Muriel Blaive
@murielblaivephd.bsky.social
Historian of communist and post-communist Czech Republic.
Alas.
According to the exiled businessman and Kremlin critic Mikhail Khodorkovsky, there’s only one deterrent against further aggression from Moscow: Vladimir Putin’s belief that the West poses a credible military threat.
Putin’s archrival warns Europe: Brace for Cold War II whatever happens in Ukraine
Former oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky tells POLITICO why Russia will take decades to get over the “imperialist-military narrative” that Moscow pushes.
www.politico.eu
November 7, 2025 at 6:11 PM
Alas.
I can't imagine a bigger abuse of the notion of homeland security. Not going back to this country any time soon... 😱
October 28, 2025 at 6:48 PM
I can't imagine a bigger abuse of the notion of homeland security. Not going back to this country any time soon... 😱
My latest for Britské listy, a brief review of the film Ken by Nadav Lapid.
blisty.cz/art/129550-t...
blisty.cz/art/129550-t...
Too Close for Comfort: Nadav Lapid’s Film Ken at the Viennale | 28. 10. 2025 | Muriel Blaive | Britské listy
"Ken" means “yes” in Hebrew. But in Nadav Lapid’s latest film, this
single word opens into a moral labyrinth. It can mean agreement,
consent, obedience – t...
blisty.cz
October 28, 2025 at 8:38 AM
My latest for Britské listy, a brief review of the film Ken by Nadav Lapid.
blisty.cz/art/129550-t...
blisty.cz/art/129550-t...
I'm procrastinating and made a diagram of the types of academics I know 😂
October 26, 2025 at 5:14 PM
I'm procrastinating and made a diagram of the types of academics I know 😂
Good!!
From pensioners to Communist party loyalists, people across Russia are daring to stand up to Putin directly.
Putin’s System Begins to Collapse as Russians Finally Dare to Confront Him
From pensioners to Communist party loyalists, people across Russia are daring to stand up to Putin directly.
trib.al
October 24, 2025 at 3:11 PM
Good!!
Talk next week at the CEU also on Zoom here:
ceu-edu.zoom.us/j/9699656622...
Meeting ID: 969 9656 6222
Passcode: 144306
ceu-edu.zoom.us/j/9699656622...
Meeting ID: 969 9656 6222
Passcode: 144306
October 14, 2025 at 9:00 AM
Talk next week at the CEU also on Zoom here:
ceu-edu.zoom.us/j/9699656622...
Meeting ID: 969 9656 6222
Passcode: 144306
ceu-edu.zoom.us/j/9699656622...
Meeting ID: 969 9656 6222
Passcode: 144306
Check out my latest Substack - pics from magnificent Bilbao 😍
murielblaive.substack.com/p/bilbao-pic...
murielblaive.substack.com/p/bilbao-pic...
September 24, 2025 at 12:19 PM
Check out my latest Substack - pics from magnificent Bilbao 😍
murielblaive.substack.com/p/bilbao-pic...
murielblaive.substack.com/p/bilbao-pic...
Impeccable (and terrifying) demonstration.
I spent 10 years in Putin's prisons for the crime of political participation. Now he's counseling Trump about "rigged" elections.
🧵It's not my business to tell Americans how to conduct elections, but taking Putin's advice here is like taking fire safety tips from an arsonist
🧵It's not my business to tell Americans how to conduct elections, but taking Putin's advice here is like taking fire safety tips from an arsonist
August 30, 2025 at 8:39 AM
Impeccable (and terrifying) demonstration.
1st review of my book!
"Blaive's central thesis is that the pandemic-related measures were not merely technocratic necessities, but rather an expression of a profound authoritarian shift within Western democracies."
1bis19.de/politik/reze...
"Blaive's central thesis is that the pandemic-related measures were not merely technocratic necessities, but rather an expression of a profound authoritarian shift within Western democracies."
1bis19.de/politik/reze...
Rezension: Pandemic power (2025)
Die Pandemie-Maßnahmen waren Ausdruck einer tiefgreifenden autoritären Verschiebung innerhalb westlicher Demokratien. Muriel Blaive knüpft an Giorgio Agambens Kritik des Ausnahmezustands an, an Foucau...
1bis19.de
May 19, 2025 at 8:28 PM
1st review of my book!
"Blaive's central thesis is that the pandemic-related measures were not merely technocratic necessities, but rather an expression of a profound authoritarian shift within Western democracies."
1bis19.de/politik/reze...
"Blaive's central thesis is that the pandemic-related measures were not merely technocratic necessities, but rather an expression of a profound authoritarian shift within Western democracies."
1bis19.de/politik/reze...
How to compress 30 years of research in 45 minutes! Or everything you always wanted to know about communism...
Hint: it was not as black and white as you might think 🤨
www.youtube.com/watch?v=TP_t...
Hint: it was not as black and white as you might think 🤨
www.youtube.com/watch?v=TP_t...
Making Visegrad Histories Digital - Video Lecture "Nostalgia and memory"
YouTube video by EuroClio European Association of History Educators
www.youtube.com
May 2, 2025 at 6:43 PM
How to compress 30 years of research in 45 minutes! Or everything you always wanted to know about communism...
Hint: it was not as black and white as you might think 🤨
www.youtube.com/watch?v=TP_t...
Hint: it was not as black and white as you might think 🤨
www.youtube.com/watch?v=TP_t...
Reposted by Muriel Blaive
Easter just passed and so many Christians don’t seem to realize that Jesus Christ was born in a manger (a stable for animals) and died a convict and threat in the eyes of the State. His crucified death was a spectacle for the masses, meant to entertain, educate, discipline, and terrify.
