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Transmissions from a Lone Star: American Election Watch, episode III - Of Republican Mancrushes and Gaddafi’s Corpse

Weekly column by Daniel Kalder

So, since my last election watch update, a great deal has happened.

Sam's Exchange: The paradox of $10,000 gold!

Biweekly column by Sam Barden

When I read the prediction that gold is going to go to $10,000 per oz from its current $1,650 price, I begin to lose the ability to think rationally. I, like many, become blinded by the prospect of making fantastic returns from buying gold.

Deeper Than Oil: Souvenir shopping in Pyongyang

Weekly column by Marc Bennetts

I’ve been writing about North Korea pretty much non-stop since I returned from Pyongyang last weekend. By the time I’d done my fifth article in as many days, I was suffering from a bad case of Kim Jong-il overload.

Transmissions from a Lone Star: Mr. Gorbachev goes to Mexico

Weekly column by Daniel Kalder

Like many children of the Cold War, I grew up anxious about Nuclear Armageddon, so when Gorbachev eased relations between the USSR and the West I was grateful. For many years I viewed him as a hero, pure and simple. It was not until I moved to Russia that I realized his reforms had been intended to strengthen the USSR, not destroy it.

Uncertain World: Endgame in Ukraine

Weekly column by Fyodor Lukyanov

The dramatic endgame has begun in Ukraine. As the Russian and Ukrainian presidents were meeting in Donetsk, the EU withdrew its invitation to Viktor Yanukovych to visit Brussels.

Features & Opinion »

Sergiev Posad: a stronghold of piety at Russia’s heart

By Olga Krindina, RIA Novosti

The small town of Sergiev Posad outside Moscow is one of the most precious gems of Central Russia. Part of the Golden Ring tourist itinerary, and Russia’s foremost religious center, it possesses historical and architectural monuments of tremendous cultural value.

Water and Bangkok, or making the impossible possible

RIA Novosti political commentator Dmitry Kosyrev

Bangkok Mayor Sukhumbhand Paribatra said that on Wednesday it will become clear whether the Thai capital will be able to withstand the onslaught of water from the country's flooded Northern provinces. Prime Minister Yinglak Chinnavat warned earlier that the issue with the outflow of river water may be compounded by the high sea tide at the end of the week.

Taiga people in the big world

By Yulia Sokolova, RIA Novosti

Narym Selkups, also known as “taiga people,” have lived in the Tomsk region since time immemorial. At present, there are slightly less than 1,500 Selkups in the region, their numbers having declined by 400 people over the last ten years.