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Thanks for sharing.
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[{"content": "The Crossman Conversation\n\nDick Batchelor's Advice for Politicians - and People\n\nDick Batchelor was an effective legislator and a successful businessman. If you're thinking about getting into politics, you might want to heed his advice.\n\nDick Batchelor is a Democrat. I'm a Republican.\n\nThere's a lot we disagree on - but a lot we agree on. When he was my guest on The Crossman Conversation, we talked about how we make our friendship work. It's a strategy that could solve a lot of problems in this world if everyone would do it.\n\nDick served in the Florida House of Representatives from 1974 to 1982 and heads Dick Batchelor Management Group, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in business development consulting, strategic governmental affairs, and public policy issues management.\n\n\"I tell people who get into politics, there are two things I want to tell you,\" he said. \"One, it's hard, very hard, to earn political currency. It is very easy to lose it. Two, the first decision you need to make when you get elected is: Do you want to be well-known for getting things done, or do you want to be well-known for simply being well-known?\"\n\nDick chose to be well-known for getting things done. He said all of the legislation he proposed came from meeting with and learning about the needs of his constituents.\n\nIn our conversation, we shared some behind-the-scenes stories about former President Bill Clinton and other names you'll recognize. And we talked about how important it is to set aside our differences and focus on what we agree on so we can get things done.\n\n\"People have to be prepared to take the issues on which they'll never agree and set them aside. Find issues on which they can agree and get back to the table,\" Dick said. You may not be able to achieve everything you want, but at least you'll get some things done, and that's better than staying at perpetual war with each other.\n\nAnd he offered this bit of valuable advice:\n\n\"Don't burn bridges unless you can walk on water.\"\n\nOur conversation was interesting, motivating, and moving. To hear it, go to:\n\nTo hear from a politician on the other side of the aisle, listen to my conversation with Senator Rick Scott:\n\nThanks for reading. Here's a little more about me:", "role": "a9bcf9eea73", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"3be48ebb1c45\", \"title\": \"Dick Batchelor\\u2019s Advice for Politicians\\u200a\\u2014\\u200aand People\", \"subtitle\": \"Dick Batchelor was an effective legislator and is a successful businessman. If you\\u2019re thinking about getting into politics, you might want\\u2026\", \"author\": \"a9bcf9eea73\", \"publication_id\": \"eca1ba5ae1ca\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:51:17\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:51:17\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"politics\", \"republicans\", \"democrats\", \"life-lessons\", \"advice\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\"], \"claps\": 126, \"voters\": 2, \"reads\": 5, \"views\": 166, \"word_count\": 479, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 2.0075471698113208, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/illumination/dick-batchelors-advice-for-politicians-and-people-3be48ebb1c45\", \"unique_slug\": \"dick-batchelors-advice-for-politicians-and-people-3be48ebb1c45\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*RaRQuvEcZ5AcKftDVT1cdw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"There's a lot we disagree on - but a lot we agree on. When he was my guest on The Crossman Conversation, we talked about how we make our friendship work. It's a strategy that could solve a lot of problems in this world if everyone would do it.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.theshepherdradio.com\": [{\"title\": \"S1E49 Today's Conversation features DICK BATCHELOR, Central Florida leader and longtime friend to the Crossman family. - The Crossman Conversation\", \"href\": \"https://www.theshepherdradio.com/podcasts/the-crossman-conversation/episode/s1e49-todays-conversation-features-dick-batchelor-central-florida-leader-and-longtime-friend-to-the-crossman-family/\"}, {\"title\": \"S1E24 US Senator RICK SCOTT shares on the struggles Americans have, and how he is working to help them. - The Crossman Conversation\", \"href\": \"https://www.theshepherdradio.com/podcasts/the-crossman-conversation/episode/s1e24-us-senator-rick-scott-shares-on-the-struggles-americans-have-and-how-he-is-working-to-help-them/\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"I\\u2019m a Devout Capitalist Committed to Making a Difference\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@JohnCrossmanWrites/im-a-devout-capitalist-committed-to-making-a-difference-4f2ff5b598f6\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*RaRQuvEcZ5AcKftDVT1cdw.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.theshepherdradio.com/podcasts/the-crossman-conversation/episode/s1e05-secily-wilson-well-known-broadcaster-speaker-and-best-selling-author-shares-on-the-real-race-issues-in-our-culture/\", \"text\": \"The Crossman Conversation\"}, {\"href\": \"http://dickbatchelor.com/\", \"text\": \"Dick Batchelor Management Group, Inc.\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"3be48ebb1c45\", \"voters\": [\"65f067b59c2f\", \"4c07c129d9d3\"], \"count\": 2}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"3be48ebb1c45\", \"responses\": [\"29e25e04944d\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "29e25e04944d", "title": "Thanks for sharing.", "subtitle": "", "author": "4c07c129d9d3", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-01-31 22:51:36", "last_modified_at": "2023-01-31 22:51:36", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 10, "voters": 1, "reads": 0, "views": 1, "word_count": 3, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.011320754716981131, "url": "https://medium.com/@rmeaguirre/thanks-for-sharing-29e25e04944d", "unique_slug": "thanks-for-sharing-29e25e04944d", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "29e25e04944d", "voters": ["a9bcf9eea73"], "count": 1}, "responses": {"id": "29e25e04944d", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "4c07c129d9d3", "username": "rmeaguirre", "fullname": "Raymond M.E. Aguirre", "bio": "Nurse | Writer", "followers_count": 2945, "following_count": 1037, "publication_following_count": 32, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*pxpB0ZcUDy9KwrIzny4K5w@2x.jpeg", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2023-09-05 03:44:26", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": true, "tipping_link": "https://ko-fi.com/raymondmeaguirre", "bg_image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*p0ngonxAku2IwEUa6HJyLg.png", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "4c07c129d9d3", "tags_followed": ["content-writing", "content-creation", "freelance-writing", "blogging", "digital-marketing", "passive-income", "side-hustle", "careers", "the-shortform", "basic-income", "science", "politics", "world", "startup", "future", "freelancing", "marketing", "history", "writing-tips", "mental-health", "mindfulness", "self", "investing", "finance", "entrepreneurship", "personal-finance", "make-money-online", "content-marketing", "culture", "lifestyle", "writing", "travel", "philosophy", "books", "creativity", "psychology", "productivity", "money", "business", "economy"], "count": 40}}}
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This is the most serious issue relating to this war - Russia is getting poor. "Poor" not in terms of money but in terms of the people. Young patriotic professionals constitute any country's wealth. What's been happening since 2022 is alarming. I am afraid it'll have bad consequences for Russia in the long run.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "6b7ef3a3877d", "title": "This is the most serious issue relating to this war - Russia is getting poor.", "subtitle": "", "author": "151de55ef6a8", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-02 17:16:17", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-02 17:16:17", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 9, "voters": 3, "reads": 0, "views": 15, "word_count": 53, "responses_count": 1, "reading_time": 0.2, "url": "https://medium.com/@gorbunov1986/this-is-the-most-serious-issue-relating-to-this-war-russia-is-getting-poor-6b7ef3a3877d", "unique_slug": "this-is-the-most-serious-issue-relating-to-this-war-russia-is-getting-poor-6b7ef3a3877d", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "6b7ef3a3877d", "voters": ["725fde1e6a3", "33d2006b60ef", "e75dc4a35d22"], "count": 3}, "responses": {"id": "6b7ef3a3877d", "responses": ["5029b8bf0387"], "count": 1}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "151de55ef6a8", "username": "gorbunov1986", "fullname": "Denis Gorbunov", "bio": "Let your money work for you • Discover the tips on building wealth like the rich in my newsletter ‘Stay Invested’: https://denisgorbunov.substack.com", "followers_count": 7155, "following_count": 227, "publication_following_count": 40, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*VLajPwWiGjc6tfw0aqa1Yw.jpeg", "twitter_username": "_DenisGorbunov", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://ko-fi.com/gorbunov1986", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "FREE"}, "interests": {"id": "151de55ef6a8", "tags_followed": ["new-writers-welcome", "better-humans", "fitness", "investing", "finance", "physics", "tech", "passive-income", "economy", "work", "education", "money", "science", "technology"], "count": 14}}}
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It always amazes me how the poor are so humble and gracious. Small gifts can be so important and what little they have they share.
God bless the poor everywhere.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "281856329a09", "title": "It always amazes me how the poor are so humble and gracious.", "subtitle": "", "author": "2f6a41cda2fb", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 01:02:19", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-01 01:02:19", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 22, "voters": 7, "reads": 0, "views": 40, "word_count": 30, "responses_count": 1, "reading_time": 0.11320754716981132, "url": "https://medium.com/@grizzly_45029/it-always-amazes-me-how-the-poor-are-so-humble-and-gracious-281856329a09", "unique_slug": "it-always-amazes-me-how-the-poor-are-so-humble-and-gracious-281856329a09", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "281856329a09", "voters": ["725fde1e6a3", "e75dc4a35d22", "703133ad3731", "20f8e2a63e8e", "77b8dc3eef90", "33d2006b60ef", "f8d4f206f6cd"], "count": 7}, "responses": {"id": "281856329a09", "responses": ["759c3c487fb6"], "count": 1}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "2f6a41cda2fb", "username": "grizzly_45029", "fullname": "Bob Surenko", "bio": "", "followers_count": 367, "following_count": 26, "publication_following_count": 1, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/0*6kON6ldSNo5Zkks2", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2022-03-29 12:28:48", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": null, "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "2f6a41cda2fb", "tags_followed": ["ukraine-crisis", "ukraine-war", "ukraine", "christianity", "stoic", "stoicism", "cybersecurity", "science"], "count": 8}}}
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Putin is a KGB Agent and already Orwell had the following to say about the NKVD: "They are trained to be liars, they made lying into a profession".
So, no I really think Putin never tells the truth, but that is the trick: Who would ever believe that someone could lie all the time? That is also why we cannot negotiate with this man. None of that is in good faith. Putin would break the agreements he makes the moment he sees fit. We can for example see how much Russia'e word in the Budapest memorandum was worth. They fired Rockets at Ukraine given to them by Ukraine as part of this deal.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "It always amazes me how the poor are so humble and gracious. Small gifts can be so important and what little they have they share.\n\nGod bless the poor everywhere.", "role": "2f6a41cda2fb", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"281856329a09\", \"title\": \"It always amazes me how the poor are so humble and gracious.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 01:02:19\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 01:02:19\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 22, \"voters\": 7, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 40, \"word_count\": 30, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.11320754716981132, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@grizzly_45029/it-always-amazes-me-how-the-poor-are-so-humble-and-gracious-281856329a09\", \"unique_slug\": \"it-always-amazes-me-how-the-poor-are-so-humble-and-gracious-281856329a09\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"281856329a09\", \"voters\": [\"725fde1e6a3\", \"e75dc4a35d22\", \"703133ad3731\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"77b8dc3eef90\", \"33d2006b60ef\", \"f8d4f206f6cd\"], \"count\": 7}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"281856329a09\", \"responses\": [\"759c3c487fb6\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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Putin is a KGB Agent and already Orwell had the following to say about the NKVD: "They are trained to be liars, they made lying into a profession".
So, no I really think Putin never tells the truth, but that is the trick: Who would ever believe that someone could lie all the time? That is also why we cannot negotiate with this man. None of that is in good faith. Putin would break the agreements he makes the moment he sees fit. We can for example see how much Russia'e word in the Budapest memorandum was worth. They fired Rockets at Ukraine given to them by Ukraine as part of this deal.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "Don't worry, Russia isn't going anywhere and neither Putin. The west can bleed it's heart out and shed hornet tears but your propaganda and of your likes is a laughing stock.", "role": "5fb05bdd4fc1", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"173f1406afa4\", \"title\": \"Don\\u2019t worry, Russia isn\\u2019t going anywhere and neither Putin.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"5fb05bdd4fc1\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-02 17:39:33\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 17:39:33\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 4, \"voters\": 2, \"reads\": 2, \"views\": 14, \"word_count\": 31, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.1169811320754717, \"url\": \"https://masomo.medium.com/dont-worry-russia-isn-t-going-anywhere-and-neither-putin-173f1406afa4\", \"unique_slug\": \"dont-worry-russia-isn-t-going-anywhere-and-neither-putin-173f1406afa4\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"173f1406afa4\", \"voters\": [\"5eb2ee98c4e2\", \"e75dc4a35d22\"], \"count\": 2}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"173f1406afa4\", \"responses\": [\"85b7d917645e\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "85b7d917645e", "title": "Believe me we don't find any of that funny I can guarantee you we literally don't care where you go…", "subtitle": "", "author": "33d2006b60ef", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-02 21:38:07", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-02 22:00:21", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 1, "voters": 1, "reads": 1, "views": 3, "word_count": 159, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.6, "url": "https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/believe-me-we-dont-find-any-of-that-funny-i-can-guarantee-you-we-literally-don-t-care-where-you-go-85b7d917645e", "unique_slug": "believe-me-we-dont-find-any-of-that-funny-i-can-guarantee-you-we-literally-don-t-care-where-you-go-85b7d917645e", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": false, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "85b7d917645e", "voters": ["725fde1e6a3"], "count": 1}, "responses": {"id": "85b7d917645e", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "username": "snowythefirst", "fullname": "Chris Snow", "bio": "30+ year old History Professor and educator. MA in Business Ethics and Modern European History. History has much to teach, but it doesn't find enough students.", "followers_count": 8470, "following_count": 72, "publication_following_count": 8, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*e3K9FsW09og7GjGjSbxE7w.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2022-10-10 19:39:27", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": ["economics", "history", "politics"], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://paypal.me/ChrisSnow91?country.x=AT&locale.x=de_DE", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "tags_followed": ["book-excerpts", "geopolitics", "writing", "ukraine-war", "ukraine", "2022", "sexuality", "economy", "biotech", "leadership", "product-management", "cybersecurity", "gun-control", "freelancing", "software-engineering", "artificial-intelligence", "social-media", "psychedelics", "creativity", "religion", "culture", "future", "pets", "music", "politics", "fitness", "machine-learning", "self", "digital-life", "history", "parenting", "humor", "language", "productivity", "food", "mental-health", "cities", "health", "climate-change", "poetry", "film", "books", "medium", "relationships", "race", "work", "family", "spirituality", "world", "blockchain"], "count": 50}}}
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Putin is a KGB Agent and already Orwell had the following to say about the NKVD: "They are trained to be liars, they made lying into a profession".
So, no I really think Putin never tells the truth, but that is the trick: Who would ever believe that someone could lie all the time? That is also why we cannot negotiate with this man. None of that is in good faith. Putin would break the agreements he makes the moment he sees fit. We can for example see how much Russia'e word in the Budapest memorandum was worth. They fired Rockets at Ukraine given to them by Ukraine as part of this deal.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "This is the most serious issue relating to this war - Russia is getting poor. \"Poor\" not in terms of money but in terms of the people. Young patriotic professionals constitute any country's wealth. What's been happening since 2022 is alarming. I am afraid it'll have bad consequences for Russia in the long run.", "role": "151de55ef6a8", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"title\": \"This is the most serious issue relating to this war - Russia is getting poor.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"151de55ef6a8\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-02 17:16:17\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 17:16:17\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 9, \"voters\": 3, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 15, \"word_count\": 53, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.2, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@gorbunov1986/this-is-the-most-serious-issue-relating-to-this-war-russia-is-getting-poor-6b7ef3a3877d\", \"unique_slug\": \"this-is-the-most-serious-issue-relating-to-this-war-russia-is-getting-poor-6b7ef3a3877d\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"voters\": [\"725fde1e6a3\", \"33d2006b60ef\", \"e75dc4a35d22\"], \"count\": 3}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"responses\": [\"5029b8bf0387\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "5029b8bf0387", "title": "I think you can see it in the innovation index.", "subtitle": "", "author": "33d2006b60ef", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-02 21:47:29", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-02 21:47:29", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 20, "voters": 1, "reads": 0, "views": 3, "word_count": 35, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.1320754716981132, "url": "https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/i-think-you-can-see-it-in-the-innovation-index-5029b8bf0387", "unique_slug": "i-think-you-can-see-it-in-the-innovation-index-5029b8bf0387", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "5029b8bf0387", "voters": ["151de55ef6a8"], "count": 1}, "responses": {"id": "5029b8bf0387", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "username": "snowythefirst", "fullname": "Chris Snow", "bio": "30+ year old History Professor and educator. MA in Business Ethics and Modern European History. History has much to teach, but it doesn't find enough students.", "followers_count": 8470, "following_count": 72, "publication_following_count": 8, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*e3K9FsW09og7GjGjSbxE7w.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2022-10-10 19:39:27", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": ["economics", "history", "politics"], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://paypal.me/ChrisSnow91?country.x=AT&locale.x=de_DE", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "tags_followed": ["book-excerpts", "geopolitics", "writing", "ukraine-war", "ukraine", "2022", "sexuality", "economy", "biotech", "leadership", "product-management", "cybersecurity", "gun-control", "freelancing", "software-engineering", "artificial-intelligence", "social-media", "psychedelics", "creativity", "religion", "culture", "future", "pets", "music", "politics", "fitness", "machine-learning", "self", "digital-life", "history", "parenting", "humor", "language", "productivity", "food", "mental-health", "cities", "health", "climate-change", "poetry", "film", "books", "medium", "relationships", "race", "work", "family", "spirituality", "world", "blockchain"], "count": 50}}}
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Putin is a KGB Agent and already Orwell had the following to say about the NKVD: "They are trained to be liars, they made lying into a profession".
So, no I really think Putin never tells the truth, but that is the trick: Who would ever believe that someone could lie all the time? That is also why we cannot negotiate with this man. None of that is in good faith. Putin would break the agreements he makes the moment he sees fit. We can for example see how much Russia'e word in the Budapest memorandum was worth. They fired Rockets at Ukraine given to them by Ukraine as part of this deal.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "Just a thought, Chris. Does anyone know the last time Putin told the truth. By the utter poverty alone of his people, the man obviously has no shame and never had a moral compass. Tragically sad. Thanks for your write. Well done.", "role": "f84a16d162b8", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"title\": \"Just a thought, Chris.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"f84a16d162b8\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 17:31:39\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 17:31:39\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 5, \"voters\": 3, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 25, \"word_count\": 42, \"responses_count\": 2, \"reading_time\": 0.15849056603773584, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@rhammond2448/just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca\", \"unique_slug\": \"just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"voters\": [\"725fde1e6a3\", \"25165d88156d\", \"e75dc4a35d22\"], \"count\": 3}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"responses\": [\"1564808f06d6\", \"1d487a8ed24f\"], \"count\": 2}}"}]
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Putin is a KGB Agent and already Orwell had the following to say about the NKVD: "They are trained to be liars, they made lying into a profession".
