Reform and disbandment

For more than one year, we have been taught nothing to be surprised, to reconcile in advance with any absurdity coming from the "upper". However, the cynicism with which the liquidation of the Russian Academy of Sciences and other state academies is now being carried out is able to surprise and shock even experienced ones.

RAS, of course, had long been subjected to well -deserved criticism, including liberal and pro -Western scientists from the part of liberal and pro -Western. In fact, this is our “Ministry of Fundamental Science” is a relic of the past - a sort of clumsy lizard, who has long been mainly supplied with attempts to reform it from the Ministry of Education and Science. Not the most stupid people have repeatedly offered to finally forget about the academy and concentrate all science at universities on the model of most Western countries. But at the same time, any sane experts were immediately stipulated: we historically have so happened that they are mainly engaged in scientific research not in educational institutions, but in the institutes of the Russian Academy of Sciences, that is, in fact, science has always been clearly separated from teaching. This feature is not unique: there are other countries with a similar system that quite successfully solving the tasks facing it (Germany, Spain, China, etc.). In this position, you can find both your minuses and pluses.

Minister of Education and Science Dmitry Livanov is a longtime opponent of the Russian Academy of Sciences, and his current attack is far from the first. However, he seemed to have always realized that talking about the ineffectiveness of the Academy and the steady aging of its personnel are applicable to the same extent to the education system. Attempts to get out of the impasse by creating a “parallel academy” (in the form of structures subordinate to the Putin nominee Mikhail Kovalchuk) or the notorious Skolkovo enthusiasm was not added - they swelled money unravelly (mainly past the academy, which is now accused of mediocre food budget and commercial use of numerous real estate), some of them It was predictably stolen, and the effectiveness was even lower than that of the good old Academy.

All this is quite natural: in the current Russian realities, it is almost impossible to re -build a working structure, the correct system of independent examination, and the decisions ultimately always depend on the arbitrariness of the authorities. From the perestroika years, a fairly successful grant system of the Russian fund of fundamental research ( RFFI ) has been preserved, but it has not been expanded for a long time and hold it on a hungry ration. The opacity of the decisions made, the lack of public discussion, the general dependence only on the highest authorities - all this leads to inevitable corruption at all levels. Separate positive undertakings are quickly lost among the “cuts” and meaningless “megaprojects”. The election and conservatism of the Academy at least contribute to a certain dependence of managers on personal reputation.

The scientific community, a few years ago, conditionally divided into supporters and opponents of the RAS reform (no matter what these reforms were meant), it converged mainly that there was no alternative to the Academy yet, so the “dinosaur” should be maintained and hoped that the need for self -renewal will be recognized by the academic structures themselves. The extremes can be considered the calls to break everything without being considered at the first opportunity (and then we allegedly become automatically as in the West) or not to change and not to cooperate with the authorities at all, waiting for Putin’s departure (and it’s still necessary to live somehow; the work of the administrators, including the modification of existing structures for pressing needs, is sometimes as necessary as the work of a plowman, feeding people with any one mode).

And so, it would seem, the time of self -renewal of the wounds has come. The permanent (throughout the post -Soviet era since 1991) President of the Academy of Sciences Yuri Osipov during the elections was replaced by a supporter of reforms by Vladimir Fortov, and the composition of the presidium was also updated. At the same time, the academics of the physics department once again demonstrated their “inanimateness” by depriving the director’s post at the Crystallography (included in the RAS system) of the Putin’s “favorite” by Mikhail Kovalchuk (five years ago, the general meeting did not allow Kovalchuk to turn from a corresponding member to the Academician and claim the position of president of the Russian Academy of Sciences).

Smart heads even then predicted that this demarche of academicians would not pass for nothing (plus letters against the dominance of the Russian Orthodox Church, plus the not forgotten story with Petrik and Gryzlov ...), and advised to pay special attention to how quickly Putin would approve Fortov (after all, long -term expectation means the extreme degree of dissatisfaction of the authorities). A month passed, the President of the Russian Academy of Sciences was never approved, and here and how the ministerial reform broke out on the head, perceived by many previous supporters of Livanov as a personal insult.

However, few doubt that this reform is not Livanov and Medvedev, who, in case of failure, can only play the role of boys, but the offended Kovalchuk and Putin, who simply decided to break what they could not control. An insult and almost unusual attempt by bribery, many have already considered a promise of a lifelong pension to all academicians “at least 100 thousand rubles a month” (will not be given or taken away) and the title of academicians for all former members, including from agricultural and medical academies. However, the status of an academician will inevitably depreciate and will not be much different from the title, say, Academician RAEN or the Russian Academy of Cosmonautics. Some major scientists have already stated that they would not "ask" to the new academy, to which they are obligated by the new regulations.

