Sanctions on Russia

https://www.wsj.com/articles/energy-crisis-updates-news

In Berlin, officials are dimming about 1,400 lights in public spaces and at major landmarks. Over in Munich, they've actually cut off hot water in government offices, and most of the city's fountains aren't running at night anymore. They've even shut down half the traffic lights when it isn't rush hour.

isn't looking good

https://tradingeconomics.com/commodity/coal

What a tragic chart. 🤣

Nathan Thomas12 said:According to the official data of the US government, US oil and gas revenues in July fell by 22%, while everything else dropped by about 29%. The biggest hit was domestic sales tax—down nearly 41%—which pretty much screams that American spending power is cratering. On top of that, budget revenue from income taxes (down 32%) and import duties (down 44%) has basically just collapsed.

Income tax down 32%
Domestic VAT down 41%
It seems like Americans aren't feeling the weight of these sanctions at all...
Or, at the very least, they aren't feeling it any more than a German dealing with those fountain maintenance issues during the night shifts...

Michelle Nelson4 said:Income tax down 32%
Domestic VAT down 41%
It seems like Americans aren't feeling the weight of these sanctions at all...
Or, at the very least, they aren't feeling it any more than a German dealing with those fountain maintenance issues during the night shifts...

Germans are bracing for the absolute worst-case scenario.

Meanwhile, Putin acts like everything is just fine, like there isn't even a tomorrow.

Here's some recent news that doesn't look great for Russia:

Source:


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The Czech Republic, currently holding the presidency of the European Council, has announced that a blanket ban on visas for all Russian citizens across the entire European Union could be the next step in the ongoing sanctions against Russia

Terry Hernandez10 said:The Czech Republic, currently holding the presidency of the European Council, has announced that a blanket ban on visas for all Russian citizens across the entire European Union could be the next step in the ongoing sanctions against Russia

It’s honestly nauseating—just seeing them traveling around like nothing even happened. Like, they're just out there living their best lives while everything is falling apart. It makes me sick.

Arthur Miller7 said:It’s honestly nauseating—just seeing them traveling around like nothing even happened. Like, they're just out there living their best lives while everything is falling apart. It makes me sick.

I actually think that's a mistake.

It’s just going to fuel more hatred toward the European Union and everything else. It’ll backfire.

Take the way Germany was split into East and West back in the day, for example.

West Germany wasn't out there actively denying anything to the East because the people in power were the ones being supported; instead, the folks in the East realized for themselves that life was just better in the West, so they started heading over there.
They couldn't really influence their own government—that only started happening once the leadership realized they’d lost their grip on the people. But in Russia, any kind of protest is strictly forbidden.

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electricsurfer47 said:I actually think that's a mistake.

It’s just going to fuel more hatred toward the European Union and everything else. It’ll backfire.

Take the way Germany was split into East and West back in the day, for example.

West Germany wasn't out there actively denying anything to the East because the people in power were the ones being supported; instead, the folks in the East realized for themselves that life was just better in the West, so they started heading over there.
They couldn't really influence their own government—that only started happening once the leadership realized they’d lost their grip on the people. But in Russia, any kind of protest is strictly forbidden.

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And? I mean, back then, could you even travel across the border without any trouble?

I was just sitting here thinking about how much things have changed lately, and I couldn't help but wonder if anyone else feels that same sense of drifting through these shifting tides... It’s funny how life works sometimes, isn't it? One moment you think you have everything mapped out, and the next, you're just navigating through a fog of uncertainty, trying to find your footing again... anyway, I suppose I'm just rambling now, but there really is something quite profound about the way we all just try to move forward, regardless of what the world throws our way... quietviper0 says:
The Czech Republic, which is currently holding the presidency of the European Council, just put out a statement suggesting that they might... There’s some talk swirling around about the possibility of the European Union deciding to prohibit all visa issuances for Russian citizens, which would be quite the significant next step in the ongoing series of sanctions being leveled against Russia... It feels like we are constantly watching these pieces move on the chessboard, waiting to see what the next big legislative push will be from the leadership in Brussels...