So, no I really think Putin never tells the truth, but that is the trick: Who would ever believe that someone could lie all the time? That is also why we cannot negotiate with this man. None of that is in good faith. Putin would break the agreements he makes the moment he sees fit. We can for example see how much Russia'e word in the Budapest memorandum was worth. They fired Rockets at Ukraine given to them by Ukraine as part of this deal.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "Good piece, Chris. One minor quibble - it's Hemingway (one M). Cheers!", "role": "e97d51460947", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"71a933c08e2f\", \"title\": \"Good piece, Chris. One minor quibble - it\\u2019s Hemingway (one M). Cheers!\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"e97d51460947\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 00:38:56\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 00:38:56\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 4, \"voters\": 2, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 34, \"word_count\": 11, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.04150943396226415, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@ydyzmptkc/good-piece-chris-one-minor-quibble-its-hemingway-one-m-cheers-71a933c08e2f\", \"unique_slug\": \"good-piece-chris-one-minor-quibble-its-hemingway-one-m-cheers-71a933c08e2f\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"71a933c08e2f\", \"voters\": [\"e75dc4a35d22\", \"33d2006b60ef\"], \"count\": 2}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"71a933c08e2f\", \"responses\": [\"c641bd263a2b\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "c641bd263a2b", "title": "Oh yes of course well I live in the German speaking world for well over two decades by now so I…", "subtitle": "", "author": "33d2006b60ef", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 10:35:09", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-01 10:35:09", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 1, "voters": 1, "reads": 1, "views": 6, "word_count": 33, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.12452830188679245, "url": "https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/oh-yes-of-course-well-i-live-in-the-german-speaking-world-for-well-over-two-decades-by-now-so-i-c641bd263a2b", "unique_slug": "oh-yes-of-course-well-i-live-in-the-german-speaking-world-for-well-over-two-decades-by-now-so-i-c641bd263a2b", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "c641bd263a2b", "voters": ["725fde1e6a3"], "count": 1}, "responses": {"id": "c641bd263a2b", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "username": "snowythefirst", "fullname": "Chris Snow", "bio": "30+ year old History Professor and educator. MA in Business Ethics and Modern European History. History has much to teach, but it doesn't find enough students.", "followers_count": 8470, "following_count": 72, "publication_following_count": 8, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*e3K9FsW09og7GjGjSbxE7w.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2022-10-10 19:39:27", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": ["economics", "history", "politics"], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://paypal.me/ChrisSnow91?country.x=AT&locale.x=de_DE", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "tags_followed": ["book-excerpts", "geopolitics", "writing", "ukraine-war", "ukraine", "2022", "sexuality", "economy", "biotech", "leadership", "product-management", "cybersecurity", "gun-control", "freelancing", "software-engineering", "artificial-intelligence", "social-media", "psychedelics", "creativity", "religion", "culture", "future", "pets", "music", "politics", "fitness", "machine-learning", "self", "digital-life", "history", "parenting", "humor", "language", "productivity", "food", "mental-health", "cities", "health", "climate-change", "poetry", "film", "books", "medium", "relationships", "race", "work", "family", "spirituality", "world", "blockchain"], "count": 50}}}
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Oh yes of course well I live in the German speaking world for well over two decades by now so I suppose those double "m" and "n" get to you at some point.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "It always amazes me how the poor are so humble and gracious. Small gifts can be so important and what little they have they share.\n\nGod bless the poor everywhere.", "role": "2f6a41cda2fb", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"281856329a09\", \"title\": \"It always amazes me how the poor are so humble and gracious.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 01:02:19\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 01:02:19\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 22, \"voters\": 7, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 40, \"word_count\": 30, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.11320754716981132, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@grizzly_45029/it-always-amazes-me-how-the-poor-are-so-humble-and-gracious-281856329a09\", \"unique_slug\": \"it-always-amazes-me-how-the-poor-are-so-humble-and-gracious-281856329a09\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"281856329a09\", \"voters\": [\"725fde1e6a3\", \"e75dc4a35d22\", \"703133ad3731\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"77b8dc3eef90\", \"33d2006b60ef\", \"f8d4f206f6cd\"], \"count\": 7}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"281856329a09\", \"responses\": [\"759c3c487fb6\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "759c3c487fb6", "title": "I think Bob it is because money has made us hard and unkind we lost sight of what is truly…", "subtitle": "", "author": "33d2006b60ef", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 10:37:04", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-01 10:37:04", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 20, "voters": 3, "reads": 0, "views": 9, "word_count": 70, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.2641509433962264, "url": "https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/i-think-bob-it-is-because-money-has-made-us-hard-and-unkind-we-lost-sight-of-what-is-truly-759c3c487fb6", "unique_slug": "i-think-bob-it-is-because-money-has-made-us-hard-and-unkind-we-lost-sight-of-what-is-truly-759c3c487fb6", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "759c3c487fb6", "voters": ["cc85ecdfd0ba", "725fde1e6a3", "2f6a41cda2fb"], "count": 3}, "responses": {"id": "759c3c487fb6", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "username": "snowythefirst", "fullname": "Chris Snow", "bio": "30+ year old History Professor and educator. MA in Business Ethics and Modern European History. History has much to teach, but it doesn't find enough students.", "followers_count": 8470, "following_count": 72, "publication_following_count": 8, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*e3K9FsW09og7GjGjSbxE7w.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2022-10-10 19:39:27", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": ["economics", "history", "politics"], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://paypal.me/ChrisSnow91?country.x=AT&locale.x=de_DE", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "tags_followed": ["book-excerpts", "geopolitics", "writing", "ukraine-war", "ukraine", "2022", "sexuality", "economy", "biotech", "leadership", "product-management", "cybersecurity", "gun-control", "freelancing", "software-engineering", "artificial-intelligence", "social-media", "psychedelics", "creativity", "religion", "culture", "future", "pets", "music", "politics", "fitness", "machine-learning", "self", "digital-life", "history", "parenting", "humor", "language", "productivity", "food", "mental-health", "cities", "health", "climate-change", "poetry", "film", "books", "medium", "relationships", "race", "work", "family", "spirituality", "world", "blockchain"], "count": 50}}}
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Oh yes of course well I live in the German speaking world for well over two decades by now so I suppose those double "m" and "n" get to you at some point.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "Don't worry, Russia isn't going anywhere and neither Putin. The west can bleed it's heart out and shed hornet tears but your propaganda and of your likes is a laughing stock.", "role": "5fb05bdd4fc1", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"173f1406afa4\", \"title\": \"Don\\u2019t worry, Russia isn\\u2019t going anywhere and neither Putin.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"5fb05bdd4fc1\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-02 17:39:33\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 17:39:33\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 4, \"voters\": 2, \"reads\": 2, \"views\": 14, \"word_count\": 31, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.1169811320754717, \"url\": \"https://masomo.medium.com/dont-worry-russia-isn-t-going-anywhere-and-neither-putin-173f1406afa4\", \"unique_slug\": \"dont-worry-russia-isn-t-going-anywhere-and-neither-putin-173f1406afa4\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"173f1406afa4\", \"voters\": [\"5eb2ee98c4e2\", \"e75dc4a35d22\"], \"count\": 2}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"173f1406afa4\", \"responses\": [\"85b7d917645e\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "85b7d917645e", "title": "Believe me we don't find any of that funny I can guarantee you we literally don't care where you go…", "subtitle": "", "author": "33d2006b60ef", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-02 21:38:07", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-02 22:00:21", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 1, "voters": 1, "reads": 1, "views": 3, "word_count": 159, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.6, "url": "https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/believe-me-we-dont-find-any-of-that-funny-i-can-guarantee-you-we-literally-don-t-care-where-you-go-85b7d917645e", "unique_slug": "believe-me-we-dont-find-any-of-that-funny-i-can-guarantee-you-we-literally-don-t-care-where-you-go-85b7d917645e", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": false, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "85b7d917645e", "voters": ["725fde1e6a3"], "count": 1}, "responses": {"id": "85b7d917645e", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "username": "snowythefirst", "fullname": "Chris Snow", "bio": "30+ year old History Professor and educator. MA in Business Ethics and Modern European History. History has much to teach, but it doesn't find enough students.", "followers_count": 8470, "following_count": 72, "publication_following_count": 8, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*e3K9FsW09og7GjGjSbxE7w.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2022-10-10 19:39:27", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": ["economics", "history", "politics"], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://paypal.me/ChrisSnow91?country.x=AT&locale.x=de_DE", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "tags_followed": ["book-excerpts", "geopolitics", "writing", "ukraine-war", "ukraine", "2022", "sexuality", "economy", "biotech", "leadership", "product-management", "cybersecurity", "gun-control", "freelancing", "software-engineering", "artificial-intelligence", "social-media", "psychedelics", "creativity", "religion", "culture", "future", "pets", "music", "politics", "fitness", "machine-learning", "self", "digital-life", "history", "parenting", "humor", "language", "productivity", "food", "mental-health", "cities", "health", "climate-change", "poetry", "film", "books", "medium", "relationships", "race", "work", "family", "spirituality", "world", "blockchain"], "count": 50}}}
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Oh yes of course well I live in the German speaking world for well over two decades by now so I suppose those double "m" and "n" get to you at some point.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "This is the most serious issue relating to this war - Russia is getting poor. \"Poor\" not in terms of money but in terms of the people. Young patriotic professionals constitute any country's wealth. What's been happening since 2022 is alarming. I am afraid it'll have bad consequences for Russia in the long run.", "role": "151de55ef6a8", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"title\": \"This is the most serious issue relating to this war - Russia is getting poor.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"151de55ef6a8\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-02 17:16:17\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 17:16:17\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 9, \"voters\": 3, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 15, \"word_count\": 53, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.2, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@gorbunov1986/this-is-the-most-serious-issue-relating-to-this-war-russia-is-getting-poor-6b7ef3a3877d\", \"unique_slug\": \"this-is-the-most-serious-issue-relating-to-this-war-russia-is-getting-poor-6b7ef3a3877d\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"voters\": [\"725fde1e6a3\", \"33d2006b60ef\", \"e75dc4a35d22\"], \"count\": 3}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"responses\": [\"5029b8bf0387\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "5029b8bf0387", "title": "I think you can see it in the innovation index.", "subtitle": "", "author": "33d2006b60ef", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-02 21:47:29", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-02 21:47:29", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 20, "voters": 1, "reads": 0, "views": 3, "word_count": 35, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.1320754716981132, "url": "https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/i-think-you-can-see-it-in-the-innovation-index-5029b8bf0387", "unique_slug": "i-think-you-can-see-it-in-the-innovation-index-5029b8bf0387", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "5029b8bf0387", "voters": ["151de55ef6a8"], "count": 1}, "responses": {"id": "5029b8bf0387", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "username": "snowythefirst", "fullname": "Chris Snow", "bio": "30+ year old History Professor and educator. MA in Business Ethics and Modern European History. History has much to teach, but it doesn't find enough students.", "followers_count": 8470, "following_count": 72, "publication_following_count": 8, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*e3K9FsW09og7GjGjSbxE7w.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2022-10-10 19:39:27", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": ["economics", "history", "politics"], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://paypal.me/ChrisSnow91?country.x=AT&locale.x=de_DE", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "tags_followed": ["book-excerpts", "geopolitics", "writing", "ukraine-war", "ukraine", "2022", "sexuality", "economy", "biotech", "leadership", "product-management", "cybersecurity", "gun-control", "freelancing", "software-engineering", "artificial-intelligence", "social-media", "psychedelics", "creativity", "religion", "culture", "future", "pets", "music", "politics", "fitness", "machine-learning", "self", "digital-life", "history", "parenting", "humor", "language", "productivity", "food", "mental-health", "cities", "health", "climate-change", "poetry", "film", "books", "medium", "relationships", "race", "work", "family", "spirituality", "world", "blockchain"], "count": 50}}}
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Oh yes of course well I live in the German speaking world for well over two decades by now so I suppose those double "m" and "n" get to you at some point.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "Just a thought, Chris. Does anyone know the last time Putin told the truth. By the utter poverty alone of his people, the man obviously has no shame and never had a moral compass. Tragically sad. Thanks for your write. Well done.", "role": "f84a16d162b8", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"title\": \"Just a thought, Chris.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"f84a16d162b8\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 17:31:39\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 17:31:39\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 5, \"voters\": 3, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 25, \"word_count\": 42, \"responses_count\": 2, \"reading_time\": 0.15849056603773584, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@rhammond2448/just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca\", \"unique_slug\": \"just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"voters\": [\"725fde1e6a3\", \"25165d88156d\", \"e75dc4a35d22\"], \"count\": 3}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"responses\": [\"1564808f06d6\", \"1d487a8ed24f\"], \"count\": 2}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "1564808f06d6", "title": "Putin is a KGB Agent and already Orwell had the following to say about the NKVD: \"They are trained…", "subtitle": "", "author": "33d2006b60ef", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 21:00:14", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-01 21:02:50", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 22, "voters": 2, "reads": 0, "views": 6, "word_count": 113, "responses_count": 1, "reading_time": 0.42641509433962266, "url": "https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/putin-is-a-kgb-agent-and-already-orwell-had-the-following-to-say-about-the-nkvd-they-are-trained-1564808f06d6", "unique_slug": "putin-is-a-kgb-agent-and-already-orwell-had-the-following-to-say-about-the-nkvd-they-are-trained-1564808f06d6", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "1564808f06d6", "voters": ["725fde1e6a3", "f84a16d162b8"], "count": 2}, "responses": {"id": "1564808f06d6", "responses": ["f52cca086a11"], "count": 1}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "username": "snowythefirst", "fullname": "Chris Snow", "bio": "30+ year old History Professor and educator. MA in Business Ethics and Modern European History. History has much to teach, but it doesn't find enough students.", "followers_count": 8470, "following_count": 72, "publication_following_count": 8, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*e3K9FsW09og7GjGjSbxE7w.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2022-10-10 19:39:27", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": ["economics", "history", "politics"], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://paypal.me/ChrisSnow91?country.x=AT&locale.x=de_DE", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "tags_followed": ["book-excerpts", "geopolitics", "writing", "ukraine-war", "ukraine", "2022", "sexuality", "economy", "biotech", "leadership", "product-management", "cybersecurity", "gun-control", "freelancing", "software-engineering", "artificial-intelligence", "social-media", "psychedelics", "creativity", "religion", "culture", "future", "pets", "music", "politics", "fitness", "machine-learning", "self", "digital-life", "history", "parenting", "humor", "language", "productivity", "food", "mental-health", "cities", "health", "climate-change", "poetry", "film", "books", "medium", "relationships", "race", "work", "family", "spirituality", "world", "blockchain"], "count": 50}}}
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Oh yes of course well I live in the German speaking world for well over two decades by now so I suppose those double "m" and "n" get to you at some point.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "Good piece, Chris. One minor quibble - it's Hemingway (one M). Cheers!", "role": "e97d51460947", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"71a933c08e2f\", \"title\": \"Good piece, Chris. One minor quibble - it\\u2019s Hemingway (one M). Cheers!\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"e97d51460947\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 00:38:56\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 00:38:56\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 4, \"voters\": 2, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 34, \"word_count\": 11, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.04150943396226415, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@ydyzmptkc/good-piece-chris-one-minor-quibble-its-hemingway-one-m-cheers-71a933c08e2f\", \"unique_slug\": \"good-piece-chris-one-minor-quibble-its-hemingway-one-m-cheers-71a933c08e2f\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"71a933c08e2f\", \"voters\": [\"e75dc4a35d22\", \"33d2006b60ef\"], \"count\": 2}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"71a933c08e2f\", \"responses\": [\"c641bd263a2b\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "c641bd263a2b", "title": "Oh yes of course well I live in the German speaking world for well over two decades by now so I…", "subtitle": "", "author": "33d2006b60ef", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 10:35:09", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-01 10:35:09", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 1, "voters": 1, "reads": 1, "views": 6, "word_count": 33, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.12452830188679245, "url": "https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/oh-yes-of-course-well-i-live-in-the-german-speaking-world-for-well-over-two-decades-by-now-so-i-c641bd263a2b", "unique_slug": "oh-yes-of-course-well-i-live-in-the-german-speaking-world-for-well-over-two-decades-by-now-so-i-c641bd263a2b", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "c641bd263a2b", "voters": ["725fde1e6a3"], "count": 1}, "responses": {"id": "c641bd263a2b", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "username": "snowythefirst", "fullname": "Chris Snow", "bio": "30+ year old History Professor and educator. MA in Business Ethics and Modern European History. History has much to teach, but it doesn't find enough students.", "followers_count": 8470, "following_count": 72, "publication_following_count": 8, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*e3K9FsW09og7GjGjSbxE7w.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2022-10-10 19:39:27", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": ["economics", "history", "politics"], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://paypal.me/ChrisSnow91?country.x=AT&locale.x=de_DE", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "tags_followed": ["book-excerpts", "geopolitics", "writing", "ukraine-war", "ukraine", "2022", "sexuality", "economy", "biotech", "leadership", "product-management", "cybersecurity", "gun-control", "freelancing", "software-engineering", "artificial-intelligence", "social-media", "psychedelics", "creativity", "religion", "culture", "future", "pets", "music", "politics", "fitness", "machine-learning", "self", "digital-life", "history", "parenting", "humor", "language", "productivity", "food", "mental-health", "cities", "health", "climate-change", "poetry", "film", "books", "medium", "relationships", "race", "work", "family", "spirituality", "world", "blockchain"], "count": 50}}}
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Believe me we don't find any of that funny I can guarantee you we literally don't care where you go but we will make you move regardless and Putin is what 71? He will die as all dictators die.
Violently, alone and before his time.
The truth will set you free one day and luckily it doesn't care about your ignorance or lack of understanding.
Your trust in your little dictator is misplaced and you highly underestimate what Russia got itself into. Watch and learn the next 6 to 10 months will be highly educational.
Anyways, cheers and have fun in whatever may be left of Russia's Potemkin village. So far the performance has been laughable and rather pathetic. I hope Putin can do better than that.
Generally, we had as much quarrel with Russia before this invasion as ant is having a quarrel with a boot. Russia just doesn't get who the ant and who the boot is.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "It always amazes me how the poor are so humble and gracious. Small gifts can be so important and what little they have they share.\n\nGod bless the poor everywhere.", "role": "2f6a41cda2fb", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"281856329a09\", \"title\": \"It always amazes me how the poor are so humble and gracious.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 01:02:19\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 01:02:19\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 22, \"voters\": 7, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 40, \"word_count\": 30, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.11320754716981132, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@grizzly_45029/it-always-amazes-me-how-the-poor-are-so-humble-and-gracious-281856329a09\", \"unique_slug\": \"it-always-amazes-me-how-the-poor-are-so-humble-and-gracious-281856329a09\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"281856329a09\", \"voters\": [\"725fde1e6a3\", \"e75dc4a35d22\", \"703133ad3731\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"77b8dc3eef90\", \"33d2006b60ef\", \"f8d4f206f6cd\"], \"count\": 7}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"281856329a09\", \"responses\": [\"759c3c487fb6\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "759c3c487fb6", "title": "I think Bob it is because money has made us hard and unkind we lost sight of what is truly…", "subtitle": "", "author": "33d2006b60ef", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 10:37:04", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-01 10:37:04", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 20, "voters": 3, "reads": 0, "views": 9, "word_count": 70, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.2641509433962264, "url": "https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/i-think-bob-it-is-because-money-has-made-us-hard-and-unkind-we-lost-sight-of-what-is-truly-759c3c487fb6", "unique_slug": "i-think-bob-it-is-because-money-has-made-us-hard-and-unkind-we-lost-sight-of-what-is-truly-759c3c487fb6", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "759c3c487fb6", "voters": ["cc85ecdfd0ba", "725fde1e6a3", "2f6a41cda2fb"], "count": 3}, "responses": {"id": "759c3c487fb6", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "username": "snowythefirst", "fullname": "Chris Snow", "bio": "30+ year old History Professor and educator. MA in Business Ethics and Modern European History. History has much to teach, but it doesn't find enough students.", "followers_count": 8470, "following_count": 72, "publication_following_count": 8, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*e3K9FsW09og7GjGjSbxE7w.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2022-10-10 19:39:27", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": ["economics", "history", "politics"], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://paypal.me/ChrisSnow91?country.x=AT&locale.x=de_DE", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "tags_followed": ["book-excerpts", "geopolitics", "writing", "ukraine-war", "ukraine", "2022", "sexuality", "economy", "biotech", "leadership", "product-management", "cybersecurity", "gun-control", "freelancing", "software-engineering", "artificial-intelligence", "social-media", "psychedelics", "creativity", "religion", "culture", "future", "pets", "music", "politics", "fitness", "machine-learning", "self", "digital-life", "history", "parenting", "humor", "language", "productivity", "food", "mental-health", "cities", "health", "climate-change", "poetry", "film", "books", "medium", "relationships", "race", "work", "family", "spirituality", "world", "blockchain"], "count": 50}}}
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Believe me we don't find any of that funny I can guarantee you we literally don't care where you go but we will make you move regardless and Putin is what 71? He will die as all dictators die.
Violently, alone and before his time.
The truth will set you free one day and luckily it doesn't care about your ignorance or lack of understanding.
Your trust in your little dictator is misplaced and you highly underestimate what Russia got itself into. Watch and learn the next 6 to 10 months will be highly educational.
Anyways, cheers and have fun in whatever may be left of Russia's Potemkin village. So far the performance has been laughable and rather pathetic. I hope Putin can do better than that.
Generally, we had as much quarrel with Russia before this invasion as ant is having a quarrel with a boot. Russia just doesn't get who the ant and who the boot is.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "Don't worry, Russia isn't going anywhere and neither Putin. The west can bleed it's heart out and shed hornet tears but your propaganda and of your likes is a laughing stock.", "role": "5fb05bdd4fc1", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"173f1406afa4\", \"title\": \"Don\\u2019t worry, Russia isn\\u2019t going anywhere and neither Putin.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"5fb05bdd4fc1\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-02 17:39:33\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 17:39:33\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 4, \"voters\": 2, \"reads\": 2, \"views\": 14, \"word_count\": 31, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.1169811320754717, \"url\": \"https://masomo.medium.com/dont-worry-russia-isn-t-going-anywhere-and-neither-putin-173f1406afa4\", \"unique_slug\": \"dont-worry-russia-isn-t-going-anywhere-and-neither-putin-173f1406afa4\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"173f1406afa4\", \"voters\": [\"5eb2ee98c4e2\", \"e75dc4a35d22\"], \"count\": 2}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"173f1406afa4\", \"responses\": [\"85b7d917645e\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "85b7d917645e", "title": "Believe me we don't find any of that funny I can guarantee you we literally don't care where you go…", "subtitle": "", "author": "33d2006b60ef", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-02 21:38:07", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-02 22:00:21", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 1, "voters": 1, "reads": 1, "views": 3, "word_count": 159, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.6, "url": "https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/believe-me-we-dont-find-any-of-that-funny-i-can-guarantee-you-we-literally-don-t-care-where-you-go-85b7d917645e", "unique_slug": "believe-me-we-dont-find-any-of-that-funny-i-can-guarantee-you-we-literally-don-t-care-where-you-go-85b7d917645e", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": false, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "85b7d917645e", "voters": ["725fde1e6a3"], "count": 1}, "responses": {"id": "85b7d917645e", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "username": "snowythefirst", "fullname": "Chris Snow", "bio": "30+ year old History Professor and educator. MA in Business Ethics and Modern European History. History has much to teach, but it doesn't find enough students.", "followers_count": 8470, "following_count": 72, "publication_following_count": 8, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*e3K9FsW09og7GjGjSbxE7w.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2022-10-10 19:39:27", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": ["economics", "history", "politics"], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://paypal.me/ChrisSnow91?country.x=AT&locale.x=de_DE", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "tags_followed": ["book-excerpts", "geopolitics", "writing", "ukraine-war", "ukraine", "2022", "sexuality", "economy", "biotech", "leadership", "product-management", "cybersecurity", "gun-control", "freelancing", "software-engineering", "artificial-intelligence", "social-media", "psychedelics", "creativity", "religion", "culture", "future", "pets", "music", "politics", "fitness", "machine-learning", "self", "digital-life", "history", "parenting", "humor", "language", "productivity", "food", "mental-health", "cities", "health", "climate-change", "poetry", "film", "books", "medium", "relationships", "race", "work", "family", "spirituality", "world", "blockchain"], "count": 50}}}
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Believe me we don't find any of that funny I can guarantee you we literally don't care where you go but we will make you move regardless and Putin is what 71? He will die as all dictators die.
Violently, alone and before his time.
The truth will set you free one day and luckily it doesn't care about your ignorance or lack of understanding.
Your trust in your little dictator is misplaced and you highly underestimate what Russia got itself into. Watch and learn the next 6 to 10 months will be highly educational.
Anyways, cheers and have fun in whatever may be left of Russia's Potemkin village. So far the performance has been laughable and rather pathetic. I hope Putin can do better than that.
Generally, we had as much quarrel with Russia before this invasion as ant is having a quarrel with a boot. Russia just doesn't get who the ant and who the boot is.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "This is the most serious issue relating to this war - Russia is getting poor. \"Poor\" not in terms of money but in terms of the people. Young patriotic professionals constitute any country's wealth. What's been happening since 2022 is alarming. I am afraid it'll have bad consequences for Russia in the long run.", "role": "151de55ef6a8", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"title\": \"This is the most serious issue relating to this war - Russia is getting poor.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"151de55ef6a8\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-02 17:16:17\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 17:16:17\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 9, \"voters\": 3, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 15, \"word_count\": 53, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.2, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@gorbunov1986/this-is-the-most-serious-issue-relating-to-this-war-russia-is-getting-poor-6b7ef3a3877d\", \"unique_slug\": \"this-is-the-most-serious-issue-relating-to-this-war-russia-is-getting-poor-6b7ef3a3877d\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"voters\": [\"725fde1e6a3\", \"33d2006b60ef\", \"e75dc4a35d22\"], \"count\": 3}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"responses\": [\"5029b8bf0387\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "5029b8bf0387", "title": "I think you can see it in the innovation index.", "subtitle": "", "author": "33d2006b60ef", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-02 21:47:29", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-02 21:47:29", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 20, "voters": 1, "reads": 0, "views": 3, "word_count": 35, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.1320754716981132, "url": "https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/i-think-you-can-see-it-in-the-innovation-index-5029b8bf0387", "unique_slug": "i-think-you-can-see-it-in-the-innovation-index-5029b8bf0387", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "5029b8bf0387", "voters": ["151de55ef6a8"], "count": 1}, "responses": {"id": "5029b8bf0387", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "username": "snowythefirst", "fullname": "Chris Snow", "bio": "30+ year old History Professor and educator. MA in Business Ethics and Modern European History. History has much to teach, but it doesn't find enough students.", "followers_count": 8470, "following_count": 72, "publication_following_count": 8, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*e3K9FsW09og7GjGjSbxE7w.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2022-10-10 19:39:27", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": ["economics", "history", "politics"], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://paypal.me/ChrisSnow91?country.x=AT&locale.x=de_DE", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "tags_followed": ["book-excerpts", "geopolitics", "writing", "ukraine-war", "ukraine", "2022", "sexuality", "economy", "biotech", "leadership", "product-management", "cybersecurity", "gun-control", "freelancing", "software-engineering", "artificial-intelligence", "social-media", "psychedelics", "creativity", "religion", "culture", "future", "pets", "music", "politics", "fitness", "machine-learning", "self", "digital-life", "history", "parenting", "humor", "language", "productivity", "food", "mental-health", "cities", "health", "climate-change", "poetry", "film", "books", "medium", "relationships", "race", "work", "family", "spirituality", "world", "blockchain"], "count": 50}}}
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Believe me we don't find any of that funny I can guarantee you we literally don't care where you go but we will make you move regardless and Putin is what 71? He will die as all dictators die.
Violently, alone and before his time.
The truth will set you free one day and luckily it doesn't care about your ignorance or lack of understanding.
Your trust in your little dictator is misplaced and you highly underestimate what Russia got itself into. Watch and learn the next 6 to 10 months will be highly educational.
Anyways, cheers and have fun in whatever may be left of Russia's Potemkin village. So far the performance has been laughable and rather pathetic. I hope Putin can do better than that.
Generally, we had as much quarrel with Russia before this invasion as ant is having a quarrel with a boot. Russia just doesn't get who the ant and who the boot is.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "Just a thought, Chris. Does anyone know the last time Putin told the truth. By the utter poverty alone of his people, the man obviously has no shame and never had a moral compass. Tragically sad. Thanks for your write. Well done.", "role": "f84a16d162b8", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"title\": \"Just a thought, Chris.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"f84a16d162b8\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 17:31:39\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 17:31:39\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 5, \"voters\": 3, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 25, \"word_count\": 42, \"responses_count\": 2, \"reading_time\": 0.15849056603773584, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@rhammond2448/just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca\", \"unique_slug\": \"just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"voters\": [\"725fde1e6a3\", \"25165d88156d\", \"e75dc4a35d22\"], \"count\": 3}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"responses\": [\"1564808f06d6\", \"1d487a8ed24f\"], \"count\": 2}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "1564808f06d6", "title": "Putin is a KGB Agent and already Orwell had the following to say about the NKVD: \"They are trained…", "subtitle": "", "author": "33d2006b60ef", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 21:00:14", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-01 21:02:50", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 22, "voters": 2, "reads": 0, "views": 6, "word_count": 113, "responses_count": 1, "reading_time": 0.42641509433962266, "url": "https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/putin-is-a-kgb-agent-and-already-orwell-had-the-following-to-say-about-the-nkvd-they-are-trained-1564808f06d6", "unique_slug": "putin-is-a-kgb-agent-and-already-orwell-had-the-following-to-say-about-the-nkvd-they-are-trained-1564808f06d6", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "1564808f06d6", "voters": ["725fde1e6a3", "f84a16d162b8"], "count": 2}, "responses": {"id": "1564808f06d6", "responses": ["f52cca086a11"], "count": 1}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "username": "snowythefirst", "fullname": "Chris Snow", "bio": "30+ year old History Professor and educator. MA in Business Ethics and Modern European History. History has much to teach, but it doesn't find enough students.", "followers_count": 8470, "following_count": 72, "publication_following_count": 8, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*e3K9FsW09og7GjGjSbxE7w.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2022-10-10 19:39:27", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": ["economics", "history", "politics"], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://paypal.me/ChrisSnow91?country.x=AT&locale.x=de_DE", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "tags_followed": ["book-excerpts", "geopolitics", "writing", "ukraine-war", "ukraine", "2022", "sexuality", "economy", "biotech", "leadership", "product-management", "cybersecurity", "gun-control", "freelancing", "software-engineering", "artificial-intelligence", "social-media", "psychedelics", "creativity", "religion", "culture", "future", "pets", "music", "politics", "fitness", "machine-learning", "self", "digital-life", "history", "parenting", "humor", "language", "productivity", "food", "mental-health", "cities", "health", "climate-change", "poetry", "film", "books", "medium", "relationships", "race", "work", "family", "spirituality", "world", "blockchain"], "count": 50}}}
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Believe me we don't find any of that funny I can guarantee you we literally don't care where you go but we will make you move regardless and Putin is what 71? He will die as all dictators die.
Violently, alone and before his time.
The truth will set you free one day and luckily it doesn't care about your ignorance or lack of understanding.
Your trust in your little dictator is misplaced and you highly underestimate what Russia got itself into. Watch and learn the next 6 to 10 months will be highly educational.
Anyways, cheers and have fun in whatever may be left of Russia's Potemkin village. So far the performance has been laughable and rather pathetic. I hope Putin can do better than that.
