January 01, 1990

Butina, Babies, and Baby-making


Butina, Babies, and Baby-making
Baby Blues

1. The times they are a-changin’ for Russians in the United States and other Western nations, and not always for the better. This video highlights the experience of young Russians and other Eastern Europeans living in the United States. They are facing both greater suspicion from Americans and greater divisions within the community itself. American suspicion can be traced to election-hacking and, more recently, the Maria Butina affair, while internal division is often generated by differing opinions on the current Russian government and its practices. But, on the upside, there is as yet no shortage of Russian restaurants and clubs in the US.

2. For the first time in a decade, Russia’s population has decreased. The announcement by the government statistics agency Rosstat follows a May United Nations report that predicted the Russian population will fall by 11 million by 2050. But the Russian government is not taking the news lying down. President Vladimir Putin has promised to spend $8.6 billion over the next three years on programs that will encourage Russians to have more babies.

3. To continue the theme... A Russian Orthodox archbishop in charge of family affairs recently agreed with Pope Francis that sex is a gift from God and to be enjoyed. Of course, the usual terms and conditions apply: the archbishop clarified that sex is only to be enjoyed between a married couple. That caveat aside, there is so far no word on a joint Putin-Church pro-sex, pro-babies tour that no one is talking about. It’s all very hush-hush.

In Odder News:

Moscow dog show

Photo: Парк культуры и отдыха “Красная Пресня”

  • Russian pups hit the runway in Moscow’s first doggie costume show

  • In a very Putin way, Putin tested Kalashnikov’s newest sniper rifles

  • Excessive and, unfortunately, effective: men wielding an axe robbed a taxi in Moscow

Quote of the Week:

“Sex is a component of love… but only love within marriage.”

— Archpriest Dmitry Smirnov, on the ins and outs of sex in Orthodox life

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Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography

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Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

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Dostoyevsky Bilingual

Bilingual series of short, lesser known, but highly significant works that show the traditional view of Dostoyevsky as a dour, intense, philosophical writer to be unnecessarily one-sided. 
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Fish: A History of One Migration

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Murder and the Muse

Murder and the Muse

KGB Chief Andropov has tapped Matyushkin to solve a brazen jewel heist from Picasso’s wife at the posh Metropole Hotel. But when the case bleeds over into murder, machinations, and international intrigue, not everyone is eager to see where the clues might lead.
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