Most Russian journalists are convinced that an "expert" is any person who has an opinion on a particular subject, regardless of that person's field of expertise.

The number of political prisoners related to the "Bolotnoye affair" underscores the scope of the authorities' crackdown on the remnants of free political expression and the constitutional right to assembly in the country.

As I walked through the crowd gathered on Bolotnaya Ploshchad for this month's anniversary of the May 6, 2012, rally, I experienced a sudden sense of déjà vu.

State Duma Deputy Ilya Ponomaryov once said, "To steal one ruble, it is first necessary to spend nine inefficiently." That slogan should adorn the entrance to the Skolkovo technology park as its official motto.

I first visited Tunis four years ago. I liked its French-Arab feel, the streets that still carried such French names as Lafayette, Jaures and Pasteur, and the tram connecting the city center to the residential area that the locals proudly referred to as a "metro."

Despite evidence to the contrary, the Kremlin refuses to use the words "downturn," "systemic crisis" or "recession." Instead, it has opted for a deceptive alternative: "a pause in growth."

The European elite are more afraid of defaults than Russians are of revolutions.

The Russian blogosphere is sharply divided over the death of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, with some people expressing vulgar joy at his passing, and others pouring out passionate eulogies.

There is no harm in dreaming about something — unless the dreamer has access to billions of rubles of public money and has no qualms about using it.

While the public's attention is focused on the 20 suspects arrested in connection with the May 6 protests, we should not forget other political prisoners who fell under the boot of the repressive regime even sooner.

Catalonia has adopted a declaration of sovereignty. To those of us who lived through the collapse of the Soviet Union, this is very much deja vu. Everything here began exactly the same way.

All last year, the global economy teetered on the brink of a major recession. Bullish forecasts that the post-crisis global economy would rebound were forgotten amid concerns over the urgent need to contain regional economic crises and prevent them from escalating into another worldwide economic decline.

Looking at the hordes of shoppers besieging Moscow stores this holiday season, a person might wonder why there has been so much talk of a crisis.

Summing up the year, analysts generally agree that the political crisis that erupted a year ago after the December State Duma elections has largely run its course. Last week, Alexei Mukhin's presented a report aptly titled "Has the Turbulence Ended?" in which he praised the authorities for not resorting to excessive force to put down the protests.

Iwas awakened during a trip to Berlin on Wednesday by a call from my wife. "Our apartment is being searched," she said.

Opposition activist Leonid Razvozzhayev's luck failed him twice.

When President Dmitry Medvedev in 2009 announced plans to build an innovation center at Skolkovo, many hoped the idea would not last.

For a full week, the country watched in amazement as deputies in the St. Petersburg municipal legislature spoke out against sex and noise in their city.

The anti-government rallies in Moscow are becoming something of a tradition, as demonstrators take to the streets about once every month, with the exception of August.

When discussing a scandal in Russia, the first question people are tempted to ask is, "Who ordered it?" The case against the female punk group Pussy Riot is a good example.

Rioting broke out in the French town of Amiens last week while I was vacationing in France. A few days after the youths clashed with the police, the authorities detained two young men who had taken advantage of the disturbances to set fire to a school.

The relatively strong growth rates that the Russian economy has enjoyed in recent years stand in marked contrast to the acute crisis in the European Union.

The recent flooding in Krymsk reminded me of the smog disaster two years ago when Moscow and surrounding regions were overcome by summer forest fires.

Bad news is a very popular genre in the Russian media. Of course, the media in other countries also devote considerable attention to disturbing or sensational stories, but the peculiarly sadomasochistic style of Russia's media has become so widespread that it now shapes the worldview of millions of people.

At last week's St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Russia's new round of privatizations was one of the hottest topics of discussion.

After Tuesday's protest in Moscow, the opposition has announced a respite from these types of rallies, probably until October.

There is a hard-and-fast rule on how new laws are passed in Russia: The most important legislation is usually approved with the least public discussion and debate.

The Moscow protests on May 6 marked a milestone in the country's political development.

Few people doubt that socialist Francois Hollande will become the new French president in May. His rival, incumbent President Nicolas Sarkozy, came to power five years ago promising to increase living standards, stability and economic growth. Soon after, the global economic crisis hit, and the measures France and Germany employed to overcome the crisis resulted instead in the economic collapse of Greece and Spain.

Supporters of the ruling regime interpreted the results of the March presidential election as a victory for the once-conservative, loyal provinces over the protest-ridden capital. But some regions have joined Moscow's battle.