Great work here Garrett! We like to think we have made leaps and bounds in understanding AIDS and its victims. However, your screenshot shows that we still associate AIDS as a “gay disease”. Additionally, you made great use of the Current Digest to trace the public’s opinion about AIDS. Great post!
Month: April 2018
Comment on Lots of Problems with Alcohol by A. Nelson
What Katelyn said — I appreciate the detail of your discussion of the anti-alcohol campaign, and the comparisons with prohibition in the USA.
Comment on Countering the Counterculture by A. Nelson
And yet rock was incredibly popular in the Soviet Union… How do we explain that?
Comment on Gopnik’s Galore by A. Nelson
Some wonderful material here, but I’m not clear on your sources. The video links to a send-up of “squatting”? What other sources did you use?
Comment on The Singing Revolution by A. Nelson
Also — Thanks for the crosspost to your blog about the educational system in Estonia! The exclusionary citizenship laws and schooling practices are so complicated in the Post-Soviet Baltic states.
Comment on We Have No Sex Here by mauramcd
Wow, I can see how glasnost really affected women following Gorbachev’s rule. Although I understand that women were drawn to the glorification of prostitution, I’m sure there was a contrast in perception between the generations of women. Did you find anything about this in your research?
Comment on The Disappearing Villages of the Soviet Union by A. Nelson
The “dying village” in the Soviet Union has so much in common with the vanishing family farm in the US. (Think about the “fly over states”….). That poster is terrific — especially the new breed of long-legged chickens (adapted to the mud!).
Comment on AIDS and the “high-risk” group. by A. Nelson
Sadly, I think you are correct — that information doesn’t translate into knowledge when bias is involved. I struggle with that recognition all the time. I’m so impressed with the research you did in the Current Digest for this post, which is a perfect companion to Emma’s discussion of how the Soviets manipulated public opinion about the epidemic before they were forced to concede that it wasn’t an American conspiracy. I learned a lot from reading this. Thanks!
Comment on The Godfather: Russian Edition by mauramcd
Very interesting. Although I can see how they were advantageous to the government at the time, I can’t imagine that all politicians and oligarchs were supportive of their influence, as you show when Putin comes into power. Do they still exist and hold influence today?
Comment on Excuse me while I have a quick meltdown by mauramcd
I thought the comparison between Chernobyl and 9/11 was very impactful. It really put the incident into a new perspective for me, as I could imagine the pain that the citizens felt in losing loved ones and the anger of having information on the incident being withheld.