Generally, we had as much quarrel with Russia before this invasion as ant is having a quarrel with a boot. Russia just doesn't get who the ant and who the boot is.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "Good piece, Chris. One minor quibble - it's Hemingway (one M). Cheers!", "role": "e97d51460947", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"71a933c08e2f\", \"title\": \"Good piece, Chris. One minor quibble - it\\u2019s Hemingway (one M). Cheers!\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"e97d51460947\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 00:38:56\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 00:38:56\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 4, \"voters\": 2, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 34, \"word_count\": 11, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.04150943396226415, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@ydyzmptkc/good-piece-chris-one-minor-quibble-its-hemingway-one-m-cheers-71a933c08e2f\", \"unique_slug\": \"good-piece-chris-one-minor-quibble-its-hemingway-one-m-cheers-71a933c08e2f\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"71a933c08e2f\", \"voters\": [\"e75dc4a35d22\", \"33d2006b60ef\"], \"count\": 2}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"71a933c08e2f\", \"responses\": [\"c641bd263a2b\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "c641bd263a2b", "title": "Oh yes of course well I live in the German speaking world for well over two decades by now so I…", "subtitle": "", "author": "33d2006b60ef", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 10:35:09", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-01 10:35:09", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 1, "voters": 1, "reads": 1, "views": 6, "word_count": 33, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.12452830188679245, "url": "https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/oh-yes-of-course-well-i-live-in-the-german-speaking-world-for-well-over-two-decades-by-now-so-i-c641bd263a2b", "unique_slug": "oh-yes-of-course-well-i-live-in-the-german-speaking-world-for-well-over-two-decades-by-now-so-i-c641bd263a2b", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "c641bd263a2b", "voters": ["725fde1e6a3"], "count": 1}, "responses": {"id": "c641bd263a2b", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "username": "snowythefirst", "fullname": "Chris Snow", "bio": "30+ year old History Professor and educator. MA in Business Ethics and Modern European History. History has much to teach, but it doesn't find enough students.", "followers_count": 8470, "following_count": 72, "publication_following_count": 8, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*e3K9FsW09og7GjGjSbxE7w.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2022-10-10 19:39:27", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": ["economics", "history", "politics"], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://paypal.me/ChrisSnow91?country.x=AT&locale.x=de_DE", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "tags_followed": ["book-excerpts", "geopolitics", "writing", "ukraine-war", "ukraine", "2022", "sexuality", "economy", "biotech", "leadership", "product-management", "cybersecurity", "gun-control", "freelancing", "software-engineering", "artificial-intelligence", "social-media", "psychedelics", "creativity", "religion", "culture", "future", "pets", "music", "politics", "fitness", "machine-learning", "self", "digital-life", "history", "parenting", "humor", "language", "productivity", "food", "mental-health", "cities", "health", "climate-change", "poetry", "film", "books", "medium", "relationships", "race", "work", "family", "spirituality", "world", "blockchain"], "count": 50}}}
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I think you can see it in the innovation index. Russia's biggest capital is not its oil or money. It's the Russian people especially the well educated have fled in droves since the war began.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "It always amazes me how the poor are so humble and gracious. Small gifts can be so important and what little they have they share.\n\nGod bless the poor everywhere.", "role": "2f6a41cda2fb", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"281856329a09\", \"title\": \"It always amazes me how the poor are so humble and gracious.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 01:02:19\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 01:02:19\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 22, \"voters\": 7, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 40, \"word_count\": 30, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.11320754716981132, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@grizzly_45029/it-always-amazes-me-how-the-poor-are-so-humble-and-gracious-281856329a09\", \"unique_slug\": \"it-always-amazes-me-how-the-poor-are-so-humble-and-gracious-281856329a09\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"281856329a09\", \"voters\": [\"725fde1e6a3\", \"e75dc4a35d22\", \"703133ad3731\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"77b8dc3eef90\", \"33d2006b60ef\", \"f8d4f206f6cd\"], \"count\": 7}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"281856329a09\", \"responses\": [\"759c3c487fb6\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "759c3c487fb6", "title": "I think Bob it is because money has made us hard and unkind we lost sight of what is truly…", "subtitle": "", "author": "33d2006b60ef", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 10:37:04", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-01 10:37:04", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 20, "voters": 3, "reads": 0, "views": 9, "word_count": 70, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.2641509433962264, "url": "https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/i-think-bob-it-is-because-money-has-made-us-hard-and-unkind-we-lost-sight-of-what-is-truly-759c3c487fb6", "unique_slug": "i-think-bob-it-is-because-money-has-made-us-hard-and-unkind-we-lost-sight-of-what-is-truly-759c3c487fb6", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "759c3c487fb6", "voters": ["cc85ecdfd0ba", "725fde1e6a3", "2f6a41cda2fb"], "count": 3}, "responses": {"id": "759c3c487fb6", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "username": "snowythefirst", "fullname": "Chris Snow", "bio": "30+ year old History Professor and educator. MA in Business Ethics and Modern European History. History has much to teach, but it doesn't find enough students.", "followers_count": 8470, "following_count": 72, "publication_following_count": 8, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*e3K9FsW09og7GjGjSbxE7w.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2022-10-10 19:39:27", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": ["economics", "history", "politics"], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://paypal.me/ChrisSnow91?country.x=AT&locale.x=de_DE", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "tags_followed": ["book-excerpts", "geopolitics", "writing", "ukraine-war", "ukraine", "2022", "sexuality", "economy", "biotech", "leadership", "product-management", "cybersecurity", "gun-control", "freelancing", "software-engineering", "artificial-intelligence", "social-media", "psychedelics", "creativity", "religion", "culture", "future", "pets", "music", "politics", "fitness", "machine-learning", "self", "digital-life", "history", "parenting", "humor", "language", "productivity", "food", "mental-health", "cities", "health", "climate-change", "poetry", "film", "books", "medium", "relationships", "race", "work", "family", "spirituality", "world", "blockchain"], "count": 50}}}
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I think you can see it in the innovation index. Russia's biggest capital is not its oil or money. It's the Russian people especially the well educated have fled in droves since the war began.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "Don't worry, Russia isn't going anywhere and neither Putin. The west can bleed it's heart out and shed hornet tears but your propaganda and of your likes is a laughing stock.", "role": "5fb05bdd4fc1", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"173f1406afa4\", \"title\": \"Don\\u2019t worry, Russia isn\\u2019t going anywhere and neither Putin.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"5fb05bdd4fc1\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-02 17:39:33\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 17:39:33\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 4, \"voters\": 2, \"reads\": 2, \"views\": 14, \"word_count\": 31, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.1169811320754717, \"url\": \"https://masomo.medium.com/dont-worry-russia-isn-t-going-anywhere-and-neither-putin-173f1406afa4\", \"unique_slug\": \"dont-worry-russia-isn-t-going-anywhere-and-neither-putin-173f1406afa4\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"173f1406afa4\", \"voters\": [\"5eb2ee98c4e2\", \"e75dc4a35d22\"], \"count\": 2}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"173f1406afa4\", \"responses\": [\"85b7d917645e\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "85b7d917645e", "title": "Believe me we don't find any of that funny I can guarantee you we literally don't care where you go…", "subtitle": "", "author": "33d2006b60ef", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-02 21:38:07", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-02 22:00:21", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 1, "voters": 1, "reads": 1, "views": 3, "word_count": 159, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.6, "url": "https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/believe-me-we-dont-find-any-of-that-funny-i-can-guarantee-you-we-literally-don-t-care-where-you-go-85b7d917645e", "unique_slug": "believe-me-we-dont-find-any-of-that-funny-i-can-guarantee-you-we-literally-don-t-care-where-you-go-85b7d917645e", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": false, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "85b7d917645e", "voters": ["725fde1e6a3"], "count": 1}, "responses": {"id": "85b7d917645e", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "username": "snowythefirst", "fullname": "Chris Snow", "bio": "30+ year old History Professor and educator. MA in Business Ethics and Modern European History. History has much to teach, but it doesn't find enough students.", "followers_count": 8470, "following_count": 72, "publication_following_count": 8, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*e3K9FsW09og7GjGjSbxE7w.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2022-10-10 19:39:27", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": ["economics", "history", "politics"], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://paypal.me/ChrisSnow91?country.x=AT&locale.x=de_DE", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "tags_followed": ["book-excerpts", "geopolitics", "writing", "ukraine-war", "ukraine", "2022", "sexuality", "economy", "biotech", "leadership", "product-management", "cybersecurity", "gun-control", "freelancing", "software-engineering", "artificial-intelligence", "social-media", "psychedelics", "creativity", "religion", "culture", "future", "pets", "music", "politics", "fitness", "machine-learning", "self", "digital-life", "history", "parenting", "humor", "language", "productivity", "food", "mental-health", "cities", "health", "climate-change", "poetry", "film", "books", "medium", "relationships", "race", "work", "family", "spirituality", "world", "blockchain"], "count": 50}}}
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I think you can see it in the innovation index. Russia's biggest capital is not its oil or money. It's the Russian people especially the well educated have fled in droves since the war began.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "This is the most serious issue relating to this war - Russia is getting poor. \"Poor\" not in terms of money but in terms of the people. Young patriotic professionals constitute any country's wealth. What's been happening since 2022 is alarming. I am afraid it'll have bad consequences for Russia in the long run.", "role": "151de55ef6a8", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"title\": \"This is the most serious issue relating to this war - Russia is getting poor.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"151de55ef6a8\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-02 17:16:17\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 17:16:17\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 9, \"voters\": 3, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 15, \"word_count\": 53, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.2, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@gorbunov1986/this-is-the-most-serious-issue-relating-to-this-war-russia-is-getting-poor-6b7ef3a3877d\", \"unique_slug\": \"this-is-the-most-serious-issue-relating-to-this-war-russia-is-getting-poor-6b7ef3a3877d\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"voters\": [\"725fde1e6a3\", \"33d2006b60ef\", \"e75dc4a35d22\"], \"count\": 3}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"responses\": [\"5029b8bf0387\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "5029b8bf0387", "title": "I think you can see it in the innovation index.", "subtitle": "", "author": "33d2006b60ef", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-02 21:47:29", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-02 21:47:29", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 20, "voters": 1, "reads": 0, "views": 3, "word_count": 35, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.1320754716981132, "url": "https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/i-think-you-can-see-it-in-the-innovation-index-5029b8bf0387", "unique_slug": "i-think-you-can-see-it-in-the-innovation-index-5029b8bf0387", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "5029b8bf0387", "voters": ["151de55ef6a8"], "count": 1}, "responses": {"id": "5029b8bf0387", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "username": "snowythefirst", "fullname": "Chris Snow", "bio": "30+ year old History Professor and educator. MA in Business Ethics and Modern European History. History has much to teach, but it doesn't find enough students.", "followers_count": 8470, "following_count": 72, "publication_following_count": 8, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*e3K9FsW09og7GjGjSbxE7w.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2022-10-10 19:39:27", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": ["economics", "history", "politics"], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://paypal.me/ChrisSnow91?country.x=AT&locale.x=de_DE", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "tags_followed": ["book-excerpts", "geopolitics", "writing", "ukraine-war", "ukraine", "2022", "sexuality", "economy", "biotech", "leadership", "product-management", "cybersecurity", "gun-control", "freelancing", "software-engineering", "artificial-intelligence", "social-media", "psychedelics", "creativity", "religion", "culture", "future", "pets", "music", "politics", "fitness", "machine-learning", "self", "digital-life", "history", "parenting", "humor", "language", "productivity", "food", "mental-health", "cities", "health", "climate-change", "poetry", "film", "books", "medium", "relationships", "race", "work", "family", "spirituality", "world", "blockchain"], "count": 50}}}
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I think you can see it in the innovation index. Russia's biggest capital is not its oil or money. It's the Russian people especially the well educated have fled in droves since the war began.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "Just a thought, Chris. Does anyone know the last time Putin told the truth. By the utter poverty alone of his people, the man obviously has no shame and never had a moral compass. Tragically sad. Thanks for your write. Well done.", "role": "f84a16d162b8", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"title\": \"Just a thought, Chris.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"f84a16d162b8\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 17:31:39\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 17:31:39\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 5, \"voters\": 3, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 25, \"word_count\": 42, \"responses_count\": 2, \"reading_time\": 0.15849056603773584, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@rhammond2448/just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca\", \"unique_slug\": \"just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"voters\": [\"725fde1e6a3\", \"25165d88156d\", \"e75dc4a35d22\"], \"count\": 3}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"responses\": [\"1564808f06d6\", \"1d487a8ed24f\"], \"count\": 2}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "1564808f06d6", "title": "Putin is a KGB Agent and already Orwell had the following to say about the NKVD: \"They are trained…", "subtitle": "", "author": "33d2006b60ef", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 21:00:14", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-01 21:02:50", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 22, "voters": 2, "reads": 0, "views": 6, "word_count": 113, "responses_count": 1, "reading_time": 0.42641509433962266, "url": "https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/putin-is-a-kgb-agent-and-already-orwell-had-the-following-to-say-about-the-nkvd-they-are-trained-1564808f06d6", "unique_slug": "putin-is-a-kgb-agent-and-already-orwell-had-the-following-to-say-about-the-nkvd-they-are-trained-1564808f06d6", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "1564808f06d6", "voters": ["725fde1e6a3", "f84a16d162b8"], "count": 2}, "responses": {"id": "1564808f06d6", "responses": ["f52cca086a11"], "count": 1}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "username": "snowythefirst", "fullname": "Chris Snow", "bio": "30+ year old History Professor and educator. MA in Business Ethics and Modern European History. History has much to teach, but it doesn't find enough students.", "followers_count": 8470, "following_count": 72, "publication_following_count": 8, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*e3K9FsW09og7GjGjSbxE7w.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2022-10-10 19:39:27", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": ["economics", "history", "politics"], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://paypal.me/ChrisSnow91?country.x=AT&locale.x=de_DE", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "tags_followed": ["book-excerpts", "geopolitics", "writing", "ukraine-war", "ukraine", "2022", "sexuality", "economy", "biotech", "leadership", "product-management", "cybersecurity", "gun-control", "freelancing", "software-engineering", "artificial-intelligence", "social-media", "psychedelics", "creativity", "religion", "culture", "future", "pets", "music", "politics", "fitness", "machine-learning", "self", "digital-life", "history", "parenting", "humor", "language", "productivity", "food", "mental-health", "cities", "health", "climate-change", "poetry", "film", "books", "medium", "relationships", "race", "work", "family", "spirituality", "world", "blockchain"], "count": 50}}}
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I think you can see it in the innovation index. Russia's biggest capital is not its oil or money. It's the Russian people especially the well educated have fled in droves since the war began.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "Good piece, Chris. One minor quibble - it's Hemingway (one M). Cheers!", "role": "e97d51460947", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"71a933c08e2f\", \"title\": \"Good piece, Chris. One minor quibble - it\\u2019s Hemingway (one M). Cheers!\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"e97d51460947\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 00:38:56\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 00:38:56\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 4, \"voters\": 2, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 34, \"word_count\": 11, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.04150943396226415, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@ydyzmptkc/good-piece-chris-one-minor-quibble-its-hemingway-one-m-cheers-71a933c08e2f\", \"unique_slug\": \"good-piece-chris-one-minor-quibble-its-hemingway-one-m-cheers-71a933c08e2f\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"71a933c08e2f\", \"voters\": [\"e75dc4a35d22\", \"33d2006b60ef\"], \"count\": 2}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"71a933c08e2f\", \"responses\": [\"c641bd263a2b\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "c641bd263a2b", "title": "Oh yes of course well I live in the German speaking world for well over two decades by now so I…", "subtitle": "", "author": "33d2006b60ef", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 10:35:09", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-01 10:35:09", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 1, "voters": 1, "reads": 1, "views": 6, "word_count": 33, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.12452830188679245, "url": "https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/oh-yes-of-course-well-i-live-in-the-german-speaking-world-for-well-over-two-decades-by-now-so-i-c641bd263a2b", "unique_slug": "oh-yes-of-course-well-i-live-in-the-german-speaking-world-for-well-over-two-decades-by-now-so-i-c641bd263a2b", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "c641bd263a2b", "voters": ["725fde1e6a3"], "count": 1}, "responses": {"id": "c641bd263a2b", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "username": "snowythefirst", "fullname": "Chris Snow", "bio": "30+ year old History Professor and educator. MA in Business Ethics and Modern European History. History has much to teach, but it doesn't find enough students.", "followers_count": 8470, "following_count": 72, "publication_following_count": 8, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*e3K9FsW09og7GjGjSbxE7w.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2022-10-10 19:39:27", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": ["economics", "history", "politics"], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://paypal.me/ChrisSnow91?country.x=AT&locale.x=de_DE", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "tags_followed": ["book-excerpts", "geopolitics", "writing", "ukraine-war", "ukraine", "2022", "sexuality", "economy", "biotech", "leadership", "product-management", "cybersecurity", "gun-control", "freelancing", "software-engineering", "artificial-intelligence", "social-media", "psychedelics", "creativity", "religion", "culture", "future", "pets", "music", "politics", "fitness", "machine-learning", "self", "digital-life", "history", "parenting", "humor", "language", "productivity", "food", "mental-health", "cities", "health", "climate-change", "poetry", "film", "books", "medium", "relationships", "race", "work", "family", "spirituality", "world", "blockchain"], "count": 50}}}
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I think Bob it is because money has made us hard and unkind we lost sight of what is truly important: Friends, family and enjoying things not for what they are worth but just because they are there. This appreciation and mindfulness went away.
Although of course the living conditions of many Russians are not that romantic it is more like a literal fight for survival on a daily basis.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "It always amazes me how the poor are so humble and gracious. Small gifts can be so important and what little they have they share.\n\nGod bless the poor everywhere.", "role": "2f6a41cda2fb", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"281856329a09\", \"title\": \"It always amazes me how the poor are so humble and gracious.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 01:02:19\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 01:02:19\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 22, \"voters\": 7, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 40, \"word_count\": 30, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.11320754716981132, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@grizzly_45029/it-always-amazes-me-how-the-poor-are-so-humble-and-gracious-281856329a09\", \"unique_slug\": \"it-always-amazes-me-how-the-poor-are-so-humble-and-gracious-281856329a09\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"281856329a09\", \"voters\": [\"725fde1e6a3\", \"e75dc4a35d22\", \"703133ad3731\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"77b8dc3eef90\", \"33d2006b60ef\", \"f8d4f206f6cd\"], \"count\": 7}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"281856329a09\", \"responses\": [\"759c3c487fb6\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "759c3c487fb6", "title": "I think Bob it is because money has made us hard and unkind we lost sight of what is truly…", "subtitle": "", "author": "33d2006b60ef", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 10:37:04", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-01 10:37:04", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 20, "voters": 3, "reads": 0, "views": 9, "word_count": 70, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.2641509433962264, "url": "https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/i-think-bob-it-is-because-money-has-made-us-hard-and-unkind-we-lost-sight-of-what-is-truly-759c3c487fb6", "unique_slug": "i-think-bob-it-is-because-money-has-made-us-hard-and-unkind-we-lost-sight-of-what-is-truly-759c3c487fb6", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "759c3c487fb6", "voters": ["cc85ecdfd0ba", "725fde1e6a3", "2f6a41cda2fb"], "count": 3}, "responses": {"id": "759c3c487fb6", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "username": "snowythefirst", "fullname": "Chris Snow", "bio": "30+ year old History Professor and educator. MA in Business Ethics and Modern European History. History has much to teach, but it doesn't find enough students.", "followers_count": 8470, "following_count": 72, "publication_following_count": 8, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*e3K9FsW09og7GjGjSbxE7w.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2022-10-10 19:39:27", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": ["economics", "history", "politics"], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://paypal.me/ChrisSnow91?country.x=AT&locale.x=de_DE", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "tags_followed": ["book-excerpts", "geopolitics", "writing", "ukraine-war", "ukraine", "2022", "sexuality", "economy", "biotech", "leadership", "product-management", "cybersecurity", "gun-control", "freelancing", "software-engineering", "artificial-intelligence", "social-media", "psychedelics", "creativity", "religion", "culture", "future", "pets", "music", "politics", "fitness", "machine-learning", "self", "digital-life", "history", "parenting", "humor", "language", "productivity", "food", "mental-health", "cities", "health", "climate-change", "poetry", "film", "books", "medium", "relationships", "race", "work", "family", "spirituality", "world", "blockchain"], "count": 50}}}
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I think Bob it is because money has made us hard and unkind we lost sight of what is truly important: Friends, family and enjoying things not for what they are worth but just because they are there. This appreciation and mindfulness went away.
Although of course the living conditions of many Russians are not that romantic it is more like a literal fight for survival on a daily basis.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "Don't worry, Russia isn't going anywhere and neither Putin. The west can bleed it's heart out and shed hornet tears but your propaganda and of your likes is a laughing stock.", "role": "5fb05bdd4fc1", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"173f1406afa4\", \"title\": \"Don\\u2019t worry, Russia isn\\u2019t going anywhere and neither Putin.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"5fb05bdd4fc1\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-02 17:39:33\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 17:39:33\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 4, \"voters\": 2, \"reads\": 2, \"views\": 14, \"word_count\": 31, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.1169811320754717, \"url\": \"https://masomo.medium.com/dont-worry-russia-isn-t-going-anywhere-and-neither-putin-173f1406afa4\", \"unique_slug\": \"dont-worry-russia-isn-t-going-anywhere-and-neither-putin-173f1406afa4\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"173f1406afa4\", \"voters\": [\"5eb2ee98c4e2\", \"e75dc4a35d22\"], \"count\": 2}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"173f1406afa4\", \"responses\": [\"85b7d917645e\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "85b7d917645e", "title": "Believe me we don't find any of that funny I can guarantee you we literally don't care where you go…", "subtitle": "", "author": "33d2006b60ef", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-02 21:38:07", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-02 22:00:21", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 1, "voters": 1, "reads": 1, "views": 3, "word_count": 159, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.6, "url": "https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/believe-me-we-dont-find-any-of-that-funny-i-can-guarantee-you-we-literally-don-t-care-where-you-go-85b7d917645e", "unique_slug": "believe-me-we-dont-find-any-of-that-funny-i-can-guarantee-you-we-literally-don-t-care-where-you-go-85b7d917645e", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": false, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "85b7d917645e", "voters": ["725fde1e6a3"], "count": 1}, "responses": {"id": "85b7d917645e", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "username": "snowythefirst", "fullname": "Chris Snow", "bio": "30+ year old History Professor and educator. MA in Business Ethics and Modern European History. History has much to teach, but it doesn't find enough students.", "followers_count": 8470, "following_count": 72, "publication_following_count": 8, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*e3K9FsW09og7GjGjSbxE7w.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2022-10-10 19:39:27", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": ["economics", "history", "politics"], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://paypal.me/ChrisSnow91?country.x=AT&locale.x=de_DE", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "tags_followed": ["book-excerpts", "geopolitics", "writing", "ukraine-war", "ukraine", "2022", "sexuality", "economy", "biotech", "leadership", "product-management", "cybersecurity", "gun-control", "freelancing", "software-engineering", "artificial-intelligence", "social-media", "psychedelics", "creativity", "religion", "culture", "future", "pets", "music", "politics", "fitness", "machine-learning", "self", "digital-life", "history", "parenting", "humor", "language", "productivity", "food", "mental-health", "cities", "health", "climate-change", "poetry", "film", "books", "medium", "relationships", "race", "work", "family", "spirituality", "world", "blockchain"], "count": 50}}}
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I think Bob it is because money has made us hard and unkind we lost sight of what is truly important: Friends, family and enjoying things not for what they are worth but just because they are there. This appreciation and mindfulness went away.
Although of course the living conditions of many Russians are not that romantic it is more like a literal fight for survival on a daily basis.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "This is the most serious issue relating to this war - Russia is getting poor. \"Poor\" not in terms of money but in terms of the people. Young patriotic professionals constitute any country's wealth. What's been happening since 2022 is alarming. I am afraid it'll have bad consequences for Russia in the long run.", "role": "151de55ef6a8", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"title\": \"This is the most serious issue relating to this war - Russia is getting poor.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"151de55ef6a8\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-02 17:16:17\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 17:16:17\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 9, \"voters\": 3, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 15, \"word_count\": 53, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.2, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@gorbunov1986/this-is-the-most-serious-issue-relating-to-this-war-russia-is-getting-poor-6b7ef3a3877d\", \"unique_slug\": \"this-is-the-most-serious-issue-relating-to-this-war-russia-is-getting-poor-6b7ef3a3877d\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"voters\": [\"725fde1e6a3\", \"33d2006b60ef\", \"e75dc4a35d22\"], \"count\": 3}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"responses\": [\"5029b8bf0387\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "5029b8bf0387", "title": "I think you can see it in the innovation index.", "subtitle": "", "author": "33d2006b60ef", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-02 21:47:29", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-02 21:47:29", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 20, "voters": 1, "reads": 0, "views": 3, "word_count": 35, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.1320754716981132, "url": "https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/i-think-you-can-see-it-in-the-innovation-index-5029b8bf0387", "unique_slug": "i-think-you-can-see-it-in-the-innovation-index-5029b8bf0387", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "5029b8bf0387", "voters": ["151de55ef6a8"], "count": 1}, "responses": {"id": "5029b8bf0387", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "username": "snowythefirst", "fullname": "Chris Snow", "bio": "30+ year old History Professor and educator. MA in Business Ethics and Modern European History. History has much to teach, but it doesn't find enough students.", "followers_count": 8470, "following_count": 72, "publication_following_count": 8, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*e3K9FsW09og7GjGjSbxE7w.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2022-10-10 19:39:27", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": ["economics", "history", "politics"], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://paypal.me/ChrisSnow91?country.x=AT&locale.x=de_DE", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "tags_followed": ["book-excerpts", "geopolitics", "writing", "ukraine-war", "ukraine", "2022", "sexuality", "economy", "biotech", "leadership", "product-management", "cybersecurity", "gun-control", "freelancing", "software-engineering", "artificial-intelligence", "social-media", "psychedelics", "creativity", "religion", "culture", "future", "pets", "music", "politics", "fitness", "machine-learning", "self", "digital-life", "history", "parenting", "humor", "language", "productivity", "food", "mental-health", "cities", "health", "climate-change", "poetry", "film", "books", "medium", "relationships", "race", "work", "family", "spirituality", "world", "blockchain"], "count": 50}}}
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I think Bob it is because money has made us hard and unkind we lost sight of what is truly important: Friends, family and enjoying things not for what they are worth but just because they are there. This appreciation and mindfulness went away.
Although of course the living conditions of many Russians are not that romantic it is more like a literal fight for survival on a daily basis.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "Just a thought, Chris. Does anyone know the last time Putin told the truth. By the utter poverty alone of his people, the man obviously has no shame and never had a moral compass. Tragically sad. Thanks for your write. Well done.", "role": "f84a16d162b8", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"title\": \"Just a thought, Chris.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"f84a16d162b8\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 17:31:39\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 17:31:39\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 5, \"voters\": 3, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 25, \"word_count\": 42, \"responses_count\": 2, \"reading_time\": 0.15849056603773584, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@rhammond2448/just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca\", \"unique_slug\": \"just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"voters\": [\"725fde1e6a3\", \"25165d88156d\", \"e75dc4a35d22\"], \"count\": 3}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"responses\": [\"1564808f06d6\", \"1d487a8ed24f\"], \"count\": 2}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "1564808f06d6", "title": "Putin is a KGB Agent and already Orwell had the following to say about the NKVD: \"They are trained…", "subtitle": "", "author": "33d2006b60ef", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 21:00:14", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-01 21:02:50", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 22, "voters": 2, "reads": 0, "views": 6, "word_count": 113, "responses_count": 1, "reading_time": 0.42641509433962266, "url": "https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/putin-is-a-kgb-agent-and-already-orwell-had-the-following-to-say-about-the-nkvd-they-are-trained-1564808f06d6", "unique_slug": "putin-is-a-kgb-agent-and-already-orwell-had-the-following-to-say-about-the-nkvd-they-are-trained-1564808f06d6", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "1564808f06d6", "voters": ["725fde1e6a3", "f84a16d162b8"], "count": 2}, "responses": {"id": "1564808f06d6", "responses": ["f52cca086a11"], "count": 1}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "username": "snowythefirst", "fullname": "Chris Snow", "bio": "30+ year old History Professor and educator. MA in Business Ethics and Modern European History. History has much to teach, but it doesn't find enough students.", "followers_count": 8470, "following_count": 72, "publication_following_count": 8, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*e3K9FsW09og7GjGjSbxE7w.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2022-10-10 19:39:27", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": ["economics", "history", "politics"], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://paypal.me/ChrisSnow91?country.x=AT&locale.x=de_DE", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "tags_followed": ["book-excerpts", "geopolitics", "writing", "ukraine-war", "ukraine", "2022", "sexuality", "economy", "biotech", "leadership", "product-management", "cybersecurity", "gun-control", "freelancing", "software-engineering", "artificial-intelligence", "social-media", "psychedelics", "creativity", "religion", "culture", "future", "pets", "music", "politics", "fitness", "machine-learning", "self", "digital-life", "history", "parenting", "humor", "language", "productivity", "food", "mental-health", "cities", "health", "climate-change", "poetry", "film", "books", "medium", "relationships", "race", "work", "family", "spirituality", "world", "blockchain"], "count": 50}}}
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I think Bob it is because money has made us hard and unkind we lost sight of what is truly important: Friends, family and enjoying things not for what they are worth but just because they are there. This appreciation and mindfulness went away.
