Summary
Russia’s ruble has plunged to its lowest level since March 2022 following new U.S. sanctions on Gazprombank, a key platform for energy payments.
The ruble’s slide, driven by sanctions, falling oil prices, and soaring defense spending, has intensified inflation and strained the war economy.
While the Kremlin benefits from a weaker ruble by converting foreign revenues into more domestic currency, experts warn of overheating risks and financial instability.
The Russian central bank is scrambling for solutions, but long-term economic pressures and declining oil revenues pose significant challenges.
Ruble in rubble, rocks Russia
Come on people, write good headlines.
Instead, in 2024
Russia in panic as US sanctions SLAAAAAAMS ruble
Russian bankers HATE this one simple trick!
Hot Ruble stuck in dishwasher RAVAGED by US step-sanctions
Ruble DESTROYED by US sanctions
That gave me a heartfelt pang of yearning for the good timeline.
I was good friends with this guy who worked the copy desk at a newspaper. He got to write a lot of the headlines because he could make almost anything a pun. He’d just text me headlines all day and I’d be in stitches.
You won’t believe what happened to the ruble!
Ruble in rubble
i’m no fan of american imperialism, and also with an economy about as big as the state of new york, america acting on russia is not exactly “picking on somebody your own size” … but, passively observing the machinations of two monstrous beasts neither of which i have the ability to influence let alone control, it’s hard to feel bad for russia right now. all they had to do was leave ukraine the fuck alone. all they had to do was STAY HOME. I hope they find out enough to realize that fucking around was a mistake.
On the other hand, Putin doesn’t seem to care much about the suffering of his own people, which is what’s happening here. It’s the people, many of which are innocent, who suffer. Putin and his people are safe and warm with plenty of Euros and Dollars to spend.
Then the people need to do something. They elected Putin. They tolerate Putin. This is their mess and they’ve done nothing to escape it.
That’s the same as saying Americans need to do something about Trump. They elected him and need to deal with the mess. Easier said than done.
Trump isn’t president yet. He potential actions have not had any effects to fight back against. When he does fuck up the country, I genuinely hope people will wake up and do something. If not, I’ll be criticizing those cowards just the same.
We’ve already had four years of Trump. We know exactly who he is what he does and Americans walked right into it with eyes wide open. No excuses.
Trump is a symptom of a much bigger problem having to do with income inequality and oligarchs manipulating the media. It’s too late in the US. Once he assumes power, violence will sky rocket as a means of suppressing free speech, and corruption will rule. There won’t be some awakening, because there should have already been one.
True, except that you’re making the same mistake I’ve been making, since Trump 1st ran for President, years ago:
getting the speed wrong…
It’s damn glacial, compared with individual-life…
He’ll keep escalating until about 2031, when finally he can do ANYthing he wants, human-sacrifice included ( as the Aztecs, the Maya, & the Toltecs did, before him, in the Americas… just different in style )
Once 2032 rolls around, he should be able to go total-Confederate-pogrom against all who were civil-rights oriented, in the US…
& that’ll take him another 7-8y to completely-destroy the country…
Maybe 100-million will survive to 2040?
it looks to me, now, like that’s the speed & the scale…
Don’t take my word for anything, though: wait & see!
Empiricism!
_ /\ _
They elected Putin in the same way as a school elects the Principal’s kid for student president. The ballots aren’t even counted beyond a performative few for cameras. They just need to record turnout so they can make sure the numbers match up when they announce the results.
They “elected” Putin.
There is a difference…
You know how dictatorship’s “elections” work, don’t you?
_ /\ _
The picture clarifies a bit more when you realize Russia’s economy was already going down because of sanctions from the 2014 Crimean invasion. Which they did in direct response to the people of Ukraine rejecting Russia. They wanted to control Ukraine in the first place (like Belarus) because they believe two things. They have a right to a sphere of influence in their “near abroad” and controlling those countries is critical to their self defense. It would be like the US deciding Mexico and Canada must be puppets in order to defend themselves.
So with their economy circling the drain because of their pre-existing beliefs the invasion of Ukraine became an economic imperative. They actually thought it would be like Crimea again. The first wave of troops actually had parade uniforms packed. So the plan was very obviously to use Ukraine’s rising economy to bolster their own and achieve another buffer state.
Now the goal has necessarily changed. It’s survival for Putin and his group. When they failed that embarrassingly they couldn’t back down. They’ve propagandized this as an existential fight for people in Eastern Ukraine who want to be or already are Russian. So they cannot easily give up. This is why Putin keeps saying they control the districts of Donetsk and Luhansk even though they don’t control the entirety of the districts. He’s been messaging for about a year now that he’s willing to end this if they let him keep what he has and don’t object too loudly when he tells his people he got the entirety of both districts.
So basically, Putin realized it was a mistake on the day they had to retreat from Kyiv. Ever since then he’s been furiously looking for an exit that doesn’t involve him being deposed by the oligarchs.
