Re: your RIDDLE Russia article. I think you are a bit overestimating the role of institutions over the informal networks, but that’s understandable since they are on the surface and their activities are visible to an outside observer, while all the informal stuff is essentially closed to all non-participants and most attempts to understand it boil down to tea leaf reading. Still an informative piece, though.
Thanks! It's a perfectly reasonable objection, I appreciate it entirely. I tried to insert wording underlining the fact that the informal is still important, but you're right - I'm very much so trying to raise the profile of formal institutions, in part because we already write so much on informal connections, 'clans,' and so on.
Re: your RIDDLE Russia article. I think you are a bit overestimating the role of institutions over the informal networks, but that’s understandable since they are on the surface and their activities are visible to an outside observer, while all the informal stuff is essentially closed to all non-participants and most attempts to understand it boil down to tea leaf reading. Still an informative piece, though.
Thanks! It's a perfectly reasonable objection, I appreciate it entirely. I tried to insert wording underlining the fact that the informal is still important, but you're right - I'm very much so trying to raise the profile of formal institutions, in part because we already write so much on informal connections, 'clans,' and so on.