Sanctions on Russia

analogbear5 said:Basically, a United States of Europe. It just isn't going to happen.

I'd say we’re heading straight toward a block made up of the USA, the SED, and the UK.

I’m telling you again: Russia only really moved forward when Peter the Great brought those Western/European values over. If—by some miracle—we see leadership after Putin that actually wants to cooperate with the West and truly becomes part of it, that's when Russia will finally thrive.

Fun fact: Peter the Great actually designed the Russian Navy flag himself, though he had some serious influence from that Scotsman Patrick Leopold Gordon, who basically laid the foundation for their entire navy. That’s why the flag is just an inversion of the Scottish national flag.

Two years later, he crushed yet another uprising of musketeers, saving Peter’s throne once again. That same year, he laid the groundwork for the first Russian navy, even if it was just a small coastal fleet at the time. You can still see his legacy today in the Russian naval flag, which uses the colors of the inverted Scottish flag. [link]

Patrick Gordon

wiredseal7 said:I haven't really followed the Russian side of things outside of Libya (though I'm sure the coverage is skewed to make them look bad), but the Chinese aren't exactly out there exploiting people. They’ve built a ton of infrastructure across Africa on terms most others wouldn't touch—then people whine about these "debt trap" schemes that never seem to actually materialize.
At the end of the day, they're the only ones actually helping build the kind of infrastructure that a developing continent desperately needs to grow.

Hah! So you "never follow" what Russia does... you can't remember a single Russian occupation, yet somehow you know every single detail about everything Americans did during the Civil War... zero objectivity here, man.

Arthur Miller7 said:Hah! So you "never follow" what Russia does... you can't remember a single Russian occupation, yet somehow you know every single detail about everything Americans did during the Civil War... zero objectivity here, man.

Actually, there was no occupation. Just look at the history of the Estonians, Lithuanians, Latvians, Poles, Czechs, Slovaks, Romanians, or Bulgarians.
Almost 99.9% of them were enthusiastically in favor of hardline communism under the Comecon and the Warsaw Pact.
Nobody viewed the Russians as occupiers; rather, the Red Army was stationed there at their own request to ensure they felt more secure. 😉

"Multiple factors are threatening the ability of the United States to provide sufficient electricity generation to serve expected customer demand. These factors include disruptions to energy markets caused by Russia"

https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-...outheast-asia/

Arthur Miller7 said:Hah! So you "never follow" what Russia does... you can't remember a single Russian occupation, yet somehow you know every single detail about everything Americans did during the Civil War... zero objectivity here, man.

I don't even know what the French were up to in Africa, or what the US is doing in Somalia—aside from whenever they're filming some action movie. I guess I'm just not allowed to ask, according to the armchair experts.

wiredseal7 said:I don't even know what the French were up to in Africa, or what the US is doing in Somalia—aside from whenever they're filming some action movie. I guess I'm just not allowed to ask, according to the armchair experts.

He isn't even thinking in rubles; he's got dollars on his mind.☕

Is there a shortage of Russian uranium for nuclear power plants, or what?

wiredseal7 said:I don't even know what the French were up to in Africa, or what the US is doing in Somalia—aside from whenever they're filming some action movie. I guess I'm just not allowed to ask, according to the armchair experts.

I imagine you're implying something about what the UN was doing over in Somalia.

A bit of news, stripped of all that Western or Eastern propaganda:

https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/20...ions-on-russia

So, where does that leave us? Nowhere. Just turn out the lights and head for the exit. For those of you who can actually get ahead, I suggest you force your kids to study programming or information sciences—study them as much as you want, just so they aren't starving later.
We are staring down the barrel of a massive chain reaction. Inflation is climbing, and if oil and gas prices keep their current trajectory, we’re looking at total stagnation. People simply won't be buying cars for a while, which means dealerships will start folding, creating a whole new wave of unemployed workers. If nobody is buying and nobody is driving, then the repair shops go under next, leaving technicians and public transit drivers as the next army of the jobless, and so on, indefinitely. Even the programmers and tech experts will eventually hit a wall; once there aren't enough companies left to sell a product or a service, the demand for high-end IT skills evaporates. At least those folks have the luxury of relocating to countries outside of NATO that aren't currently dealing with this mess because they are smart enough not to shoot themselves in the foot.