Although of course the living conditions of many Russians are not that romantic it is more like a literal fight for survival on a daily basis.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "Good piece, Chris. One minor quibble - it's Hemingway (one M). Cheers!", "role": "e97d51460947", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"71a933c08e2f\", \"title\": \"Good piece, Chris. One minor quibble - it\\u2019s Hemingway (one M). Cheers!\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"e97d51460947\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 00:38:56\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 00:38:56\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 4, \"voters\": 2, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 34, \"word_count\": 11, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.04150943396226415, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@ydyzmptkc/good-piece-chris-one-minor-quibble-its-hemingway-one-m-cheers-71a933c08e2f\", \"unique_slug\": \"good-piece-chris-one-minor-quibble-its-hemingway-one-m-cheers-71a933c08e2f\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"71a933c08e2f\", \"voters\": [\"e75dc4a35d22\", \"33d2006b60ef\"], \"count\": 2}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"71a933c08e2f\", \"responses\": [\"c641bd263a2b\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "c641bd263a2b", "title": "Oh yes of course well I live in the German speaking world for well over two decades by now so I…", "subtitle": "", "author": "33d2006b60ef", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 10:35:09", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-01 10:35:09", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 1, "voters": 1, "reads": 1, "views": 6, "word_count": 33, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.12452830188679245, "url": "https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/oh-yes-of-course-well-i-live-in-the-german-speaking-world-for-well-over-two-decades-by-now-so-i-c641bd263a2b", "unique_slug": "oh-yes-of-course-well-i-live-in-the-german-speaking-world-for-well-over-two-decades-by-now-so-i-c641bd263a2b", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "c641bd263a2b", "voters": ["725fde1e6a3"], "count": 1}, "responses": {"id": "c641bd263a2b", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "username": "snowythefirst", "fullname": "Chris Snow", "bio": "30+ year old History Professor and educator. MA in Business Ethics and Modern European History. History has much to teach, but it doesn't find enough students.", "followers_count": 8470, "following_count": 72, "publication_following_count": 8, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*e3K9FsW09og7GjGjSbxE7w.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2022-10-10 19:39:27", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": ["economics", "history", "politics"], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://paypal.me/ChrisSnow91?country.x=AT&locale.x=de_DE", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "33d2006b60ef", "tags_followed": ["book-excerpts", "geopolitics", "writing", "ukraine-war", "ukraine", "2022", "sexuality", "economy", "biotech", "leadership", "product-management", "cybersecurity", "gun-control", "freelancing", "software-engineering", "artificial-intelligence", "social-media", "psychedelics", "creativity", "religion", "culture", "future", "pets", "music", "politics", "fitness", "machine-learning", "self", "digital-life", "history", "parenting", "humor", "language", "productivity", "food", "mental-health", "cities", "health", "climate-change", "poetry", "film", "books", "medium", "relationships", "race", "work", "family", "spirituality", "world", "blockchain"], "count": 50}}}
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Don't worry, Russia isn't going anywhere and neither Putin. The west can bleed it's heart out and shed hornet tears but your propaganda and of your likes is a laughing stock.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "173f1406afa4", "title": "Don’t worry, Russia isn’t going anywhere and neither Putin.", "subtitle": "", "author": "5fb05bdd4fc1", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-02 17:39:33", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-02 17:39:33", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 4, "voters": 2, "reads": 2, "views": 14, "word_count": 31, "responses_count": 1, "reading_time": 0.1169811320754717, "url": "https://masomo.medium.com/dont-worry-russia-isn-t-going-anywhere-and-neither-putin-173f1406afa4", "unique_slug": "dont-worry-russia-isn-t-going-anywhere-and-neither-putin-173f1406afa4", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "173f1406afa4", "voters": ["5eb2ee98c4e2", "e75dc4a35d22"], "count": 2}, "responses": {"id": "173f1406afa4", "responses": ["85b7d917645e"], "count": 1}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "5fb05bdd4fc1", "username": "masomo", "fullname": "Najib", "bio": "Aspiring Author striving for 9 to 5 Independence. Writes about the challenges of daily life. Loves hearing from fellow writers regarding their journeys….", "followers_count": 431, "following_count": 1053, "publication_following_count": 53, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*mEADSdKIPYrmHRVTtvmKDg.jpeg", "twitter_username": "mominsohaib", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2023-05-17 12:58:13", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": false, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": null, "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "5fb05bdd4fc1", "tags_followed": ["justice", "health", "mindfulness", "self", "data-science", "psychedelics", "technology", "gadgets", "privacy", "self-driving-cars", "future", "digital-life", "cybersecurity", "blockchain", "artificial-intelligence", "world", "social-media", "religion", "history", "education", "spirituality", "relationships", "space", "science", "psychology", "neuroscience", "math", "biotech", "politics", "writing", "productivity", "money", "creativity", "venture-capital", "work", "startup", "medium", "remote-work", "marketing", "leadership", "freelancing", "economy", "design", "business", "mental-health", "addiction", "race", "philosophy", "makers", "culture"], "count": 50}}}
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His mentality probably works against it.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "Just a thought, Chris. Does anyone know the last time Putin told the truth. By the utter poverty alone of his people, the man obviously has no shame and never had a moral compass. Tragically sad. Thanks for your write. Well done.", "role": "f84a16d162b8", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"title\": \"Just a thought, Chris.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"f84a16d162b8\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 17:31:39\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 17:31:39\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 5, \"voters\": 3, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 25, \"word_count\": 42, \"responses_count\": 2, \"reading_time\": 0.15849056603773584, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@rhammond2448/just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca\", \"unique_slug\": \"just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"voters\": [\"725fde1e6a3\", \"25165d88156d\", \"e75dc4a35d22\"], \"count\": 3}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"responses\": [\"1564808f06d6\", \"1d487a8ed24f\"], \"count\": 2}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "1d487a8ed24f", "title": "His mentality probably works against it.", "subtitle": "", "author": "7b1c107c8de", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 18:57:36", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-01 18:57:36", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 25, "voters": 2, "reads": 0, "views": 9, "word_count": 6, "responses_count": 1, "reading_time": 0.022641509433962263, "url": "https://medium.com/@hogsmile/his-mentality-probably-works-against-it-1d487a8ed24f", "unique_slug": "his-mentality-probably-works-against-it-1d487a8ed24f", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "1d487a8ed24f", "voters": ["33d2006b60ef", "f84a16d162b8"], "count": 2}, "responses": {"id": "1d487a8ed24f", "responses": ["504b03865a6c"], "count": 1}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "7b1c107c8de", "username": "hogsmile", "fullname": "Steve Singer", "bio": "", "followers_count": 242, "following_count": 80, "publication_following_count": 14, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*dmbNkD5D-u45r44go_cf0g.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2019-05-05 03:55:09", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": null, "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "7b1c107c8de", "tags_followed": ["ukraine-war", "ukraine", "data-science", "food", "nonfiction", "fiction", "technology", "space", "science", "programming", "cybersecurity", "culture", "film"], "count": 13}}}
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Many moons ago I picked up a double major in econ and business mgt. Yet I've never thought of the implications of a successful Ukrainian economy on Putin's border. If my next-door neighbor can flush a toilet or plug in his stolen refrigerator and I can't, my wife would raise hell.
I wish I could take some of your classes!
By the way, I loved your second response to Mr. Shoovro. Could there be Russian bots on Medium?
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "f1c2f1a0fe79", "title": "Many moons ago I picked up a double major in econ and business mgt.", "subtitle": "I wish I could take some of your classes!", "author": "cc85ecdfd0ba", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-03 16:59:06", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-03 16:59:06", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 5, "voters": 1, "reads": 0, "views": 7, "word_count": 79, "responses_count": 1, "reading_time": 0.2981132075471698, "url": "https://medium.com/@staufferbill/many-moons-ago-i-picked-up-a-double-major-in-econ-and-business-mgt-f1c2f1a0fe79", "unique_slug": "many-moons-ago-i-picked-up-a-double-major-in-econ-and-business-mgt-f1c2f1a0fe79", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "f1c2f1a0fe79", "voters": ["33d2006b60ef"], "count": 1}, "responses": {"id": "f1c2f1a0fe79", "responses": ["11e49c5386a9"], "count": 1}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "cc85ecdfd0ba", "username": "staufferbill", "fullname": "Staufferbill", "bio": "", "followers_count": 23, "following_count": 200, "publication_following_count": 113, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*dmbNkD5D-u45r44go_cf0g.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": null, "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "FREE"}, "interests": {"id": "cc85ecdfd0ba", "tags_followed": ["hot-tub", "gadgets", "geopolitics", "astrophysics", "military", "ukraine-crisis", "universe", "photography-tips", "astronomy", "zen", "physics", "buddhism", "stoicism", "war", "photography", "economy", "international-relations", "consciousness", "meditation", "ukraine", "ukraine-war", "cybersecurity", "cities", "astrology", "travel", "sports", "books", "digital-life", "design", "history", "self", "science", "psychology", "leadership", "pets", "spirituality", "neuroscience", "philosophy", "outdoors", "mental-health", "mindfulness", "space", "cannabis", "relationships", "sexuality"], "count": 45}}}
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The longevity index is probably one of the most reliable indicators.
As indeed the infrastructure index. And the wealth distribution index.
Russia comes out looking like what we called a Third World Country not so long ago.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. 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Glory to Ukraine 🇺🇦
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. 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{"counts": {"id": "7dfcea86338f", "title": "Glory to Ukraine 🇺🇦", "subtitle": "", "author": "dfbb4d37234b", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-02 17:20:48", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-02 17:20:48", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 60, "voters": 4, "reads": 0, "views": 17, "word_count": 4, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.01509433962264151, "url": "https://medium.com/@fadiabascom/glory-to-ukraine-7dfcea86338f", "unique_slug": "glory-to-ukraine-7dfcea86338f", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "7dfcea86338f", "voters": ["cc85ecdfd0ba", "33d2006b60ef", "25165d88156d", "e75dc4a35d22"], "count": 4}, "responses": {"id": "7dfcea86338f", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "dfbb4d37234b", "username": "fadiabascom", "fullname": "Fadia", "bio": "I really hate writing bios. All you really need to know is I’m an awesome person.", "followers_count": 20, "following_count": 0, "publication_following_count": 0, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*ruXCYOciO2XkuboGiNI2Bw@2x.jpeg", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": false, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": null, "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "FREE"}, "interests": {"id": "dfbb4d37234b", "tags_followed": ["basic-income", "business", "politics", "economics", "justice", "money", "mindfulness"], "count": 7}}}
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Good piece, Chris. One minor quibble - it's Hemingway (one M). Cheers!
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. 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{"counts": {"id": "71a933c08e2f", "title": "Good piece, Chris. One minor quibble - it’s Hemingway (one M). Cheers!", "subtitle": "", "author": "e97d51460947", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 00:38:56", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-01 00:38:56", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 4, "voters": 2, "reads": 0, "views": 34, "word_count": 11, "responses_count": 1, "reading_time": 0.04150943396226415, "url": "https://medium.com/@ydyzmptkc/good-piece-chris-one-minor-quibble-its-hemingway-one-m-cheers-71a933c08e2f", "unique_slug": "good-piece-chris-one-minor-quibble-its-hemingway-one-m-cheers-71a933c08e2f", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "71a933c08e2f", "voters": ["e75dc4a35d22", "33d2006b60ef"], "count": 2}, "responses": {"id": "71a933c08e2f", "responses": ["c641bd263a2b"], "count": 1}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "e97d51460947", "username": "ydyzmptkc", "fullname": "JLHatch", "bio": "Geologist and Experiencer. Happy dad of two wonderful sons. Rank amateur writer who’s having trouble w/the damn Publish button.", "followers_count": 67, "following_count": 72, "publication_following_count": 4, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*BGsxpSe0mdHJK1FTjJksTQ@2x.jpeg", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2022-02-03 10:10:12", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": null, "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "e97d51460947", "tags_followed": ["quantum-mechanics", "ufos-and-aliens", "philosophy-of-science", "mental-health", "metaphysics", "quantum-physics", "aliens", "ufo", "physics", "universe", "consciousness", "ukraine-war", "relationships", "mindfulness", "science", "spirituality", "addiction", "psychology", "philosophy"], "count": 19}}}
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The world now see's who he really is. Why does the world continue to allow his reign? Am I missing something? They're all highly trained assassins in many countries, why hasn't someone pulled the trigger? Thanks for your response and your take.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "31d97103b6ca", "title": "Just a thought, Chris.", "subtitle": "", "author": "f84a16d162b8", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 17:31:39", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-01 17:31:39", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 5, "voters": 3, "reads": 0, "views": 25, "word_count": 42, "responses_count": 2, "reading_time": 0.15849056603773584, "url": "https://medium.com/@rhammond2448/just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca", "unique_slug": "just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "31d97103b6ca", "voters": ["725fde1e6a3", "25165d88156d", "e75dc4a35d22"], "count": 3}, "responses": {"id": "31d97103b6ca", "responses": ["1564808f06d6", "1d487a8ed24f"], "count": 2}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "f84a16d162b8", "username": "rhammond2448", "fullname": "R C Hammond 😎 TWM", "bio": "Devoted dog dad and practicing husband. NO BS or AI. I don't F4F so don't bother. Reach me by email: rhammond2448@yahoo.com", "followers_count": 6453, "following_count": 97, "publication_following_count": 4, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*J9F2mHrN0sL_itFoce2KYQ.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2025-09-18 16:54:14", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://ko-fi.com/huckfinn11988", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "f84a16d162b8", "tags_followed": ["dogs", "politics-and-protest", "life-lessons", "retirement", "c-sharp-programming", "astronomy", "entrepreneurship", "orgasm", "investing", "love", "women", "cycling", "sexuality", "erotica", "dating", "aging", "sex", "psychology", "relationships", "writing", "self-improvement", "pornography", "life", "apple", "mindfulness", "politics", "ukraine", "mac", "innovation", "business", "history", "exercise", "humor", "fitness", "ukraine-war", "sports", "music", "technology"], "count": 38}}}
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The world now see's who he really is. Why does the world continue to allow his reign? Am I missing something? They're all highly trained assassins in many countries, why hasn't someone pulled the trigger? Thanks for your response and your take.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "Just a thought, Chris. Does anyone know the last time Putin told the truth. By the utter poverty alone of his people, the man obviously has no shame and never had a moral compass. Tragically sad. Thanks for your write. Well done.", "role": "f84a16d162b8", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"title\": \"Just a thought, Chris.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"f84a16d162b8\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 17:31:39\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 17:31:39\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 5, \"voters\": 3, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 25, \"word_count\": 42, \"responses_count\": 2, \"reading_time\": 0.15849056603773584, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@rhammond2448/just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca\", \"unique_slug\": \"just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"voters\": [\"725fde1e6a3\", \"25165d88156d\", \"e75dc4a35d22\"], \"count\": 3}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"responses\": [\"1564808f06d6\", \"1d487a8ed24f\"], \"count\": 2}}"}, {"content": "Putin is a KGB Agent and already Orwell had the following to say about the NKVD: \"They are trained to be liars, they made lying into a profession\".\n\nSo, no I really think Putin never tells the truth, but that is the trick: Who would ever believe that someone could lie all the time? That is also why we cannot negotiate with this man. None of that is in good faith. Putin would break the agreements he makes the moment he sees fit. We can for example see how much Russia'e word in the Budapest memorandum was worth. They fired Rockets at Ukraine given to them by Ukraine as part of this deal.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"1564808f06d6\", \"title\": \"Putin is a KGB Agent and already Orwell had the following to say about the NKVD: \\\"They are trained\\u2026\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 21:00:14\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 21:02:50\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 22, \"voters\": 2, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 6, \"word_count\": 113, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.42641509433962266, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/putin-is-a-kgb-agent-and-already-orwell-had-the-following-to-say-about-the-nkvd-they-are-trained-1564808f06d6\", \"unique_slug\": \"putin-is-a-kgb-agent-and-already-orwell-had-the-following-to-say-about-the-nkvd-they-are-trained-1564808f06d6\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"1564808f06d6\", \"voters\": [\"725fde1e6a3\", \"f84a16d162b8\"], \"count\": 2}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"1564808f06d6\", \"responses\": [\"f52cca086a11\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "f52cca086a11", "title": "The world now see's who he really is.", "subtitle": "", "author": "f84a16d162b8", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-02 06:16:18", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-02 06:16:18", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 0, "voters": 0, "reads": 0, "views": 3, "word_count": 42, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.15849056603773584, "url": "https://medium.com/@rhammond2448/the-world-now-sees-who-he-really-is-f52cca086a11", "unique_slug": "the-world-now-sees-who-he-really-is-f52cca086a11", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "f52cca086a11", "voters": [], "count": 0}, "responses": {"id": "f52cca086a11", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "f84a16d162b8", "username": "rhammond2448", "fullname": "R C Hammond 😎 TWM", "bio": "Devoted dog dad and practicing husband. NO BS or AI. I don't F4F so don't bother. Reach me by email: rhammond2448@yahoo.com", "followers_count": 6453, "following_count": 97, "publication_following_count": 4, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*J9F2mHrN0sL_itFoce2KYQ.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2025-09-18 16:54:14", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://ko-fi.com/huckfinn11988", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "f84a16d162b8", "tags_followed": ["dogs", "politics-and-protest", "life-lessons", "retirement", "c-sharp-programming", "astronomy", "entrepreneurship", "orgasm", "investing", "love", "women", "cycling", "sexuality", "erotica", "dating", "aging", "sex", "psychology", "relationships", "writing", "self-improvement", "pornography", "life", "apple", "mindfulness", "politics", "ukraine", "mac", "innovation", "business", "history", "exercise", "humor", "fitness", "ukraine-war", "sports", "music", "technology"], "count": 38}}}
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The world now see's who he really is. Why does the world continue to allow his reign? Am I missing something? They're all highly trained assassins in many countries, why hasn't someone pulled the trigger? Thanks for your response and your take.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "Just a thought, Chris. Does anyone know the last time Putin told the truth. By the utter poverty alone of his people, the man obviously has no shame and never had a moral compass. Tragically sad. Thanks for your write. Well done.", "role": "f84a16d162b8", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"title\": \"Just a thought, Chris.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"f84a16d162b8\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 17:31:39\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 17:31:39\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 5, \"voters\": 3, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 25, \"word_count\": 42, \"responses_count\": 2, \"reading_time\": 0.15849056603773584, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@rhammond2448/just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca\", \"unique_slug\": \"just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"voters\": [\"725fde1e6a3\", \"25165d88156d\", \"e75dc4a35d22\"], \"count\": 3}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"responses\": [\"1564808f06d6\", \"1d487a8ed24f\"], \"count\": 2}}"}, {"content": "His mentality probably works against it.", "role": "7b1c107c8de", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"1d487a8ed24f\", \"title\": \"His mentality probably works against it.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"7b1c107c8de\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 18:57:36\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 18:57:36\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 25, \"voters\": 2, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 9, \"word_count\": 6, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.022641509433962263, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@hogsmile/his-mentality-probably-works-against-it-1d487a8ed24f\", \"unique_slug\": \"his-mentality-probably-works-against-it-1d487a8ed24f\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"1d487a8ed24f\", \"voters\": [\"33d2006b60ef\", \"f84a16d162b8\"], \"count\": 2}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"1d487a8ed24f\", \"responses\": [\"504b03865a6c\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "504b03865a6c", "title": "Most likely.", "subtitle": "", "author": "f84a16d162b8", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 19:03:11", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-01 19:03:11", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 4, "voters": 1, "reads": 0, "views": 7, "word_count": 2, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.007547169811320755, "url": "https://medium.com/@rhammond2448/most-likely-504b03865a6c", "unique_slug": "most-likely-504b03865a6c", "image_url": "", "lang": "un", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "504b03865a6c", "voters": ["33d2006b60ef"], "count": 1}, "responses": {"id": "504b03865a6c", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "f84a16d162b8", "username": "rhammond2448", "fullname": "R C Hammond 😎 TWM", "bio": "Devoted dog dad and practicing husband. NO BS or AI. I don't F4F so don't bother. Reach me by email: rhammond2448@yahoo.com", "followers_count": 6453, "following_count": 97, "publication_following_count": 4, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*J9F2mHrN0sL_itFoce2KYQ.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2025-09-18 16:54:14", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://ko-fi.com/huckfinn11988", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "f84a16d162b8", "tags_followed": ["dogs", "politics-and-protest", "life-lessons", "retirement", "c-sharp-programming", "astronomy", "entrepreneurship", "orgasm", "investing", "love", "women", "cycling", "sexuality", "erotica", "dating", "aging", "sex", "psychology", "relationships", "writing", "self-improvement", "pornography", "life", "apple", "mindfulness", "politics", "ukraine", "mac", "innovation", "business", "history", "exercise", "humor", "fitness", "ukraine-war", "sports", "music", "technology"], "count": 38}}}
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Just a thought, Chris. Does anyone know the last time Putin told the truth. By the utter poverty alone of his people, the man obviously has no shame and never had a moral compass. Tragically sad. Thanks for your write. Well done.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "31d97103b6ca", "title": "Just a thought, Chris.", "subtitle": "", "author": "f84a16d162b8", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 17:31:39", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-01 17:31:39", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 5, "voters": 3, "reads": 0, "views": 25, "word_count": 42, "responses_count": 2, "reading_time": 0.15849056603773584, "url": "https://medium.com/@rhammond2448/just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca", "unique_slug": "just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "31d97103b6ca", "voters": ["725fde1e6a3", "25165d88156d", "e75dc4a35d22"], "count": 3}, "responses": {"id": "31d97103b6ca", "responses": ["1564808f06d6", "1d487a8ed24f"], "count": 2}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "f84a16d162b8", "username": "rhammond2448", "fullname": "R C Hammond 😎 TWM", "bio": "Devoted dog dad and practicing husband. NO BS or AI. I don't F4F so don't bother. Reach me by email: rhammond2448@yahoo.com", "followers_count": 6453, "following_count": 97, "publication_following_count": 4, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*J9F2mHrN0sL_itFoce2KYQ.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2025-09-18 16:54:14", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://ko-fi.com/huckfinn11988", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "f84a16d162b8", "tags_followed": ["dogs", "politics-and-protest", "life-lessons", "retirement", "c-sharp-programming", "astronomy", "entrepreneurship", "orgasm", "investing", "love", "women", "cycling", "sexuality", "erotica", "dating", "aging", "sex", "psychology", "relationships", "writing", "self-improvement", "pornography", "life", "apple", "mindfulness", "politics", "ukraine", "mac", "innovation", "business", "history", "exercise", "humor", "fitness", "ukraine-war", "sports", "music", "technology"], "count": 38}}}
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Just a thought, Chris. Does anyone know the last time Putin told the truth. By the utter poverty alone of his people, the man obviously has no shame and never had a moral compass. Tragically sad. Thanks for your write. Well done.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "Just a thought, Chris. Does anyone know the last time Putin told the truth. By the utter poverty alone of his people, the man obviously has no shame and never had a moral compass. Tragically sad. Thanks for your write. Well done.", "role": "f84a16d162b8", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"title\": \"Just a thought, Chris.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"f84a16d162b8\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 17:31:39\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 17:31:39\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 5, \"voters\": 3, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 25, \"word_count\": 42, \"responses_count\": 2, \"reading_time\": 0.15849056603773584, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@rhammond2448/just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca\", \"unique_slug\": \"just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"voters\": [\"725fde1e6a3\", \"25165d88156d\", \"e75dc4a35d22\"], \"count\": 3}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"responses\": [\"1564808f06d6\", \"1d487a8ed24f\"], \"count\": 2}}"}, {"content": "Putin is a KGB Agent and already Orwell had the following to say about the NKVD: \"They are trained to be liars, they made lying into a profession\".\n\nSo, no I really think Putin never tells the truth, but that is the trick: Who would ever believe that someone could lie all the time? That is also why we cannot negotiate with this man. None of that is in good faith. Putin would break the agreements he makes the moment he sees fit. We can for example see how much Russia'e word in the Budapest memorandum was worth. They fired Rockets at Ukraine given to them by Ukraine as part of this deal.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"1564808f06d6\", \"title\": \"Putin is a KGB Agent and already Orwell had the following to say about the NKVD: \\\"They are trained\\u2026\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 21:00:14\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 21:02:50\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 22, \"voters\": 2, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 6, \"word_count\": 113, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.42641509433962266, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/putin-is-a-kgb-agent-and-already-orwell-had-the-following-to-say-about-the-nkvd-they-are-trained-1564808f06d6\", \"unique_slug\": \"putin-is-a-kgb-agent-and-already-orwell-had-the-following-to-say-about-the-nkvd-they-are-trained-1564808f06d6\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"1564808f06d6\", \"voters\": [\"725fde1e6a3\", \"f84a16d162b8\"], \"count\": 2}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"1564808f06d6\", \"responses\": [\"f52cca086a11\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "f52cca086a11", "title": "The world now see's who he really is.", "subtitle": "", "author": "f84a16d162b8", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-02 06:16:18", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-02 06:16:18", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 0, "voters": 0, "reads": 0, "views": 3, "word_count": 42, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.15849056603773584, "url": "https://medium.com/@rhammond2448/the-world-now-sees-who-he-really-is-f52cca086a11", "unique_slug": "the-world-now-sees-who-he-really-is-f52cca086a11", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "f52cca086a11", "voters": [], "count": 0}, "responses": {"id": "f52cca086a11", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "f84a16d162b8", "username": "rhammond2448", "fullname": "R C Hammond 😎 TWM", "bio": "Devoted dog dad and practicing husband. NO BS or AI. I don't F4F so don't bother. Reach me by email: rhammond2448@yahoo.com", "followers_count": 6453, "following_count": 97, "publication_following_count": 4, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*J9F2mHrN0sL_itFoce2KYQ.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2025-09-18 16:54:14", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://ko-fi.com/huckfinn11988", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "f84a16d162b8", "tags_followed": ["dogs", "politics-and-protest", "life-lessons", "retirement", "c-sharp-programming", "astronomy", "entrepreneurship", "orgasm", "investing", "love", "women", "cycling", "sexuality", "erotica", "dating", "aging", "sex", "psychology", "relationships", "writing", "self-improvement", "pornography", "life", "apple", "mindfulness", "politics", "ukraine", "mac", "innovation", "business", "history", "exercise", "humor", "fitness", "ukraine-war", "sports", "music", "technology"], "count": 38}}}
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Just a thought, Chris. Does anyone know the last time Putin told the truth. By the utter poverty alone of his people, the man obviously has no shame and never had a moral compass. Tragically sad. Thanks for your write. Well done.
