January 24, 2019

Mud-slinging and Money-making


Mud-slinging and Money-making
"Our boys in Salisbury," Russia's newest board game. theins.ru

Trash, Taxes, and Trolling

1. You’ve got mail! Siberian activists sent packages of trash to four State Duma members and one senator to viscerally impress upon them the odious and odorous cost of Russia’s continuing garbage crisis. Piles and piles of trash have been stacking up around the country, with little action taken to staunch the stench. In extreme examples, overfilled landfills have led to extreme sickness in children and animals. We suppose these activists are trying to prove the more literal sentiment to the phrase “waste not, want not.”

2. Don’t want to pay taxes? Join a trade union! Such was the brilliant idea of Sergei Dymokin, who claims that by joining his trade union, Union SSR, one can legally evade both taxes and utility payments by claiming they are citizens of the USSR. Sounds great, doesn’t it? All this is allowed because Dyomkin published (the fire background is a nice touch) a contract on behalf of the members of Union SSR that Vladimir Putin has not personally responded to, and because a few technicalities might mean that the Russian constitution never took effect. While people across the country are following Dyomkin’s lead, law enforcement (amazingly) hasn’t yet taken the bait.

3. International intrigue isn’t all fun and games… or is it? A hot new Russian board game has been released that is based on the Skripal poisoning story. The game, “Our Boys in Salisbury” (Наши в Солсбери), follows the path of the two men accused of poisoning former Russian agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter in Salisbury, England. You can partake in the “fun” for cheap, as the game costs less than two dollars! Who says crime doesn’t pay?

"Our Boys in Salisbury." / theins.ru
In Odder News:
Putin's 10-year challenge. / Alec Luhn
  • Russians took on Facebook’s viral “10-year challenge,” and the results are perfection
  • A purr-fect ending: animal rights activists bought a lioness that had been seen on the streets of St. Petersburg
  • Not their swan song, after all: a rare breed of swans were spotted in Nizhny Novgorod Oblast for the first time in a century!

Quote of the Week

“The anti-extremism center has summoned me so many times! I start telling them everything, and they always crack up. And then they let me go.”

—  Sergei Dyomkin, explaining his relationship with law enforcement

 

Want more where this comes from? Give your inbox the gift of TWERF, our Thursday newsletter on the quirkiest, obscurest, and Russianest of Russian happenings of the week.

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

Some of Our Books

Fearful Majesty

Fearful Majesty

This acclaimed biography of one of Russia’s most important and tyrannical rulers is not only a rich, readable biography, it is also surprisingly timely, revealing how many of the issues Russia faces today have their roots in Ivan’s reign.
The Moscow Eccentric

The Moscow Eccentric

Advance reviewers are calling this new translation "a coup" and "a remarkable achievement." This rediscovered gem of a novel by one of Russia's finest writers explores some of the thorniest issues of the early twentieth century.
Tolstoy Bilingual

Tolstoy Bilingual

This compact, yet surprisingly broad look at the life and work of Tolstoy spans from one of his earliest stories to one of his last, looking at works that made him famous and others that made him notorious. 
White Magic

White Magic

The thirteen tales in this volume – all written by Russian émigrés, writers who fled their native country in the early twentieth century – contain a fair dose of magic and mysticism, of terror and the supernatural. There are Petersburg revenants, grief-stricken avengers, Lithuanian vampires, flying skeletons, murders and duels, and even a ghostly Edgar Allen Poe.
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.  
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.
Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices

Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices

Stargorod is a mid-sized provincial city that exists only in Russian metaphorical space. It has its roots in Gogol, and Ilf and Petrov, and is a place far from Moscow, but close to Russian hearts. It is a place of mystery and normality, of provincial innocence and Black Earth wisdom. Strange, inexplicable things happen in Stargorod. So do good things. And bad things. A lot like life everywhere, one might say. Only with a heavy dose of vodka, longing and mystery.
Murder at the Dacha

Murder at the Dacha

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin has a problem. Several, actually. Not the least of them is the fact that a powerful Soviet boss has been murdered, and Matyushkin's surly commander has given him an unreasonably short time frame to close the case.
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. 
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.
Russian Rules

Russian Rules

From the shores of the White Sea to Moscow and the Northern Caucasus, Russian Rules is a high-speed thriller based on actual events, terrifying possibilities, and some really stupid decisions.

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