Only a person can seem unnatural to a completely third-party that in just one day the former supporters of the RAS reform refused to support Livanov and went over to the opposite camp. After all, these are not screamers, but the most constructive people, ready for all cooperation, which goes for the benefit of science. Dmitry Livanov lost all possible support overnight, preferring to destroy the fragile trust of the capable part of the scientific community for the sake of the Kremlin owner. Those who did not follow the events may be perplexed: those who called for the "destruction of Carthage" seemed to be happy that they finally received their own. But the devil lies in detail. The main claim is related to how hastily, secretly from everyone and without any discussion, a new project arose, which was immediately sent to the Duma, where he was immediately promised to be accepted on a record time. All this resembles a punitive expedition, not a proposal of cooperation.

The presence of a special “cover operation” that lulled the scientific community, which created the feeling that there were at least some levers, some kind of control over the situation in the hands of the public. After all, the beginning of the work of the new minister was marked by the creation of two tips at the Ministry of Education and Science, which included current and authoritative scientists: councils on science and public council (the set to the latter took place by voting on the Echo of Moscow website). The humor is that the tips intended to discuss reforms like the current one simply were not informed about it (as, in fact, the leadership of the reformed academy) and already managed to adopt protest decisions (each separately and joint ), calling to immediately withdraw the bill from the Duma and begin its comprehensive discussion. It is characteristic that during the “blitzkrieg” the government was nothing to be stolen “forgotten” about their own instructions, obliging to publicly discuss such projects for at least several months.

Of course, the claims are caused not only by shallow methods of promoting the law. Offer of property and power inevitably causes many conflicts. If the "expropriation" is made in favor of those who can better dispose of this, then the question arises: what kind of owner is this and what are the guarantees of the correct use of the taken away? The bill speaks deafly about this: certain agencies will be created, where the authorities will appoint its representatives. So there is a great risk that officials, not scientists, will make decisions on specific scientific programs, a monstrous system of rollbacks, papers and all other charms of bureaucratization will arise. Meanwhile, the "non -core" real estate of the Russian Academy of Sciences is quickly implemented due to structures similar to the scandalous "Oboronservice", enriching completely unauthorized persons. This could be avoided by introducing an independent external examination and complete transparency, but the very history of promoting the law on wounds does not give such hopes. Most likely, the further fate of all the objects of the Russian Academy of Sciences will be decided on the slowly, and practical experts and just honest people, in other circumstances, are able to cooperate with the Ministry of Livanov, will avoid it as a plague. It will not be possible to play back. Even if the "reform" is stopped, no one will give the third chance to Livanov. But if he was forced to carry out the reform in this way, then in his place any any insightful person would prefer to resign immediately.

Among the “conspiracy theories” inevitable in such a situation, the most fantastic seems to be the one by which Livanov chose the role of Kamikadze in order to gather in one camp that opposing the ministry, in this way the situation from anabiosis. Academicians of shirts with Nekipelov are already sitting together at the same press conference! The statements of Osipov, Alferov and Fortov are essentially not much different from each other. Almost complete unanimity is observed during discussions on any sites that previously include mainly support Livanov: from the Trinity Option and the club of scientific journalists to the society of scientists , the scientific and educational column and trade unions. And no matter how “manual” we have a thought, it is unlikely that the same communists will vote for such “reforms” and will clearly demonstrate their servility. Even from the side of "United Russia" the voices are heard, calling to postpone the adoption of the bill in the second and third reading until the fall. If they really put it off, all the advantages of the Blitzkrieg come to naught, all the advantages of secrecy and speed will turn against Livanov.

Meanwhile, it was difficult to imagine a week ago: in the yet took up premises under the benevolent supervision of the directorate, meetings of various units of the Russian Academy of Sciences are arranged, representatives of various “serious” structures sign angry petitions. The same will be engaged in all the coming months, and then they will pour into the ranks of dissatisfied with the increase in the cost of the services of housing and communal services and other sufferers. From the calls to stop the reform, many meetings have already passed to the calls to resign the government. Of course, they turn to Putin for this, but everyone understands that without monarchy will no serious paper begins to move, especially such a high -speed one as with the reform of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Livanova (or perhaps even Medvedev) as a result of all this yellow will be removed (there is an option that the intrigue, in particular, for this is a crude) - either for a stopped unsuccessful project, or for a mediocre implementation (if it passes and becomes clear, the scale of the disaster). But few will doubt that the “two” assessment is thereby personally staged by Vladimir Vladimirovich.