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "Just a thought, Chris. Does anyone know the last time Putin told the truth. By the utter poverty alone of his people, the man obviously has no shame and never had a moral compass. Tragically sad. Thanks for your write. Well done.", "role": "f84a16d162b8", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"title\": \"Just a thought, Chris.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"f84a16d162b8\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 17:31:39\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 17:31:39\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 5, \"voters\": 3, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 25, \"word_count\": 42, \"responses_count\": 2, \"reading_time\": 0.15849056603773584, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@rhammond2448/just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca\", \"unique_slug\": \"just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"voters\": [\"725fde1e6a3\", \"25165d88156d\", \"e75dc4a35d22\"], \"count\": 3}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"responses\": [\"1564808f06d6\", \"1d487a8ed24f\"], \"count\": 2}}"}, {"content": "His mentality probably works against it.", "role": "7b1c107c8de", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"1d487a8ed24f\", \"title\": \"His mentality probably works against it.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"7b1c107c8de\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 18:57:36\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 18:57:36\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 25, \"voters\": 2, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 9, \"word_count\": 6, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.022641509433962263, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@hogsmile/his-mentality-probably-works-against-it-1d487a8ed24f\", \"unique_slug\": \"his-mentality-probably-works-against-it-1d487a8ed24f\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"1d487a8ed24f\", \"voters\": [\"33d2006b60ef\", \"f84a16d162b8\"], \"count\": 2}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"1d487a8ed24f\", \"responses\": [\"504b03865a6c\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}]
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "Just a thought, Chris. Does anyone know the last time Putin told the truth. By the utter poverty alone of his people, the man obviously has no shame and never had a moral compass. Tragically sad. Thanks for your write. Well done.", "role": "f84a16d162b8", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"title\": \"Just a thought, Chris.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"f84a16d162b8\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 17:31:39\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 17:31:39\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 5, \"voters\": 3, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 25, \"word_count\": 42, \"responses_count\": 2, \"reading_time\": 0.15849056603773584, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@rhammond2448/just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca\", \"unique_slug\": \"just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"voters\": [\"725fde1e6a3\", \"25165d88156d\", \"e75dc4a35d22\"], \"count\": 3}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"responses\": [\"1564808f06d6\", \"1d487a8ed24f\"], \"count\": 2}}"}, {"content": "Putin is a KGB Agent and already Orwell had the following to say about the NKVD: \"They are trained to be liars, they made lying into a profession\".\n\nSo, no I really think Putin never tells the truth, but that is the trick: Who would ever believe that someone could lie all the time? That is also why we cannot negotiate with this man. None of that is in good faith. Putin would break the agreements he makes the moment he sees fit. We can for example see how much Russia'e word in the Budapest memorandum was worth. They fired Rockets at Ukraine given to them by Ukraine as part of this deal.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"1564808f06d6\", \"title\": \"Putin is a KGB Agent and already Orwell had the following to say about the NKVD: \\\"They are trained\\u2026\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 21:00:14\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 21:02:50\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 22, \"voters\": 2, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 6, \"word_count\": 113, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.42641509433962266, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/putin-is-a-kgb-agent-and-already-orwell-had-the-following-to-say-about-the-nkvd-they-are-trained-1564808f06d6\", \"unique_slug\": \"putin-is-a-kgb-agent-and-already-orwell-had-the-following-to-say-about-the-nkvd-they-are-trained-1564808f06d6\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"1564808f06d6\", \"voters\": [\"725fde1e6a3\", \"f84a16d162b8\"], \"count\": 2}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"1564808f06d6\", \"responses\": [\"f52cca086a11\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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[{"content": "Fascism is a lie told by bullies. Hemingway\n\nHow poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin's power\n\nPutin's regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a constant state of fighting for their economic survival.\n\nToday, the latest corruption perception index was published. Russia is shares rank 137 with Mali and Paraguay. Afghanistan is only 13 places away behind them. Ukraine, on the other hand, continued its slight upward trend from last year. They rank at place 116 in the new ranking. While Ukraine has a long way to go, Russia really hasn't got much further to fall.\n\nTo understand Russia, we need to understand just two numbers: 144 and 72.\n\nThe Global Wealth Report states that 144 (!) russians hold over 38 percent of Russia's wealth. The top 1 percent of their population holds 72 percent of this wealth. The bottom 50 percent of Putin's subjects have less than 870 dollars in net worth. Net-worth is a measure that refers to all the assets you own, including money, real estate, and other assets.\n\nWhen it comes to tyrants, dictators, and terrorists, strength and the threat of force is the only language they understand. Kevin McCarthy\n\nThis inequality is created by design. The center of power is Moscow and St. Petersburg.\n\nThere, many citizens have quite good living standards, not on a Western level but still quite good. The rest of the Russian empire is poorer by design. That is also the reason why Russia cannot accept a strong, wealthy, and democratic Ukraine. Putin cannot accept a country next door that becomes more democratic and less corrupt as this would seriously endanger the continued existence of his mafia empire.\n\nA free and vibrant Ukraine would topple the Russian imperial model. Putin is, therefore, willing to make this fascist turn. It is also far from over. I would say we are maybe halfway there. Martial law and closing the borders would be the next step towards a full-blown dictatorship, including canceling the elections next year. I think Putin always planned this fascist turn, but much later, as he expected to encounter almost no resistance from Ukraine.\n\nFascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\nFriedrich August von Hayek\n\nRussia will never be the same again, as change comes slowly, and for Russia to find its way back, it may well take another generation or two. Many Russians are unaware of that, but the shift towards fascism will not be that easily reversed.\n\nEven when Putin is gone, people will have other things to worry about. Humans are easily fooled, but much harder to convince that they have been fooled.\n\n1) The HDI Index\n\nThe Human Development Index (HDI) provides a single index measure to capture three key dimensions of human development. Russia ranks somewhere outside of the top 50 in this report. However, the reality inside Russia is far bleaker than this rosy number may suggest. Russia was always good at one thing: To lie about their data. However, you cannot hide everything, and you cannot hide it forever.\n\nNo government agency has a jurisdiction over the truth. X-Files\n\n2) How long do Russians live on average?\n\nIn 2022, Russia ranked at place 113. The situation is probably much bleaker, with over 800k Covid19 deaths and at least 100.000 young men\u00a0who\u00a0died\u00a0in\u00a0this\u00a0war. Russia has the highest rates of alcoholics, HIV positive, and TBC in Europe. These facts don't really speak for an ever growing life expectancy among their male population.\n\nTherefore, Peter Zeihan assumes that the life expectancy for men might be much lower, the official data of Rosstat suggests. I tend to agree with that assessment. The last good batch of data was provided in 2001. Back then, the life expectancy of men was 58.7 years. Now, 20 years later, it has risen to over 67 years for males. This is either a modern wonder of medicine or Russia is lying. The data that is obtainable from other sources suggests that it is the latter.\n\nNothing built on a lie, however, seductively convenient, could ever have any value. George Orwell\n\n3) Literacy Rate\n\nTheir literacy rate is at almost 100 percent, even though the Russian apprentice ship system collapsed in the 1990s. Since then, many young and educated people have fled the country in various emigration waves. Since the war began, over 1 million Russians have fled the country. Russia has been heavily defunding the education sector for decades now. This high literarcy rate comes with a caveat.\n\nAutocratic regimes need to ensure that their population is able to read and write. Otherwise, they cannot understand the propaganda their leaders want them to internalise. There are many infamous books written by dictators. They range from \"Mein Kampf\" to Gadaffi's \"little green book\" and there are many more.\n\n4) Infant Mortality\n\nRussian infant mortality rates have steadily decreased since their economic collapse in the 1990s. They rank way outside the top 50 though, Their infant mortality rate is twice as high as those of highly developed nations such as Austria or Germany, however, the US has very bad results here as well as 5.44 out of every 1000 children die in infant age.\n\nRussia achieved respectable results here.\n\n5) Doctors per 1000 inhabitants\n\nThe latest data is from 2018, which means the data provided has only limited validity. Russia ranks somewhere outside the top 20. This doesn't say anything about the quality of the service that is provided just the quantity of doctors.\n\nWhile the quality of healthcare that is provided in Moscow or Petersburg is quite good, in the rural areas, it is a lot worse.\n\nRussia is ranking somewhere outside of the top 20.\n\nThe effects of this lack of doctors, the overall bad healthcare system outside the main urban centers, as well as the ineffectiveness of Sputnik against the new variants, could explain the highest death toll any European country had to pay per capita because of the ongoing Covid19 Pandemic.\n\nRussia has a total of 820,307 COVID-related deaths for 2022.\n\n6) Infrastructure and Innovation Index\n\nThe data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\n\nRussian roads have long had an infamous reputation. Where they existed, they were often crumbling or unpaved and insufficient for major traffic. Perhaps most strikingly, while the Trans-Siberian Railroad is still considered to be one of Russia's major achievements, the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\n\nThe highway, which is actually a series of connected roads, represents the first time that one could travel a continual stretch of paved road from St. Petersburg is in the far west of Russia with Vladivostok in the Far East.\n\nThe current war in Ukraine will make this problem much worse as the war in Ukraine forces Russia to make budget cuts. As the war continues, more and more funds will be diverted to sectors critical for the war effort, while others will be left further and further behind as time goes on.\n\nInnvovation Index for 2022\n\nThe Global Innovation Index (GII) tracks the most recent global innovation trends against the background of an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, slowing productivity growth and other evolving challenges. The ND-GAIN Country Index summarizes a country's vulnerability to climate change and other global challenges.\n\nIn the 2021 report, Russia ranked at place 45, and now they fell down to rank 47, and their score decreased from 36.6 down to 34.3. The massive brain drain and the war in Ukraine, as well as this massive crackdown on free thought in Russia, will set them for a further downgrading outside of the top 50 in the near future.\n\n7) Corruption, poverty and wealth distribution\n\nAt the bottom of many of Russia's problems is the widespread poverty in many of its regions. Especially the those regions east of the Ural mountains are massively striken by poverty. Poverty is running rampant in many parts of Russia, especially in its far east and rural regions. Over 20 percent of Russian households do not have a running water toilet.\n\nMany areas have no access to clean water or electricity. While Russia may want the world to believe that it is a rich and powerful nation, behind this facade lies something more sad and bleak. Putin's Russia is an extractive empire. All its revenues and all taxes are flowing to Moscow while the rural regions are living in utter poverty and despair.\n\nNations fail today because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.\"\n\u2015 Daron Acemo\u011flu, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\n\nPoverty\n\nThe monthly minimum wage in Russia is 12,310 rubles, which is the equivalent of $196. While Russia is a very resource-rich country, it suffers from intense social inequality. The top 1 percent of the Russian population controls 71% of the nation's wealth. 13 percent of Russians are currently living in poverty. Unfortunately, the majority of people living in extreme poverty are children.\n\nAlso, 60 percent of those living below the poverty line in Russia are families with children.\n\nAs a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line. Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in most cases.\n\nThis poverty has fostered a deeply rooted and century long system of lies and corruption in Russia\n\nAccording to the Russian government, corruption caused losses of at least 58 billion rubles ($1 bn) in 2020, up from 55 billion rubles in 2019. Out of 10,879 officials charged with corruption, 1,337 (12.3%) were from the Ministry of Defense\u200a\u2014\u200athe second biggest cohort.\n\nThe largest number of recorded corruption-related crimes were committed in the field of public order and security, accounting for 19.9% \u200b\u200b(4,521) of the total. The Ministry of Defense recorded a 30% jump in the number of persons charged with corruption.\n\nWealth distribution and living costs\n\nThe extreme inequality in income and net worth in Russia between the richest and the poorest creates many social problems. This makes it easier for Putin to control his own people. Russia mostly lacks a real middle class. You are either rich or as poor as someone living in a tier 4 economy. There is not much in between. In 2020, Russia ranked on place 57 of the GINI Index.\n\nThe reality today is much bleaker than this. The current Russian system has no interest in bringing value to the many but rather unspoken riches to the few. Putin's henchmen want freedom only for themselves, while the people shall remain enslaved. Russia has steadily declined in this index since 2012, roughly the time when Putin made his turn towards autocracy.\n\nHistory reminds us that dictators and despots arise during times of severe economic crisis. Robert Kiyosaki\n\nSummary and Conclusion\n\nRussia is rich in resources. However, that doesn't translate into a good life for a vast majority of its citizens. This is the fault of the policy makers in Moscow who designed the system to be that way. While Russians have to struggle for their survival, they have little to no time to worry about what Putin does or doesn't do. Russians have externalised politics, and the results are not pretty. The Russian economy took a heavy hit last year and will continue taking hits for as long as this war continues.\n\nA fascist is one whose lust for money or power is combined with such an intensity of intolerance toward those of other races, parties, classes, religions, cultures, regions or nations as to make him ruthless in his use of deceit or violence to attain his ends. Henry A. Wallace\n\nIn Russia, there is no rule of the law but the law of rulers. If we do not want to live in such a society, then we have to remain vigilant and protect our democratic values as human life is valuable, and every human on earth deserves a good life. Under a fascist dictator that cannot ever be achieved.\n\nDear reader, thanks for reading my article.\n\nPlease consider clapping, commenting, or following me on Medium.\n\nOh, and did you know about this little trick? If you press the clap button for 15 seconds you can clap 50 times at once.\n\nTake care and be well.\n\nAppendix:\n\nGenerally, we can divide countries along these income level categories\n\nHigh income countries: 32 dollars or more in daily income. (Tier 1)\n\nExamples: USA, GER, UK, F, ESP, Italy etc.\n\nUpper middle income countries: 8 to 32 dollars of daily income. (Tier 2)\n\nExamples: Bulgaria, China, Russia, etc.\n\nLow middle income countries: 4 to 8 dollars of daily income. (Tier 3)\n\nExamples: Vietnam, India, Ukraine, etc.\n\nLow income countries: 1 to 4 dollars of daily income. (Tier 4)\n\nRwanda Taijikistan, Syria, Burundi, etc.", "role": "33d2006b60ef", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"title\": \"How poverty, corruption, and lies cement Putin\\u2019s power\", \"subtitle\": \"Putin\\u2019s regime ensures that Russians have little time to care about Putin and his entourage by keeping the vast majority of Russians in a\\u2026\", \"author\": \"33d2006b60ef\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:07:04\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-11-21 09:10:44\", \"boosted_at\": \"2023-02-01 13:18:45\", \"tags\": [\"europe\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"politics\", \"economics\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 1362, \"voters\": 80, \"reads\": 871, \"views\": 1314, \"word_count\": 2459, \"responses_count\": 12, \"reading_time\": 9.479245283018868, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"unique_slug\": \"how-poverty-corruption-and-lies-cement-putins-power-4f92e68d5cc9\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.\\nFriedrich August von Hayek\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"www.transparency.org\": [{\"title\": \"2022 Corruption Perceptions Index: Explore the results\", \"href\": \"https://www.transparency.org/en/cpi/2022/index/ukr\"}], \"www.worldometers.info\": [{\"title\": \"Life Expectancy by Country and in the World (2025) - Worldometer\", \"href\": \"https://www.worldometers.info/demographics/life-expectancy/\"}], \"worldpopulationreview.com\": [{\"title\": \"Infant Mortality Rate by Country 2023\", \"href\": \"https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/infant-mortality-rate-by-country\"}], \"www.indexmundi.com\": [{\"title\": \"Countries ranked by Physicians (per 1,000 people)\", \"href\": \"https://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS/rankings\"}], \"www.reuters.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia's COVID-19 death toll climbs to world's second highest\", \"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-covid-19-death-toll-climbs-worlds-second-highest-2021-12-30/\"}], \"www.nationsencyclopedia.com\": [{\"title\": \"Russia Infrastructure, power, and communications, Information about Infrastructure, power, and communications in Russia\", \"href\": \"https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/economies/Europe/Russia-INFRASTRUCTURE-POWER-AND-COMMUNICATIONS.html\"}], \"www.wipo.int\": [{\"title\": \"Global Innovation Index 2022 - Which are the most innovative countries\", \"href\": \"https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/\"}], \"www.themoscowtimes.com\": [{\"title\": \"Indoor Plumbing Still a Pipe Dream for 20% of Russian Households, Reports Say - The Moscow Times\", \"href\": \"https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/02/indoor-plumbing-still-a-pipe-dream-for-20-of-russian-households-reports-say-a65049\"}], \"medium.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Chris Snow\", \"href\": \"https://medium.com/@snowythefirst/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*FZfgx0GS_Je7rfWlm_fIfw.jpeg\"], \"youtube\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnL-UUmfzi8\", \"title\": \"RUSSIAN Education System in Jeopardy as Mobilization Causes Mass EXODUS of Teaching Workforce\", \"description\": \"Please Support The Channel: YouTube Super Thanks (click below) YouTube Membership (click below) https://www.buymeacoffee.com/JoeBlogs https://www.patreon.com/joeblogsYT Amazon Shopping USA - https://amzn.to/3qwnwHB Amazon Shopping UK - https://amzn.to/3LbHjFL Amazon Shopping Canada - https://amzn.to/3BIyXlS Amazon Shopping Australia - https://amzn.to/3eHQZvy Click thro the link, buy your items as normal and Amazon will pay me a small commission At the start of the War in Ukraine over 500,000 people fled from Russia as part of the BRAIN DRAIN and a large percentage of those people were HIGHLY EDUCATED.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KermMHuUgug\", \"title\": \"Gifts that make you cry.\", \"description\": \"Dear Friends, now our channel has a sponsorship function! And you can support us there!\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyRg_PPca5g&t=19s\", \"title\": \"How much Russians earn? Cost of living and wages in Russia\", \"description\": \"An average Russian earns much less than an average American, but how does it look like in numbers? I will show you average salaries and real wages in Russia, and also talk about cost of living in St. Petersburg city. I'm also going to share a bit of my own life in Russia with numbers and expenses.\"}], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-official-toll-covid-related-deaths-exceeds-820000-2022-08-05/\", \"text\": \"Covid19 Pandemic.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://gain-new.crc.nd.edu/ranking/vulnerability/infrastructure\", \"text\": \"The data about their infrastructure is from 2019, which ranks them at place 73. Again, Russia is way outside the top 50 nations.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://geohistory.today/russias-developing-transport-infrastructure/\", \"text\": \" the Trans-Siberian Highway was only completed in 2015, more than 110 years later.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/17129429\", \"text\": \"Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty\"}, {\"href\": \"https://borgenproject.org/child-poverty-in-russia/\", \"text\": \"As a result of social inequality, child poverty in Russia continues to rise. Currently, one in four Russian children lives below the poverty line.\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1ufkS-hrXE\", \"text\": \"Additionally, 26 percent of Russian children live off of close to $150 per month. Child poverty in Russia is most prevalent in rural areas, as many do not have access to employment opportunities in \"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-stop-corruption/\", \"text\": \"century long system\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1542269393945903105?s=20&t=yBqwl8iF3Um5KTs2TveGDw\", \"text\": \"corruption in Russia\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"voters\": [\"b52a4c04ec74\", \"47e41961feef\", \"3759d39cf1e6\", \"f2309a556e8f\", \"f615fea285a4\", \"16eb0c5a1fc9\", \"197cc5a2f752\", \"32085a43e986\", \"a8d7550e0579\", \"93b2fadb9f66\", \"2306719a45ec\", \"6de9f0fb55c9\", \"6a41a42bf827\", \"31c38b5c4785\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"8fd72afd7e84\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"cc85ecdfd0ba\", \"9fd5a4a81836\", \"725fde1e6a3\", \"2efd8be69175\", \"937785503154\", \"bb8c8de7d48a\", \"603f0f0ea848\", \"25165d88156d\", \"503a0ee8abfa\", \"ad94c7a7d76\", \"910f2a8d8842\", \"93d655ecc17b\", \"5bb37abda9b6\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"e47c3ce5d546\", \"878b580cfa9\", \"e1599e87dc21\", \"323c6deeebaf\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"23f46bd0669c\", \"e6f057ab4671\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"108c4c64e454\", \"45d5be981630\", \"8d7db4220ebb\", \"b6e1e3ae1134\", \"7681cb7ba122\", \"f10dcc22a675\", \"3a645069c7c3\", \"63024aa7c129\", \"39d68c653e79\", \"3e009e2e9e9f\", \"54ab903f7458\", \"86cb28440741\", \"75ac95e1eff5\", \"8ac14defba26\", \"50c7a8c501bb\", \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"76c8b413588\", \"84735ad3394a\", \"8aa7ae6a946d\", \"8093616d5d52\", \"1474c1de12c9\", \"8ea0f6daffba\", \"422fff2389b2\", \"d477744eed03\", \"a27ef19b300f\", \"2e68788a5b09\", \"291a71e3e3c1\", \"2e3a3f490e4d\", \"67a40b270378\", \"a4dd7194cf0a\", \"e8d5b55b1aed\", \"ecad792c856a\", \"fdb15d32f181\", \"7ee33c76b951\", \"151de55ef6a8\", \"1cba2bc81337\", \"c96b094971d6\", \"20f8e2a63e8e\", \"6e16fc75af20\"], \"count\": 80}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"4f92e68d5cc9\", \"responses\": [\"281856329a09\", \"7dfcea86338f\", \"940de408c502\", \"6b7ef3a3877d\", \"31d97103b6ca\", \"173f1406afa4\", \"71a933c08e2f\", \"f1c2f1a0fe79\", \"9ca7c3f74175\", \"e149d8185a3c\", \"7e756702b2e\", \"f3d597ff8600\"], \"count\": 12}}"}, {"content": "Just a thought, Chris. Does anyone know the last time Putin told the truth. By the utter poverty alone of his people, the man obviously has no shame and never had a moral compass. Tragically sad. Thanks for your write. Well done.", "role": "f84a16d162b8", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"title\": \"Just a thought, Chris.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"f84a16d162b8\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 17:31:39\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 17:31:39\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 5, \"voters\": 3, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 25, \"word_count\": 42, \"responses_count\": 2, \"reading_time\": 0.15849056603773584, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@rhammond2448/just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca\", \"unique_slug\": \"just-a-thought-chris-31d97103b6ca\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"voters\": [\"725fde1e6a3\", \"25165d88156d\", \"e75dc4a35d22\"], \"count\": 3}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"31d97103b6ca\", \"responses\": [\"1564808f06d6\", \"1d487a8ed24f\"], \"count\": 2}}"}, {"content": "His mentality probably works against it.", "role": "7b1c107c8de", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"1d487a8ed24f\", \"title\": \"His mentality probably works against it.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"7b1c107c8de\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 18:57:36\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 18:57:36\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 25, \"voters\": 2, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 9, \"word_count\": 6, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.022641509433962263, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@hogsmile/his-mentality-probably-works-against-it-1d487a8ed24f\", \"unique_slug\": \"his-mentality-probably-works-against-it-1d487a8ed24f\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"1d487a8ed24f\", \"voters\": [\"33d2006b60ef\", \"f84a16d162b8\"], \"count\": 2}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"1d487a8ed24f\", \"responses\": [\"504b03865a6c\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle, it makes sense that Democrats are supporting rapacious wartime profiteers more than Republicans are.
