Russia Rebounds analyzes Russia’s dramatic economic recovery since the country’s 1998 financial crisis, emphasizing macroeconomic issues and fiscal and banking sector reforms. The crisis was a massive shock to the system and a considerable surprise to both Russians and foreign investors, who a year before had come to think that the worst of the transition from a centrally planned to a market economy was over. Macroeconomic performance since the crisis has been impressive. The book assesses the contribution of various factors underlying this recovery and highlights key policy challenges to ensure its sustainability.

There is a huge concern in America today that the country is in decline, one of the few sentiments that – nationally – our increasingly polarized political leaders can agree on. Americans fear that the economy and our culture itself are in deep crisis. They are also frustrated that the ruling classes are unable to fix America’s problems. Kim R. Holmes’ Rebound taps into these concerns, taking a fresh look at how America has moved away from the principles and practices that once made it the world’s greatest nation. Far from accepting America’s inevitable decline, as so many today do, Holmes argues that decline is a choice, not an inevitability or destiny. To restore our culture, revitalize our economy, and ensure we return to being the world’s number one power, America must reconnect with its historical DNA: the ingredients of its greatness. This book lays out the vision and roadmap for how America can bounce back, with examples from throughout our nation’s history that prove we’ve always been able to meet the challenges facing us, no matter how largely they may loom.

An examination of post-Soviet society through ethnic, religious, and linguistic criteria, this volume turns what is typically anthropological subject matter into the basis of politics, sociology, and history. Ten chapters cover such diverse subjects as Ukrainian language revival, Tatar language revival, nationalist separatism and assimilation in Russia, religious pluralism in Russia and in Ukraine, mobilization against Chinese immigration, and even the politics of mapmaking. A few of these chapters are principally historical, connecting tsarist and Soviet constructions to today's systems and struggles. The introduction by Dominique Arel sets out the project in terms of new scholarly approaches to identity, and the conclusion by Blair A. Ruble draws out political and social implications that challenge citizens and policy makers. Rebounding Identities is based on a series of workshops held at the Kennan Institute in 2002 and 2003.

Russia today represents one of the major examples of the phenomenon of "electoral authoritarianism" which is characterized by adopting the trappings of democratic institutions (such as elections, political parties, and a legislature) and enlisting the service of the country's essentially authoritarian rulers. Why and how has the electoral authoritarian regime been consolidated in Russia? What are the mechanisms of its maintenance, and what is its likely future course? This book attempts to answer these basic questions. Vladimir Gel'man examines regime change in Russia from the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 to the present day, systematically presenting theoretical and comparative perspectives of the factors that affected regime changes and the authoritarian drift of the country. After the fall of the Soviet Union, Russia's national political elites aimed to achieve their goals by creating and enforcing of favorable "rules of the game" for themselves and maintaining informal winning coalitions of cliques around individual rulers. In the 1990s, these moves were only partially successful given the weakness of the Russian state and troubled post-socialist economy. In the 2000s, however, Vladimir Putin rescued the system thanks to the combination of economic growth and the revival of the state capacity he was able to implement by imposing a series of non-democratic reforms. In the 2010s, changing conditions in the country have presented new risks and challenges for the Putin regime that will play themselves out in the years to come.

Thirty years after the end of the Soviet Union, multiple ghosts haunt Russia, its elites, and its society, from concern over demographic and economic decline to worry about the country’s vulnerability to external intervention, reviving the old notion of Russia as a “besieged fortress.” Faced with both a West that emerged victorious from the Cold War and a shockingly dynamic China, Russia constantly questions its identity and the notion that its fate is to bridge East and West. This book offers a comprehensive overview of Russia’s fears and challenges that could help the American public to understand how the country deals with its own issues and how this influences Russia’s foreign policy, including the ongoing war in Ukraine. This is critical to understanding Russia’s international stance and its impact on US policy and security.

Now in a thoroughly revised, expanded, and updated edition, this classic text provides an authoritative and current analysis of contemporary Russia. Leading scholars explore the daunting domestic and international problems Russia confronts, considering a comprehensive array of economic, political, foreign policy, and social issues.

A Financial Times best business book of 2023 In 1998, at the age of 24, Tony Hsieh sold his first company to Microsoft for $265 million. In 2009, at the age of 35, he sold his e-commerce company, Zappos, to Amazon for $1.2 billion. In 2020, at the age of 46, he died. Tony Hsieh revolutionized both the tech world and corporate culture. He was a business visionary. He was also a man in search of happiness. So why did it all go so wrong? Tony Hsieh’s first successful venture was in middle school, selling personalized buttons. At Harvard, he made a profit compiling and selling study guides. From there, he went on to build the billion-dollar online shoe empire of Zappos. The secret to his success? Making his employees happy. At its peak, Zappos’s employee-friendly culture was so famous across the tech industry that it inspired copycats and earned a cult following. Then Hsieh moved the Zappos headquarters to Las Vegas, where he personally funded a nine-figure campaign to revitalize the city’s historic downtown area. But as Hsieh fell deeper into his struggles with mental health and drug addiction, the people making up his inner circle began changing from friends to enablers. Drawing on hundreds of interviews with a wide range of people whose lives Hsieh touched, journalists Angel Au-Yeung and David Jeans craft a rich portrait of a man who was plagued by his eternal search for happiness and ultimately succumbed to his own demons.

Modern atheism is a further act in the ancient drama of Prometheus vs Zeus. This book argues that the antagonism is false, as proved by the "irony": in which atheism turns into antitheism, transferring divine qualities to Humanity. The drama is framed by the "classicla dilemma," a conflict of wills: Tyrant and Rebel. The Unbinding of Prometheus is traced through Western history, to the Enlightenment "death of God," both speculative (Hegel) and practical (Marx). Finally, four types of "idols" are examined, in which Prometheus is rebound: Freud's Oedipus, Nietzsche's Dionysus, Camus' Sisyphus and Sartre's Orestes. The revision of both theism and atheism demands re-casting Zeus and Prometheus, breaking the impasse of heteronomy/autonomy and omnipotence/free will. Only thus may we affirm Humanity without denying God.

Thoroughly revised, expanded, and updated, the new edition of this classic text provides the most authoritative and current analysis of contemporary Russia. Leading scholars explore the domestic and international problems Russia confronts, including political, economic, societal, and foreign policy issues. The new edition provides an analysis from multiple perspectives on the major challenges facing Russia and Putin’s regime. Updates include new sections on corruption, Russia’s conflicts with Ukraine and Georgia, Russia’s response to Only by understanding these challenges—and previous efforts to deal with them—will it be possible to understand the trajectory for Russia. Well written and clearly organized, this text is an indispensable guide for anyone wanting to understand contemporary Russia.

Now in a thoroughly revised, expanded, and updated edition, this classic text provides the most authoritative and current analysis available of the challenges facing Putin as he resumes the presidency. Leading scholars explore the daunting domestic and international problems confronting Russia today. Evaluating the regime s continued efforts to rebuild a country once on the verge of collapse, the contributors consider a comprehensive array of economic, political, foreign policy, and social issues. Clearly written and organized, this text is an indispensable guide for anyone wanting to understand Russia today."