Old Times
Juan Cole has a translation of an ITAR-TASS [Информационное Телеграфное Агентство России – Телеграфное Агентство Советского Союза / Information Telegraphic Agency of Russia – Telegraphic Agency of the Soviet Union / the state press office] piece: Putin & Ahmadinejad Pledge Cooperation.
These things are pure “boilerplate” – the same paragraphs with a few names swapped to reflect different leaders and different countries that I read in Pravda and Izvestia during the Cold War. They still reference TASS, because they are still filling in the blanks in standard Soviet era stories. You would think they would have hired some new writers or changed the script in the last forty years.
4 comments
Meet the new boss?
Exactly so, they didn’t even change the drapes or the carpets.
heh. heh heh heh. they didn’t even change the drapes or the carpets? you’re a fine one to talk.
Of course they wouldn’t have changed the miniblinds – that would have been fiscally irresponsible. What kind of idiot worry about the carpet in their office?