Sanctions on Russia

rowdyraven112 said:The bottom line? The market sets the price. Farmers are telling us that planting wheat hasn't been profitable lately; production costs are eating the sales price alive. At least, that’s how it’s been. The only thing keeping some people afloat is government subsidies. Essentially, the government is footing the bill to ensure food security. Right now, global wheat reserves are low, which means prices are climbing regardless of how much effort farmers put into the soil. It'll sell at whatever the market demands. But next year? Who knows. Costs could rise while prices tank. That’s when the government steps in again to bail out wheat production. This isn't just an American issue; it happens everywhere. Honestly, I can't think of a single country where wheat farming is consistently profitable without state intervention.

There is very little margin in wheat or corn. You need massive acreage and high yield just to survive. Only a tiny fraction of farmers actually manage that scale. On the flip side, expecting to make a living off such crops with only a few acres is naive. For them, any subsidy amount is merely survival money—social welfare, really—not capital for expansion. For small-scale producers, almost any buyback price is a losing game because their fixed overhead is already too high to cover. Those with limited land should have pivoted to different types of production, but that requires specialized knowledge, marketing expertise, and a host of other skills. If they possessed those capabilities, they would already be among the large-scale operators. Opportunities existed, but that window is closing or has already slammed shut. At this stage, you simply work with the resources you have left.

Nancy Gomez26 said:There is very little margin in wheat or corn. You need massive acreage and high yield just to survive. Only a tiny fraction of farmers actually manage that scale. On the flip side, expecting to make a living off such crops with only a few acres is naive. For them, any subsidy amount is merely survival money—social welfare, really—not capital for expansion. For small-scale producers, almost any buyback price is a losing game because their fixed overhead is already too high to cover. Those with limited land should have pivoted to different types of production, but that requires specialized knowledge, marketing expertise, and a host of other skills. If they possessed those capabilities, they would already be among the large-scale operators. Opportunities existed, but that window is closing or has already slammed shut. At this stage, you simply work with the resources you have left.

I was listening to The New York Times, and Novotny mentioned that even though it looks like we produce twice as much wheat as we actually need, about 90% of it is diverted to livestock feed rather than bread... which means we end up importing much more expensive, high-quality wheat specifically suited for our domestic bakeries, driving up the cost of bread and other flour-based goods everywhere.

Then you have some advisor from the Department of Agriculture trying to dispute that, though even they have to admit that we are importing significant amounts of wheat...

Nancy Gomez26 said:There is very little margin in wheat or corn. You need massive acreage and high yield just to survive. Only a tiny fraction of farmers actually manage that scale. On the flip side, expecting to make a living off such crops with only a few acres is naive. For them, any subsidy amount is merely survival money—social welfare, really—not capital for expansion. For small-scale producers, almost any buyback price is a losing game because their fixed overhead is already too high to cover. Those with limited land should have pivoted to different types of production, but that requires specialized knowledge, marketing expertise, and a host of other skills. If they possessed those capabilities, they would already be among the large-scale operators. Opportunities existed, but that window is closing or has already slammed shut. At this stage, you simply work with the resources you have left.

So, how many acres is this guy in that Small town in the Midwest actually farming, considering he dropped nearly $5 million on a new tractor? He even went as far as telling reporters—which feels a bit dishonest if you ask me—that the machine would pay for itself in four or five years just by cutting down on labor costs.

He must be planting marijuana then, since you're claiming there's no money to be made in corn or wheat.

Now, I see a colleague mentioning that ExxonMobil isn't using Russian oil, which makes me wonder why there's been a massive oil tanker sitting anchored right outside of Urine for days. To make things weirder, the people at the refinery in Urine called it "Čermak," which, as everyone knows, is the entity Crodux sold to ExxonMobil.

I'm just a simple guy who usually fills up at Shell, but all that blue diesel comes straight from the Urine refinery.
I mean, at least half of it is ours, so the government should at least get a little cut from it.

Maybe that's why my engine coughs every once in a while. Or maybe it's just the guys on my boat consuming too much beer, because they claim they can see Putin's face staring back at them in the exhaust smoke.

Have you noticed anything strange, or have your local folks seen any bloody figures appearing in the exhaust fumes?

I heard a rumor that starting next year, foreign investors will be allowed to buy up land here in the States.

Given how much the Midwest region has been hollowed out lately, I'm genuinely curious to see who is actually going to swoop in and settle there.
And man, imagine the chaos if we hadn't imposed those sanctions on Russia.

We all know how things ought to be done, regardless of the consequences.🙏

The Russians are claiming they can't deliver gas because of some random pump failure, all while General Electric refuses to step in and fix it.

