In this book Kagarlitsky, who is a prominent Moscow-based theorist and critic of globalization, reflects on the two decades since the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the end of communism. Specifically Kagarlitsky highlights the remnants of the intelligentsia and considers what has happened in Russia since 1991. Issues include: how to understand the rise of the oligarchs and renewed nationalism, the role of culture and its increasing association with private collectors and foreign investment, nostalgia for Soviet times, the lack of democratic reforms, etc.