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Putting privately owned Russian pharmacies and pharmaceutical factories under state control in 1918/1919 did not improve the output and the distribution of soaps, disinfectants, hormones, vitamins, and medicines. Newly available archival records show that managers appointed by the Soviet government to run sequestered factories employed business methods common to market economies to make the Soviet pharmaceutical sector profitable and productive. However, an inefficient macroeconomy and interference in day-to-day policy-making in the core industry by exogenous officials (frequent reorganization, limits on imports, and excessive exports) hindered production; this plus inefficient distribution shorted consumers. Inadequate amounts of pharmaceuticals undoubtedly contributed to high mortality during the civil war (1917-1921), collectivization and industrialization (1927-1938), and World War II (1939-1945).
A vibrant civil society - characterized by the independently organized activity of people as citizens, undirected by state authority - is an essential support for the development of freedom, democracy, and prosperity. Thus it has been one important indicator of the success of post-communist transitions. This volume undertakes a systematic analysis of the development of civil society in post-Soviet Russia. An introduction and two historical chapters provide background, followed by chapters that analyze the Russian context and consider the roles of the media, business, organized crime, the church, the village, and the Putin administration in shaping the terrain of public life. Eight case studies then illustrate the range and depth of actual citizen organizations in various national and local community settings, and a concluding chapter weighs the findings and distills comparisons and conclusions.
The relationship between society and the regime has been central to much recent research in the field of Soviet history. In this book, an international team of scholars investigates this theme in the revolutionary period, and in the Stalin years from the 1920s to the 1940s, with an additional section on the Bolshevik's relations with the outside world via the Communist International based in Moscow. The use of fresh archival materials provides challenging new interpretations and insights.
By exploring and comparing North America's, Russia's, and Japan's 'second cities' - Chicago, Moscow, and Osaka - Second Metropolis discloses the extent to which social fragmentation, frequently viewed as an obstacle to democratic development, actually fostered a 'pragmatic pluralism' that nurtured pluralistic public policies. Such policies are explored through six case studies - the politics of street railways and charter reform in Chicago, adult education and housing in Moscow, and harbor revitalization and poverty alleviation in Osaka - that illustrate how even those with massive political and economic power were stymied by the complexity of their communities. Chicago, Moscow, and Osaka, though the products of very different nations and cultures, nonetheless shared an important experience of inclusive politics during an era of extraordinary growth and social diversity. The success of all three cities, which went well beyond mere survival, rested on a distinctive political resource: pragmatic pluralism.
Showing the relevance of Hegel's arguments, this book discusses both original texts and their interpretations.
As he examines administrative reform of Russian rural local government between the abolition of serfdom and World War I, Francis William Wcislo takes as his theme the repeated attempts of tsarist statesmen to restructure the most critical mediating link between the autocratic state and a rapidly modernizing agrarian society. His broader objective, however, is to use the issue of autocratic politics to probe the character and evolution of bureaucratic mentalit in this period. Wcislo links the social, psychological, ideological, and institutional nexus of the bureaucracy with its social underpinnings in rural society and lays bare the connections of the bureaucratic world with its traditional ...
In the wake of the disastrous Crimean War, the Russian autocracy completely renovated its most basic social, political and economic systems by emancipating some 23 million privately-owned serfs. This had enormous consequences for all aspects of Russian life, and profound effects on the course of Russian history. This book examines the emancipation of the serfs, focusing on the mechanisms used to enact the reforms and the implications for Russian politics and society in the long term. Because the autocracy lacked the necessary resources for the reform, it created new institutions with real powers and autonomy, particularly the mirovoi posrednik, or 'peace arbitrator'. The results of this strategy differed in practice from the authorities’ original intentions. The new institutions invigorated Russian political life, introduced norms that challenged centuries-old customs and traditions, and fostered a nascent civil society, allowing Russia to follow the basic trajectory of Western European socio-political development.
Herbal Medicine: Back to the Future compiles expert reviews on the application of herbal medicines (including Ayurveda, Chinese traditional medicines and alternative therapies) to treat different ailments. The book series demonstrates the use of sophisticated methods to understand traditional medicine, while providing readers a glimpse into the future of herbal medicine. This volume presents reviews of plant based therapies useful for treating different infectious diseases. The list of topics includes some niche reviews in this area including a review of the neem plant, the historical use of herbs in infectious disease therapy in Russia, and natural remedies from garlic, among other topics.,...
A History of Conversion to Islam in the United States, Volume 1: White American Muslims before 1975 is the first in-depth study of the thousands of white Americans who embraced Islam between 1800 and 1975. Drawing from little-known archives, interviews, and rare books and periodicals, Patrick D. Bowen unravels the complex social and religious factors that led to the emergence of a wide variety of American Muslim and Sufi conversion movements. While some of the more prominent Muslim and Sufi converts—including Alexander Webb, Maryam Jameelah, and Samuel Lewis—have received attention in previous studies, White American Muslims before 1975 is the first book to highlight previously unknown but important figures, including Thomas M. Johnson, Louis Glick, Nadirah Osman, and T.B. Irving.
A pivotal year in the history of the Russian Empire, 1913 marks the tercentennial celebration of the Romanov Dynasty, the infamous anti-Semitic Beilis Trial, Russia's first celebration of International Women's Day, the ministerial boycott of the Duma, and the amnestying of numerous prisoners and political exiles, along with many other important events. A vibrant public sphere existed in Russia's last full year of peace prior to war and revolution. During this time a host of voluntary associations, a lively and relatively free press, the rise of progressive municipal governments, the growth of legal consciousness, the advance of market relations and new concepts of property tenure in the coun...