It turns out they don't even have the tech to handle basic gas transport, let alone manage drilling operations without Western expertise (just look at what happened in Venezuela)

brightheron64 said:I was listening to The New York Times, and Novotny mentioned that even though it looks like we produce twice as much wheat as we actually need, about 90% of it is diverted to livestock feed rather than bread... which means we end up importing much more expensive, high-quality wheat specifically suited for our domestic bakeries, driving up the cost of bread and other flour-based goods everywhere.

Then you have some advisor from the Department of Agriculture trying to dispute that, though even they have to admit that we are importing significant amounts of wheat...

It isn't just the wheat, either; it's everything from those frozen dough pucks you find at the grocery store, which you just pop in an infrared oven to get that "freshly baked" warmth on demand.

Honestly, who has the energy for all that? Getting up early is a struggle—you know that old saying, "the early bird catches the worm," or something along those lines,
but since we aren't professional bakers or anything close to being crazy enough to wake up at dawn,
we just rely on those convenience items. When vendors see there's a demand for "fresh" bread, they just stash it in the freezer, and in a matter of minutes, you've got something warm that supposedly warms your patriotic heart during those freezing winter days.🙏

William Anderson5 said:The Russians are claiming they can't deliver gas because of some random pump failure, all while General Electric refuses to step in and fix it.

It turns out they don't even have the tech to handle basic gas transport, let alone manage drilling operations without Western expertise (just look at what happened in Venezuela)

It isn't exactly difficult to smuggle in pumps or any other equipment through a third party, especially when those countries are India and China. What is General Electric going to do, slap them with sanctions? 😁

William Anderson5 said:The Russians are claiming they can't deliver gas because of some random pump failure, all while General Electric refuses to step in and fix it.

It turns out they don't even have the tech to handle basic gas transport, let alone manage drilling operations without Western expertise (just look at what happened in Venezuela)

What's all the rush about? It’s like they say, there's no sense in hurrying when the devil's already gone and taken the whole damn press.

Honestly, I don't think there's any real pressure for Russia to hurry up and fix their energy situation; they actually have more than enough supply to go around.😁

urbanotter said:What's all the rush about? It’s like they say, there's no sense in hurrying when the devil's already gone and taken the whole damn press.

Honestly, I don't think there's any real pressure for Russia to hurry up and fix their energy situation; they actually have more than enough supply to go around.😁

If they don't actually need it, I don't get why Russia seems so obsessed with what happens to Europeans.

It honestly touches my heart how much Medvedev worries about Europeans having to pay higher prices for gas instead of just taking cheap Russian supply. I'm practically moved to tears by how much the Russians seem to care about the welfare of Europeans...

brightheron64 said:I was listening to The New York Times, and Novotny mentioned that even though it looks like we produce twice as much wheat as we actually need, about 90% of it is diverted to livestock feed rather than bread... which means we end up importing much more expensive, high-quality wheat specifically suited for our domestic bakeries, driving up the cost of bread and other flour-based goods everywhere.

Then you have some advisor from the Department of Agriculture trying to dispute that, though even they have to admit that we are importing significant amounts of wheat...

There is feed wheat, sure, but the vast majority of production is indeed bread wheat. Even then, there’s a distinction; you have hard and soft varieties, high-quality types with better "improvers," and lower-grade options. Millers understand the ratios better than anyone when it comes to grinding them into flour. In our country, we could likely grow most of those premium varieties, but since they yield less, they would require higher payouts and separate handling from the standard stock. No buyer wants to deal with that headache—mostly because there aren't enough buyers yet, so they can afford to be picky. But specialized production requires specialized contracts, specific seed preparation, and strict oversight from the start. It’s possible, but it’s extra work that requires an extra margin to make it worth someone’s while. The Italians are masters at these niches. That’s exactly why their grain processing and pasta industries are so renowned.
Bread prices are rising simply because global wheat prices are rising. Since we operate on a completely open market, we pay that global rate. If there aren't buyers here at that price, there are plenty of buyers abroad. For our producers, it doesn't matter who the buyer is, as long as they pay the agreed amount—but it matters deeply to us what that buyback price is.

urbanotter said:So, how many acres is this guy in that Small town in the Midwest actually farming, considering he dropped nearly $5 million on a new tractor? He even went as far as telling reporters—which feels a bit dishonest if you ask me—that the machine would pay for itself in four or five years just by cutting down on labor costs.

He must be planting marijuana then, since you're claiming there's no money to be made in corn or wheat.

