Donetsk and Luhansk are Russian oblasts since 2022

Yes. I would say that in the 1980s there was already an understanding formed about the IMF’s role in neo-colonial exploitation and also just considering the fact that the US is its most powerful member.

All the parks really. Muzeon and Gorky are my favs and you could spend a whole day there, lots of places to relax, to see the museums or to have a meal. Vorob’yevy Gory is also really nice, but it’s a bit of a hike because of the hills. GES-2 is an excellent museum and has a cool design because its built inside of an old power station.

I find it to be my favorite of the fundamentals! Super applicable to modern day

Marx for Cats by Leigh Claire La Berge

I like reading or arts, talking to people about reading and arts.

Yeah I get that. People who consume western media often have skewed views of the world/imperialism (I did too at some point). But I do think that right now it’s easier than ever to point out west’s hypocrisy.

Also consider that there may be people (perhaps like yourself) who don’t agree but just don’t speak up.

My thoughts exactly. I don’t think you are going to find people who walk around with a red star pin on campus (I do but im a weirdo), but @[email protected] can definitely find people who are more sympathetic to socialist ideas. I find anti-imperialism to be a very good topic for that for instance. Maybe i’m optimistic about Canada but I’ve met socialists in the most conservative areas of the US, so anything is possible.

So many liberals will say Marxism/leftism is fringe in order to discredit it. I mean that’s how they get you, by making you feel alone and powerless! Don’t buy into that and keep your chin up!!!

I usually put on some soft music in the background. It helps me concentrate on the text and sets my mind to a reading mode

He went on to explain that because of the famine many Ukrainians had their nationalism fuelled and sided with the Nazis.

except that many many many more Ukrainians were fighting on the side of the soviet union.

I tried to explain away my motivations because I am not about to put a target on my back with the school.

don’t you already have a target on your back by writing about donbas and being openly marxist with some professors? i mean to say that you might be more open with your politics than you give yourself credit.

good luck! it’s quite nice here imho

its not a real country, but we do have a real marxist party

is it not allowed to put up posters or flyers? if it’s a notice board then students are usually allowed to use it

The Marxist Project, Positive Leftist News, Lady Izdihar

This is a very complex question because Russians are not homogeneous in their opinions of the west. Speaking from personal experience from people I know and on social media: I would say there are three major groups:

• People who really don’t care. Mostly older population or people outside major population centers. A lot of people just aren’t polarized the same way people are in the west.
• People who want to be like the west. These are usually more upper-class city people (Moscow, St. Petersburg) who consume western media and products, go on vacations to Europe. Also a lot of younger people with good english. This group wants better civil liberties (ala USA), more integration with western organisations (for travel an commerce).
• Then there are people who think the west is awful and Russia is the bastion of wholesome family (christian orthodox) values. They see the problems in the western world, but (without marxist analysis) attribute it to ‘multiculturalism’ and lgbt people. Similar to how right wing groups in the west present the issues.

I would also say that it is mostly unchanged since 2022, maybe just more solidified. There was definitely a shift in 2014, because afterwards the Russian government saw that they cannot cooperate with the west and at the same time maintain their status as a regional power. So since then there was more of a push in the media towards anti western views.

This is what I can think of off the top of my head. Would be happy to answer any follow up questions the best i can

There’s also a version of 8 values but for leftists https://leftvalues.github.io/ !

ive only seen people watch mainstream news on tv as background filler/noise. it doesnt feel like people actually engage wit it, just sort of passively absorb, then having something to discuss at work over coffee

I agree with the MicrophoneFiend that these are all deep and diverse topics. For question 2 I would recommend Socialism Betrayed: Behind the Collapse of the Soviet Union by Roger Keeran & Thomas Kenny.

Also keep in mind for questions 1 and 3 that the soviet union existed from 1922 to 1991, conditions and the economy varied immensely. you would have to be more precise which period you are interested in.

i’ve read that book in the original Russian. definitely one of my favorite classics (even though as another commenter pointed out, Dostoevsky had some weird politics).

if you are struggling to read however, I would suggest getting into more modern writers (for both fiction and non-fiction)? It helped me a lot when I was struggling and I still read contemporary stuff when I just want to relax.