"But whether the global reserve currency is the US dollar, or Pokémon cards, or a digital ruble pegged to borscht, nothing will fundamentally change for Russians if their political elites continue their time-honored tradition of stubbornly refusing to invest in Russia."
The global reserve might even be called a "Unicoin" nah, most likely a "Unicorn" a virtual mythological currency controlled by international financiers floating throughout the planet with the possibility of being capriciously turned off with one tiny click of the finger. 🖕
That being said, everyone not just Russians are at the mercy of bankster/gangsters and techno/fascists.
Oligarchs, deplete Russian resources on the cheap and in the end Russian plebs pay the full price. And in the US,
warprofiteers pillage the treasury so that the debt ceiling is four feet tall for the middle-class, but the sky's the limit for the arms industry and the national security state.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz an obedient vassal to the Global Empire said it best:
"If you are a good leader,” you listen to the people, but you never think they really want you to do exactly what they propose.” A dictum followed by all the mediocre nation-state managers operating within the global cartel.
"judicious public servants and God-fearing 'entrepreneurs' build hospitals and roads and other useful, life-nurturing things." This needs to be true everywhere; it ran out in the US around 1930 or there-about I think. Nobody now living remembers small public hospitals run by hard nosed church and philanthropist boards. Another thought provoking article, thank you.
Wow, I encourage people to look at the uncropped version of the “Novgorod Marketplace” painting Edward used for the Economic Sovereignty article. Or take a look through other artworks from Appolinari Mikhaylovich Vasnetsov.
Edward (or somebody else), how hard of a read is Gogol’s Dead Souls? Nikolai Gogol looks interesting. For Russian literature I’ve only read Tolstoy, Solzhenytsin, Bulgakov, Nabakov. Dostoevsky is somehow too intimidating / I’m afraid to read him. Dunno about Gogol; I haven’t gotten an impression.
The “turn inward” thing is similar to MAGA and populist-right developments in Europe. Seems the elites are hollowing out their countries everywhere, and gobbling up and hoarding assets, and generally being indifferent to needless suffering and death.
Is Russia also turning against its own farmers because of muh climate? Interesting that this seems to be happening mostly just in the Netherlands at the moment.
Good to see you alive and KICKING, Riley, i was getting concerned about your long silence.
While sympathizing with you, i'm afraid i'm gonna have to pour a bucket of cold water here. Mikhail Khazin and his friends are dreaming. There is no going back to autarky, that genie is out of the bottle, the horse has long ran out of the barn. Capitalism can only develop outward, toward unlimited growth, it cannot do de-growth. And those who dream of turning inward are not talking about ditching capitalism, so there is no way for their fantasies to come true.
Russia's oligarchs and managers are committed to globalization because they are committed to keeping the capitalist social relations now dominating Russian society in existence. They are NOT about taking care of the people. No ruling elite in the world is. They are mere personifications of chunks of capital which they are managing, and failure to make their chunk of capital grow as fast as possible would result in them being thrown on the scrapheap and replaced.
Well, there's a bigger chance they somehow set up a holographic show of some guy floating down from the sky: the Saviour come to save us all.
Then again, "iron-fisted communist dictator" Stalin agreed to create the UN on a plot of Rockefeller land in Jew York, and then rushed to be the first to salute the creation of the Rothschild neocolony in British Palestine. Russia's current greatest ally (China) has more Disneylands than the European part of terrorist USEUNATO conglomerate, that's how willing to look inward the patriotic and sovereign Russian political management class are.
Not that that's new, though, Russia decided to fight 2 world wars allied with the ones that crushed it in the Crimean war, ultimately losing 1/4 of the Russian/Soviet empire and barely keeping Kaliningrad.
Here's yet another latest masterstroke of multipolarity (choreographed with NATO's second largest member who just rubberstamped the addition of Finland and Sweden.)
19 May, 17:42
Grain deal was extended due to Turkey’s ‘special relations’ with Putin — Erdogan
wow no gas in schools and hospitals. what? are russians living in the stone age. it freezes in russia year round. w.t.f. i live in united states of america. we have heat in schools and in hospitals. i am very sad for russians.