Putin being eaten alive by the very pack of hyenas he mobilized would be very cathartic and satisfying though.
What a helpful comment.
Thank you!
_ /\ _
No problem. When I’m not despairing at domestic politics, the international stuff is what I bonded with in college.
I don’t know why you’re speaking in the past-tense. Putin and the oligarchs can still stop the damage to the Russian economy, the lives being pointlessly spent, as well as the senseless damage to Ukraine… It all could end the very moment you read this. All they have to do is GTFO, return all prisoners/property/children they stole, and pay Ukraine reparations for the war crimes they committed. Definitely still cheaper in the long run…
i want to believe.
but it hurts to get my hopes up for … essentially nothing.
It’s hard to feel bad for “russia” because it’s just another geographic region violently controlled by a state. And it’s hard to feel bad for the politicians who control the state… But it’s important to feel bad for people in russia (and ukraine, etc) because many are also victims.
Watch how quickly cheeto man lifts the sanctions when he takes office. Bet it’s a day one agenda item.
Or Russia will collapse before he can save them, Putin gets executed, then Trump takes the credit.
That is the shittiest win, but still…
I’ll 100% take it.
If only they could do something about it like not invade another country and get those sanctions lifted.
Of course in January, they won’t have to worry about that.
I don’t think it will matter. I might be wrong but once hyper inflation sets in I think you are fucked and it’s years to dig out even to stability.
It only took Weimar Germany 3 or 4 years to fix the hyperinflation problem, but it also made people seriously distrust the government and when the next economic crisis hit (The Great Depression), Hitler was able to use the fears of the populace to rise into power.
Good news then!
They’ve had their version of Hitler for years!
It can always get worse.
That’s the Russian National Motto!
That’s the [any country] National Motto!
…i suppose
It could be any country but it’s been a running joke about Russia, specifically, since 1918.
I’ve read that Russian history’s refrain literally is…
“… and then it got worse.”
I’ve read variants of that from many sources.
Russia’s not had good government in … millenia, apparently.
So if we elect a Democrat in 2028 we can smash them right as they recover?
I like it, let’s do it!
its also that the US is not the major trade partner here, the EU is.
Who is “they”?
Gosh, this is a difficult one… there’s a specific country talked about in the article, which is also in the headline, which has sanctions put upon it because its military invaded another country.
But I couldn’t possibly be talking about that country, could I?
In the end, all wars are economic.
No, just most. War is the continuation of politics by different means, and political desires are quite often, but definitely not always, economical. Rome razed Carthage because of the economics of empires in the Mediterranean, yes, but Charlemagne didn’t genocide Old Saxony for its economic output, but religious fervour and autocratic arrogance (the whole one god one pope one king thing).
I think what they meant was that all wars need to be supported by the economy.
It’s not enough to have soldiers, you also have to supply and feed them.No it’s an actual theory that posits all the other reasons are merely justifications for economic reasons.
It falls apart pretty badly if you look at World War 1. But there’s also been a ton of wars that fit the theory, which is why it exists.
Beyond that, it’s hard to get people who are comfortable in their lives to get up and go to war. If the nation is stable internally, if the people aren’t desperate and angry, if they don’t feel like they should have more - you know, for themselves - it’s hard to get a motivated, aggressive military staffed and ready to attack their neighbors.
But also yes, an army marches on its stomach. Every major offensive beyond a nation’s borders ends when the supply chain falters.
you also have to supply and feed them.
yeah russia is actually experimenting with this part lol. and innovations like golfcarts and e-scooters on the battlefield.
At least most. Storage Wars is another good example of this. Not sure about Star Wars, though.
Have you forgotten that the drama of the ‘first’ episode starts with an exciting … trade blockade?
Negotiations were short.
In the beginning, too. Russia originally invaded because they want to control Crimea and more Black Sea coast and ports. And all that farmland in Ukraine too
Unless they’re done in order to sacrifice captives to the gods like they did in pre-Colombian Mesoamerica. That was because they legitimately thought they had to do it to keep the universe working. That’s also why their wars were usually about attacking to wound rather than attacking to kill. Just as many people died, but they died in sacrifice rather than on the battlefield.
Oddly enough, the interpretation of the glyph the Mayans had for a war as we would think of it- one of conquest- is “star war.” Blame Dr. Linda Schele for that one.
also in pre-Colombian Mesoamerica, furher north, they switched the mode of war from combat to a ball game when the casualty count was around 100. so, in case you’re wondering how we (and yes, i mean the whole imperialist sphere) can find a meaningful, certainly still highly corruptable purpose for UEFA and FIFA.
Usually, but perhaps not all. North Vietnam did not repel the US through its superior industrial capacity / economy.
