Shota Kincha
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kincha.bsky.social
Shota Kincha
@kincha.bsky.social
1.8K followers 3.2K following 300 posts
Freelancer eyeing a research gig (PhD/think tank). Interests: extremism, nationalism, gender & queer politics, CE Europe, media. Longest-running video editing beginner. Views mine. https://linktr.ee/shotakincha
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kincha.bsky.social
‘From Kyiv with Love: the Push to Legalize Same-Sex Civil Partnerships’ - an interesting Master’s thesis by Thomas Cline-Fedorus www.researchgate.net/publication/...
November 9, 2025 at 10:33 AM
kincha.bsky.social
Historians of Soviet sexuality may find points to contest but overall, fascinating to watch. The documentary features voices of Soviet people (unusually Ukrainians-focused) recounting their life experiences

pro.festivalscope.com/film/sex-in-...
An older man with short white hair and a gray mustache sits indoors, gesturing with one hand while speaking. On-screen text identifies him as “Founder, USSR Gay Rights Alliance – Alexander Zaremba.” Subtitles below him read: “The Bolshevik criminal code was the best in the whole Europe.” The setting appears cozy, with patterned wallpaper, shelves of books, and a table with a cup and snacks beside him. A black-and-white photograph of a shirtless man with a muscular torso shown from the shoulders to the waist. On the right side of the image, black text reads: “1. Male citizens have the right to sex with any woman up to four times per week.” The text appears to be part of an archival caption overlaid on the image. An elderly woman wearing a floral headscarf, pink turtleneck, and embroidered apron sits indoors against a background of colorful patterned textiles and carpets. She holds a wooden cane and looks calmly toward the camera. Subtitles at the bottom read: “Every five months I run for new abortion.” A close-up of a person with medium-length dark hair and large round glasses, looking downward with a serious expression. The lighting is dim and the tone subdued. Subtitles at the bottom read: “In our country you don’t even control your own ass.”
October 17, 2025 at 11:52 PM
kincha.bsky.social
Am I misreading this or does it come across as surprisingly sloppy for an edited academic volume?

I mean this sincerely, not rhetorically

(from 'Did the Woke Movement Hijack Feminism in Poland?' by Magdalena Grzyb, in Culture Wars in Europe. George Washington University, 2023)
October 4, 2025 at 5:33 PM
kincha.bsky.social
A Georgian police officer casually asked 21-year-old protester Luka Jabua if he was bisexual after he was taken to a police station in December.

When Luka said no, the officer replied that he was, and was just wondering if Luka was too (he's not).
Luka Jabua speaks during his court hearing in Tbilisi on 3 September 2025. He stands among other defendants, wearing a dark T-shirt, while a guard and fellow detainees are visible nearby. Image and details via Publika.
September 4, 2025 at 7:43 PM
kincha.bsky.social
True, but just to note: their more mainstream cousins will likely push into academia even more fervently in the decades ahead

(Screengrab from '“Feminist Lies” to “White Replacement”: Digital Anti-Feminist Forumsas Spaces of Collective Radicalization' www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi...)
Transcription of the screenshot: 'At first glance, alt-right “knowledge” occupies a structurally similar position to schools of theory dedicated to emancipation and social transformation since Marx. As Geoff Shullenberger writes, “[w]hat is striking about the redpilling experience is that it resembles some of the most influential currents of modern intellectual life. Since the late nineteenth century, a series of new variants of the Platonic and Cartesian model of knowledge have arisen, in which radical suspicion is the first step in grasping counterintuitive truths that overturn the conventional understanding of reality.” Yet, while alt-right subversive “knowledge” may share the liberating telos, and thus, the energizing impetus, of such leftist epistemic projects as Marxism, Gender Studies or Critical Race Theory, unlike scholars in these fields, producers of alt-right “knowledge” believe that knowledge generated at universities categorically serves the interests of the establishment. Since they view traditional locales and channels of producing and disseminating knowledge (the university and the media) as corrupt, purveyors of alt-right subversive “knowledge” feel a particular need for proselytizing and have mastered spreading their ‘knowledge’ via alternative channels such as social media.'
August 25, 2025 at 8:18 AM
kincha.bsky.social
Leviathan Movement in Serbia - one of the worst cases of animal rights activism morphing into something else

Interesting study here: is.muni.cz/th/e7izn/Fra...
July 16, 2025 at 6:15 AM
kincha.bsky.social
The mother of this boy from last year’s Tbilisi protests, the one shouting ‘No to Russian Dream’, has been jailed. Datashvili is yet another political prisoner of a repressive regime that got rewarded with a EU candidate status instead of sanctions and frozen assets oc-media.org/georgian-act...
June 21, 2025 at 3:58 PM
kincha.bsky.social
Absolutely
June 10, 2025 at 3:13 PM
kincha.bsky.social
Mountainhead (2025) drips with disgust for megalomaniac bro-techno-overlords and the real havoc they wreak, or could wreak globally through their monopoly power, digital colonialism, and platform sovereignty. It's a sheer demonization of them.
Venis (Cory Michael Smith) in a turtleneck, mid-gesture with one finger raised, calmly speaking. Subtitle: “I can control the narrative with Traam" (his social media platform). Hugo (Jason Schwartzman) stands in front of a modern fireplace, holding a phone and shrugging dismissively. Subtitle: “Sorry, but the Stans? I think we only have G20 bandwidth. Gotta prioritize.” A television shows chaotic protest footage labeled “Yerevan, Armenia” with riot police and crowds. News ticker reads: “TRAAM BLAMED FOR CAUCASUS UNREST – a Turkish-backed military intervention.” Close-up of Hugo looking serious in a dimly lit room, holding his phone. Subtitle: “I’m getting messaged to ask if you know that the EU is going to block you?”
June 1, 2025 at 12:54 AM
kincha.bsky.social
Standpoint epistemology?

