Our Good Neighbors In Soviet Russia

Excerpt from Our Good Neighbors in Soviet Russia In presenting this, on the whole, rather favorable and friendly account, there is no desire to ignore the views of those who are critical or hostile to the ussr. Such views should be recognized and evaluated with the best abilities Americans have. One further and very basic point must be made. There is no desire to present the Soviet Union as a place we should imitate. The overwhelming majority of Americans prefer to live under the institutions our fore fathers established. They want to make changes when the necessity is clearly shown, but to make them within the framework of a democratic capitalistic society. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Authoritative yet accessible, the definitive undergraduate text on Russian geography and culture has now been thoroughly revised with current data and timely topics, such as the annexation of Crimea and Sevastopol and other background for understanding Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Thematic chapters provide up-to-date coverage of Russia's physical, political, cultural, and economic geography. Regional chapters focus on the country's major regions and the other 14 former Soviet republics. Written in a lucid, conversational style by a Russian-born international expert, the concise chapters interweave vivid descriptions of urban and rural landscapes, examinations of Soviet and post-Soviet life, deep knowledge of environmental and conservation issues, geopolitical insights, engaging anecdotes, and rigorous empirical data. Over 200 original maps, photographs, and other figures are also available as PowerPoint slides at the companion website, many in color. New to This Edition *Separate chapter on Ukraine and Crimea, covering events through 2019. *Timely topics--the political crisis in Ukraine and annexation of Crimea and Sevastopol; the return of Putin as president; climate change and environmental degradation; economic slowdown; political shifts in the republics; the role of Russian-backed forces in Syria, Libya, and Central African Republic; changes in Russia–United States relations; and more. *Thoroughly updated population, economic, and political data. *80 new or updated figures, tables, and maps. Pedagogical Features *End-of-chapter review questions, suggested assignments, and in-class exercises. *Within-chapter vignettes about Russian places, culture, and history. *End-of-chapter internet resources and suggestions for further reading. *Companion website with all figures and maps from the book, many in full color.

Unlike some other reproductions of classic texts (1) We have not used OCR(Optical Character Recognition), as this leads to bad quality books with introduced typos. (2) In books where there are images such as portraits, maps, sketches etc We have endeavoured to keep the quality of these images, so they represent accurately the original artefact. Although occasionally there may be certain imperfections with these old texts, we feel they deserve to be made available for future generations to enjoy.

Russia has recently re-emerged as the dominant political, economic and military actor in former Soviet nations. Kanet and Freire bring together a stellar cast of contributors to consider Russia's recent return as a major regional and international actor and its likely future policy toward its neighbours.

How our everyday interactions as neighbors shape—and sometimes undermine—democracy "Love thy neighbor" is an impossible exhortation. Good neighbors greet us on the street and do small favors, but neighbors also startle us with sounds at night and unleash their demons on us, they monitor and reproach us, and betray us to authorities. The moral principles prescribed for friendship, civil society, and democratic public life apply imperfectly to life around home, where we interact day to day without the formal institutions, rules of conduct, and means of enforcement that guide us in other settings. In Good Neighbors, Nancy Rosenblum explores how encounters among neighbors create a democracy of everyday life, which has been with us since the beginning of American history and is expressed in settler, immigrant, and suburban narratives and in novels, poetry, and popular culture. During disasters, like Hurricane Katrina, the democracy of everyday life is a resource for neighbors who improvise rescue and care. Degraded, this framework can give way to betrayal by neighbors, as faced by the Japanese Americans interned during World War II, or to terrible violence such as the lynching of African Americans. Under extreme conditions the barest act of neighborliness is a bulwark against total ethical breakdown. The elements of the democracy of everyday life—reciprocity, speaking out, and "live and let live"—comprise a democratic ideal not reducible to public principles of justice or civic virtue, but it is no less important. The democracy of everyday life, Rosenblum argues, is the deep substrate of democracy in America and can be its saving remnant.

Putin has re-established Russia's claim to world power by strengthening his autocratic rule at home, dominating or intimidating smaller independent neighbors and maintaining a pragmatic partnership with China. Russian policies depend on the use of oil and gas revenues, whose long-term prospects are questionable.