The FPA’s Must Reads (THE SOCHI EDITION)

Putin’s Master of Ceremonies
The New Yorker
By Joshua Yaffa

A must read for anyone watching the Olympic opening ceremonies. Yaffa describes the Konstantin Ernst, arguably modern Russia’s most brilliant producer and the organizer of the opening ceremonies, as a fascinating character balancing artistic integrity and compromise with the state.

The Loneliness of Vladimir Putin
The New Republic
By Julia Ioffe

If you should read only one piece about modern Russia, read this piece by Julia Ioffe. Ioffe speaks with the whole cast of Russia’s opposition activists, including internet intelligentsia, politicians-in-the-making, socialites turned activist turned back into socialite, and many others to convey a deep and insightful appreciation for the plight of Putin’s dissidents.

Inside the Iron Closet: What It’s Like to Be Gay in Putin’s Russia
GQ
By Jeff Sharlet

Jeff Sharlet tells the heartbreaking stories of gay Russians. Russia, he argues, is not falling apart, but rather coming together as isolated acts of violence become part of a more consistent pattern permitted by the government.

Putin’s Olympic Fever Dream
New York Times
By Steven Lee Meyers

Meyers chronicles the staggering humanitarian, political, economic, and environmental costs of constructing the Sochi Olympic venue and reflects on its meaning for the future of Putin’s Russia.

Putin’s Run for Gold
Vanity Fair
By Brett Forrest

Forrest looks at how the injection of over $50 billion has transformed the Sochi region, while exposing on a national scale the frailty of Putin’s Russia.

Russians Think We’re Engaging in Olympic Schadenfreude. They’re Right.
The New Republic
By Julia Ioffe

In recent days, social media was swamped with snapshots of disarray and unpreparedness in Sochi. In this very short piece, Ioffe takes issue with the seemingly schadenfreude tone of Western media coverage of Russia’s Olympics. She argues that these inconveniences are relatively minor and besides distract from far more substantive criticism.

Blogs From the Week:

Fed Taper Injects U.S. Economics into Turkish Politics by George Paik
Method to the Madness: The Lessons of Iraq and the Rejection of the ISIS by Alexander Corbeil
To close its energy gap, Africa should think clean by Jordan Stutts
Finnish Foreign Minister on the Nordic model and the Arctic by Mia Bennett
The Reductio ad Absurdum of Iran Containment by Jahandad Memarian