In search of the brain

The New Times continues the heading dedicated to small, but important and characteristic features of modern Russian life. In this issue - intellectual searches in the capital and regions, as well as what these searches can lead to

Meaningless diversity

Minister of Culture of the Russian Federation Vladimir Medinsky fell into history. As in an old joke: he aimed, shot, hit. Instead of firearms, however, he used the site of the subordinate Russian military-historical society (the chairman of the Board of Trustees of which, by the way, is another prominent thinker-Dmitry Rogozin).

On the site is a fresh article by the Minister “Historical Canon: Return of common sense”: “To create a single history textbook for Russian schoolchildren is one of the first initiatives of the current presidential term by Vladimir Putin. And this school year, a single historical and cultural standard has been put into effect-general requirements for all line of textbooks.

This is an important first step towards overcoming the absurd intellectual feud inherited from the 1990s, a meaningless “diversity” of points of view on the history of the country and obsessive ideologized interpretations of its main events.

Ultimately, our goal is to build a canonical basic understanding of domestic history instead of this cacophony. Within the framework of its unified logic, continuity, interconnection and continuity of all stages and eras, respect for all pages of our past. ”

The struggle with a meaningless variety - both in the heads and even on the streets - it seems that the main hobby of the current government. But modesty is not her virtue. If you go to the page “Historical and Cultural Standard” in the section “For the curious” of the RVIO website, where the text of Medinsky is published, you will first see the explanation: “4 great speeches were found”. And only then - links.

And the fast mind of iPhones

The regions are also in an intellectual search, but people here are not used to hovering in the clouds and prefer to talk about applied things and useful life. So, during a meeting of the asset of the Saratov region (there is such a form of regular communication between local elites with the authorities), Governor Valery Radaev put before the general director of the Saratov Electro-Ground Production Association (SEPO), memorable old-scale refrigerators of the Saratov, Evgeny Reznik, a difficult and even in their own way a daring task. “Let’s release the iPhone 7 together in Saratov,” said the governor, recalling that they once released video recorders.

President Governor Valery Radaev to offer to develop his own iPhone was shy, Moscow, February 4, 2016

The dumbfounded manufacturer began to mumble something about the incredible cost of a license, which the region may not have enough money, but the governor was even offended. "We are all enough for us, do we have brains?" - not without sarcasm, Radaev asked. “There are brains,” Reznik admitted with sadness, because in the field representatives of the authorities are accepted to flatterly flatter.

"And there will be its own Platons and the fast of the mind of iPhones the land of Saratov to give birth!" - Mikhail Vasilievich Lomonosov, a great poet and natural scientist from the eighteenth century, would probably exclaim with enthusiasm, if he was alive. But he died back in the eighteenth century.

Supostats without dashing

The poetry of the XVIII century is generally not unlucky. The week brought the news from Karelia: the Supreme Court of the Republic recognized the discomfort to the honor of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in the local newspaper Northern Bereg, in which, as part of criticism of the police, two proverbs were used: “The law that was drawn, where you turn it out,” as well as “laws of holy, and legal adversaries”.

Many rushed to guess how now the "northern zory" to refute slander. “According to the court decision, the publication informs the readers that the law is not drawn up and it may not come out at all from where you turn, the laws are not holy, and the lawyers are completely dull.” But then the Karelia Ministry of Internal Affairs published its own refutation to the news, which was even replicated by federal information agencies by that time. It turns out that police phrases were offended about repeated complaints about the actions of employees of the department from the village of Kaleval, and not a proverb as such. Everything is the same-the law that was drawn up, and the adversaries are dashing.

And immediately, the story, having lost part of the charms, from the story of the local -sophistication turned into a regretular evidence of the crisis of humanitarian education in modern Russia. Because the phrase “The laws are holy, but the performers are dashing adversaries” - no proverb. This is a quote from the comedy of Vasily Vasilyevich Kapnist “Yabeda”, which appeared at the very end of the 18th century and has long been successful with theateraries. And Russian literature needs to be known and loved.

Cold waves

True, life is often funnier and sadder than literature. Here is an example. Members of the national liberation movement of the deputy Yevgeny Fedorov are deservedly famous for their bright performances. Then from Barack Obama will not be required to lower the Russians of pensions, otherwise representatives of the fifth column among federal ministers and deputies of the State Duma will be found. But the Activist of the GCD from the Berdsk of the Novosibirsk region Vitaly Panasyuk went beyond others. He has a serious trouble - he lost a mortgage, the bank took away and sold an apartment. After that, Panasyuk, through the publication, Sib.fm sent an open letter to President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin, in which he hinted without abyss that the patriots were erected - a direct road to the Maidan.

Activist of GCD and part -time walrus Vitaly Panasyuk decided to scare Putin , Berdsk, May 18, 2015

This is even a serious fucker for the Fedorovtsa, and in the Novosibirsk branch the movement from the activist disowned. But more recently, last fall, Panasyuk in honor of the birthday of Vladimir Putin swam an Ob. To cross the Siberian river in November is a brave act, and only true love can push it. But as you can see, and true love can end. And through the canon of patriotic enthusiasm, the meaningless variety of reactions to ordinary household troubles will break through.

(First issue - NT No. 4 of February 8, 2016.)

Photo: Alexey Nikolsky/Press Service of the President of the Russian Federation/TASS, courier. Midua.berdsk