BioMark is one of the most knowledgeable people on the planet when it comes to everything Russia. He’s the CEO of Mayak Intelligence, he’s a PhD and has served as a professor a multiple schools including NYU and now the University College London School of Slavonic and East European Studies, he’s the author of many books on Russia. Including the recent titles A Short History of Russia and We Need to Talk about Putin How The West Gets Him Wrong.Times1:25 - Intro to Mark4:30 - What it’s like to work in Russia (spoiler: he was shot at once)10:55 - Russian intelligence & USB sticks13:55 - Russian opinion of war in Afghanistan (having been there)19:40 - Monopolized narratives in Russia26:55 - Putin and these narratives30:55 - Do the people of Russia believe the narratives?35:25 - How much impact does the Bolshevik Revolution have on today’s Russia? / Putin’s time in KGB39:10 - Russia’s 3 parties41:25 - Are Russian elections from national to local all shams?43:40 - Navalny background & update57:55 - Russian build up on Ukrainian border1:05:25 - Russian legitimacy through Putin’s eyes1:08:40 - Does Russia need to become more aggressive? / Oil1:15:25 - What is Putin’s endgame?1:16:10 - Is the NHL black card rumor true?LinksMark's twitterMark's blogMark's Recent  Books:A Short History of RussiaWe Need to talk about Putin, How the West gets him Wrong Jeff's twitterNarrativeMonopoly.com