Fred Weir's recent book (his co-author and the title of the work I'm currently forgetting) argues that -- as it should be quite clear by now -- the USSR's "transition" was ultimately led by a bloc of mid- and high-ranking nomenklatura who knew they could make lots of money and wield lots of power via cronyistic privatiztion and the divvying up of state industry, especially in the raw materials sectors. So this book seems like a must. At 02:30 PM 9/27/97 -0700, Rebecca Peoples wrote: >>Hi folks, >> >>I desperately need help on Russia today: recommended books, artcles >>sites, etc. >> >>Rebecca John Gulick Ph. D. Candidate Sociology Graduate Program University of California-Santa Cruz (415) 643-8568 [EMAIL PROTECTED]