Letters to the Editor

Dear Russian Life readers:

Three and a half years ago I was invited to participate in an important and challenging opportunity: maintaining and enhancing the communication links between the Russian and American people.

Thus Russian Life magazine was born from the ashes of Soviet Life magazine and its sponsor, the then recently collapsed Soviet Union. It was especially vital then that Americans have insight into the evolving Russian Federation.

From a business standpoint, in 1991 a partnership with a vaguely defined government organization with unknown resources and policies was destined to be, at best, amorphous. Nevertheless, the individuals who would be carrying the torch, the magazine staff, both Russian and American, were singularly dedicated to the mission of fostering Russian-American understanding. I cannot overstate the joy and delight I have experienced in working closely with our devoted and professional teams in Moscow and Washington.

Unfortunately, we had difficulty meeting expenses and the magazine fell way behind schedule in an increasingly difficult downward spiral.

The good news is that Russian Information Services, with whom we have had an excellent long-term relationship, has acquired the publishing rights to Russian Life.

RIS will be able to accomplish what we have struggled in vain to do. They plan to publish on a monthly Rather than bimonthly schedule while they bring up the circulation. To do this they will start with a temporarily reduced size magazine and then build back to and beyond what you have come to know as Russian Life. I hope and expect that this will happen soon.

Meanwhile, I have agreed to continue to serve on the editorial board of Russian Life and I hope to make the transition as easy as possible. I owe a great debt of gratitude to you, our readers, for your patience and loyalty.

Sam Greenberg
Rich Frontier Publishing

To the Editor,

From our “Conspiracy Theory Department.”

As you might have heard, Britain has recently tried to drag itself into the 19th century by upgrading and rationalizing all its domestic and international dialing codes.

Now, call us suspicious, but to dial Russia, where we used to dial: 010-7, we now pick up the receiver and dial: 007.

Yours shaken, but not stirred,

Neil McGowan
One Europe Travel
London, England