Tag: Russia
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Anti-nuclear madness grips developed world
Orange County Register: Anti-nuclear madness grips developed world Gwynn Dyer, an independent journalist, writes: After the loss of 10 million American lives in the Three-Mile Island calamity in 1979, the death of 2 billion in the Chernobyl holocaust in 1986 and, now, the abandonment of all of northern Japan following the death of millions in…
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Russia reveals shiny state secret: It’s awash in diamonds
Christian Science Monitor: Russia reveals shiny state secret: It's awash in diamonds Russia has just declassified news that will shake world gem markets to their core: the discovery of a vast new diamond field containing "trillions of carats," enough to supply global markets for another 3,000 years. The Soviets discovered the bonanza back in the…
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Seven things I learned about transition from communism
Vox: Seven things I learned about transition from communism by Harvard Economist Andrei Shlefier Twenty years ago, communist countries began their shift towards capitalism. What do we know now that we didn’t know then? Harvard's Andrei Shleifer, the Russian-born, American-trained economist, provides his answers and their relevance for contemporary policymakers. First, in all countries in…
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Russia’s new presence in Latin America
Christian Science Monitor: Russia's new presence in Latin America President Medvedev visits Venezuela this week as a Russian nuclear warship leads joint maneuvers. Caracas, Venezuela; and Moscow – Russian President Dmitry Medvedev's visit this week with Venezuela's leftist leader Hugo Chávez is the first ever for a Kremlin leader to this oil-rich nation. And the…
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Why Georgia is not start of ‘Cold War II’
Christian Science Monitor: Why Georgia is not start of 'Cold War II' Despite tensions over missile deals and NATO expansion, the West's ties with Russia are far more nuanced than in Soviet days. Paris – Two weeks into the Georgia crisis, Russia maintains leverage, adroitly playing a great game of obfuscation and tit-for-tat – both…
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Solzhenitsyn: exiled then exalted in Russia
Christian Science Monitor: Solzhenitsyn: exiled then exalted in Russia The Nobel Prize-winning writer gave voice to millions imprisoned in Stalin's Gulag. He died Sunday. Moscow - The Russian media erupted Monday with praise for Alexander Solzhenitsyn, the Nobel Prize-winning writer whose stormy life reflected Russia's 20th-century vicissitudes almost as dramatically as his own literary work.…
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Global spread of democracy stalled
Christian Science Monitor: Global spread of democracy stalled Putin and Chávez are using oil money to create other models, while others just step back. Washington – The spread of democracy has been one of the defining geopolitical trends of the last 25 years. In 1975, 30 nations of the world had popularly elected governments. By…
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Russia creates environmentally friendly WMD
Magic Statistics (Scott Gilbreath): Russia creates environmentally friendly WMD Russia claims to have developed the world’s most effective vacuum bomb. It’s said to be as deadly as a nuclear bomb but, unlike nukes, it causes minimal damage to the environment. From the second item in today’s Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty Newsline Russia: Colonel General Aleksandr…
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Putin plan to reward mothers backfires
From the Telegraph: Putin plan to reward mothers backfires (HT Scott Gilbreath) In a state of the nation address last spring, he proposed a package of incentives, including a £5,000 payout to mothers who give birth for a second time – in a country where average wages are just £150 a month. The money, however,…