God help us when we see what the next three years have in store.

rowdymaker17 said:A bit of news, stripped of all that Western or Eastern propaganda:

https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/20...ions-on-russia

So, where does that leave us? Nowhere. Just turn out the lights and head for the exit. For those of you who can actually get ahead, I suggest you force your kids to study programming or information sciences—study them as much as you want, just so they aren't starving later.
We are staring down the barrel of a massive chain reaction. Inflation is climbing, and if oil and gas prices keep their current trajectory, we’re looking at total stagnation. People simply won't be buying cars for a while, which means dealerships will start folding, creating a whole new wave of unemployed workers. If nobody is buying and nobody is driving, then the repair shops go under next, leaving technicians and public transit drivers as the next army of the jobless, and so on, indefinitely. Even the programmers and tech experts will eventually hit a wall; once there aren't enough companies left to sell a product or a service, the demand for high-end IT skills evaporates. At least those folks have the luxury of relocating to countries outside of NATO that aren't currently dealing with this mess because they are smart enough not to shoot themselves in the foot.

God help us when we see what the next three years have in store.

‘Big blow to Putin’s war’: Sanctions approved on Russian oil, same source, zero propaganda.

The Americans are facing a rather fascinating dilemma here:

To put it simply:

At current market rates, our bill for importing oil groups is projected to hit roughly $20 billion for the 2021-22 period. In an ideal scenario, we would shift 100 percent of our energy needs over to Russia, which would secure us a 30 percent discount on the total oil import bill. That kind of move would essentially put $6 billion back in our pockets.

However, upsetting the USA—which I know would drive the IMF absolutely crazy—just to save a few billion dollars could end up costing us much more in the long run, potentially jeopardizing the ability to secure external financing for our current account deficit, which sits at about $17 billion.
https://www.dawn.com/news/1693395/th...deal-prospects

analogbear5 said:‘Big blow to Putin’s war’: Sanctions approved on Russian oil, same source, zero propaganda.

That is merely half of what the top link provides. You should return to the original URL I posted, which actually details the current financial standing of Russia alongside the state of the European Union, whereas your article focuses solely on how certain EU bureaucrats believe they have dealt a massive blow to someone.

The link I provided clearly outlines the percentages regarding how much oil and gas every single European Union nation imports from Russia to meet its needs. As I have maintained in my previous comments, the European Union is staring down a logistical nightmare of the highest order, which, beyond just high raw material costs, implies even higher prices once that oil actually reaches European soil. All those member states currently in transition or struggling economically—just as the article itself notes—are going to get absolutely hammered. I would bet anything that Viktor Orbán will use this to engineer a coalition of these failing states to "attack" France and Germany. While we pretend to be "fighting" the world, we are actually just turning on one another within our own union, because anyone craving power now sees a golden opportunity to pose as a serious "threat" to France and Germany. It is no wonder people claim we are nothing more than a collection of dysfunctional nations.

It isn't the Russians who are importing oil; they aren't lacking in oil or gas, but the European Union certainly is... so perhaps try reading both articles before you continue with your commentary, as it is patently obvious you haven't read the article from your own link nor the one from mine. 👍

rowdymaker17 said:That is merely half of what the top link provides. You should return to the original URL I posted, which actually details the current financial standing of Russia alongside the state of the European Union, whereas your article focuses solely on how certain EU bureaucrats believe they have dealt a massive blow to someone.

The link I provided clearly outlines the percentages regarding how much oil and gas every single European Union nation imports from Russia to meet its needs. As I have maintained in my previous comments, the European Union is staring down a logistical nightmare of the highest order, which, beyond just high raw material costs, implies even higher prices once that oil actually reaches European soil. All those member states currently in transition or struggling economically—just as the article itself notes—are going to get absolutely hammered. I would bet anything that Viktor Orbán will use this to engineer a coalition of these failing states to "attack" France and Germany. While we pretend to be "fighting" the world, we are actually just turning on one another within our own union, because anyone craving power now sees a golden opportunity to pose as a serious "threat" to France and Germany. It is no wonder people claim we are nothing more than a collection of dysfunctional nations.

It isn't the Russians who are importing oil; they aren't lacking in oil or gas, but the European Union certainly is... so perhaps try reading both articles before you continue with your commentary, as it is patently obvious you haven't read the article from your own link nor the one from mine. 👍

Yeah, sure, the rotten West is totally going to collapse overnight... as if anything actually happens...

gentlerider7 said:Yeah, sure, the rotten West is totally going to collapse overnight... as if anything actually happens...