Well no, North Vietnam repelled the US with China’s military force (mostly just manpower/cannon fodder). But regardless, saying that the war was economic doesn’t mean that one side’s economy must be superior to the other’s in order to “win”. The Vietnam war is actually a good example of an asymmetric situation, because North Vietnam’s economic capacity really had no bearing on the outcome. The war was astronomically expensive for the US, which had spent US$168 billion by 1970. Adjusted to 2019 dollars this is US$843.63 billion, making it the 4th most expensive conflict in US history.
Vietnam didn’t have to out-produce the US, they just had to drag the conflict out until it became too costly to sustain.
To put it another way, it’s not a question of how much war you can afford, it’s a question of how much war you can force the other guy to pay for, and what he can afford.
Non sensationalist version: the ruble has steadily dropped about 10% in value vs the euro over the course of the last ~4-5 months
Yes, your currency dropping 10% in value over just 4 months is serious, it is also not sudden panic inducing collapse.
UPDATE: The article doesn’t give this data but more recent data suggests that there is some major sudden fluctuations over the last week, possibly will become another significant sustained drop in the ruble.
Thank you. This headline sounds exactly like the way the other side would be criticised for wording it, very propoganda-like.
Saying +10% in about four months is technically correct, but very misleading
This is an unlabeled graph and ambiguous comment. What are you saying? That the ruble is doing better than he is claiming compared to the euro, or worse?
The main part of the change happened in just a few days - weeks, and not over four months.
This is my data as per the article in question showing fairly gradual rate of change starting from a dip roughly in July this year. Not sure where your data is from?Your screenshot is out of date.
Ah, see that’s much more interesting, don’t know why that data isn’t in the article.
Why not tell us where your data is from?
I did, it’s literally a screenshot from the article we’re discussing.
-50% in 2 years, nothing to see here! /s
In this case it should probably classify as “offense spending” rather than defense.
That’s true in almost call cases and is precisely the intent of doublespeak
Palestine has been almost completely stolen by over 100 years of “defense”.
They just got to hold out another couple of months
That’s pretty not-funny that in the last couple of years I put myself into an overwork mode to get into new positions and higher pay and while the numbers went up a lot, I only slightly upped what I can afford with the rise of prices. I’m afraid of thinking what those at the bottom of the ladder experience right now. Like, even public transit is $0,5, and if you have 5\2 that’s $20 from an average $200-300 salary before paying rent\commodities that can eat another $100 or more.
Seems like I won’t get Steam Deck anytime soon, the writing is on the wall. What a bummer. If anything, I’d like to have it to be distracted from all this daily bullshit.
I’ve almost doubled my salary in 5 years, I’m worse off financially due to the raise in everything else.
* hugs *
Seems like I won’t get Steam Deck anytime soon
You can save a lot by buying a lower model and swapping the SSD later; it will end up cheaper in total as well as immediately, which makes it almost a no-brainer. It’s not as simple as a PC but it’s still easy enough that if you’ve ever done it for a PC you will likely manage it. If you happen to live around the Ottawa/Gatineau area in Canada, I’ll do the swap for you if you’re not comfortable with it, you just need to supply the SSD (and I can give suggestions on that).
I don’t know if any of that helps you at all but this is a realm I know well and I try to help where I can.
Although in a similar climate, I’m afraid we are some 10+ timezones apart.
Yep, the cheapest version is my plan. It’s still 30-60k roubles depending on where to buy it, with my first entry-level salary in the past being around 15k\mounth to give it a perspective.
Yet, if I manage to get it, I’d PM you if I have any questions about it (:
Oh look. I’m reading about the future of a different country.
If only they can hang on for eight more weeks.
America fights their finances.
Europe fights their troops.
Russia literally btfo XD
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Why the fuck did we wait this long? Trump will reverse this November 21 change as soon as he takes office.
DW is at service of imperialist agenda
Anti-imperialism is when you invade your neighbor and steal their land for no reason and also obliterate their language and culture from the regions you stole from them.
Don’t forget kidnapping their children and ‘adopting’ them into Russian families
Remember when Russia gave up its empire when the last tsar was overthrown and certainly as the first Communist state didn’t occupy its neighbors for decades? I don’t either.
You can find the same news on RT. I didn’t realise they had defected.
Same “news” but angled from an alternative, co-dependent empire. Either way is phony.
TIL Russia is co-dependant with Russia
Russia is imperialist as fuck
that is not a counter-argument. both can be true.
Been huffin’ too many of those chemicals, Willy?
How so?
Standard capitalist outlet pushing out the hegemonic/imperial agenda. Kinda obvious TBH.
DW is not capital-owned it’s literally a state broadcaster. Whatever foreign policy agenda you accuse it of you accuse Germany of as their editorial stance is precisely that of the foreign ministry. Also they’re highly factual, like it or not.
Russias evonomy is in the toilet is imperialistic propaganda?
Lol ok.
I’m unfamiliar with this outlet, so I’d like to learn more. But your inability to provide supporting reasoning or evidence suggests to me that your claims should not be taken seriously.