Putin should have chatted to realestate salespersons and they would have told him the golden rule, "never do business with a school teacher, a Christian, or an Indian". All three entities can be relied upon to renege on deals and Indians, in particular, will backdoor you every time.
Happily for Russia, school teachers are scarce on the oil market but Christian UK and US will not be satisfied until their evangelism has wiped Russia off the map. And, no, you cannot be Christian Russia because as every American knows, you are all godless and Satan's spawn.
Meanwhile, one might think that Indians would be mindful that Russia supported their drive for independence while other nations offered a smiley cringe to the City of London. But, no, that is not the Hindu way. A truck load of untouchable rupees constitutes India's undying gratitude because they still dream of ruling the world hand-in-hand with America. Yes they are that delusional. Read the 'letters to the editor' column of any Indian newspaper. This is the real Voice of India.
My comment/conclusion under Rolo's article [1] applies here as well: Russia is still occupied and Putin is colonial administrator.
[1] Interview with Andrei Tsiganov, a journalist and popular conservative-patriot in Russia about 10 days ago. Tsiganov’s “Katyusha” news portal is a good source for alternative patriotic viewpoints from within Russia.: https://roloslavskiy.substack.com/p/russias-elites-are-suffering-from
"A Russian government audit published in 2020 found that hundreds medical facilities across the country were without running water or central heating."
The critical detail here is what counts as a medical building and a medical building with outpatient care. There's a huge difference (>5 times) between these two categories. Also, they could be counting even little sheds with nonmedical equipment inside and just enough space for two people to pass by each other. The linked article mentions warehouses and garages, which probably don't need water, sewage, or heating. Grifters with contractor businesses would, I'm sure, like to raise a great hue and cry about sheds and garages not having these comforts for the shovels, brooms, and gas cans.
Riley, another excellent report, written in your usual knowledgeable style infused with your signature humor----am so glad I renewed my subscription.
"But whether the global reserve currency is the US dollar, or Pokémon cards, or a digital ruble pegged to borscht, nothing will fundamentally change for Russians if their political elites continue their time-honored tradition of stubbornly refusing to invest in Russia."
The global reserve might even be called a "Unicoin" nah, most likely a "Unicorn" a virtual mythological currency controlled by international financiers floating throughout the planet with the possibility of being capriciously turned off with one tiny click of the finger. 🖕
That being said, everyone not just Russians are at the mercy of bankster/gangsters and techno/fascists.
Oligarchs, deplete Russian resources on the cheap and in the end Russian plebs pay the full price. And in the US,
warprofiteers pillage the treasury so that the debt ceiling is four feet tall for the middle-class, but the sky's the limit for the arms industry and the national security state.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz an obedient vassal to the Global Empire said it best:
"If you are a good leader,” you listen to the people, but you never think they really want you to do exactly what they propose.” A dictum followed by all the mediocre nation-state managers operating within the global cartel.
"judicious public servants and God-fearing 'entrepreneurs' build hospitals and roads and other useful, life-nurturing things." This needs to be true everywhere; it ran out in the US around 1930 or there-about I think. Nobody now living remembers small public hospitals run by hard nosed church and philanthropist boards. Another thought provoking article, thank you.
Wow, I encourage people to look at the uncropped version of the “Novgorod Marketplace” painting Edward used for the Economic Sovereignty article. Or take a look through other artworks from Appolinari Mikhaylovich Vasnetsov.
Edward (or somebody else), how hard of a read is Gogol’s Dead Souls? Nikolai Gogol looks interesting. For Russian literature I’ve only read Tolstoy, Solzhenytsin, Bulgakov, Nabakov. Dostoevsky is somehow too intimidating / I’m afraid to read him. Dunno about Gogol; I haven’t gotten an impression.
The “turn inward” thing is similar to MAGA and populist-right developments in Europe. Seems the elites are hollowing out their countries everywhere, and gobbling up and hoarding assets, and generally being indifferent to needless suffering and death.
Is Russia also turning against its own farmers because of muh climate? Interesting that this seems to be happening mostly just in the Netherlands at the moment.
Pretty much the same in China and US, methinks.
WWIII is the Plutocrats against the people.
