Social Organization and Exchange in Rural Russia  January 28,
2001 // 11:00pm  By Jodi Koehn  "RRussian villagers operate
primarily outside the market economy, making the Russian village
the safest place in the country for economic survival, remarked
Margaret Paxson at a 29 January 2001 lecture at the Kennan
Institute. Paxson, a Title VIII-Sponsored Research Scholar at
the Kennan Institute, continued to say that villagers are able
to either grow or obtain much of what is needed for survival.
This lack of dependency on the market, Paxson stated, reinforces
the self-sufficiency of the village.  One of the most popular
ways of obtaining what one needs is through exchange, which
comes in several forms. Goods and services are often offered in
exchange for goods and services. Money is useful, but can be an
uncomfortable form of capital, particularly in certain contexts,
Paxson noted. The symbolism of "money" inherited negative
connotations during the Soviet period. Within the ideology of
socialism, the desire for m