I’m no expert on Deaf epistemology or audism, and I’m not Deaf myself, so I won’t overanalyze and risk speaking out of turn, but that moment from Code of Silence really got me thinking
A smiling woman with light brown hair in a low ponytail points to her ear while signing. She wears a red top, denim jacket, and gold necklace. The caption reads: “No. I don’t want to be hearing.” The same woman continues signing, now with both hands slightly raised and a soft expression. She wears the same outfit and looks gently assertive. The caption reads: “I just want them to be a bit deaf.”
May 18, 2025 at 3:40 PM
kincha.bsky.social
All flags in place, yet feels like some still missing

Glad to be in Brussels
May 6, 2025 at 6:08 PM
kincha.bsky.social
The new ‘losing Georgia to Russia’ and the older ‘unstable Georgia’ tropes make a return to Hollywood, this time in FBI: International. The show leans on a narrative that, for me, traces back to post-911 era Pankisi instability — the rise of enhanced US–Georgia partnership (but this time in descent)
April 18, 2025 at 8:55 PM
kincha.bsky.social
Had an exciting tour of Czech Television today.

With license fees for Czech TV and Radio set to rise soon, it’s a vital step toward ensuring their financial stability.

Public service broadcasters matter more than ever in times like these.
April 4, 2025 at 11:42 AM
kincha.bsky.social
'The call for a return to religious education… is accompanied by a demand for education that abandons critical thinking in favour of… developing human capital for the globalised market.'

www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
March 30, 2025 at 11:58 AM
kincha.bsky.social
I've come across a study, and AI-generated this based on the findings: So it looks like while in most countries men are more likely to believe that manhood is hard to earn and easy to lose, Albania, Morocco, and Georgia seem to deviate as women there scored even higher than men on these beliefs.
March 22, 2025 at 12:41 PM
kincha.bsky.social
Well put. On the radicalization of young men
Thank you, the Pitt (ep11) writer
March 15, 2025 at 6:37 PM
kincha.bsky.social
Algorithmic labour #gigeconomy.

(Still from Souleymane's Story (2024)
March 9, 2025 at 10:19 PM
kincha.bsky.social
Trump odkryl karty: Evropo, jsi na tahu!
Two individuals wearing masks resembling Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin sit at a table draped in a Ukrainian flag, holding playing cards. The scene is part of the demonstration ‘Trump revealed his cards: Europe, it’s your move!’ in Prague on 7 March, highlighting alleged collusion between the two leaders over the Ukraine issue. A backdrop features a stylized map of Europe.
March 9, 2025 at 7:06 PM
kincha.bsky.social
Just received the latest edition of Religion & Gesellschaft in Ost und West (RGOW), a monthly journal by the Zurich-based forum of the same name rgow.eu/zeitschrift/...
Cover of Religion & Gesellschaft in Ost und West (RGOW) 1/2025. Theme: Träume und Alpträume (Dreams and Nightmares) – analyses from Romania and the South Caucasus. The cover image features a mural with the EU and Georgian flags and the phrase WE ARE EUROPE. Articles cover elections in Georgia, religious protests in Armenia, and authoritarianism in Azerbaijan. More: rgow.eu/zeitschrift/2025.
February 17, 2025 at 9:28 AM
kincha.bsky.social
Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský graciously hosted us, the Havel Fellows, at the Černín Palace earlier this week. In these challenging times, I hope Czechia remains steadfast in its support for journalists and dissidents in the region ✊
February 15, 2025 at 9:24 PM
kincha.bsky.social
🫣
February 9, 2025 at 9:29 PM
kincha.bsky.social
Not much has changed since 1985, huh?
A still from a Yugoslav movie Ćao, inspektore! (1985), where Inspector Boki reports about a very gay and very dangerous international gang.
January 14, 2025 at 9:48 PM
kincha.bsky.social
I’m mostly desk-bound these days, but I had to be at the leftist demo in Tbilisi tonight.

Apologies for not providing more detailed info—tough days, with even tougher ones ahead.
December 28, 2024 at 11:45 PM
kincha.bsky.social
An acquaintance of mine held that book and shared the image online about two weeks ago from the Tbilisi protests. Nothing to add; it says it all.

Coincidentally, I’ve been accepted as the Václav Havel Journalism Fellow, a program by @rferl.org.web.brid.gy / Czech Foreign Ministry. It's an honor!
A hand holds a copy of Václav Havel’s book The Power of the Powerless with its white cover featuring an illustration of Havel in blue and red, raising a peace sign. The book is held in front of a crowded protest scene in Tbilisi with police in black uniforms and reflective vests forming a line. Protesters, some carrying Georgian flags, stand nearby. The background includes an old, beige building of the Georgian Parliament with peeling plaster and cloudy skies above.
December 8, 2024 at 8:31 AM
kincha.bsky.social
A reporter of TV channel Pirveli has been attacked by masked men and the camera operator severely beaten up just minutes ago in Tbilisi.

oc-media.org/georgia-live...
December 7, 2024 at 6:30 PM