A total collapse isn't happening, though I would argue it will take at least a decade before those developing nations and countries still struggling through transition can actually pull themselves out of the gutter. As for Germany, I have zero concerns there, considering how they managed to bend all of Europe to their will without ever even lifting a finger in combat; frankly, Hitler would be proud of that level of dominance. It has become significantly easier for Americans to exert influence over the European Union nowadays because they only have to control one central media apparatus rather than wasting precious resources trying to manipulate every individual member state separately.👍

brightheron64 said:The Americans are facing a rather fascinating dilemma here:

To put it simply:

At current market rates, our bill for importing oil groups is projected to hit roughly $20 billion for the 2021-22 period. In an ideal scenario, we would shift 100 percent of our energy needs over to Russia, which would secure us a 30 percent discount on the total oil import bill. That kind of move would essentially put $6 billion back in our pockets.

However, upsetting the USA—which I know would drive the IMF absolutely crazy—just to save a few billion dollars could end up costing us much more in the long run, potentially jeopardizing the ability to secure external financing for our current account deficit, which sits at about $17 billion.
https://www.dawn.com/news/1693395/th...deal-prospects

Bit by bit, they’ve completely screwed me over. 👍

I am simply waiting for the moment when people can no longer afford to service their loans. I am genuinely curious to see what those warmongering fanatics will eat—those who live off the elderly while constantly egging everyone on toward conflict and measuring who is stronger or better. People should start sending their bills directly to the NATO Secretary General and his office to settle them. They are the ones who created this mess, so they ought to shoulder the financial responsibility.

gentlerider7 said:Yeah, sure, the rotten West is totally going to collapse overnight... as if anything actually happens...

The end is near. We’re headed straight toward the instability seen in Eritrea, North Korea, or South Sudan...

rowdymaker17 said:Bit by bit, they’ve completely screwed me over. 👍

I am simply waiting for the moment when people can no longer afford to service their loans. I am genuinely curious to see what those warmongering fanatics will eat—those who live off the elderly while constantly egging everyone on toward conflict and measuring who is stronger or better. People should start sending their bills directly to the NATO Secretary General and his office to settle them. They are the ones who created this mess, so they ought to shoulder the financial responsibility.

I suppose everyone just finds their own way to get by...

India wasn't actually importing much Russian oil back in 2021—only about 2%, which comes out to roughly 12 million barrels for the whole year—while about half of their supply was coming from the Middle East. However, looking at just the second quarter of this year, they’ve already locked in 26 million barrels because Russia is offering them oil at $30 below the market rate (and word on the street is it might even be cheaper than that, though nobody wants to speak up publicly about it)...

The Americans aren't exactly thrilled about the situation, but they aren't making too much noise either, mostly because there's this lingering fear that if they push too hard, India might end up turning toward Iran instead...

Is it any wonder that tensions are boiling over in the Middle East, especially now that certain Indian officials have made such inflammatory remarks about Muhammad? It seems those insults have triggered a massive backlash from locals against Indian workers...

George Robinson43 said:The end is near. We’re headed straight toward the instability seen in Eritrea, North Korea, or South Sudan...

I bet rowdymaker17 is already busy brushing up on his Russian and Mandarin...

brightheron64 said:I suppose everyone just finds their own way to get by...

India wasn't actually importing much Russian oil back in 2021—only about 2%, which comes out to roughly 12 million barrels for the whole year—while about half of their supply was coming from the Middle East. However, looking at just the second quarter of this year, they’ve already locked in 26 million barrels because Russia is offering them oil at $30 below the market rate (and word on the street is it might even be cheaper than that, though nobody wants to speak up publicly about it)...

The Americans aren't exactly thrilled about the situation, but they aren't making too much noise either, mostly because there's this lingering fear that if they push too hard, India might end up turning toward Iran instead...

Meanwhile, our domestic media outlets are filled with those idiots in D.C. shouting, "NATO has never been more united! We are the law!" In the meantime, that very same NATO has managed to achieve the impossible by forging ties across all of Asia, regardless of the Sino-Pakistani conflict involving India. It seems the truth is actually what the independent media reports... the EU brags about what massive new sanctions they've slapped on someone, yet the data shows that country is doing better now than before the conflict began. It's absurd. All while our own people are losing every ounce of purchasing power and drowning in debt.👍