Now, I see a colleague mentioning that ExxonMobil isn't using Russian oil, which makes me wonder why there's been a massive oil tanker sitting anchored right outside of Urine for days. To make things weirder, the people at the refinery in Urine called it "Čermak," which, as everyone knows, is the entity Crodux sold to ExxonMobil.

I'm just a simple guy who usually fills up at Shell, but all that blue diesel comes straight from the Urine refinery.
I mean, at least half of it is ours, so the government should at least get a little cut from it.

Maybe that's why my engine coughs every once in a while. Or maybe it's just the guys on my boat consuming too much beer, because they claim they can see Putin's face staring back at them in the exhaust smoke.

Have you noticed anything strange, or have your local folks seen any bloody figures appearing in the exhaust fumes?

I heard a rumor that starting next year, foreign investors will be allowed to buy up land here in the States.

Given how much the Midwest region has been hollowed out lately, I'm genuinely curious to see who is actually going to swoop in and settle there.
And man, imagine the chaos if we hadn't imposed those sanctions on Russia.

We all know how things ought to be done, regardless of the consequences.🙏

The folks out there purchasing those top-of-the-line machines usually pull it off through capital investment tax credits. That sticker price you see? That’s just the starting point. Once the subsidies kick in, the actual cost drops by anywhere from 40% to 90%. Of course, that percentage fluctuates wildly depending on how close you are to the drilling sites or which specific district you operate in. When you're looking at a potential 90% rebate, the logic becomes simple: why wouldn't you buy the most expensive model available? Even if you don't strictly need the extra capacity, it doesn't matter. You get to spend a few days acting like the big shot in a small Midwestern town. And for some people, that status is everything. Honestly, if you're going to play the game, you might as well go all in.

The Midwest region was sold off long ago. There isn't a single acre of free land left to buy, yet prices have been climbing steadily for years. We aren't quite at Western European levels yet, but the trajectory is unmistakable. To survive in today's economy, you have to maintain high productivity—which means farming massive acreage—otherwise, you’re invisible. You might as well walk away rather than operate at a loss only to drown in debt. Rationality in investment is the only way forward. It is pure folly to sink capital into machinery if those machines spend most of their time sitting idle in a shed. The more hours they pull throughout the year, the better the ROI. At the end of the day, every producer has to engineer their own setup to suit their specific needs.

We have implemented sanctions, just like any other civilized nation that refuses to tolerate aggression in Europe during the 21st century. I have no idea how this will all play out in the end—but we are operating on a very simple principle here. If the Russians want to indulge their delusions, they can try to realize them somewhere else; at least they actually have territory to work with. Ultimately, everything rests on the Ukrainians. If they want their independence, they’ve unfortunately been forced into a position where they must die to achieve it. We are here to help as much as we possibly can, but they will undoubtedly bear the heaviest burden. That goes for them, and for every Russian soldier whom Putin has sent straight to a slaughterhouse.

William Anderson5 said:If they don't actually need it, I don't get why Russia seems so obsessed with what happens to Europeans.

It honestly touches my heart how much Medvedev worries about Europeans having to pay higher prices for gas instead of just taking cheap Russian supply. I'm practically moved to tears by how much the Russians seem to care about the welfare of Europeans...

Honestly, who ever said Russians care about Europeans? They care about themselves, and frankly, they couldn't care less about anyone else. It’s only the Americans who pretend to "care" about the Europeans, while Europe ends up drowning in the mess caused by all that supposed concern.

Lately, though, I’ve been thinking that Ursulica might have actually come up with a brilliant master plan to finally get rid of Putin.
I mean, look at the situation—it's like a massive drip feed system over in the States, where they claim to be these capable geniuses, yet they insist there won't be any real progress or supply until September.
Now, they’re dealing with those Siemens pumps breaking down, but because of all these sanctions, they can't even get them fixed properly.

At this point, Putin must be laughing his head off; he can barely contain it, and it feels like it’s only a matter of time before he completely loses it. Even without all that uncontrollable laughter, the man is already fighting against a dozen terminal and incurable illnesses.
Between the threat of Alzheimer's, the tremors from Parkinson's, or even just the physical toll of whatever health issues he's facing, there's a very high chance he's dealing with something like lizard cancer.

There isn't anything truly "brilliant" about Ursulica's strategy; you just have to stay patient until December. By then, there won't even be anyone left to come up with these "genius" sanctions, because everyone will have been wiped out like flies.🙏

Nancy Gomez26 said:The folks out there purchasing those top-of-the-line machines usually pull it off through capital investment tax credits. That sticker price you see? That’s just the starting point. Once the subsidies kick in, the actual cost drops by anywhere from 40% to 90%. Of course, that percentage fluctuates wildly depending on how close you are to the drilling sites or which specific district you operate in. When you're looking at a potential 90% rebate, the logic becomes simple: why wouldn't you buy the most expensive model available? Even if you don't strictly need the extra capacity, it doesn't matter. You get to spend a few days acting like the big shot in a small Midwestern town. And for some people, that status is everything. Honestly, if you're going to play the game, you might as well go all in.

