and Albats.
Who is forcing the other side of the political spectrum to apologize when they say personally negative things? On the contrary, they get treated gingerly.
A good time for me to exit, seeing how the troll patrol is out therre in full force.
I’m way too good for this shit.
That’s: more
BTW, no surprise at all to see AU propped on a topic that was lacking in overall substance.
The uncensored points will be shortly released.
”But is it Russian problem, IRISHMAN? Russians has no control over this “tuning”….”
No, its not Russia’s fault at all, except of course when the bad news is genuinely bad and there’s no other way to report it. You have to remember that westerners are, the vast majority of them, not in the least bit interested in Russia. Its not even on their map. They know its a big place with nuclear missiles and that Putin is the boss and thats all. Its also seen as an enemy of the west – I’m not saying thats right or wrong, but thats how its seen. One way Russia could possibly improve this is a total visa relaxation for westerners to visit Moscow and Petes, and encourage holiday makers to come, in much the same way as Prague and Budapest have, and maybe, as time goes by, its imagine might improve -Prague and Budapest are raved about in the west as lovely places. The thing is, we’re all interested in Russia here for one reason or another, but 99% of westerners dont actually give a fuck.
That link you gave is great by the way ivanov, its just a shame for me my Russian isnt good enough for it.
You said it Mike!:-) You the MAN!! Actually if you simply read the thread you’ll find it was you who started up your anti-JRL crap again. Havent you moved on?
Ger, you wrote:
“most westerners will simply tune out of a good news piece about Russia, but will tune in for a bad news piece. Its a bit unfair I guess, but thats the way it seems to be.”
Unfortunately this is the way news work everywhere. For example, read any American newspaper and you will get the impression that the US is falling apart, is full of cruel thugs, psychopathic rapists and so on.
P.S. Ger, do not feed the troll! Let it go, man.
Operation Kick Ass 2008 in the Mutha-Fuckin’ House! Taking names and trolling trolls in a manner akin to the aforestated before cited previously mentioned comment.
”Unfortunately this is the way news work everywhere. For example, read any American newspaper and you will get the impression that the US is falling apart, is full of cruel thugs, psychopathic rapists and so on.”
Thats very true Kolya. Chris Doss touched on it above; journalists have a degree in journalism and are experts on nothing – actually I utterly despise journalists; they are among the most disingenous of animals this world has. I worked in an anti-doping lab for years, and you couldnt dream up the spin they put on stuff…just dreadful, guys we’d caught for amphetamine or other nasties being called ‘innocent victims’, things like that…most of them are in someone’s pocket. I have a hypothesis; what if there were no more journalists, and instead articles would be written exclusively by knowledgeable hobbyists or actual experts? I wonder would it lessen the spin and bullshit? I know it wouldnt work economically, but the idea of it is good I think. People who know their subject but have no vested interest in reporting a certain way, which most journalists surely do. For example, speaking authoritatively on Russia surely requires a degree in Russian history/politics and fluency in Russian. I wonder how many of the lads ensconsed at the bar in Night Flight in Moscow writing articles for western papers actually have these qualifications? You’re a biologist Kolya, would you listen to a Freshman chemist telling you about monoclonal antibodies? I doubt it.
”P.S. Ger, do not feed the troll! Let it go, man.”
I know, i know. But I was peacefully reading the thread until he came along and its hard resist when his bullshit appears above the waves. I’ll stop.
“journalists have a degree in journalism and are experts on nothing”
Maybe the system whould be reworked so journalism isn’t a stand-alone degree, but rather must be paired with some other course of study; e.g., if you want to be a reporter on science, you would have to get some background in science, or know something about art to get a degree in Art Journalism. As things stand journalism seems to teach phone-calling skills.
”Operation Kick Ass 2008 in the Mutha-Fuckin’ House! Taking names and trolling trolls in a manner akin to the aforestated before cited previously mentioned comment.”
am actually laughing out loud:-)Isnt it way past your bedtime in Moscow Chris?;-) The Cheerleaders for the Court Appointed Russia Friendlies never rest!
