Mikhail Prokhorov and the Brooklyn Nets

Prokhorov is a self-made Russian multibillionaire, politician, and owner of the American basketball team, the Brooklyn Nets. He was known as one of Russia's leading industrialists in the precious metals sector. Prokhorov even declared a new political party in June 2012, entitled the "Party of Civic Platform." He is the 7th richest man from Russia and the 58th richest man in the world.

In September 2009, he made an offer to buy a controlling interest in the New Jersey Nets. On  May 11th, 2010, the NBA approved the sale of the Nets to Prokhorov, making him majority owner of the team with an 80% stake, as well as a 45% interest in their new Barclays Center. He is also the first non-North American NBA owner.



                                                

On April 30, 2012, the Nets moved to Brooklyn, rebranding themselves as the Brooklyn Nets. The team had the second highest payroll for the 2012/13 season, and are currently in the playoffs against the Chicago Bulls. With a 2-3 record, it will be interesting to see if this Russian owned team will make it to the next round.

Russia's Adoption Ban

The Dima Yakovlev Law was enacted in Russia, and defines sanctions against U.S. citizens involved in violations of the human rights and freedoms of Russian citizens.  It creates a list of citizens who are banned from entering Russia, and also allows the government to freeze their assets and investments. The law also bans US citizens from adopting Russian children.

The name come from that of a Russian toddler who was adopted by Miles Harrison of Virginia.
In July 2008, less than three months after he arrived in America, Dima died while he was strapped into his adoptive father's car. Shockingly, he was left inside for nine hours.



The case became national news, and now Russians are focused on highlighting other abuse cases involving adopted children. The law was signed by President Vladimir Putin on 28 December 2012 and took effect on 1 January 2013.

Another recent example is the death of three-year old Max Shatto. He was found unresponsive outside his parents' Texas home. Bruises found on Max's body appear to have been the result of accidental injuries, resulting in the inability to press charges. However, Russians are not convinced, and the debate over foreign adoption will continue.

Social Networking in Russia

 

Available in several languages, but popular particularly among Russian-speaking users is the social network service VK. Vkontakte (ВКонтакте) means "InTouch," and it allows users to message contacts publicly or privately, create groups, public pages and events, share and tag images, audio and video, and play browser-based games. As of December 2012, it was the second most visited site in Russia. While not as popular, Facebook is gaining popularity as well.

 

 

In recent news, actor Tom Cruise has launched his own page on the website in order to promote his new film "Oblivion." Promotional photographs attracted thousands of followers within hours of the launching. Cruise is expected to visit Moscow on April 11 for the film's premiere. Ukrainian-born actress Olga Kurylenko stars alongside.

 

For those interested, the trailer is below:

 



 

 

Sergei Vasiliev and Russian Criminal Tattoos

Sergei Vasiliev was born in 1937 in Chelyabinsk, Russia. After graduating from the MVD Academy, Moscow, he became a staff photographer for the newspaper 'Vecherny Chelyabinsk', where he has worked for the past thirty years. At the same time, Vasiliev was also a prison warden. While a fellow worker, Danzig Baldaev, began drawing and cataloguing the designs made by prisoners onto their skin, Vasiliev was given access to take photographs of their body art.


Taken between 1989 and 1993, Sergei Vasiliev’s photographs of Soviet prisoners document the secret code language of criminals in the USSR.
These homemade tattoos, scraped and inked into skin with melted book heels, urine or blood, contained a whole range of coded messages against the Soviet regime and about the prisoners’ individual crimes.

 

Common Symbols:

A dagger through the neck-prisoner committed murder during his sentence

Bells on feet- time was served in full

Menacles on ankles- sentences were over five years

Roaring tiger- represents convict's aggression

Rose on the shoulder- wearer turned 18 in prison

Dots on fingers- indicate the number of terms served

 

Tattoos are highly regarded among prisoners, and having a tattoo you did not earn results in severe punishment. At best, it would be removed with sandpaper, glass, a razor, or brick. If the offender refused, he would be raped or killed.

                                               

Russia's Drinking Habits Today

Russian attitudes towards alcohol are slowly changing. Groups of friends can be seen ordering a bottle of wine or a cocktail instead of vodka. Someone who doesn't drink is no longer considered weird, and this change can be attributed to rising car ownership in large cities.

The most common cause of death in Russia is cardio-vascular disease related to alcohol consumption. The second most common cause is accidents, where the victim has usually been hitting the bottle.
Therefore, heavier restrictions on alcohol were introduced in 2009.

1)  In most Russian towns and cities drinks containing more than 15% alcohol may not be sold between 11pm and 8am. Regions can even extend these hours.

2) The most radical step has been taken by Chechnya’s president Ramzan Kadyrov, who has restricted alcohol sales to two hours a day, from 8am to 10am.

3) There is a complete ban on TV advertising of vodka and wine, and beer advertising is strictly limited.

4) An excise stamp has been introduced, and no bottle can be sold without one. A minimum price, equivalent to about three euros, has been set for a half litre bottle of vodka.

Many of the anti-alcohol campaigners in Russia are members of nationalist youth organizations. To raise awareness, they organize periodic ‘Russian Runs’, where 50, 100 or even more young people get together for a two to three kilometre run. They use this opportunity to spread their message while promoting a healthy lifestyle.

The Nutcracker

This famous two-act ballet was originally choreographed by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov. Ivan Vsevolozhsky, the director of the Imperial Theaters, commissioned Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky to compose a double-bill program featuring both an opera and a ballet. The opera would be Iolanta, and the ballet was adapted from E.T.A. Hoffmann's story "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King."

The premiere took place at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg on Sunday, 18 December 1892. While the performance was not a success, Tchaikovsky earned much praise for what is now one of his most famous works. His Nutcracker Suite is composed of eight different numbers.

 For those not familiar with the storyline, here is a brief synopsis via cartoon.