Great piece, thanks.
Good to see you alive and KICKING, Riley, i was getting concerned about your long silence.
While sympathizing with you, i'm afraid i'm gonna have to pour a bucket of cold water here. Mikhail Khazin and his friends are dreaming. There is no going back to autarky, that genie is out of the bottle, the horse has long ran out of the barn. Capitalism can only develop outward, toward unlimited growth, it cannot do de-growth. And those who dream of turning inward are not talking about ditching capitalism, so there is no way for their fantasies to come true.
Russia's oligarchs and managers are committed to globalization because they are committed to keeping the capitalist social relations now dominating Russian society in existence. They are NOT about taking care of the people. No ruling elite in the world is. They are mere personifications of chunks of capital which they are managing, and failure to make their chunk of capital grow as fast as possible would result in them being thrown on the scrapheap and replaced.
Dedollarization is meaningless without dedeuteronomization (15:6).
Well, there's a bigger chance they somehow set up a holographic show of some guy floating down from the sky: the Saviour come to save us all.
Then again, "iron-fisted communist dictator" Stalin agreed to create the UN on a plot of Rockefeller land in Jew York, and then rushed to be the first to salute the creation of the Rothschild neocolony in British Palestine. Russia's current greatest ally (China) has more Disneylands than the European part of terrorist USEUNATO conglomerate, that's how willing to look inward the patriotic and sovereign Russian political management class are.
Not that that's new, though, Russia decided to fight 2 world wars allied with the ones that crushed it in the Crimean war, ultimately losing 1/4 of the Russian/Soviet empire and barely keeping Kaliningrad.
Here's yet another latest masterstroke of multipolarity (choreographed with NATO's second largest member who just rubberstamped the addition of Finland and Sweden.)
19 May, 17:42
Grain deal was extended due to Turkey’s ‘special relations’ with Putin — Erdogan
https://tass.com/economy/1620389
That was an excellent (and illuminating) thought experiment you provided at the beginning my friend, great work.
Excellent analysis indeed, it demolishes putin's económic " Miracle"
wow no gas in schools and hospitals. what? are russians living in the stone age. it freezes in russia year round. w.t.f. i live in united states of america. we have heat in schools and in hospitals. i am very sad for russians.
istinipravoslavnizhdot
Putin should have chatted to realestate salespersons and they would have told him the golden rule, "never do business with a school teacher, a Christian, or an Indian". All three entities can be relied upon to renege on deals and Indians, in particular, will backdoor you every time.
Happily for Russia, school teachers are scarce on the oil market but Christian UK and US will not be satisfied until their evangelism has wiped Russia off the map. And, no, you cannot be Christian Russia because as every American knows, you are all godless and Satan's spawn.
Meanwhile, one might think that Indians would be mindful that Russia supported their drive for independence while other nations offered a smiley cringe to the City of London. But, no, that is not the Hindu way. A truck load of untouchable rupees constitutes India's undying gratitude because they still dream of ruling the world hand-in-hand with America. Yes they are that delusional. Read the 'letters to the editor' column of any Indian newspaper. This is the real Voice of India.
Thanks for this. All totally new information to me and valuable pertinent to the times information.
Great article Riley! Thanks for the insights.
My comment/conclusion under Rolo's article [1] applies here as well: Russia is still occupied and Putin is colonial administrator.
[1] Interview with Andrei Tsiganov, a journalist and popular conservative-patriot in Russia about 10 days ago. Tsiganov’s “Katyusha” news portal is a good source for alternative patriotic viewpoints from within Russia.: https://roloslavskiy.substack.com/p/russias-elites-are-suffering-from
"A Russian government audit published in 2020 found that hundreds medical facilities across the country were without running water or central heating."
The critical detail here is what counts as a medical building and a medical building with outpatient care. There's a huge difference (>5 times) between these two categories. Also, they could be counting even little sheds with nonmedical equipment inside and just enough space for two people to pass by each other. The linked article mentions warehouses and garages, which probably don't need water, sewage, or heating. Grifters with contractor businesses would, I'm sure, like to raise a great hue and cry about sheds and garages not having these comforts for the shovels, brooms, and gas cans.