April 07, 2016

A kick in the face of public taste


A kick in the face of public taste

Get a kick out of life

1. The Panama Papers exposed massive corruption among the cream of the world's political crop. Among other Russian bigwigs, renowned cellist Sergei Roldugin may have to face the music for orchestrating offshore tax evasion. President Vladimir Putin’s name, however, is a glaring absence from all 11.5 million leaked documents. Read Russian Life’s cheat sheet on what the Panama Papers mean for Russia.

2. A Russian wrestler wins at worst selfie stunt by urinating on a statue of Buddha and aiming a karate kick at the deity’s face. He may face jail time for hooliganism motivated by religious hatred (same charge as Pussy Riot, for the curious). Not to mention angry locals who swarmed his hotel to demand an apology. Buddha may be forgiving, but not all Buddhists are so ready to forgive.

3. Are they doing downward-facing dog or planting a bomb? Police in Moscow and St. Petersburg weren’t so sure about the difference when they arrested about 30 people suspected of being members of the Japanese doomsday cult Aum Shinrikyo. As it turned out, the detainees just shared a passion for yoga.

In Odder News

  • What’s worse: sledgehammering through a wall to steal candy bars, or feeling ashamed of your sweet tooth and lying that you stole beer?
  • The latest in patriotic dining: Krasnoyarsk’s new President Café boasts a life-sized cartoon Putin, photos of Vova's youth, and of course, Obama toilet paper.
  • In the most adorable rescue mission ever, firefighters saved 50 rabbits from a burning penal colony. Don’t worry about the inmates, either: every bunny made it out safe.

Quote of the Week

"Buddha would certainly have forgiven him for this, because according to our religion, if you do not accept evil, it has no bearing on you…But in terms of the geopolitical region, guests need to be put in their place…If not for the police, the mob would have killed this guy."

—Mandzhiev Bator, a resident of Elista, the capital of the largely Buddhist region of Kalmykia, on wrestler Said Osmanov’s alleged desecration of a Buddhist temple and the locals’ angry response.

Image credit: gazeta.ru

You Might Also Like

Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

Moscow and Muscovites

Moscow and Muscovites

Vladimir Gilyarovsky's classic portrait of the Russian capital is one of Russians’ most beloved books. Yet it has never before been translated into English. Until now! It is a spectactular verbal pastiche: conversation, from gutter gibberish to the drawing room; oratory, from illiterates to aristocrats; prose, from boilerplate to Tolstoy; poetry, from earthy humor to Pushkin. 
Bears in the Caviar

Bears in the Caviar

Bears in the Caviar is a hilarious and insightful memoir by a diplomat who was “present at the creation” of US-Soviet relations. Charles Thayer headed off to Russia in 1933, calculating that if he could just learn Russian and be on the spot when the US and USSR established relations, he could make himself indispensable and start a career in the foreign service. Remarkably, he pulled it of.
93 Untranslatable Russian Words

93 Untranslatable Russian Words

Every language has concepts, ideas, words and idioms that are nearly impossible to translate into another language. This book looks at nearly 100 such Russian words and offers paths to their understanding and translation by way of examples from literature and everyday life. Difficult to translate words and concepts are introduced with dictionary definitions, then elucidated with citations from literature, speech and prose, helping the student of Russian comprehend the word/concept in context.
A Taste of Russia

A Taste of Russia

The definitive modern cookbook on Russian cuisine has been totally updated and redesigned in a 30th Anniversary Edition. Layering superbly researched recipes with informative essays on the dishes' rich historical and cultural context, A Taste of Russia includes over 200 recipes on everything from borshch to blini, from Salmon Coulibiac to Beef Stew with Rum, from Marinated Mushrooms to Walnut-honey Filled Pies. A Taste of Russia shows off the best that Russian cooking has to offer. Full of great quotes from Russian literature about Russian food and designed in a convenient wide format that stays open during use.
The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

This exciting new trilogy by a Russian author – who has been compared to Orhan Pamuk and Umberto Eco – vividly recreates a lost world, yet its passions and characters are entirely relevant to the present day. Full of mystery, memorable characters, and non-stop adventure, The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas is a must read for lovers of historical fiction and international thrillers.  
22 Russian Crosswords

22 Russian Crosswords

Test your knowledge of the Russian language, Russian history and society with these 22 challenging puzzles taken from the pages of Russian Life magazine. Most all the clues are in English, but you must fill in the answers in Russian. If you get stumped, of course all the puzzles have answers printed at the back of the book.
Fish: A History of One Migration

Fish: A History of One Migration

This mesmerizing novel from one of Russia’s most important modern authors traces the life journey of a selfless Russian everywoman. In the wake of the Soviet breakup, inexorable forces drag Vera across the breadth of the Russian empire. Facing a relentless onslaught of human and social trials, she swims against the current of life, countering adversity and pain with compassion and hope, in many ways personifying Mother Russia’s torment and resilience amid the Soviet disintegration.
The Samovar Murders

The Samovar Murders

The murder of a poet is always more than a murder. When a famous writer is brutally stabbed on the campus of Moscow’s Lumumba University, the son of a recently deposed African president confesses, and the case assumes political implications that no one wants any part of.
Woe From Wit (bilingual)

Woe From Wit (bilingual)

One of the most famous works of Russian literature, the four-act comedy in verse Woe from Wit skewers staid, nineteenth century Russian society, and it positively teems with “winged phrases” that are essential colloquialisms for students of Russian and Russian culture.
Jews in Service to the Tsar

Jews in Service to the Tsar

Benjamin Disraeli advised, “Read no history: nothing but biography, for that is life without theory.” With Jews in Service to the Tsar, Lev Berdnikov offers us 28 biographies spanning five centuries of Russian Jewish history, and each portrait opens a new window onto the history of Eastern Europe’s Jews, illuminating dark corners and challenging widely-held conceptions about the role of Jews in Russian history.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955