tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19791491.post8219836126469435193..comments2023-09-28T15:43:24.855+02:00Comments on Vilhelm Konnander's weblog: Russia - a sovereign democracy?Vilhelm Konnanderhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09167606906861836286noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19791491.post-31610420357635891692008-05-09T14:36:00.000+02:002008-05-09T14:36:00.000+02:00Dear Eistein,Your question is very much to the poi...Dear Eistein,<BR/><BR/>Your question is very much to the point, which indicates familiarity with the theme of sovereign democracy. As this discussion is too far-reaching to cover in this context, I would like to refer you to a Russian anthology on the subject of sovereign democracy (provided, of course, you know Russian): Garadzha, Nikita (ed.), "Suverenitet", Moscow: Izdatelstvo Evropa, 2006. You will find quite interesting discussions on both Hobbes and "real sovereignty" in it. I assure you that it is very interesting, although horrifying, reading.<BR/><BR/>Yours,<BR/><BR/>VilhelmVilhelm Konnanderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04506899921990227704noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19791491.post-76238876056608676772008-05-09T14:24:00.000+02:002008-05-09T14:24:00.000+02:00Dear Megan,Thank you for your interest in my repor...Dear Megan,<BR/><BR/>Thank you for your interest in my report! I only regret that I was not able to write it in English, as I really have limited use of publishing anything in Swedish. Regrettably, the report will not, as far as I know be translated and published in English. Still, if you will do the effort to read it in Swedish, you might prepare yourself to some unpleasant facts. The theme is truly terrifying. I hope to see you both sometime soon. I will be abroad for most of June, but if you ever come to Stockholm, you know that you are welcome to crash at my place. Take care and best wishes to Kostia!<BR/><BR/>VilhelmVilhelm Konnanderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04506899921990227704noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19791491.post-55542659448259373732008-05-08T21:48:00.000+02:002008-05-08T21:48:00.000+02:00Hello. A very interesting study which I will read ...Hello. A very interesting study which I will read in its full extent during the week-end. Just a question: When referring to the sovereign, do you mean in the Hobbsian term, and does it indicate that the Russian society is in a pre-democratic fase searching also for the external enemy which Hobbs says have to be constituted in order to keep the society together? Georgia is too small,(allthough it seems to work ok these days), so is it the west in general? Thanks.Eistein G.https://www.blogger.com/profile/17712916193481215232noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19791491.post-81452177940296020502008-05-08T10:19:00.000+02:002008-05-08T10:19:00.000+02:00Congratulations on the publication, Vilhelm, and K...Congratulations on the publication, Vilhelm, and Kostia and I promise to try to read it in Swedish!<BR/><BR/>Won't you translate it to English eventually, though? (And maybe Russian? :-)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19791491.post-11280896734444660912008-05-07T15:57:00.000+02:002008-05-07T15:57:00.000+02:00Dear Alphast,I understand that you draw this paral...Dear Alphast,<BR/><BR/>I understand that you draw this parallel. Many do so nowadays. Still, that does not take one of the most important factors into account, namely merger of the political and economic elite in their exploitation of Russia's resources. That would not even been imaginable during the soviet era.<BR/><BR/>Generally, I am skeptic to historical parallels. I believe that one should look at the basic facts and acts of Russian politics and compare them with what the leaders say that they want to achieve or what their values are. Analysing Russia, one must give its leaders the benefit of the doubt of actually taking them seriously. If one does so critically, in comparison to the facts, one might actually end up with a more interesting analysis than those based on pre-conceived views and opinions.<BR/><BR/>Yours,<BR/><BR/>VilhelmVilhelm Konnanderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04506899921990227704noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19791491.post-50672760403292148892008-05-07T12:36:00.000+02:002008-05-07T12:36:00.000+02:00I may sound simplistic, but it seems to me that wh...I may sound simplistic, but it seems to me that what you describe is nothing else than a new word on an old idea. Replace United Russia by Communist Party, Sovereign Democracy by People's Democracy and you see immediately what I mean. <BR/><BR/>The word democracy is very misleading in English, because it tends to be used by non-constitutionalists as a sticker for the majority rule. Russia has a majority rule (allegedly) but that's about where its democratic credentials stop. There is little in terms of Civil Rights, no protection of minorities and no real rule of law (as you indicate under the terms 'rule of exception').Jean-Baptiste Perrinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00357296593091267312noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19791491.post-90044018469981580732008-05-07T10:11:00.000+02:002008-05-07T10:11:00.000+02:00Dear Sean,I am happy that you as well take what th...Dear Sean,<BR/><BR/>I am happy that you as well take what the Russian political elite says seriously. <BR/><BR/>I feel that some publications by United Russia's publishing house, <A HREF="http://www.europublish.ru/" REL="nofollow">Evropa</A>, should become mandatory reading for next to everybody who follows Russian affairs these days.<BR/><BR/>Bulgarian political scientist, Ivan Krastev, has written a highly interesting and very to-the-point <A HREF="http://www.opendemocracy.net/globalization-institutions_government/sovereign_democracy_4104.jsp" REL="nofollow">review of an anthology on sovereign democracy</A> published by Evropa a few years back. I would recommend you to read it, in case you have not previously done so. <BR/><BR/>One should, of course, also not forget all the plans and projects of modernization linked to sovereign democracy.<BR/><BR/>As for Sergei Witte, I have not thought of any parallels to sovereign democracy, so I will have to ponder further on this.<BR/><BR/>Yours,<BR/><BR/>VilhelmVilhelm Konnanderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04506899921990227704noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19791491.post-73393075138808164052008-05-07T09:51:00.000+02:002008-05-07T09:51:00.000+02:00It sounds really interesting Vilhelm. It's nice to...It sounds really interesting Vilhelm. It's nice to see someone take sovereign democracy seriously. I wish I read Swedish. I wonder how much sovereign democrat draws from Sergei Witte.Sean Guilloryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06994183550218306219noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19791491.post-35014175318483352872008-05-07T09:33:00.000+02:002008-05-07T09:33:00.000+02:00Dear son of the motherland,Thank you for your cong...Dear son of the motherland,<BR/><BR/>Thank you for your congratulatory remark. Now I only wonder whether someone will actually read the report. Mind you, it is in Swedish, and not in a generally comprehensible langugae for most of my usual readers. Still, the contents should prover interesting for those who take an interest in such things.<BR/><BR/>Yours,<BR/><BR/>VilhelmVilhelm Konnanderhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04506899921990227704noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19791491.post-59426991420725430452008-05-06T20:30:00.000+02:002008-05-06T20:30:00.000+02:00Congratulations Vilhelm , or as they say in AD alf...Congratulations Vilhelm , or as they say in AD alf Mabrouk!Ibn ad Dunyahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05802803418817752818noreply@blogger.com