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[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/citizens-united-explained\", \"text\": \"corporations are people\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-opposition-to-helping-ukraine-grows-wsj-poll-finds-11667467802?mod=hp_lead_pos6\", \"text\": \"In a recent poll\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"voters\": [\"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"29600ca2a056\", \"fe02b663d9df\", \"3eeaeb28137b\", \"906cb1be1b90\", \"937785503154\", \"e5752215892b\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"49378aaaab39\", \"e6d8a06d5a88\", \"42bedb004c10\", \"1b97f638966d\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"587a277ea2a0\", \"733bd9cfe632\", \"e13577882625\", \"d7376aa404e1\", \"6e2d305e3872\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"468fb5f1c113\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"ce21459ea3f8\", \"fc59a045d6e6\", \"2961299e20db\"], \"count\": 25}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"responses\": [\"50012853154b\", \"3012422e69b4\", \"20fe7f42f932\", \"ca074e1618ea\", \"98ecf1420652\", \"bcd897ad2044\"], \"count\": 6}}"}, {"content": "Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle, it makes sense that Democrats are supporting rapacious wartime profiteers more than Republicans are.", "role": "43c106977eaf", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"title\": \"Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth\\u2026\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"43c106977eaf\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 04:59:01\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 01:01:00\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 1, \"voters\": 1, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 11, \"word_count\": 40, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.1509433962264151, \"url\": \"https://taminad-crittenden.medium.com/actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4\", \"unique_slug\": \"actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://medium.com/non-violence/progressive-leftist-neo-feudalism-democratic-party-states-higher-inequality-than-republican-states-368c9804b711\", \"text\": \"in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"voters\": [\"82b98b2940d\"], \"count\": 1}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"responses\": [\"d8e68832235d\"], \"count\": 1}}"}, {"content": "If you so sure about that, how about providing evidence for it. BTW according to the economic history of the last 50 years, a Republican administration has almost always been associated with an economic downturn while a Democratic administration has experience economic expansion.", "role": "49378aaaab39", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"title\": \"If you so sure about that, how about providing evidence for it.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"49378aaaab39\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 20:47:41\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 20:47:41\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 0, \"voters\": 0, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 4, \"word_count\": 43, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.16226415094339622, \"url\": \"https://larryclyons.medium.com/if-you-so-sure-about-that-how-about-providing-evidence-for-it-d8e68832235d\", \"unique_slug\": \"if-you-so-sure-about-that-how-about-providing-evidence-for-it-d8e68832235d\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"voters\": [], \"count\": 0}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"responses\": [\"fe20b34fff9d\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
|
{"counts": {"id": "fe20b34fff9d", "title": "Did you not notice that I provided a link to an article I wrote with the evidence?", "subtitle": "", "author": "43c106977eaf", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-02 00:48:47", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-02 00:49:01", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 0, "voters": 0, "reads": 0, "views": 5, "word_count": 33, "responses_count": 1, "reading_time": 0.12452830188679245, "url": "https://taminad-crittenden.medium.com/did-you-not-notice-that-i-provided-a-link-to-an-article-i-wrote-with-the-evidence-fe20b34fff9d", "unique_slug": "did-you-not-notice-that-i-provided-a-link-to-an-article-i-wrote-with-the-evidence-fe20b34fff9d", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}, "anchors": [{"href": "https://medium.com/non-violence/progressive-leftist-neo-feudalism-democratic-party-states-higher-inequality-than-republican-states-368c9804b711", "text": "I'll provide the link again, because it seems you didn't notice it the first time."}]}, "fans": {"id": "fe20b34fff9d", "voters": [], "count": 0}, "responses": {"id": "fe20b34fff9d", "responses": ["33fe3a907c10"], "count": 1}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "43c106977eaf", "username": "taminad-crittenden", "fullname": "Taminad Crittenden", "bio": "Analyst. Tip me on https://ko-fi.com/taminadcrittenden or send me some Ethereum digital currency at at this address: 0x5ffe3e60a7f85a70147e800c37116b3ad97afd5e", "followers_count": 683, "following_count": 1013, "publication_following_count": 101, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*2s-S7YvpSVAkieKws8n4Pg.jpeg", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2024-05-25 01:20:22", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": false, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://ko-fi.com/taminadcrittenden", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "43c106977eaf", "tags_followed": ["space-exploration", "space", "cybersecurity", "artificial-intelligence", "family", "blockchain", "basic-income", "machine-learning", "outdoors", "software-engineering", "programming", "cryptocurrency", "future", "history", "world"], "count": 15}}}
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Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle, it makes sense that Democrats are supporting rapacious wartime profiteers more than Republicans are.
|
b9dd9605795f
|
43c106977eaf
| 1,675,205,726
| 1
|
Preview mode - no LLM call made
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[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/citizens-united-explained\", \"text\": \"corporations are people\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-opposition-to-helping-ukraine-grows-wsj-poll-finds-11667467802?mod=hp_lead_pos6\", \"text\": \"In a recent poll\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"voters\": [\"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"29600ca2a056\", \"fe02b663d9df\", \"3eeaeb28137b\", \"906cb1be1b90\", \"937785503154\", \"e5752215892b\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"49378aaaab39\", \"e6d8a06d5a88\", \"42bedb004c10\", \"1b97f638966d\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"587a277ea2a0\", \"733bd9cfe632\", \"e13577882625\", \"d7376aa404e1\", \"6e2d305e3872\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"468fb5f1c113\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"ce21459ea3f8\", \"fc59a045d6e6\", \"2961299e20db\"], \"count\": 25}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"responses\": [\"50012853154b\", \"3012422e69b4\", \"20fe7f42f932\", \"ca074e1618ea\", \"98ecf1420652\", \"bcd897ad2044\"], \"count\": 6}}"}]
|
{"counts": {"id": "3012422e69b4", "title": "Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth…", "subtitle": "", "author": "43c106977eaf", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 04:59:01", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-02 01:01:00", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 1, "voters": 1, "reads": 0, "views": 11, "word_count": 40, "responses_count": 1, "reading_time": 0.1509433962264151, "url": "https://taminad-crittenden.medium.com/actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4", "unique_slug": "actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}, "anchors": [{"href": "https://medium.com/non-violence/progressive-leftist-neo-feudalism-democratic-party-states-higher-inequality-than-republican-states-368c9804b711", "text": "in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle"}]}, "fans": {"id": "3012422e69b4", "voters": ["82b98b2940d"], "count": 1}, "responses": {"id": "3012422e69b4", "responses": ["d8e68832235d"], "count": 1}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "43c106977eaf", "username": "taminad-crittenden", "fullname": "Taminad Crittenden", "bio": "Analyst. Tip me on https://ko-fi.com/taminadcrittenden or send me some Ethereum digital currency at at this address: 0x5ffe3e60a7f85a70147e800c37116b3ad97afd5e", "followers_count": 683, "following_count": 1013, "publication_following_count": 101, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*2s-S7YvpSVAkieKws8n4Pg.jpeg", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2024-05-25 01:20:22", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": false, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://ko-fi.com/taminadcrittenden", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "43c106977eaf", "tags_followed": ["space-exploration", "space", "cybersecurity", "artificial-intelligence", "family", "blockchain", "basic-income", "machine-learning", "outdoors", "software-engineering", "programming", "cryptocurrency", "future", "history", "world"], "count": 15}}}
|
Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle, it makes sense that Democrats are supporting rapacious wartime profiteers more than Republicans are.
|
b9dd9605795f
|
43c106977eaf
| 1,675,205,726
| 1
|
Preview mode - no LLM call made
|
[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/citizens-united-explained\", \"text\": \"corporations are people\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-opposition-to-helping-ukraine-grows-wsj-poll-finds-11667467802?mod=hp_lead_pos6\", \"text\": \"In a recent poll\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"voters\": [\"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"29600ca2a056\", \"fe02b663d9df\", \"3eeaeb28137b\", \"906cb1be1b90\", \"937785503154\", \"e5752215892b\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"49378aaaab39\", \"e6d8a06d5a88\", \"42bedb004c10\", \"1b97f638966d\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"587a277ea2a0\", \"733bd9cfe632\", \"e13577882625\", \"d7376aa404e1\", \"6e2d305e3872\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"468fb5f1c113\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"ce21459ea3f8\", \"fc59a045d6e6\", \"2961299e20db\"], \"count\": 25}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"responses\": [\"50012853154b\", \"3012422e69b4\", \"20fe7f42f932\", \"ca074e1618ea\", \"98ecf1420652\", \"bcd897ad2044\"], \"count\": 6}}"}, {"content": "Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle, it makes sense that Democrats are supporting rapacious wartime profiteers more than Republicans are.", "role": "43c106977eaf", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"title\": \"Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth\\u2026\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"43c106977eaf\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 04:59:01\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 01:01:00\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 1, \"voters\": 1, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 11, \"word_count\": 40, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.1509433962264151, \"url\": \"https://taminad-crittenden.medium.com/actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4\", \"unique_slug\": \"actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://medium.com/non-violence/progressive-leftist-neo-feudalism-democratic-party-states-higher-inequality-than-republican-states-368c9804b711\", \"text\": \"in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"voters\": [\"82b98b2940d\"], \"count\": 1}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"responses\": [\"d8e68832235d\"], \"count\": 1}}"}, {"content": "If you so sure about that, how about providing evidence for it. BTW according to the economic history of the last 50 years, a Republican administration has almost always been associated with an economic downturn while a Democratic administration has experience economic expansion.", "role": "49378aaaab39", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"title\": \"If you so sure about that, how about providing evidence for it.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"49378aaaab39\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 20:47:41\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 20:47:41\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 0, \"voters\": 0, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 4, \"word_count\": 43, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.16226415094339622, \"url\": \"https://larryclyons.medium.com/if-you-so-sure-about-that-how-about-providing-evidence-for-it-d8e68832235d\", \"unique_slug\": \"if-you-so-sure-about-that-how-about-providing-evidence-for-it-d8e68832235d\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"voters\": [], \"count\": 0}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"responses\": [\"fe20b34fff9d\"], \"count\": 1}}"}, {"content": "Did you not notice that I provided a link to an article I wrote with the evidence? Here: I'll provide the link again, because it seems you didn't notice it the first time.", "role": "43c106977eaf", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"fe20b34fff9d\", \"title\": \"Did you not notice that I provided a link to an article I wrote with the evidence?\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"43c106977eaf\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-02 00:48:47\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 00:49:01\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 0, \"voters\": 0, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 5, \"word_count\": 33, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.12452830188679245, \"url\": \"https://taminad-crittenden.medium.com/did-you-not-notice-that-i-provided-a-link-to-an-article-i-wrote-with-the-evidence-fe20b34fff9d\", \"unique_slug\": \"did-you-not-notice-that-i-provided-a-link-to-an-article-i-wrote-with-the-evidence-fe20b34fff9d\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://medium.com/non-violence/progressive-leftist-neo-feudalism-democratic-party-states-higher-inequality-than-republican-states-368c9804b711\", \"text\": \"I'll provide the link again, because it seems you didn't notice it the first time.\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"fe20b34fff9d\", \"voters\": [], \"count\": 0}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"fe20b34fff9d\", \"responses\": [\"33fe3a907c10\"], \"count\": 1}}"}, {"content": "citing yourself is not evidence.", "role": "49378aaaab39", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"33fe3a907c10\", \"title\": \"citing yourself is not evidence.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"49378aaaab39\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-02 15:48:02\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 15:48:02\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 0, \"voters\": 0, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 2, \"word_count\": 5, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.018867924528301886, \"url\": \"https://larryclyons.medium.com/citing-yourself-is-not-evidence-33fe3a907c10\", \"unique_slug\": \"citing-yourself-is-not-evidence-33fe3a907c10\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"33fe3a907c10\", \"voters\": [], \"count\": 0}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"33fe3a907c10\", \"responses\": [\"3cbaae0c40e4\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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Did you not notice that I provided a link to an article I wrote with the evidence? Here: I'll provide the link again, because it seems you didn't notice it the first time.
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b9dd9605795f
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43c106977eaf
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Preview mode - no LLM call made
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[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/citizens-united-explained\", \"text\": \"corporations are people\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-opposition-to-helping-ukraine-grows-wsj-poll-finds-11667467802?mod=hp_lead_pos6\", \"text\": \"In a recent poll\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"voters\": [\"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"29600ca2a056\", \"fe02b663d9df\", \"3eeaeb28137b\", \"906cb1be1b90\", \"937785503154\", \"e5752215892b\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"49378aaaab39\", \"e6d8a06d5a88\", \"42bedb004c10\", \"1b97f638966d\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"587a277ea2a0\", \"733bd9cfe632\", \"e13577882625\", \"d7376aa404e1\", \"6e2d305e3872\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"468fb5f1c113\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"ce21459ea3f8\", \"fc59a045d6e6\", \"2961299e20db\"], \"count\": 25}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"responses\": [\"50012853154b\", \"3012422e69b4\", \"20fe7f42f932\", \"ca074e1618ea\", \"98ecf1420652\", \"bcd897ad2044\"], \"count\": 6}}"}, {"content": "Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle, it makes sense that Democrats are supporting rapacious wartime profiteers more than Republicans are.", "role": "43c106977eaf", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"title\": \"Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth\\u2026\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"43c106977eaf\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 04:59:01\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 01:01:00\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 1, \"voters\": 1, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 11, \"word_count\": 40, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.1509433962264151, \"url\": \"https://taminad-crittenden.medium.com/actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4\", \"unique_slug\": \"actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://medium.com/non-violence/progressive-leftist-neo-feudalism-democratic-party-states-higher-inequality-than-republican-states-368c9804b711\", \"text\": \"in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"voters\": [\"82b98b2940d\"], \"count\": 1}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"responses\": [\"d8e68832235d\"], \"count\": 1}}"}, {"content": "If you so sure about that, how about providing evidence for it. BTW according to the economic history of the last 50 years, a Republican administration has almost always been associated with an economic downturn while a Democratic administration has experience economic expansion.", "role": "49378aaaab39", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"title\": \"If you so sure about that, how about providing evidence for it.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"49378aaaab39\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 20:47:41\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 20:47:41\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 0, \"voters\": 0, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 4, \"word_count\": 43, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.16226415094339622, \"url\": \"https://larryclyons.medium.com/if-you-so-sure-about-that-how-about-providing-evidence-for-it-d8e68832235d\", \"unique_slug\": \"if-you-so-sure-about-that-how-about-providing-evidence-for-it-d8e68832235d\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"voters\": [], \"count\": 0}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"responses\": [\"fe20b34fff9d\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "fe20b34fff9d", "title": "Did you not notice that I provided a link to an article I wrote with the evidence?", "subtitle": "", "author": "43c106977eaf", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-02 00:48:47", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-02 00:49:01", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 0, "voters": 0, "reads": 0, "views": 5, "word_count": 33, "responses_count": 1, "reading_time": 0.12452830188679245, "url": "https://taminad-crittenden.medium.com/did-you-not-notice-that-i-provided-a-link-to-an-article-i-wrote-with-the-evidence-fe20b34fff9d", "unique_slug": "did-you-not-notice-that-i-provided-a-link-to-an-article-i-wrote-with-the-evidence-fe20b34fff9d", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}, "anchors": [{"href": "https://medium.com/non-violence/progressive-leftist-neo-feudalism-democratic-party-states-higher-inequality-than-republican-states-368c9804b711", "text": "I'll provide the link again, because it seems you didn't notice it the first time."}]}, "fans": {"id": "fe20b34fff9d", "voters": [], "count": 0}, "responses": {"id": "fe20b34fff9d", "responses": ["33fe3a907c10"], "count": 1}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "43c106977eaf", "username": "taminad-crittenden", "fullname": "Taminad Crittenden", "bio": "Analyst. Tip me on https://ko-fi.com/taminadcrittenden or send me some Ethereum digital currency at at this address: 0x5ffe3e60a7f85a70147e800c37116b3ad97afd5e", "followers_count": 683, "following_count": 1013, "publication_following_count": 101, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*2s-S7YvpSVAkieKws8n4Pg.jpeg", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2024-05-25 01:20:22", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": false, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://ko-fi.com/taminadcrittenden", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "43c106977eaf", "tags_followed": ["space-exploration", "space", "cybersecurity", "artificial-intelligence", "family", "blockchain", "basic-income", "machine-learning", "outdoors", "software-engineering", "programming", "cryptocurrency", "future", "history", "world"], "count": 15}}}
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Did you not notice that I provided a link to an article I wrote with the evidence? Here: I'll provide the link again, because it seems you didn't notice it the first time.
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b9dd9605795f
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43c106977eaf
| 1,675,205,726
| 3
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Preview mode - no LLM call made
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[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/citizens-united-explained\", \"text\": \"corporations are people\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-opposition-to-helping-ukraine-grows-wsj-poll-finds-11667467802?mod=hp_lead_pos6\", \"text\": \"In a recent poll\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"voters\": [\"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"29600ca2a056\", \"fe02b663d9df\", \"3eeaeb28137b\", \"906cb1be1b90\", \"937785503154\", \"e5752215892b\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"49378aaaab39\", \"e6d8a06d5a88\", \"42bedb004c10\", \"1b97f638966d\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"587a277ea2a0\", \"733bd9cfe632\", \"e13577882625\", \"d7376aa404e1\", \"6e2d305e3872\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"468fb5f1c113\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"ce21459ea3f8\", \"fc59a045d6e6\", \"2961299e20db\"], \"count\": 25}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"responses\": [\"50012853154b\", \"3012422e69b4\", \"20fe7f42f932\", \"ca074e1618ea\", \"98ecf1420652\", \"bcd897ad2044\"], \"count\": 6}}"}]
|
{"counts": {"id": "3012422e69b4", "title": "Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth…", "subtitle": "", "author": "43c106977eaf", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 04:59:01", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-02 01:01:00", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 1, "voters": 1, "reads": 0, "views": 11, "word_count": 40, "responses_count": 1, "reading_time": 0.1509433962264151, "url": "https://taminad-crittenden.medium.com/actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4", "unique_slug": "actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}, "anchors": [{"href": "https://medium.com/non-violence/progressive-leftist-neo-feudalism-democratic-party-states-higher-inequality-than-republican-states-368c9804b711", "text": "in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle"}]}, "fans": {"id": "3012422e69b4", "voters": ["82b98b2940d"], "count": 1}, "responses": {"id": "3012422e69b4", "responses": ["d8e68832235d"], "count": 1}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "43c106977eaf", "username": "taminad-crittenden", "fullname": "Taminad Crittenden", "bio": "Analyst. Tip me on https://ko-fi.com/taminadcrittenden or send me some Ethereum digital currency at at this address: 0x5ffe3e60a7f85a70147e800c37116b3ad97afd5e", "followers_count": 683, "following_count": 1013, "publication_following_count": 101, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*2s-S7YvpSVAkieKws8n4Pg.jpeg", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2024-05-25 01:20:22", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": false, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://ko-fi.com/taminadcrittenden", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "43c106977eaf", "tags_followed": ["space-exploration", "space", "cybersecurity", "artificial-intelligence", "family", "blockchain", "basic-income", "machine-learning", "outdoors", "software-engineering", "programming", "cryptocurrency", "future", "history", "world"], "count": 15}}}
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Did you not notice that I provided a link to an article I wrote with the evidence? Here: I'll provide the link again, because it seems you didn't notice it the first time.
|
b9dd9605795f
|
43c106977eaf
| 1,675,205,726
| 3
|
Preview mode - no LLM call made
|
[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/citizens-united-explained\", \"text\": \"corporations are people\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-opposition-to-helping-ukraine-grows-wsj-poll-finds-11667467802?mod=hp_lead_pos6\", \"text\": \"In a recent poll\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"voters\": [\"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"29600ca2a056\", \"fe02b663d9df\", \"3eeaeb28137b\", \"906cb1be1b90\", \"937785503154\", \"e5752215892b\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"49378aaaab39\", \"e6d8a06d5a88\", \"42bedb004c10\", \"1b97f638966d\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"587a277ea2a0\", \"733bd9cfe632\", \"e13577882625\", \"d7376aa404e1\", \"6e2d305e3872\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"468fb5f1c113\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"ce21459ea3f8\", \"fc59a045d6e6\", \"2961299e20db\"], \"count\": 25}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"responses\": [\"50012853154b\", \"3012422e69b4\", \"20fe7f42f932\", \"ca074e1618ea\", \"98ecf1420652\", \"bcd897ad2044\"], \"count\": 6}}"}, {"content": "Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle, it makes sense that Democrats are supporting rapacious wartime profiteers more than Republicans are.", "role": "43c106977eaf", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"title\": \"Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth\\u2026\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"43c106977eaf\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 04:59:01\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 01:01:00\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 1, \"voters\": 1, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 11, \"word_count\": 40, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.1509433962264151, \"url\": \"https://taminad-crittenden.medium.com/actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4\", \"unique_slug\": \"actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://medium.com/non-violence/progressive-leftist-neo-feudalism-democratic-party-states-higher-inequality-than-republican-states-368c9804b711\", \"text\": \"in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"voters\": [\"82b98b2940d\"], \"count\": 1}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"responses\": [\"d8e68832235d\"], \"count\": 1}}"}, {"content": "If you so sure about that, how about providing evidence for it. BTW according to the economic history of the last 50 years, a Republican administration has almost always been associated with an economic downturn while a Democratic administration has experience economic expansion.", "role": "49378aaaab39", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"title\": \"If you so sure about that, how about providing evidence for it.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"49378aaaab39\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 20:47:41\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 20:47:41\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 0, \"voters\": 0, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 4, \"word_count\": 43, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.16226415094339622, \"url\": \"https://larryclyons.medium.com/if-you-so-sure-about-that-how-about-providing-evidence-for-it-d8e68832235d\", \"unique_slug\": \"if-you-so-sure-about-that-how-about-providing-evidence-for-it-d8e68832235d\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"voters\": [], \"count\": 0}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"responses\": [\"fe20b34fff9d\"], \"count\": 1}}"}, {"content": "Did you not notice that I provided a link to an article I wrote with the evidence? Here: I'll provide the link again, because it seems you didn't notice it the first time.", "role": "43c106977eaf", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"fe20b34fff9d\", \"title\": \"Did you not notice that I provided a link to an article I wrote with the evidence?\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"43c106977eaf\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-02 00:48:47\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 00:49:01\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 0, \"voters\": 0, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 5, \"word_count\": 33, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.12452830188679245, \"url\": \"https://taminad-crittenden.medium.com/did-you-not-notice-that-i-provided-a-link-to-an-article-i-wrote-with-the-evidence-fe20b34fff9d\", \"unique_slug\": \"did-you-not-notice-that-i-provided-a-link-to-an-article-i-wrote-with-the-evidence-fe20b34fff9d\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://medium.com/non-violence/progressive-leftist-neo-feudalism-democratic-party-states-higher-inequality-than-republican-states-368c9804b711\", \"text\": \"I'll provide the link again, because it seems you didn't notice it the first time.\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"fe20b34fff9d\", \"voters\": [], \"count\": 0}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"fe20b34fff9d\", \"responses\": [\"33fe3a907c10\"], \"count\": 1}}"}, {"content": "citing yourself is not evidence.", "role": "49378aaaab39", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"33fe3a907c10\", \"title\": \"citing yourself is not evidence.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"49378aaaab39\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-02 15:48:02\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 15:48:02\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 0, \"voters\": 0, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 2, \"word_count\": 5, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.018867924528301886, \"url\": \"https://larryclyons.medium.com/citing-yourself-is-not-evidence-33fe3a907c10\", \"unique_slug\": \"citing-yourself-is-not-evidence-33fe3a907c10\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"33fe3a907c10\", \"voters\": [], \"count\": 0}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"33fe3a907c10\", \"responses\": [\"3cbaae0c40e4\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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I wrote an article with multiple citations in it.
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b9dd9605795f
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43c106977eaf
| 1,675,205,726
| 5
|
Preview mode - no LLM call made
|
[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/citizens-united-explained\", \"text\": \"corporations are people\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-opposition-to-helping-ukraine-grows-wsj-poll-finds-11667467802?mod=hp_lead_pos6\", \"text\": \"In a recent poll\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"voters\": [\"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"29600ca2a056\", \"fe02b663d9df\", \"3eeaeb28137b\", \"906cb1be1b90\", \"937785503154\", \"e5752215892b\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"49378aaaab39\", \"e6d8a06d5a88\", \"42bedb004c10\", \"1b97f638966d\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"587a277ea2a0\", \"733bd9cfe632\", \"e13577882625\", \"d7376aa404e1\", \"6e2d305e3872\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"468fb5f1c113\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"ce21459ea3f8\", \"fc59a045d6e6\", \"2961299e20db\"], \"count\": 25}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"responses\": [\"50012853154b\", \"3012422e69b4\", \"20fe7f42f932\", \"ca074e1618ea\", \"98ecf1420652\", \"bcd897ad2044\"], \"count\": 6}}"}, {"content": "Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle, it makes sense that Democrats are supporting rapacious wartime profiteers more than Republicans are.", "role": "43c106977eaf", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"title\": \"Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth\\u2026\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"43c106977eaf\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 04:59:01\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 01:01:00\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 1, \"voters\": 1, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 11, \"word_count\": 40, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.1509433962264151, \"url\": \"https://taminad-crittenden.medium.com/actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4\", \"unique_slug\": \"actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://medium.com/non-violence/progressive-leftist-neo-feudalism-democratic-party-states-higher-inequality-than-republican-states-368c9804b711\", \"text\": \"in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"voters\": [\"82b98b2940d\"], \"count\": 1}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"responses\": [\"d8e68832235d\"], \"count\": 1}}"}, {"content": "If you so sure about that, how about providing evidence for it. BTW according to the economic history of the last 50 years, a Republican administration has almost always been associated with an economic downturn while a Democratic administration has experience economic expansion.", "role": "49378aaaab39", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"title\": \"If you so sure about that, how about providing evidence for it.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"49378aaaab39\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 20:47:41\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 20:47:41\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 0, \"voters\": 0, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 4, \"word_count\": 43, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.16226415094339622, \"url\": \"https://larryclyons.medium.com/if-you-so-sure-about-that-how-about-providing-evidence-for-it-d8e68832235d\", \"unique_slug\": \"if-you-so-sure-about-that-how-about-providing-evidence-for-it-d8e68832235d\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"voters\": [], \"count\": 0}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"responses\": [\"fe20b34fff9d\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
|
{"counts": {"id": "fe20b34fff9d", "title": "Did you not notice that I provided a link to an article I wrote with the evidence?", "subtitle": "", "author": "43c106977eaf", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-02 00:48:47", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-02 00:49:01", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 0, "voters": 0, "reads": 0, "views": 5, "word_count": 33, "responses_count": 1, "reading_time": 0.12452830188679245, "url": "https://taminad-crittenden.medium.com/did-you-not-notice-that-i-provided-a-link-to-an-article-i-wrote-with-the-evidence-fe20b34fff9d", "unique_slug": "did-you-not-notice-that-i-provided-a-link-to-an-article-i-wrote-with-the-evidence-fe20b34fff9d", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}, "anchors": [{"href": "https://medium.com/non-violence/progressive-leftist-neo-feudalism-democratic-party-states-higher-inequality-than-republican-states-368c9804b711", "text": "I'll provide the link again, because it seems you didn't notice it the first time."}]}, "fans": {"id": "fe20b34fff9d", "voters": [], "count": 0}, "responses": {"id": "fe20b34fff9d", "responses": ["33fe3a907c10"], "count": 1}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "43c106977eaf", "username": "taminad-crittenden", "fullname": "Taminad Crittenden", "bio": "Analyst. Tip me on https://ko-fi.com/taminadcrittenden or send me some Ethereum digital currency at at this address: 0x5ffe3e60a7f85a70147e800c37116b3ad97afd5e", "followers_count": 683, "following_count": 1013, "publication_following_count": 101, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*2s-S7YvpSVAkieKws8n4Pg.jpeg", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2024-05-25 01:20:22", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": false, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://ko-fi.com/taminadcrittenden", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "43c106977eaf", "tags_followed": ["space-exploration", "space", "cybersecurity", "artificial-intelligence", "family", "blockchain", "basic-income", "machine-learning", "outdoors", "software-engineering", "programming", "cryptocurrency", "future", "history", "world"], "count": 15}}}
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I wrote an article with multiple citations in it.