Another absolutely brilliant idea just popped up, really sitting right up there on the same level of genius as that wonderful proposal to prohibit Russians from paying off their debts...

I mean, there’s also the possibility that they might just hike up the visa fees and shorten the duration, which would essentially be a way to squeeze more foreign currency out of them... it makes you wonder if that's all part of the underlying strategy...
And then they just let them wander all over Europe for their summer vacations and shopping sprees, which really just means letting all that hard-earned cash leak right back out of the country again...
There is this persistent theory floating around that the whole point behind all these sanctions is actually just to get its hands on foreign currency reserves... which is such a fascinatingly complex angle to consider when you really start digging into the geopolitical motivations involved...

Or perhaps they’ll just end up easing that massive brain drain everyone keeps talking about, which is supposedly one of the main goals behind all these sanctions anyway...

Oh, you know, it really is just so much simpler to just stand up there and shout, "Prohibit !!!"... it's almost effortless when you put it that way...
Actually, I’ve been thinking about it, and it seems to me that those kinds of official proclamations usually end up garnering much more praise and adoration from the target audience than anything else...

quietviper0 said:

I was just sitting here thinking about how much things have changed lately, and I couldn't help but wonder if anyone else feels that same sense of drifting through these shifting tides... It’s funny how life works sometimes, isn't it? One moment you think you have everything mapped out, and the next, you're just navigating through a fog of uncertainty, trying to find your footing again... anyway, I suppose I'm just rambling now, but there really is something quite profound about the way we all just try to move forward, regardless of what the world throws our way... quietviper0 says:
The Czech Republic, which is currently holding the presidency of the European Council, just put out a statement suggesting that they might... There’s some talk swirling around about the possibility of the European Union deciding to prohibit all visa issuances for Russian citizens, which would be quite the significant next step in the ongoing series of sanctions being leveled against Russia... It feels like we are constantly watching these pieces move on the chessboard, waiting to see what the next big legislative push will be from the leadership in Brussels...

Another absolutely brilliant idea just popped up, really sitting right up there on the same level of genius as that wonderful proposal to prohibit Russians from paying off their debts...

I mean, there’s also the possibility that they might just hike up the visa fees and shorten the duration, which would essentially be a way to squeeze more foreign currency out of them... it makes you wonder if that's all part of the underlying strategy...
And then they just let them wander all over Europe for their summer vacations and shopping sprees, which really just means letting all that hard-earned cash leak right back out of the country again...
There is this persistent theory floating around that the whole point behind all these sanctions is actually just to get its hands on foreign currency reserves... which is such a fascinatingly complex angle to consider when you really start digging into the geopolitical motivations involved...

Or perhaps they’ll just end up easing that massive brain drain everyone keeps talking about, which is supposedly one of the main goals behind all these sanctions anyway...

Oh, you know, it really is just so much simpler to just stand up there and shout, "Prohibit !!!"... it's almost effortless when you put it that way...
Actually, I’ve been thinking about it, and it seems to me that those kinds of official proclamations usually end up garnering much more praise and adoration from the target audience than anything else...

What about all those tough Russians over in Germany protesting against Putin?

Nathan Thomas12 said:What about all those tough Russians over in Germany protesting against Putin?

I’m having a little trouble wrapping my head around how banning Russians from entering the Schengen Area would have anything at all to do with pro-Putin protests happening somewhere else...

Are they really so flush with cash and resources that they can just ship hordes of people across the EU for quick day trips just to stage demonstrations?

Or are those hundreds of thousands of people we keep hearing about—the ones used to argue that sanctions are working because people are fleeing Putin—actually just his loyalists after all?
Or is it that any future potential influx of those hundreds of thousands will turn into Putin's players if we don't move quickly to prohibit !!! their entry?

I guess I'm just wondering, what is the actual logic behind linking this potential ban to those protests... maybe it's just lost on me...