The Midwest region was sold off long ago. There isn't a single acre of free land left to buy, yet prices have been climbing steadily for years. We aren't quite at Western European levels yet, but the trajectory is unmistakable. To survive in today's economy, you have to maintain high productivity—which means farming massive acreage—otherwise, you’re invisible. You might as well walk away rather than operate at a loss only to drown in debt. Rationality in investment is the only way forward. It is pure folly to sink capital into machinery if those machines spend most of their time sitting idle in a shed. The more hours they pull throughout the year, the better the ROI. At the end of the day, every producer has to engineer their own setup to suit their specific needs.

We have implemented sanctions, just like any other civilized nation that refuses to tolerate aggression in Europe during the 21st century. I have no idea how this will all play out in the end—but we are operating on a very simple principle here. If the Russians want to indulge their delusions, they can try to realize them somewhere else; at least they actually have territory to work with. Ultimately, everything rests on the Ukrainians. If they want their independence, they’ve unfortunately been forced into a position where they must die to achieve it. We are here to help as much as we possibly can, but they will undoubtedly bear the heaviest burden. That goes for them, and for every Russian soldier whom Putin has sent straight to a slaughterhouse.

I don't really have anything else to add.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?f...2756587&type=3

civilized 🙏🙏

p.s.

you could be out there with a real tractor, sitting in the shade under an oak tree, sipping a cold beer
while he just keeps plowing and plowing, and you can't talk him out of it until he's burned through every last drop of diesel.

Quinn:

10,000 driverless tractors coming soon to Russia—all produced for the domestic market. The John Deere autonomous tractor will allow for robotic control over all farming operations, including planting, fertilizing, and tilling.

https://www.agroklub.com/ratarstvo/u...trzistu/72111/

urbanotter said:Honestly, who ever said Russians care about Europeans? They care about themselves, and frankly, they couldn't care less about anyone else. It’s only the Americans who pretend to "care" about the Europeans, while Europe ends up drowning in the mess caused by all that supposed concern.

Lately, though, I’ve been thinking that Ursulica might have actually come up with a brilliant master plan to finally get rid of Putin.
I mean, look at the situation—it's like a massive drip feed system over in the States, where they claim to be these capable geniuses, yet they insist there won't be any real progress or supply until September.
Now, they’re dealing with those Siemens pumps breaking down, but because of all these sanctions, they can't even get them fixed properly.

At this point, Putin must be laughing his head off; he can barely contain it, and it feels like it’s only a matter of time before he completely loses it. Even without all that uncontrollable laughter, the man is already fighting against a dozen terminal and incurable illnesses.
Between the threat of Alzheimer's, the tremors from Parkinson's, or even just the physical toll of whatever health issues he's facing, there's a very high chance he's dealing with something like lizard cancer.

There isn't anything truly "brilliant" about Ursulica's strategy; you just have to stay patient until December. By then, there won't even be anyone left to come up with these "genius" sanctions, because everyone will have been wiped out like flies.🙏

Russia doesn't even look out for its own people, let alone anyone else.

You really have to learn how to read between the lines if you want to get a clear picture of what Russia is actually up to.
With the current gas delivery blackmail—specifically that 60% cut to Germany—Russia is starting to act completely against all economic logic. They are clearly attempting to squeeze and intimidate Germany economically, even if it ends up causing self-inflicted damage to their own interests.
I was just listening to Habeck, the German Minister of Economics, and he didn't mince words: he stated plainly that this reduction in gas supplies by Russia is nothing more than a blatant attempt at extortion by the dictators in The White House.
He also confirmed that this behavior was entirely predictable. Furthermore, he noted that there won't be an immediate supply crisis right now, as Germany is already legally preparing itself for the possibility of gas shortages during the winter months.

The sanctions are starting to take a real bite out of Russia. We're looking at 17% inflation, a 35% drop in industrial investment, and a 10% slowdown in economic growth already.
The real question is, how much success will Putin actually have by choosing to ignore basic economic reality?

Lp

swiftjackal11 said:Russia doesn't even look out for its own people, let alone anyone else.