April 21, 2025 at 4:46 PM
Easter just passed and so many Christians don’t seem to realize that Jesus Christ was born in a manger (a stable for animals) and died a convict and threat in the eyes of the State. His crucified death was a spectacle for the masses, meant to entertain, educate, discipline, and terrify.
Oooh, looking forward...
#38Londres at the Austrian Parliament, on 9 May: www.parlament.gv.at/erleben/vera...
Literatur am Ring: Buchpräsentation Philippe Sands „Die Verschwundenen von Londres 38. Über Pinochet in England und einen Nazi in Patagonien.“ | Parlament Österreich
Literatur am Ring: Buchpräsentation Philippe Sands „Die Verschwundenen von Londres 38. Über Pinochet in England und einen Nazi in Patagonien.“
www.parlament.gv.at
April 10, 2025 at 6:48 PM
Oooh, looking forward...
My book has finally come out! Courtesy of the Austrian Science Fund (FWF), it is in open access and can be freely downloaded with the link provided under. Help yourselves!
ceupress.com/book/pandemi...
ceupress.com/book/pandemi...
Pandemic Power
ceupress.com
February 18, 2025 at 12:08 PM
My book has finally come out! Courtesy of the Austrian Science Fund (FWF), it is in open access and can be freely downloaded with the link provided under. Help yourselves!
ceupress.com/book/pandemi...
ceupress.com/book/pandemi...
❤️
Almost 2 hours of Bond -favoured fun for all the family, what's not to like?
#JamesBond
newbooksnetwork.com/the-bondian-...
#JamesBond
newbooksnetwork.com/the-bondian-...
Martin D. Brown et al., "The Bondian Cold War: The Transnational Legacy of a Cultural Icon" (Routledge, 2024) - New Books Network
newbooksnetwork.com
February 9, 2025 at 8:10 AM
❤️
Lol. Only in the US...
Luigi Mangione’s pre-trial judge is married to a former Pfizer executive and holds between $50,000 and $100,000 in stock in other healthcare industry companies, according to a shocking report.
Luigi Mangione Judge Married to Former Healthcare Exec
The judge holds between $50,000 and $100,000 in Pfizer, including stock in other healthcare industry companies.
www.thedailybeast.com
December 23, 2024 at 10:17 PM
Lol. Only in the US...
Reposted by Muriel Blaive
Ordinary Voices Complicate Dominant Narratives of Postsocialist Transition: A Q & A with Editors Jill Massino and Markus Wien - Purdue University Press
Ordinary Voices Complicate Dominant Narratives of Postsocialist Transition: A Q & A with Editors Jill Massino and Markus Wien - Purdue University Press
Q: Could you give a brief description of your book? The book examines East Europeans’ complex experiences of postsocialist transformation, a period of new
buff.ly
September 27, 2024 at 5:00 AM
Ordinary Voices Complicate Dominant Narratives of Postsocialist Transition: A Q & A with Editors Jill Massino and Markus Wien - Purdue University Press
Ronald Reagan surprisingly saying in 1964 that he spent "most of his life as a Democrat." I didn't know he started off as a Democrat, interesting...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXBs...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXBs...
"A Time for Choosing" by Ronald Reagan
YouTube video by Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institute
www.youtube.com
December 19, 2024 at 10:08 AM
Ronald Reagan surprisingly saying in 1964 that he spent "most of his life as a Democrat." I didn't know he started off as a Democrat, interesting...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXBs...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXBs...
Reposted by Muriel Blaive
"For enslaved people, the holiday season was a time for revelry – and a brief window to fight back," check my latest article in @theconversation.com #slaveryarchive theconversation.com/for-enslaved...
For enslaved people, the holiday season was a time for revelry – and a brief window to fight back
Whether it was spent feasting or plotting escapes, the week between Christmas and the new year offered a rare opportunity for enslaved men, women and children to reclaim their humanity.
theconversation.com
December 18, 2024 at 8:54 PM
"For enslaved people, the holiday season was a time for revelry – and a brief window to fight back," check my latest article in @theconversation.com #slaveryarchive theconversation.com/for-enslaved...
If Orban stays in power clearly not, but if the opposition wins why wouldn't Hungary be able to change course? What is this weird attack coming from the team which managed to change course in Poland? I don't get it.
Hungary is likely so far gone in defying EU law and undermining civil society that it won’t be able to change course while Prime Minister Viktor Orbán is in power, Poland’s justice minister warned.
Hungary on path of no return under Orbán, warns Polish minister
And he’s speaking from experience.
www.politico.eu
December 18, 2024 at 7:27 PM
If Orban stays in power clearly not, but if the opposition wins why wouldn't Hungary be able to change course? What is this weird attack coming from the team which managed to change course in Poland? I don't get it.
Getting nearer. And it will be in open access, too, courtesy of FWF!
December 18, 2024 at 6:58 PM
Getting nearer. And it will be in open access, too, courtesy of FWF!
Reposted by Muriel Blaive
Dear Rightwing Americans
Thanks, @johnfugelsang.bsky.social
Thanks, @johnfugelsang.bsky.social
December 15, 2024 at 4:27 AM
Dear Rightwing Americans
Thanks, @johnfugelsang.bsky.social
Thanks, @johnfugelsang.bsky.social
Interesting point.
The taboo on the presence of ex-Stasi in German politics post-1990 has been much stronger than on ex-Nazis in FRG politics post-1945. Chancellor Kurt Georg Kiesinger (1966-1969) joined the Nazis in 1933. Walter Scheel (FDP) Foreign Minister (1969-74) and President (1974-79) joined the NSDAP in 1942.
December 17, 2024 at 7:47 PM
Interesting point.