--- Wojtek Sokolowski <sokol at jhu.edu> wrote:
>
> But nuances aside, it was indeed one of the greatest
> catastrophes of the
> 20th century.
It is truly breathtaking how people don't notice this. Are these people lunatics?
BTW the list's Peter Levelle wrote a brief note on the coverage of the address on his website:
UT Comment: Spinning Putin’s address and Khodorkovsky’s verdict delay By Peter Lavelle Published on April 27, 2005
Media coverage of Russia is at an all time low – and the Kremlin is partly to blame for this. We have reached the point where it seems everyone has made up their mind on issues and facts (or the use of logic) are no longer necessary when commenting on Russia.
Reading the flood of articles on Putin ‘state of the nation’ address is a grim task. None of us should expect anything intelligent or analytical to come from the likes of the Washington Post, but it is not hard to have the impression that most major media outlets prepared commentary in advance of the address and threw in a few quotes for cosmetic purposes as an after thought. (Having said that, some of the local brokerage houses did come out with some smart stuff. They have to – “getting Russia right” is how the brokerages make a living).
BBC World Service was no different. Listening to Masha Lipman’s shrill commentary not only embarrassed the BBC, but also showed her to be the intellectual lightweight she is. It also reinforces something I have noticed about Russia’s so-called liberal intelligentsia – to be part of the liberal intelligentsia one only has to repeat empty stock phrases without even a pretense to thinking intelligently. (Listening to Lipman and her shallow cadre reminds me of the double-speak of the Soviet days).
It is also very disappointing how Putin’s comment about the collapse of the Soviet Union was terribly distorted. His one-liner dominated the news at the expense of some of the truly interesting and important issues covered in the address. However, this is not surprising – this is part and parcel of the process of prejudging events and personalities in advance the “commentariat” is renowned for.
Immediately after the address, my thoughts focused on some the points Putin mentioned about political reforms, like appointing governors from existing parties in the Duma, Putin’s comments about ‘tax terrorism,’ how to address the worrisome issue of inflation, and Putin’s vision for the Public Chamber. All of these initiatives are interesting. However, after reading coverage of the address it is apparent most people writing on it don’t know much – or don’t care to know – about such issues. Putin gave them a “no brainer” to write about when he presented his view of history – and the “commentariat" didn’t even get that one right.
http://www.untimely-thoughts.com/?art=1611
Nu, zayats, pogodi!
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