I mean, back when Russia invaded Georgia, Navalny was actually calling for all Georgians to be deported from Russia, even using some pretty nasty slurs against them.
That post is still sitting there on his now-defunct LiveJournal account if you want to see it.

https://navalny.livejournal.com/274456.html

Luckily, the internet never forgets. It’s also a perfect example of how Russian politicians follow that old saying about a wolf never changing its coat—just a little something for anyone out there thinking Navalny would have been some kind of better alternative (he’s actually held similar views regarding Crimea, viewing it as Russian territory too).

And honestly, since they keep blowing their own trumpets about being at war with the West, why can't they just travel through the West? If they aren't happy with how things are going, maybe they should focus on dealing with whoever is running their own country and how they're steering the ship.

hollowdriver13 said:I mean, back when Russia invaded Georgia, Navalny was actually calling for all Georgians to be deported from Russia, even using some pretty nasty slurs against them.
That post is still sitting there on his now-defunct LiveJournal account if you want to see it.

https://navalny.livejournal.com/274456.html

Luckily, the internet never forgets. It’s also a perfect example of how Russian politicians follow that old saying about a wolf never changing its coat—just a little something for anyone out there thinking Navalny would have been some kind of better alternative (he’s actually held similar views regarding Crimea, viewing it as Russian territory too).

And honestly, since they keep blowing their own trumpets about being at war with the West, why can't they just travel through the West? If they aren't happy with how things are going, maybe they should focus on dealing with whoever is running their own country and how they're steering the ship.

Look, I’m certainly not against implementing something if there’s actual logic behind it, but I can't help feeling like nobody actually views this as a realistic scenario... It just seems a bit pointless to roll out a measure when you already suspect from the get-go that it won't actually achieve anything meaningful...

Furthermore, one has to wonder why we're even patting ourselves on the back for all those experts and brilliant minds who have managed to escape Putin's reach thanks to sanctions... It would probably make much more sense to address that issue immediately instead of treating it like a victory, and then maybe start figuring out ways to gently nudge them back toward home...

All these sanctions are just forcing Russia to stop relying on the West long-term. They’re going to build up their own economies and high-tech industries. Sure, there will be a massive crisis for the next 5 to 10 years, but once the economy transforms, things get a lot easier.

Oh, please. I’m telling you, the Russians are going to end up transforming that thing before you know it

hiddeneagle98 said:Oh, please. I’m telling you, the Russians are going to end up transforming that thing before you know it

Russia has plenty of capacity to handle sanctions; this is a long game they've been playing. Their social networks, banking systems, and digitalization are already top-tier. I expect them to start churning out their own computer and mobile tech in a few years. The Russian economy used to be way too monolithic, and that was always a massive weakness.

The real question is what happens to Ukraine. My bet? Nothing. It’ll be a total wreck—demographically, structurally, economically, and morally. They've plummeted below 30 million people, down from 54 million just thirty years ago.

Betty Mitchell said:All these sanctions are just forcing Russia to stop relying on the West long-term. They’re going to build up their own economies and high-tech industries. Sure, there will be a massive crisis for the next 5 to 10 years, but once the economy transforms, things get a lot easier.

Wait, what? 🤔

What, are they planning to power the whole thing with Perpetual Motion?

Gregory Ramos3 said:Wait, what? 🤔

What, are they planning to power the whole thing with Perpetual Motion?

They already have.

Betty Mitchell said:Russia has plenty of capacity to handle sanctions; this is a long game they've been playing. Their social networks, banking systems, and digitalization are already top-tier. I expect them to start churning out their own computer and mobile tech in a few years. The Russian economy used to be way too monolithic, and that was always a massive weakness.

The real question is what happens to Ukraine. My bet? Nothing. It’ll be a total wreck—demographically, structurally, economically, and morally. They've plummeted below 30 million people, down from 54 million just thirty years ago.

What kind of capacity though? So far they've burned through so much trying to stabilize the ruble and now they're tapped out.
You talk about chip manufacturing... sure, they have technology that's over 20 years old. They can make stuff, but it's just not competitive compared to what's out there right now.
And for newer tech, you need massive investment, and the Russians just don't have the cash for it. Plus, you have to consider they're spending a ton on the war and will eventually need to rebuild everything they've lost, but they won't even have enough chips because of the sanctions.