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PS 399 Mafia and Corruption in Russia 2001 SUMMER-TERM DUCKHUNT DETAILS Instructor: Myagkov Mikhail Office Hours: 9:00-12:00 August 23rd
and 9:00-12:00 August 27th, PLC 913 General Description It seems like most of the news coming
from Russia lately have been full of keywords such as "Mafia",
"Corruption", "Money Laundering", "Election Fraud" and them
alike. Most western observers agree that corruption is the single most important obstacle
that undermines Russian reforms. Is the situation really that bad? Does the Russian mob
control everything in the country, including nuclear weapons? Have recent elections been
stolen by corrupt politicians close to the ruling elite? Answers to such questions are not
as simple as they might look at first sight. To understand what is happening in Russian
economy and politics and why it looks so profoundly corrupt it is necessary to study
organization, institutions and power structure of the Russian society. That, combined with
understanding of how Russian economy works would shed some light on the Mafia’s role
within Russian society. This class will focus on Mafia and Corruption as integral parts of
Russia’s transition to democracy. We will consider major as well as minor political
and economic events, which have happened in Russia since 1985 to understand how Mafia and
Corruption penetrated every single piece of Russian life. Requirements: The course may be taken for 1,2,3 or 4
credits, depending on the quantity of outside reading, research and writing completed by
the student. While only an in-class quiz is required for one credit, this quiz AND
research essays and/or news reviews are required for additional credits. Requirements for 1 credit: Class attendance and
in-class quiz. The quiz will be in the form of multiple choice type questions covering
in-class lectures and discussions. Students enrolled for 2-3 credits: 1. Above described
requirements AND 2. A 2-4 page essay for
additional credits. This can be a short book review from those books listed below or the
student can pick the his/her own topic of interest related to the main subject of the
class. Due September 6th, noon at
my office Students enrolled for 4 credits: 1. Requirements described
in 1-2 (class, quiz and essay(s)) and 2. A short 3-4 pages news
review on latest political and economic news from Russia. The review should show how the
discussed pieces of news are relevant to the main subject of the class. Due September 6th
, noon at my office. Research papers or essays can be
e-mailed to: myagkov@darkwing.uoregon.edu
All
students are expected to attend classes, read the required materials and follow news
reports which concern Russia's current state of affairs. A special attention should be
paid to the reports, which concern Mafia and corruption. Organization: The class will be organized as a
combination of lectures on the evolution and structure of Mafia in Russia and open
in-class discussions. The lectures will be on the following subjects:
Examples of discussion topics are as follows:
Readings: "Comrade
Criminal" by Stephen Handelman (required) WWW Sites to follow:
1.
www.russiatoday.com |
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