”Maybe the system whould be reworked so journalism isn’t a stand-alone degree, but rather must be paired with some other course of study; e.g., ”
It should be but clearly isnt. I think Heribert said that in Germany you need something like this to be a journalist. I just cant get my head around the fact that there are journalists in Moscow who cant speak Russian. Its just ridiculous, and such nonsense is simply unworkable in most other professions. Now Mike, off you pop and get those Russian grammar books out! Its not too late for you to do the TORFL exam!
I don’t have to be at the Court-Appointed Russia Friendly Office until noon! Sometimes I love my job.
What the heck is the American Chronicle? They really, really need an editor. Check this sentence out:
“They include the kind of insults that have found their way at a purportedly, academic oriented venue, which included a remark claiming vodka consumption relative to the stated analysis.”
Wow, Just, wow.
“You’re a biologist Kolya, would you listen to a Freshman chemist telling you about monoclonal antibodies? I doubt it.”
I agree with your point, Ger. For the sake of accuracy, though, I have to say that I cannot describe myself as a biologist. I have not worked as a field biologist (very little lab work) in years and years…..
“Chrisius Maximus on April 8, 2008 2:46 am What the heck is the American Chronicle? They really, really need an editor. Check this sentence out:
‘They include the kind of insults that have found their way at a purportedly, academic oriented venue, which included a remark claiming vodka consumption relative to the stated analysis.’
Wow, Just, wow.”
****
Look who is taliking. A freak, who often posts comments at blogs without writing formal commentary of his own.
Someone who repeatedly claimed that “there’re” isn’t valid shorthand for “there are”.
meantime, a valid pont was raised about that remark directed at Vlad Sobell. There’s a certain DC based area individual known for privately lecturing some on niceities. those lectures seem to be politically stilted.
American Chronicle does quite well.
Much better than Untimely Thoughts.
That’s: talking
For shitz and giggles I checked that specified quote and it’s a misquote of what’s on-line.
He has the gall to critique others.
OK, let’s look at two passages. One was written by a genius; the other, by a lazy dork who won’t check his own writing. Let’s figure out who wrote what.
Exhibit A:
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way–in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.”
Exhibit B:
“They include the kind of insults that have found their way at a purportedly, academic oriented venue, which included a remark claiming vodka consumption relative to the stated analysis.”
OK. Who wrote what?
Granted Chris, exhibit B is atrocious. But to put it alongside Dickens? Most would look atrocious next to him.
“For shitz and giggles I checked that specified quote and it’s a misquote of what’s on-line.”
The cut-and-pasted quote?
Dude, you can’t write. Face reality. For instance, stop saying “specified” or “mentioned” or “above cited” before every goddamn word. It’s ridiculous. Also, learn to use punctuation. Commas and semicolons serve a purpose; they are not randomly interjected into text.
“Most would look atrocious next to him.”
OK, point taken. Dean Koontz maybe?
When you read this piece of linguistic artwork by Mike Averko:
“They include the kind of insults that have found their way at a purportedly, academic oriented venue, which included a remark claiming vodka consumption relative to the stated analysis.”
try to bear in mind this is the same guy who said above:
”I’m way too good for this shit.”
Mike, that has to be the worst scentence ever written in the history of FSU punditry, and I include the Moscow Times in that. Mike, you make me sound like Flann O’Brien. Its simply atrocious and there’s no getting away from it.
OK, I realize we have talked about this to the point of retching nausea. However, this following but really annoys me:
“It reelected Vladimir Putin, in the way Tibetan monks pick the same Dalai Lama each time, regardless of the human form he’s taken.”
Like, this would be a good comparison, if the Dalai Lama were in power in Tibet, which he isn’t, and if Tibetans credited their economic boom (a subset of the Chinese boom) to the Dalai Lama, which they don’t. Russians reelected Vladimir Putin (or rather, somebody they thought was the next best choice) because they like him and the vector of development during his time in power, and they want that vector to continue. Thus, instead of being a good comparison, it’s really, really stupid.
Ok, “stupid” was probably an overstatement. What it is is the statement of a young person, for whom 8 years is a really long time. (I mean, how can a society stagnate in 8 years? Eight years was yesterday.)