September 04, 2008 Sarah Palin's Secret Past Revealed! By Paul E. Richardson Many have scoffed at Cindy McCain's defense of Alaska Governor (and GOP Veep candidate) Sarah Palin's foreign policy chops with the assertion that "Alaska is the closest part of our continent to Russia." Scoff not. The truth is so more startling still. Humor Politics
March 04, 2008 Dima's recruitment By Paul E. Richardson This hilarious YouTube satire video by the Perm KVN group gives a bit of background on the recent Russian election, and how Medevedev was recruited for his role. The dubbing is superbly done. (All in Russian)... Humor Politics
March 01, 2008 Medvedev Emerges from His Den By Paul E. Richardson In the 2002 film Oligarch, by Russian director Pavel Lungin, the main character predicts his own downfall, saying, "Russia is a bear. You think you are playing with it and it devours you." History Humor Politics
February 29, 2008 Hillary-ous By Paul E. Richardson Hilary Clinton stumbles over the name of the next president of Russia, and a Ukrainian TV host offers a pronunciation lesson. Humor Politics
January 10, 2008 Twin Christmases By Paul E. Richardson In February 1582, the Catholic Church, in the person of Pope Gregory the thirteenth, decreed a new, more accurate calendar to replace the Julian calendar, which had been in use since 45 BC. The revision meant dropping 10 days off the year... Culture History Holidays Humor
March 09, 2006 Hermitage Cats By Anna and Jyrki Liukko A look at the cats that guard one of the world's great museums. Art Humor
January 01, 1990 Butina, Babies, and Baby-making By Irina Bukharin This week, depressing news about divisions and birth rates can only really be counteracted with a smile over the Orthodox church’s new take on sex. Culture Humor Int'l Relations News Politics Religion Social Issues The Weekly Russia File
Greetings, Your Majesty By Bulat Okudzhava During another trip to Sweden, the author learns a few things about monarchy. Humor
Murderer By Bulat Okudzhava A trip to Sweden leads to a signal lesson in inter-cultural understanding. Humor
A Swedish Spy By Bulat Okudzhava A trip on the Trans-Siberian leads to a humorous case of mistaken identity. Humor
The Crocodile By Fyodor Dostoyevsky Dostoyevsky's hilarious story about a man swallowed by a crocodile, which was also a brilliant satire on political economy and the importation of Western ideas to Russia. Humor