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b9dd9605795f
|
43c106977eaf
| 1,675,205,726
| 5
|
Preview mode - no LLM call made
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[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/citizens-united-explained\", \"text\": \"corporations are people\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-opposition-to-helping-ukraine-grows-wsj-poll-finds-11667467802?mod=hp_lead_pos6\", \"text\": \"In a recent poll\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"voters\": [\"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"29600ca2a056\", \"fe02b663d9df\", \"3eeaeb28137b\", \"906cb1be1b90\", \"937785503154\", \"e5752215892b\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"49378aaaab39\", \"e6d8a06d5a88\", \"42bedb004c10\", \"1b97f638966d\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"587a277ea2a0\", \"733bd9cfe632\", \"e13577882625\", \"d7376aa404e1\", \"6e2d305e3872\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"468fb5f1c113\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"ce21459ea3f8\", \"fc59a045d6e6\", \"2961299e20db\"], \"count\": 25}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"responses\": [\"50012853154b\", \"3012422e69b4\", \"20fe7f42f932\", \"ca074e1618ea\", \"98ecf1420652\", \"bcd897ad2044\"], \"count\": 6}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "3012422e69b4", "title": "Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth…", "subtitle": "", "author": "43c106977eaf", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 04:59:01", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-02 01:01:00", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 1, "voters": 1, "reads": 0, "views": 11, "word_count": 40, "responses_count": 1, "reading_time": 0.1509433962264151, "url": "https://taminad-crittenden.medium.com/actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4", "unique_slug": "actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}, "anchors": [{"href": "https://medium.com/non-violence/progressive-leftist-neo-feudalism-democratic-party-states-higher-inequality-than-republican-states-368c9804b711", "text": "in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle"}]}, "fans": {"id": "3012422e69b4", "voters": ["82b98b2940d"], "count": 1}, "responses": {"id": "3012422e69b4", "responses": ["d8e68832235d"], "count": 1}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "43c106977eaf", "username": "taminad-crittenden", "fullname": "Taminad Crittenden", "bio": "Analyst. Tip me on https://ko-fi.com/taminadcrittenden or send me some Ethereum digital currency at at this address: 0x5ffe3e60a7f85a70147e800c37116b3ad97afd5e", "followers_count": 683, "following_count": 1013, "publication_following_count": 101, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*2s-S7YvpSVAkieKws8n4Pg.jpeg", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2024-05-25 01:20:22", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": false, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://ko-fi.com/taminadcrittenden", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "43c106977eaf", "tags_followed": ["space-exploration", "space", "cybersecurity", "artificial-intelligence", "family", "blockchain", "basic-income", "machine-learning", "outdoors", "software-engineering", "programming", "cryptocurrency", "future", "history", "world"], "count": 15}}}
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I wrote an article with multiple citations in it.
|
b9dd9605795f
|
43c106977eaf
| 1,675,205,726
| 5
|
Preview mode - no LLM call made
|
[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/citizens-united-explained\", \"text\": \"corporations are people\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-opposition-to-helping-ukraine-grows-wsj-poll-finds-11667467802?mod=hp_lead_pos6\", \"text\": \"In a recent poll\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"voters\": [\"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"29600ca2a056\", \"fe02b663d9df\", \"3eeaeb28137b\", \"906cb1be1b90\", \"937785503154\", \"e5752215892b\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"49378aaaab39\", \"e6d8a06d5a88\", \"42bedb004c10\", \"1b97f638966d\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"587a277ea2a0\", \"733bd9cfe632\", \"e13577882625\", \"d7376aa404e1\", \"6e2d305e3872\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"468fb5f1c113\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"ce21459ea3f8\", \"fc59a045d6e6\", \"2961299e20db\"], \"count\": 25}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"responses\": [\"50012853154b\", \"3012422e69b4\", \"20fe7f42f932\", \"ca074e1618ea\", \"98ecf1420652\", \"bcd897ad2044\"], \"count\": 6}}"}, {"content": "Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle, it makes sense that Democrats are supporting rapacious wartime profiteers more than Republicans are.", "role": "43c106977eaf", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"title\": \"Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth\\u2026\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"43c106977eaf\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 04:59:01\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 01:01:00\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 1, \"voters\": 1, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 11, \"word_count\": 40, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.1509433962264151, \"url\": \"https://taminad-crittenden.medium.com/actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4\", \"unique_slug\": \"actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://medium.com/non-violence/progressive-leftist-neo-feudalism-democratic-party-states-higher-inequality-than-republican-states-368c9804b711\", \"text\": \"in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"voters\": [\"82b98b2940d\"], \"count\": 1}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"responses\": [\"d8e68832235d\"], \"count\": 1}}"}, {"content": "If you so sure about that, how about providing evidence for it. BTW according to the economic history of the last 50 years, a Republican administration has almost always been associated with an economic downturn while a Democratic administration has experience economic expansion.", "role": "49378aaaab39", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"title\": \"If you so sure about that, how about providing evidence for it.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"49378aaaab39\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 20:47:41\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 20:47:41\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 0, \"voters\": 0, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 4, \"word_count\": 43, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.16226415094339622, \"url\": \"https://larryclyons.medium.com/if-you-so-sure-about-that-how-about-providing-evidence-for-it-d8e68832235d\", \"unique_slug\": \"if-you-so-sure-about-that-how-about-providing-evidence-for-it-d8e68832235d\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"voters\": [], \"count\": 0}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"responses\": [\"fe20b34fff9d\"], \"count\": 1}}"}, {"content": "Did you not notice that I provided a link to an article I wrote with the evidence? Here: I'll provide the link again, because it seems you didn't notice it the first time.", "role": "43c106977eaf", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"fe20b34fff9d\", \"title\": \"Did you not notice that I provided a link to an article I wrote with the evidence?\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"43c106977eaf\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-02 00:48:47\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 00:49:01\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 0, \"voters\": 0, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 5, \"word_count\": 33, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.12452830188679245, \"url\": \"https://taminad-crittenden.medium.com/did-you-not-notice-that-i-provided-a-link-to-an-article-i-wrote-with-the-evidence-fe20b34fff9d\", \"unique_slug\": \"did-you-not-notice-that-i-provided-a-link-to-an-article-i-wrote-with-the-evidence-fe20b34fff9d\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://medium.com/non-violence/progressive-leftist-neo-feudalism-democratic-party-states-higher-inequality-than-republican-states-368c9804b711\", \"text\": \"I'll provide the link again, because it seems you didn't notice it the first time.\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"fe20b34fff9d\", \"voters\": [], \"count\": 0}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"fe20b34fff9d\", \"responses\": [\"33fe3a907c10\"], \"count\": 1}}"}, {"content": "citing yourself is not evidence.", "role": "49378aaaab39", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"33fe3a907c10\", \"title\": \"citing yourself is not evidence.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"49378aaaab39\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-02 15:48:02\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 15:48:02\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 0, \"voters\": 0, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 2, \"word_count\": 5, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.018867924528301886, \"url\": \"https://larryclyons.medium.com/citing-yourself-is-not-evidence-33fe3a907c10\", \"unique_slug\": \"citing-yourself-is-not-evidence-33fe3a907c10\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"33fe3a907c10\", \"voters\": [], \"count\": 0}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"33fe3a907c10\", \"responses\": [\"3cbaae0c40e4\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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If you so sure about that, how about providing evidence for it. BTW according to the economic history of the last 50 years, a Republican administration has almost always been associated with an economic downturn while a Democratic administration has experience economic expansion.
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b9dd9605795f
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49378aaaab39
| 1,675,205,726
| 2
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Preview mode - no LLM call made
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[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/citizens-united-explained\", \"text\": \"corporations are people\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-opposition-to-helping-ukraine-grows-wsj-poll-finds-11667467802?mod=hp_lead_pos6\", \"text\": \"In a recent poll\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"voters\": [\"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"29600ca2a056\", \"fe02b663d9df\", \"3eeaeb28137b\", \"906cb1be1b90\", \"937785503154\", \"e5752215892b\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"49378aaaab39\", \"e6d8a06d5a88\", \"42bedb004c10\", \"1b97f638966d\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"587a277ea2a0\", \"733bd9cfe632\", \"e13577882625\", \"d7376aa404e1\", \"6e2d305e3872\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"468fb5f1c113\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"ce21459ea3f8\", \"fc59a045d6e6\", \"2961299e20db\"], \"count\": 25}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"responses\": [\"50012853154b\", \"3012422e69b4\", \"20fe7f42f932\", \"ca074e1618ea\", \"98ecf1420652\", \"bcd897ad2044\"], \"count\": 6}}"}, {"content": "Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle, it makes sense that Democrats are supporting rapacious wartime profiteers more than Republicans are.", "role": "43c106977eaf", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"title\": \"Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth\\u2026\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"43c106977eaf\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 04:59:01\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 01:01:00\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 1, \"voters\": 1, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 11, \"word_count\": 40, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.1509433962264151, \"url\": \"https://taminad-crittenden.medium.com/actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4\", \"unique_slug\": \"actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://medium.com/non-violence/progressive-leftist-neo-feudalism-democratic-party-states-higher-inequality-than-republican-states-368c9804b711\", \"text\": \"in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"voters\": [\"82b98b2940d\"], \"count\": 1}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"responses\": [\"d8e68832235d\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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If you so sure about that, how about providing evidence for it. BTW according to the economic history of the last 50 years, a Republican administration has almost always been associated with an economic downturn while a Democratic administration has experience economic expansion.
|
b9dd9605795f
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49378aaaab39
| 1,675,205,726
| 2
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Preview mode - no LLM call made
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[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/citizens-united-explained\", \"text\": \"corporations are people\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-opposition-to-helping-ukraine-grows-wsj-poll-finds-11667467802?mod=hp_lead_pos6\", \"text\": \"In a recent poll\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"voters\": [\"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"29600ca2a056\", \"fe02b663d9df\", \"3eeaeb28137b\", \"906cb1be1b90\", \"937785503154\", \"e5752215892b\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"49378aaaab39\", \"e6d8a06d5a88\", \"42bedb004c10\", \"1b97f638966d\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"587a277ea2a0\", \"733bd9cfe632\", \"e13577882625\", \"d7376aa404e1\", \"6e2d305e3872\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"468fb5f1c113\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"ce21459ea3f8\", \"fc59a045d6e6\", \"2961299e20db\"], \"count\": 25}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"responses\": [\"50012853154b\", \"3012422e69b4\", \"20fe7f42f932\", \"ca074e1618ea\", \"98ecf1420652\", \"bcd897ad2044\"], \"count\": 6}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "ca074e1618ea", "title": "Most of the equipment and ammunition shipped to Ukraine were either older and in storage, or near…", "subtitle": "sounds like a win win to me.", "author": "49378aaaab39", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 20:45:48", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-01 20:48:42", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 0, "voters": 0, "reads": 0, "views": 7, "word_count": 70, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.2641509433962264, "url": "https://larryclyons.medium.com/most-of-the-equipment-and-ammunition-shipped-to-ukraine-were-either-older-and-in-storage-or-near-ca074e1618ea", "unique_slug": "most-of-the-equipment-and-ammunition-shipped-to-ukraine-were-either-older-and-in-storage-or-near-ca074e1618ea", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "ca074e1618ea", "voters": [], "count": 0}, "responses": {"id": "ca074e1618ea", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "49378aaaab39", "username": "larryclyons", "fullname": "Larry C. Lyons", "bio": "", "followers_count": 329, "following_count": 41, "publication_following_count": 18, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/0*pj66cl36hvJTtUgW.", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2020-02-13 15:39:13", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": false, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": null, "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "49378aaaab39", "tags_followed": ["archaeology", "virginia", "git", "adobe-coldfusion", "rebt", "gun-control", "religion", "philosophy", "accessibility", "immigration", "politics", "world", "programming", "neuroscience", "software-engineering", "science", "visual-design", "mental-health", "psychology", "history", "javascript"], "count": 21}}}
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If you so sure about that, how about providing evidence for it. BTW according to the economic history of the last 50 years, a Republican administration has almost always been associated with an economic downturn while a Democratic administration has experience economic expansion.
|
b9dd9605795f
|
49378aaaab39
| 1,675,205,726
| 2
|
Preview mode - no LLM call made
|
[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/citizens-united-explained\", \"text\": \"corporations are people\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-opposition-to-helping-ukraine-grows-wsj-poll-finds-11667467802?mod=hp_lead_pos6\", \"text\": \"In a recent poll\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"voters\": [\"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"29600ca2a056\", \"fe02b663d9df\", \"3eeaeb28137b\", \"906cb1be1b90\", \"937785503154\", \"e5752215892b\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"49378aaaab39\", \"e6d8a06d5a88\", \"42bedb004c10\", \"1b97f638966d\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"587a277ea2a0\", \"733bd9cfe632\", \"e13577882625\", \"d7376aa404e1\", \"6e2d305e3872\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"468fb5f1c113\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"ce21459ea3f8\", \"fc59a045d6e6\", \"2961299e20db\"], \"count\": 25}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"responses\": [\"50012853154b\", \"3012422e69b4\", \"20fe7f42f932\", \"ca074e1618ea\", \"98ecf1420652\", \"bcd897ad2044\"], \"count\": 6}}"}, {"content": "Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle, it makes sense that Democrats are supporting rapacious wartime profiteers more than Republicans are.", "role": "43c106977eaf", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"title\": \"Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth\\u2026\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"43c106977eaf\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 04:59:01\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 01:01:00\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 1, \"voters\": 1, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 11, \"word_count\": 40, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.1509433962264151, \"url\": \"https://taminad-crittenden.medium.com/actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4\", \"unique_slug\": \"actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://medium.com/non-violence/progressive-leftist-neo-feudalism-democratic-party-states-higher-inequality-than-republican-states-368c9804b711\", \"text\": \"in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"voters\": [\"82b98b2940d\"], \"count\": 1}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"responses\": [\"d8e68832235d\"], \"count\": 1}}"}, {"content": "If you so sure about that, how about providing evidence for it. BTW according to the economic history of the last 50 years, a Republican administration has almost always been associated with an economic downturn while a Democratic administration has experience economic expansion.", "role": "49378aaaab39", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"title\": \"If you so sure about that, how about providing evidence for it.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"49378aaaab39\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 20:47:41\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 20:47:41\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 0, \"voters\": 0, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 4, \"word_count\": 43, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.16226415094339622, \"url\": \"https://larryclyons.medium.com/if-you-so-sure-about-that-how-about-providing-evidence-for-it-d8e68832235d\", \"unique_slug\": \"if-you-so-sure-about-that-how-about-providing-evidence-for-it-d8e68832235d\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"voters\": [], \"count\": 0}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"responses\": [\"fe20b34fff9d\"], \"count\": 1}}"}, {"content": "Did you not notice that I provided a link to an article I wrote with the evidence? Here: I'll provide the link again, because it seems you didn't notice it the first time.", "role": "43c106977eaf", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"fe20b34fff9d\", \"title\": \"Did you not notice that I provided a link to an article I wrote with the evidence?\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"43c106977eaf\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-02 00:48:47\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 00:49:01\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 0, \"voters\": 0, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 5, \"word_count\": 33, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.12452830188679245, \"url\": \"https://taminad-crittenden.medium.com/did-you-not-notice-that-i-provided-a-link-to-an-article-i-wrote-with-the-evidence-fe20b34fff9d\", \"unique_slug\": \"did-you-not-notice-that-i-provided-a-link-to-an-article-i-wrote-with-the-evidence-fe20b34fff9d\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://medium.com/non-violence/progressive-leftist-neo-feudalism-democratic-party-states-higher-inequality-than-republican-states-368c9804b711\", \"text\": \"I'll provide the link again, because it seems you didn't notice it the first time.\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"fe20b34fff9d\", \"voters\": [], \"count\": 0}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"fe20b34fff9d\", \"responses\": [\"33fe3a907c10\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "33fe3a907c10", "title": "citing yourself is not evidence.", "subtitle": "", "author": "49378aaaab39", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-02 15:48:02", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-02 15:48:02", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 0, "voters": 0, "reads": 0, "views": 2, "word_count": 5, "responses_count": 1, "reading_time": 0.018867924528301886, "url": "https://larryclyons.medium.com/citing-yourself-is-not-evidence-33fe3a907c10", "unique_slug": "citing-yourself-is-not-evidence-33fe3a907c10", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "33fe3a907c10", "voters": [], "count": 0}, "responses": {"id": "33fe3a907c10", "responses": ["3cbaae0c40e4"], "count": 1}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "49378aaaab39", "username": "larryclyons", "fullname": "Larry C. Lyons", "bio": "", "followers_count": 329, "following_count": 41, "publication_following_count": 18, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/0*pj66cl36hvJTtUgW.", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2020-02-13 15:39:13", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": false, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": null, "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "49378aaaab39", "tags_followed": ["archaeology", "virginia", "git", "adobe-coldfusion", "rebt", "gun-control", "religion", "philosophy", "accessibility", "immigration", "politics", "world", "programming", "neuroscience", "software-engineering", "science", "visual-design", "mental-health", "psychology", "history", "javascript"], "count": 21}}}
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Most of the equipment and ammunition shipped to Ukraine were either older and in storage, or near its "best by" dates. What this means is that the Javelins and artillery shells would have been used in training or range exercises just before their expiration dates. Instead they were shipped to Ukraine. And the US and the other NATO get restocked with newer munitions,
sounds like a win win to me.
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b9dd9605795f
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49378aaaab39
| 1,675,205,726
| 1
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Preview mode - no LLM call made
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[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/citizens-united-explained\", \"text\": \"corporations are people\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-opposition-to-helping-ukraine-grows-wsj-poll-finds-11667467802?mod=hp_lead_pos6\", \"text\": \"In a recent poll\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"voters\": [\"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"29600ca2a056\", \"fe02b663d9df\", \"3eeaeb28137b\", \"906cb1be1b90\", \"937785503154\", \"e5752215892b\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"49378aaaab39\", \"e6d8a06d5a88\", \"42bedb004c10\", \"1b97f638966d\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"587a277ea2a0\", \"733bd9cfe632\", \"e13577882625\", \"d7376aa404e1\", \"6e2d305e3872\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"468fb5f1c113\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"ce21459ea3f8\", \"fc59a045d6e6\", \"2961299e20db\"], \"count\": 25}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"responses\": [\"50012853154b\", \"3012422e69b4\", \"20fe7f42f932\", \"ca074e1618ea\", \"98ecf1420652\", \"bcd897ad2044\"], \"count\": 6}}"}, {"content": "Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle, it makes sense that Democrats are supporting rapacious wartime profiteers more than Republicans are.", "role": "43c106977eaf", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"title\": \"Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth\\u2026\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"43c106977eaf\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 04:59:01\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 01:01:00\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 1, \"voters\": 1, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 11, \"word_count\": 40, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.1509433962264151, \"url\": \"https://taminad-crittenden.medium.com/actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4\", \"unique_slug\": \"actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://medium.com/non-violence/progressive-leftist-neo-feudalism-democratic-party-states-higher-inequality-than-republican-states-368c9804b711\", \"text\": \"in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"voters\": [\"82b98b2940d\"], \"count\": 1}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"responses\": [\"d8e68832235d\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "d8e68832235d", "title": "If you so sure about that, how about providing evidence for it.", "subtitle": "", "author": "49378aaaab39", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 20:47:41", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-01 20:47:41", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 0, "voters": 0, "reads": 0, "views": 4, "word_count": 43, "responses_count": 1, "reading_time": 0.16226415094339622, "url": "https://larryclyons.medium.com/if-you-so-sure-about-that-how-about-providing-evidence-for-it-d8e68832235d", "unique_slug": "if-you-so-sure-about-that-how-about-providing-evidence-for-it-d8e68832235d", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "d8e68832235d", "voters": [], "count": 0}, "responses": {"id": "d8e68832235d", "responses": ["fe20b34fff9d"], "count": 1}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "49378aaaab39", "username": "larryclyons", "fullname": "Larry C. Lyons", "bio": "", "followers_count": 329, "following_count": 41, "publication_following_count": 18, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/0*pj66cl36hvJTtUgW.", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2020-02-13 15:39:13", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": false, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": null, "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "49378aaaab39", "tags_followed": ["archaeology", "virginia", "git", "adobe-coldfusion", "rebt", "gun-control", "religion", "philosophy", "accessibility", "immigration", "politics", "world", "programming", "neuroscience", "software-engineering", "science", "visual-design", "mental-health", "psychology", "history", "javascript"], "count": 21}}}
|
Most of the equipment and ammunition shipped to Ukraine were either older and in storage, or near its "best by" dates. What this means is that the Javelins and artillery shells would have been used in training or range exercises just before their expiration dates. Instead they were shipped to Ukraine. And the US and the other NATO get restocked with newer munitions,
sounds like a win win to me.
|
b9dd9605795f
|
49378aaaab39
| 1,675,205,726
| 1
|
Preview mode - no LLM call made
|
[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/citizens-united-explained\", \"text\": \"corporations are people\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-opposition-to-helping-ukraine-grows-wsj-poll-finds-11667467802?mod=hp_lead_pos6\", \"text\": \"In a recent poll\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"voters\": [\"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"29600ca2a056\", \"fe02b663d9df\", \"3eeaeb28137b\", \"906cb1be1b90\", \"937785503154\", \"e5752215892b\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"49378aaaab39\", \"e6d8a06d5a88\", \"42bedb004c10\", \"1b97f638966d\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"587a277ea2a0\", \"733bd9cfe632\", \"e13577882625\", \"d7376aa404e1\", \"6e2d305e3872\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"468fb5f1c113\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"ce21459ea3f8\", \"fc59a045d6e6\", \"2961299e20db\"], \"count\": 25}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"responses\": [\"50012853154b\", \"3012422e69b4\", \"20fe7f42f932\", \"ca074e1618ea\", \"98ecf1420652\", \"bcd897ad2044\"], \"count\": 6}}"}]
|
{"counts": {"id": "ca074e1618ea", "title": "Most of the equipment and ammunition shipped to Ukraine were either older and in storage, or near…", "subtitle": "sounds like a win win to me.", "author": "49378aaaab39", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 20:45:48", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-01 20:48:42", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 0, "voters": 0, "reads": 0, "views": 7, "word_count": 70, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.2641509433962264, "url": "https://larryclyons.medium.com/most-of-the-equipment-and-ammunition-shipped-to-ukraine-were-either-older-and-in-storage-or-near-ca074e1618ea", "unique_slug": "most-of-the-equipment-and-ammunition-shipped-to-ukraine-were-either-older-and-in-storage-or-near-ca074e1618ea", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "ca074e1618ea", "voters": [], "count": 0}, "responses": {"id": "ca074e1618ea", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "49378aaaab39", "username": "larryclyons", "fullname": "Larry C. Lyons", "bio": "", "followers_count": 329, "following_count": 41, "publication_following_count": 18, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/0*pj66cl36hvJTtUgW.", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2020-02-13 15:39:13", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": false, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": null, "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "49378aaaab39", "tags_followed": ["archaeology", "virginia", "git", "adobe-coldfusion", "rebt", "gun-control", "religion", "philosophy", "accessibility", "immigration", "politics", "world", "programming", "neuroscience", "software-engineering", "science", "visual-design", "mental-health", "psychology", "history", "javascript"], "count": 21}}}
|
Most of the equipment and ammunition shipped to Ukraine were either older and in storage, or near its "best by" dates. What this means is that the Javelins and artillery shells would have been used in training or range exercises just before their expiration dates. Instead they were shipped to Ukraine. And the US and the other NATO get restocked with newer munitions,
sounds like a win win to me.
|
b9dd9605795f
|
49378aaaab39
| 1,675,205,726
| 1
|
Preview mode - no LLM call made
|
[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/citizens-united-explained\", \"text\": \"corporations are people\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-opposition-to-helping-ukraine-grows-wsj-poll-finds-11667467802?mod=hp_lead_pos6\", \"text\": \"In a recent poll\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"voters\": [\"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"29600ca2a056\", \"fe02b663d9df\", \"3eeaeb28137b\", \"906cb1be1b90\", \"937785503154\", \"e5752215892b\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"49378aaaab39\", \"e6d8a06d5a88\", \"42bedb004c10\", \"1b97f638966d\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"587a277ea2a0\", \"733bd9cfe632\", \"e13577882625\", \"d7376aa404e1\", \"6e2d305e3872\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"468fb5f1c113\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"ce21459ea3f8\", \"fc59a045d6e6\", \"2961299e20db\"], \"count\": 25}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"responses\": [\"50012853154b\", \"3012422e69b4\", \"20fe7f42f932\", \"ca074e1618ea\", \"98ecf1420652\", \"bcd897ad2044\"], \"count\": 6}}"}, {"content": "Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle, it makes sense that Democrats are supporting rapacious wartime profiteers more than Republicans are.", "role": "43c106977eaf", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"title\": \"Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth\\u2026\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"43c106977eaf\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 04:59:01\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 01:01:00\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 1, \"voters\": 1, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 11, \"word_count\": 40, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.1509433962264151, \"url\": \"https://taminad-crittenden.medium.com/actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4\", \"unique_slug\": \"actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://medium.com/non-violence/progressive-leftist-neo-feudalism-democratic-party-states-higher-inequality-than-republican-states-368c9804b711\", \"text\": \"in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"voters\": [\"82b98b2940d\"], \"count\": 1}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"responses\": [\"d8e68832235d\"], \"count\": 1}}"}, {"content": "If you so sure about that, how about providing evidence for it. BTW according to the economic history of the last 50 years, a Republican administration has almost always been associated with an economic downturn while a Democratic administration has experience economic expansion.", "role": "49378aaaab39", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"title\": \"If you so sure about that, how about providing evidence for it.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"49378aaaab39\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 20:47:41\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 20:47:41\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 0, \"voters\": 0, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 4, \"word_count\": 43, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.16226415094339622, \"url\": \"https://larryclyons.medium.com/if-you-so-sure-about-that-how-about-providing-evidence-for-it-d8e68832235d\", \"unique_slug\": \"if-you-so-sure-about-that-how-about-providing-evidence-for-it-d8e68832235d\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"voters\": [], \"count\": 0}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"responses\": [\"fe20b34fff9d\"], \"count\": 1}}"}, {"content": "Did you not notice that I provided a link to an article I wrote with the evidence? Here: I'll provide the link again, because it seems you didn't notice it the first time.", "role": "43c106977eaf", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"fe20b34fff9d\", \"title\": \"Did you not notice that I provided a link to an article I wrote with the evidence?\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"43c106977eaf\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-02 00:48:47\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 00:49:01\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 0, \"voters\": 0, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 5, \"word_count\": 33, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.12452830188679245, \"url\": \"https://taminad-crittenden.medium.com/did-you-not-notice-that-i-provided-a-link-to-an-article-i-wrote-with-the-evidence-fe20b34fff9d\", \"unique_slug\": \"did-you-not-notice-that-i-provided-a-link-to-an-article-i-wrote-with-the-evidence-fe20b34fff9d\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://medium.com/non-violence/progressive-leftist-neo-feudalism-democratic-party-states-higher-inequality-than-republican-states-368c9804b711\", \"text\": \"I'll provide the link again, because it seems you didn't notice it the first time.\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"fe20b34fff9d\", \"voters\": [], \"count\": 0}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"fe20b34fff9d\", \"responses\": [\"33fe3a907c10\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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citing yourself is not evidence.
