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Recent Z Nightly Commentaries
Kagarlitsky: Russia - the View from the West
Oct 21, 2002
There are times when the image of Russia in the Western press calls to mind the consciousness of a schizophrenic. On the one hand, we are told that everything is fine; on the other, that everything is catastrophic. Periods of euphoria alternate with other
Kagarlitsky: Chechnya: Between War and Peace
Oct 03, 2002
It is paradoxical that every time the pace of military engagements increases in the mountains of Chechnya, plans are revived in Moscow for the peaceful regulation of the conflict. Chechnya is like an unhealed wound. So long as it is not too painful, the R
Kagarlitsky: Looking At American Problems From Russia: Enron, Worldcom, And Now All The Rest?
Sep 18, 2002
No-one is surprised any more to hear bad news from the US, at any rate where the economy is concerned. Nevertheless, the failure of WorldCom has been something out of the ordinary. It is not just the scale of the bankruptcy. Six months ago the crash of En
Kagarlitsky: The Great Friendship
Aug 27, 2002
After a period of cooling in their relations, Russia and the US are experiencing an acute bout of mutual sympathy. This seems a little strange against the background of the nationalist declarations uttered by President Putin during the first months of his
Kagarlitsky: Russia in Search of an Opposition: the Dilemma of Zyuganov
Jul 09, 2002
Marching through the streets and squares of Russia in ritual May Day demonstrations, the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (KPRF) is again becoming part of everyday life. Losing its hold over the committees in the State Duma, the party was outrage
Kagarlitsky: The Second Boot Effect
May 21, 2002
There is a classic joke in which an old man is woken up every night by two dull thuds on the wall. This is the sound of his neighbour, a worker on the late shift, throwing off his boots after returning home. One day, coming upon his neighbour in the corri
Kagarlitsky: Russian Riot Helps Enlighten the Leadership
May 09, 2002
Last week workers set out to defend their rights in two places: Italy, and the city of Voronezh in central European Russia. In their significance for Russia, the disorders in Voronezh were comparable to the impact the general strike had on Italy.
Kagarlitsky: A Different World, But Which One?
Apr 23, 2002
The World Social Forum in Porto Alegre arose as an alternative to the World Economic Forum in Davos. If Davos had become a symbol of the free market and of corporate globalisation, Porto Alegre was designed to become both a show of resistance to Davos, an
Kagarlitsky: Argentinians are Taking to the Streets, While Russians are Flocking to their Television Sets
Jan 28, 2002
MOSCOW - There is a saying that the way you see in the New Year is the way you're going to spend it. Whether this is true or not, the events occurring in Argentina ought to serve as a serious warning for ruling groups and financial elites throughout the
Kagarlitsky: Euro-Ambitions
Jan 07, 2002
In Russia no one trusts banks or the rouble, and as a result, people usually conceal envelopes stuffed with hundred-dollar bills on shelves between books or in wardrobes between sheets.
Kagarlitsky: The Riddle Of Putin
Dec 23, 2001
MOSCOW - There is evidently some kind of natural law at work: if the business press and the leaders of the financial world name some country or other as a success story, then this is precisely the country where you can expect things to go badly wrong.
Klein: It's not enough to bring Soweto to Rosedale
Nov 26, 2001
On Saturday night, I found myself at a party honouring Nelson Mandela and raising money for his children's fund. It was a lovely affair and only a very rude person would have pointed out that the party was packed with many of the banking and mining execut
Kagarlitsky: Facing WTO Life Sentence
Oct 28, 2001
The attacks in New York and Washington have provided the impetus for a new round of rapprochement between the United States and Russia. After several years of cool relations and confrontational rhetoric, the Russian government is demonstrating a willingne
Klein: Mike HarrisÕs Ontario?
Oct 18, 2001
For almost a year, I carried Premier Mike Harris's $200 tax cut in my wallet. Its edges frayed and the ink began to smudge. I looked at it from time to time, then put it away.
Klein: Mike Harris’s Ontario?
Oct 18, 2001
For almost a year, I carried Premier Mike Harris's $200 tax cut in my wallet. Its edges frayed and the ink began to smudge. I looked at it from time to time, then put it away.
Klein: After Genoa
Sep 06, 2001
Part of the tourist ritual of traipsing through Italy in August is marvelling at how the locals have mastered the art of living -- and then complaining bitterly about how everything is closed. ÒSo civilised,Ó you can hear North Americans remarking over f
Kissenger: Government Targets Mumia for Death: Outrageous New Court Ruling
Aug 01, 2001
In yet another step in the governmentÕs plan to railroad Mumia Abu-Jamal into the death chamber, a federal court has refused to take testimony from a man named Arnold Beverly, who has come forward to state that he is the person who actually shot Police Of
Klein: The New Party Initiative
Jul 08, 2001
I've never joined a political party, never even been to a political convention. Last election, after being dragged by the hair to the ballot box, I was overcome by a wave of ennui more acute than the pain suffered by my friends who simply ingested their b
Kagarlitsky: The Russian Left Today
Jul 07, 2001
To judge from opinion surveys, newspaper reports and simply from conversations on the street, Russian society is moving leftward. To judge from the statements of politicians and the relationship of forces within the elite, however, the country is moving d
Nov 02, 2002
After special forces commandos stormed the Theater Na Dubrovke early Saturday morning, the authorities proclaimed the operation a complete success. They first announced that the enemy had been destroyed with no losses among the hostages or special forces.