Oh, come on now. Don't be so naive. Maybe the Russians don't care much for their own citizens, but they certainly seem to care deeply about our neighbors—whom they absolutely adore.
Best regards,

https://mobile.twitter.com/TpyxaNews...32532080959488

It looks like all this gear is already breaking down out in the fields because nobody actually knows how to maintain it without that Western technical expertise...

I am seriously counting down the days until fall and winter hit
The sound of pigs squatting before Christmas is nothing compared to the absolute chaos of a million two-legged little swineabouts performing a full-blown orchestra set

urbanotter said:I don't really have anything else to add.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?f...2756587&type=3

civilized 🙏🙏

p.s.

you could be out there with a real tractor, sitting in the shade under an oak tree, sipping a cold beer
while he just keeps plowing and plowing, and you can't talk him out of it until he's burned through every last drop of diesel.

Quinn:

10,000 driverless tractors coming soon to Russia—all produced for the domestic market. The John Deere autonomous tractor will allow for robotic control over all farming operations, including planting, fertilizing, and tilling.

https://www.agroklub.com/ratarstvo/u...trzistu/72111/

The moment you view plowing as a core part of production, you’ve already fallen hopelessly behind technologically. Autonomous tractors aren't some futuristic concept; they've been a reality for quite some time. It isn't rocket science. The flaw in this fantasy of sitting under a tree while machines work themselves is what happens when something jams or breaks down—you need immediate intervention from the seat. If you're in the cab, you notice and fix it. If you're lounging under a tree while a machine runs itself, it's impossible. Autosteer is certainly a useful tool when you're working all day and need to maintain precise lines, say during planting or tillage to minimize overlap, but that's where its utility ends.
One thing regarding the Russians remains fundamentally unclear to me: they supposedly have mass-produced tractors running on artificial intelligence (which is fine in theory), yet their military aircraft rely on Western GPS systems during operations, despite having their own GLONASS. Something about that doesn't quite add up; it feels like they are somewhat detached from reality.

Bryan Booth82 said:You really have to learn how to read between the lines if you want to get a clear picture of what Russia is actually up to.
With the current gas delivery blackmail—specifically that 60% cut to Germany—Russia is starting to act completely against all economic logic. They are clearly attempting to squeeze and intimidate Germany economically, even if it ends up causing self-inflicted damage to their own interests.
I was just listening to Habeck, the German Minister of Economics, and he didn't mince words: he stated plainly that this reduction in gas supplies by Russia is nothing more than a blatant attempt at extortion by the dictators in The White House.
He also confirmed that this behavior was entirely predictable. Furthermore, he noted that there won't be an immediate supply crisis right now, as Germany is already legally preparing itself for the possibility of gas shortages during the winter months.

The sanctions are starting to take a real bite out of Russia. We're looking at 17% inflation, a 35% drop in industrial investment, and a 10% slowdown in economic growth already.
The real question is, how much success will Putin actually have by choosing to ignore basic economic reality?

Lp

Putin is definitely going to go all in, mostly because he’s too reckless to consider anything else. Russia is looking at a dead end starting next year, so the propaganda machine is already working overtime to paint a picture where the West is doing much worse than Russia. He knows that by the end of the year, most of his oil revenue will vanish, and that's the endgame for Russia. That kind of loss is permanent, and no amount of fairy tales from The Kremlin about magically teleporting oil to new markets will change that...

The only move left for him is an all-in gamble, even if it costs Russia its entire economic future, by attempting to trigger an energy crisis in the West. He's panicking, and I suspect we'll see a desperate, irrational move like that very soon...

He’s actually got a decent amount of leverage there, mostly because Germany is such a massive gear in the machine for both China and the US—not to mention our own role within the European Union. Honestly, that might be his last real bargaining chip besides those nuclear warheads. Now, the Germans are definitely feeling the squeeze right now, but let’s be real—they aren't a stupid nation. They won't just let this happen indefinitely. They'll take a hit, sure, but they have long memories. It was honestly such a massive blunder for a country like that to put all their eggs in one basket.

Look, we’re probably looking at a mini-recession because of this whole war and the energy dependency issues, but in the long run, it should actually pull us closer together as a community. And as for Russia? They just lost a major customer who actually deals in hard currency. I mean, the Indian Rupee and the Chinese Renbi are tied to the dollar, not the Euro. The EU is still a powerhouse, especially with hydrocarbon production, but because of all the green energy mandates, we aren't out there drilling fields like they do in Texas.
It's going to be a struggle, no doubt, but we'll come out of this economically stronger. Long-term, even militarily—because let's face it, it hurts everyone that the UK and the US are the ones calling all the shots. Putin would never have even thought about attacking if we were as strong militarily as we are economically.