|
b9dd9605795f
|
49378aaaab39
| 1,675,205,726
| 4
|
Preview mode - no LLM call made
|
[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/citizens-united-explained\", \"text\": \"corporations are people\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-opposition-to-helping-ukraine-grows-wsj-poll-finds-11667467802?mod=hp_lead_pos6\", \"text\": \"In a recent poll\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"voters\": [\"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"29600ca2a056\", \"fe02b663d9df\", \"3eeaeb28137b\", \"906cb1be1b90\", \"937785503154\", \"e5752215892b\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"49378aaaab39\", \"e6d8a06d5a88\", \"42bedb004c10\", \"1b97f638966d\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"587a277ea2a0\", \"733bd9cfe632\", \"e13577882625\", \"d7376aa404e1\", \"6e2d305e3872\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"468fb5f1c113\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"ce21459ea3f8\", \"fc59a045d6e6\", \"2961299e20db\"], \"count\": 25}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"responses\": [\"50012853154b\", \"3012422e69b4\", \"20fe7f42f932\", \"ca074e1618ea\", \"98ecf1420652\", \"bcd897ad2044\"], \"count\": 6}}"}, {"content": "Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle, it makes sense that Democrats are supporting rapacious wartime profiteers more than Republicans are.", "role": "43c106977eaf", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"title\": \"Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth\\u2026\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"43c106977eaf\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 04:59:01\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 01:01:00\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 1, \"voters\": 1, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 11, \"word_count\": 40, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.1509433962264151, \"url\": \"https://taminad-crittenden.medium.com/actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4\", \"unique_slug\": \"actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://medium.com/non-violence/progressive-leftist-neo-feudalism-democratic-party-states-higher-inequality-than-republican-states-368c9804b711\", \"text\": \"in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"voters\": [\"82b98b2940d\"], \"count\": 1}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"responses\": [\"d8e68832235d\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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citing yourself is not evidence.
|
b9dd9605795f
|
49378aaaab39
| 1,675,205,726
| 4
|
Preview mode - no LLM call made
|
[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/citizens-united-explained\", \"text\": \"corporations are people\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-opposition-to-helping-ukraine-grows-wsj-poll-finds-11667467802?mod=hp_lead_pos6\", \"text\": \"In a recent poll\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"voters\": [\"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"29600ca2a056\", \"fe02b663d9df\", \"3eeaeb28137b\", \"906cb1be1b90\", \"937785503154\", \"e5752215892b\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"49378aaaab39\", \"e6d8a06d5a88\", \"42bedb004c10\", \"1b97f638966d\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"587a277ea2a0\", \"733bd9cfe632\", \"e13577882625\", \"d7376aa404e1\", \"6e2d305e3872\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"468fb5f1c113\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"ce21459ea3f8\", \"fc59a045d6e6\", \"2961299e20db\"], \"count\": 25}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"responses\": [\"50012853154b\", \"3012422e69b4\", \"20fe7f42f932\", \"ca074e1618ea\", \"98ecf1420652\", \"bcd897ad2044\"], \"count\": 6}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "ca074e1618ea", "title": "Most of the equipment and ammunition shipped to Ukraine were either older and in storage, or near…", "subtitle": "sounds like a win win to me.", "author": "49378aaaab39", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 20:45:48", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-01 20:48:42", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 0, "voters": 0, "reads": 0, "views": 7, "word_count": 70, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.2641509433962264, "url": "https://larryclyons.medium.com/most-of-the-equipment-and-ammunition-shipped-to-ukraine-were-either-older-and-in-storage-or-near-ca074e1618ea", "unique_slug": "most-of-the-equipment-and-ammunition-shipped-to-ukraine-were-either-older-and-in-storage-or-near-ca074e1618ea", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "ca074e1618ea", "voters": [], "count": 0}, "responses": {"id": "ca074e1618ea", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "49378aaaab39", "username": "larryclyons", "fullname": "Larry C. Lyons", "bio": "", "followers_count": 329, "following_count": 41, "publication_following_count": 18, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/0*pj66cl36hvJTtUgW.", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2020-02-13 15:39:13", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": false, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": null, "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "49378aaaab39", "tags_followed": ["archaeology", "virginia", "git", "adobe-coldfusion", "rebt", "gun-control", "religion", "philosophy", "accessibility", "immigration", "politics", "world", "programming", "neuroscience", "software-engineering", "science", "visual-design", "mental-health", "psychology", "history", "javascript"], "count": 21}}}
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citing yourself is not evidence.
|
b9dd9605795f
|
49378aaaab39
| 1,675,205,726
| 4
|
Preview mode - no LLM call made
|
[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/citizens-united-explained\", \"text\": \"corporations are people\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-opposition-to-helping-ukraine-grows-wsj-poll-finds-11667467802?mod=hp_lead_pos6\", \"text\": \"In a recent poll\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"voters\": [\"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"29600ca2a056\", \"fe02b663d9df\", \"3eeaeb28137b\", \"906cb1be1b90\", \"937785503154\", \"e5752215892b\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"49378aaaab39\", \"e6d8a06d5a88\", \"42bedb004c10\", \"1b97f638966d\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"587a277ea2a0\", \"733bd9cfe632\", \"e13577882625\", \"d7376aa404e1\", \"6e2d305e3872\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"468fb5f1c113\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"ce21459ea3f8\", \"fc59a045d6e6\", \"2961299e20db\"], \"count\": 25}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"responses\": [\"50012853154b\", \"3012422e69b4\", \"20fe7f42f932\", \"ca074e1618ea\", \"98ecf1420652\", \"bcd897ad2044\"], \"count\": 6}}"}, {"content": "Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle, it makes sense that Democrats are supporting rapacious wartime profiteers more than Republicans are.", "role": "43c106977eaf", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"title\": \"Actually, in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth\\u2026\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"43c106977eaf\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 04:59:01\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 01:01:00\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 1, \"voters\": 1, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 11, \"word_count\": 40, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.1509433962264151, \"url\": \"https://taminad-crittenden.medium.com/actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4\", \"unique_slug\": \"actually-in-light-of-the-fact-that-republicans-do-a-better-job-than-democrats-creating-wealth-3012422e69b4\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://medium.com/non-violence/progressive-leftist-neo-feudalism-democratic-party-states-higher-inequality-than-republican-states-368c9804b711\", \"text\": \"in light of the fact that Republicans do a better job than Democrats creating wealth equality despite Democrats trying to lay claim to that mantle\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"voters\": [\"82b98b2940d\"], \"count\": 1}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"3012422e69b4\", \"responses\": [\"d8e68832235d\"], \"count\": 1}}"}, {"content": "If you so sure about that, how about providing evidence for it. BTW according to the economic history of the last 50 years, a Republican administration has almost always been associated with an economic downturn while a Democratic administration has experience economic expansion.", "role": "49378aaaab39", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"title\": \"If you so sure about that, how about providing evidence for it.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"49378aaaab39\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 20:47:41\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 20:47:41\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 0, \"voters\": 0, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 4, \"word_count\": 43, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.16226415094339622, \"url\": \"https://larryclyons.medium.com/if-you-so-sure-about-that-how-about-providing-evidence-for-it-d8e68832235d\", \"unique_slug\": \"if-you-so-sure-about-that-how-about-providing-evidence-for-it-d8e68832235d\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"voters\": [], \"count\": 0}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"d8e68832235d\", \"responses\": [\"fe20b34fff9d\"], \"count\": 1}}"}, {"content": "Did you not notice that I provided a link to an article I wrote with the evidence? Here: I'll provide the link again, because it seems you didn't notice it the first time.", "role": "43c106977eaf", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"fe20b34fff9d\", \"title\": \"Did you not notice that I provided a link to an article I wrote with the evidence?\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"43c106977eaf\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-02 00:48:47\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 00:49:01\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 0, \"voters\": 0, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 5, \"word_count\": 33, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.12452830188679245, \"url\": \"https://taminad-crittenden.medium.com/did-you-not-notice-that-i-provided-a-link-to-an-article-i-wrote-with-the-evidence-fe20b34fff9d\", \"unique_slug\": \"did-you-not-notice-that-i-provided-a-link-to-an-article-i-wrote-with-the-evidence-fe20b34fff9d\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://medium.com/non-violence/progressive-leftist-neo-feudalism-democratic-party-states-higher-inequality-than-republican-states-368c9804b711\", \"text\": \"I'll provide the link again, because it seems you didn't notice it the first time.\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"fe20b34fff9d\", \"voters\": [], \"count\": 0}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"fe20b34fff9d\", \"responses\": [\"33fe3a907c10\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "33fe3a907c10", "title": "citing yourself is not evidence.", "subtitle": "", "author": "49378aaaab39", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-02 15:48:02", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-02 15:48:02", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 0, "voters": 0, "reads": 0, "views": 2, "word_count": 5, "responses_count": 1, "reading_time": 0.018867924528301886, "url": "https://larryclyons.medium.com/citing-yourself-is-not-evidence-33fe3a907c10", "unique_slug": "citing-yourself-is-not-evidence-33fe3a907c10", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "33fe3a907c10", "voters": [], "count": 0}, "responses": {"id": "33fe3a907c10", "responses": ["3cbaae0c40e4"], "count": 1}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "49378aaaab39", "username": "larryclyons", "fullname": "Larry C. Lyons", "bio": "", "followers_count": 329, "following_count": 41, "publication_following_count": 18, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/0*pj66cl36hvJTtUgW.", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2020-02-13 15:39:13", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": false, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": null, "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "49378aaaab39", "tags_followed": ["archaeology", "virginia", "git", "adobe-coldfusion", "rebt", "gun-control", "religion", "philosophy", "accessibility", "immigration", "politics", "world", "programming", "neuroscience", "software-engineering", "science", "visual-design", "mental-health", "psychology", "history", "javascript"], "count": 21}}}
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Not surprised.
Here's the view from outside the US.
Trump took over the GOP. Trump is a Putin puppet. If you don't agree, fine. Then, tell me why Trump continually fawns over Putin and why he called him a genius when Putin attacked Ukraine.
Putin holds something over Trump (all rumors are valid until we know the facts). And therefore Putin can make Trump dance.
In their blind obedience to Trump, most Republicans have adopted a position of support for Putin and Russia. Now that the Republicans are turning their backs on Trump, they're either too far into the Putin-support thing, or too ignorant to realize that they're actually working against their own best interest.
I am extremely sorry to see how far US politics has dumbed itself down since the days of Dubya.
A very sad episode of history.
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b9dd9605795f
|
73af26450a5a
| 1,675,205,726
| 1
|
Preview mode - no LLM call made
|
[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/citizens-united-explained\", \"text\": \"corporations are people\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-opposition-to-helping-ukraine-grows-wsj-poll-finds-11667467802?mod=hp_lead_pos6\", \"text\": \"In a recent poll\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"voters\": [\"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"29600ca2a056\", \"fe02b663d9df\", \"3eeaeb28137b\", \"906cb1be1b90\", \"937785503154\", \"e5752215892b\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"49378aaaab39\", \"e6d8a06d5a88\", \"42bedb004c10\", \"1b97f638966d\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"587a277ea2a0\", \"733bd9cfe632\", \"e13577882625\", \"d7376aa404e1\", \"6e2d305e3872\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"468fb5f1c113\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"ce21459ea3f8\", \"fc59a045d6e6\", \"2961299e20db\"], \"count\": 25}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"responses\": [\"50012853154b\", \"3012422e69b4\", \"20fe7f42f932\", \"ca074e1618ea\", \"98ecf1420652\", \"bcd897ad2044\"], \"count\": 6}}"}]
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I beg to differ, too.
I just copied a map that you can see for yourself at this website:
https://www.statista.com/chart/16834/countries-and-territories-ranked-on-perceived-public-sector-corruption/?utm_source=Statista+Newsletters&utm_campaign=6e5ec1a554-All_InfographTicker_daily_COM_PM_KW2_2023_We_COPY_&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_662f7ed75e-6e5ec1a554-315805693
I can't post it here but I would if I could.
It's a map of the most corrupt places on earth to do business. Red colored countries are "most corrupt".
Russia is red.
The least corrupt countries are yellow.
The just freed ex-Soviet Baltic countries and New Zealand are colored yellow.
It speaks to the actual reason for the Ukraine War. The corrupt political system in Russia is fundamentally challenged by adjacent territories that aren't as rotten to the core as mob boss Putin's is. It's no accident that the countries with the slowest, smallest economies are colored red. Like Russia. Basically, Russia lives by stealing. And it can't be reformed from either the inside or the outside. Russian reformers are poisoned, shot, or "made to disappear" by confining them in the prison system. And we outside Russia can do nothing.
The only way we can protect ourselves from Russia's kleptocracy is by keeping it at bay. Russia's constant mantra complaining about N.A.T.O. "encirclement" is just a red herring. A distraction. N.A.T.O. exists to keep Russian armies outside its territory.
The enormous ammunition expenditures in Ukraine suggest just how expensive that effort would be. We need the technological advantage that those companies provide. Yes, it's expensive. But it's better than an all-out war fought in the middle of Europe, after Russia invades, seeking more to steal.
Speaking of the Ukraine War ...
https://www.understandingwar.org/sites/default/files/Russian%20Operations%20Assessments%20January%2031%202023.pdf
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b9dd9605795f
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7b1c107c8de
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Preview mode - no LLM call made
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[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. 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There was that (in)famous jibe during the Vietnam War: "War is good business. Invest your son!"
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b9dd9605795f
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d9fb50bdc6e7
| 1,675,205,726
| 2
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Preview mode - no LLM call made
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[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. 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|
There was that (in)famous jibe during the Vietnam War: "War is good business. Invest your son!"
|
b9dd9605795f
|
d9fb50bdc6e7
| 1,675,205,726
| 2
|
Preview mode - no LLM call made
|
[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/citizens-united-explained\", \"text\": \"corporations are people\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-opposition-to-helping-ukraine-grows-wsj-poll-finds-11667467802?mod=hp_lead_pos6\", \"text\": \"In a recent poll\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"voters\": [\"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"29600ca2a056\", \"fe02b663d9df\", \"3eeaeb28137b\", \"906cb1be1b90\", \"937785503154\", \"e5752215892b\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"49378aaaab39\", \"e6d8a06d5a88\", \"42bedb004c10\", \"1b97f638966d\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"587a277ea2a0\", \"733bd9cfe632\", \"e13577882625\", \"d7376aa404e1\", \"6e2d305e3872\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"468fb5f1c113\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"ce21459ea3f8\", \"fc59a045d6e6\", \"2961299e20db\"], \"count\": 25}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"responses\": [\"50012853154b\", \"3012422e69b4\", \"20fe7f42f932\", \"ca074e1618ea\", \"98ecf1420652\", \"bcd897ad2044\"], \"count\": 6}}"}, {"content": "Ah, the echo of Eisenhower's famous words. \"Beware of the industrial military complex\". We were warned. War may be hell, but it's still a lucrative business. Thank you sir. Good write.", "role": "f84a16d162b8", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"50012853154b\", \"title\": \"Ah, the echo of Eisenhower's famous words.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"f84a16d162b8\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 11:55:36\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 11:55:36\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 2, \"voters\": 1, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 9, \"word_count\": 31, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.1169811320754717, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@rhammond2448/ah-the-echo-of-eisenhowers-famous-words-50012853154b\", \"unique_slug\": \"ah-the-echo-of-eisenhowers-famous-words-50012853154b\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"50012853154b\", \"voters\": [\"e13577882625\"], \"count\": 1}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"50012853154b\", \"responses\": [\"b225ef1f179\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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|
I'm reminded of the backlash in Europe after World War One, which saw Sopwith for example, get taxed heavily by the incoming Lloyd George government for "war profiteering".
Long-time critic of US militarism Tom Engelhardt of Tomdispatch website, made a comment when Putin launched this stupid war, that the US military finally had a "just war" to support, after the disasters of the Iraq invasion and the endless Afghanistan military adventurism and being checkmated at the border by (potential) Iranian blockading of the Hormuz strait.
No wonder the arms manufacturers are up in (each others) arms, lethal and non-lethal, over the war against Ukraine.
|
b9dd9605795f
|
d9fb50bdc6e7
| 1,675,205,726
| 1
|
Preview mode - no LLM call made
|
[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/citizens-united-explained\", \"text\": \"corporations are people\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-opposition-to-helping-ukraine-grows-wsj-poll-finds-11667467802?mod=hp_lead_pos6\", \"text\": \"In a recent poll\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"voters\": [\"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"29600ca2a056\", \"fe02b663d9df\", \"3eeaeb28137b\", \"906cb1be1b90\", \"937785503154\", \"e5752215892b\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"49378aaaab39\", \"e6d8a06d5a88\", \"42bedb004c10\", \"1b97f638966d\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"587a277ea2a0\", \"733bd9cfe632\", \"e13577882625\", \"d7376aa404e1\", \"6e2d305e3872\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"468fb5f1c113\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"ce21459ea3f8\", \"fc59a045d6e6\", \"2961299e20db\"], \"count\": 25}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"responses\": [\"50012853154b\", \"3012422e69b4\", \"20fe7f42f932\", \"ca074e1618ea\", \"98ecf1420652\", \"bcd897ad2044\"], \"count\": 6}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "20fe7f42f932", "title": "I'm reminded of the backlash in Europe after World War One, which saw Sopwith for example, get…", "subtitle": "Long-time critic of US militarism Tom Engelhardt of Tomdispatch website, made a comment when Putin launched this stupid war, that the US…", "author": "d9fb50bdc6e7", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-03-05 01:27:30", "last_modified_at": "2023-03-05 01:27:30", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 0, "voters": 0, "reads": 0, "views": 0, "word_count": 106, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.4, "url": "https://medium.com/@wobblygong/im-reminded-of-the-backlash-in-europe-after-world-war-one-which-saw-sopwith-for-example-get-20fe7f42f932", "unique_slug": "im-reminded-of-the-backlash-in-europe-after-world-war-one-which-saw-sopwith-for-example-get-20fe7f42f932", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "20fe7f42f932", "voters": [], "count": 0}, "responses": {"id": "20fe7f42f932", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "d9fb50bdc6e7", "username": "wobblygong", "fullname": "Wesley Parish", "bio": "", "followers_count": 43, "following_count": 31, "publication_following_count": 0, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*dmbNkD5D-u45r44go_cf0g.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": false, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": null, "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "FREE"}, "interests": null}}
|
I'm reminded of the backlash in Europe after World War One, which saw Sopwith for example, get taxed heavily by the incoming Lloyd George government for "war profiteering".
Long-time critic of US militarism Tom Engelhardt of Tomdispatch website, made a comment when Putin launched this stupid war, that the US military finally had a "just war" to support, after the disasters of the Iraq invasion and the endless Afghanistan military adventurism and being checkmated at the border by (potential) Iranian blockading of the Hormuz strait.
No wonder the arms manufacturers are up in (each others) arms, lethal and non-lethal, over the war against Ukraine.
|
b9dd9605795f
|
d9fb50bdc6e7
| 1,675,205,726
| 1
|
Preview mode - no LLM call made
|
[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/citizens-united-explained\", \"text\": \"corporations are people\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-opposition-to-helping-ukraine-grows-wsj-poll-finds-11667467802?mod=hp_lead_pos6\", \"text\": \"In a recent poll\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"voters\": [\"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"29600ca2a056\", \"fe02b663d9df\", \"3eeaeb28137b\", \"906cb1be1b90\", \"937785503154\", \"e5752215892b\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"49378aaaab39\", \"e6d8a06d5a88\", \"42bedb004c10\", \"1b97f638966d\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"587a277ea2a0\", \"733bd9cfe632\", \"e13577882625\", \"d7376aa404e1\", \"6e2d305e3872\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"468fb5f1c113\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"ce21459ea3f8\", \"fc59a045d6e6\", \"2961299e20db\"], \"count\": 25}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"responses\": [\"50012853154b\", \"3012422e69b4\", \"20fe7f42f932\", \"ca074e1618ea\", \"98ecf1420652\", \"bcd897ad2044\"], \"count\": 6}}"}, {"content": "Ah, the echo of Eisenhower's famous words. \"Beware of the industrial military complex\". We were warned. War may be hell, but it's still a lucrative business. Thank you sir. Good write.", "role": "f84a16d162b8", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"50012853154b\", \"title\": \"Ah, the echo of Eisenhower's famous words.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"f84a16d162b8\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 11:55:36\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 11:55:36\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 2, \"voters\": 1, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 9, \"word_count\": 31, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.1169811320754717, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@rhammond2448/ah-the-echo-of-eisenhowers-famous-words-50012853154b\", \"unique_slug\": \"ah-the-echo-of-eisenhowers-famous-words-50012853154b\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"50012853154b\", \"voters\": [\"e13577882625\"], \"count\": 1}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"50012853154b\", \"responses\": [\"b225ef1f179\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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That's a good one, and sobering. Thanks Wesley. Appreciate you stopping by.
|
b9dd9605795f
|
f84a16d162b8
| 1,675,205,726
| 3
|
Preview mode - no LLM call made
|
[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/citizens-united-explained\", \"text\": \"corporations are people\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-opposition-to-helping-ukraine-grows-wsj-poll-finds-11667467802?mod=hp_lead_pos6\", \"text\": \"In a recent poll\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"voters\": [\"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"29600ca2a056\", \"fe02b663d9df\", \"3eeaeb28137b\", \"906cb1be1b90\", \"937785503154\", \"e5752215892b\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"49378aaaab39\", \"e6d8a06d5a88\", \"42bedb004c10\", \"1b97f638966d\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"587a277ea2a0\", \"733bd9cfe632\", \"e13577882625\", \"d7376aa404e1\", \"6e2d305e3872\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"468fb5f1c113\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"ce21459ea3f8\", \"fc59a045d6e6\", \"2961299e20db\"], \"count\": 25}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"responses\": [\"50012853154b\", \"3012422e69b4\", \"20fe7f42f932\", \"ca074e1618ea\", \"98ecf1420652\", \"bcd897ad2044\"], \"count\": 6}}"}, {"content": "Ah, the echo of Eisenhower's famous words. \"Beware of the industrial military complex\". We were warned. War may be hell, but it's still a lucrative business. Thank you sir. Good write.", "role": "f84a16d162b8", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"50012853154b\", \"title\": \"Ah, the echo of Eisenhower's famous words.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"f84a16d162b8\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 11:55:36\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 11:55:36\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 2, \"voters\": 1, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 9, \"word_count\": 31, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.1169811320754717, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@rhammond2448/ah-the-echo-of-eisenhowers-famous-words-50012853154b\", \"unique_slug\": \"ah-the-echo-of-eisenhowers-famous-words-50012853154b\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"50012853154b\", \"voters\": [\"e13577882625\"], \"count\": 1}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"50012853154b\", \"responses\": [\"b225ef1f179\"], \"count\": 1}}"}, {"content": "There was that (in)famous jibe during the Vietnam War: \"War is good business. Invest your son!\"", "role": "d9fb50bdc6e7", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b225ef1f179\", \"title\": \"There was that (in)famous jibe during the Vietnam War: \\\"War is good business. Invest your son!\\\"\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-03-05 01:14:59\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-03-05 01:14:59\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 26, \"voters\": 1, \"reads\": 1, \"views\": 2, \"word_count\": 16, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.06037735849056604, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@wobblygong/there-was-that-in-famous-jibe-during-the-vietnam-war-war-is-good-business-invest-your-son-b225ef1f179\", \"unique_slug\": \"there-was-that-in-famous-jibe-during-the-vietnam-war-war-is-good-business-invest-your-son-b225ef1f179\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b225ef1f179\", \"voters\": [\"f84a16d162b8\"], \"count\": 1}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b225ef1f179\", \"responses\": [\"e01b5a98f29e\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "e01b5a98f29e", "title": "That's a good one, and sobering. Thanks Wesley. Appreciate you stopping by.", "subtitle": "", "author": "f84a16d162b8", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-03-05 05:53:41", "last_modified_at": "2023-03-05 05:53:41", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 0, "voters": 0, "reads": 0, "views": 2, "word_count": 12, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.045283018867924525, "url": "https://medium.com/@rhammond2448/thats-a-good-one-and-sobering-thanks-wesley-appreciate-you-stopping-by-e01b5a98f29e", "unique_slug": "thats-a-good-one-and-sobering-thanks-wesley-appreciate-you-stopping-by-e01b5a98f29e", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "e01b5a98f29e", "voters": [], "count": 0}, "responses": {"id": "e01b5a98f29e", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "f84a16d162b8", "username": "rhammond2448", "fullname": "R C Hammond 😎 TWM", "bio": "Devoted dog dad and practicing husband. NO BS or AI. I don't F4F so don't bother. Reach me by email: rhammond2448@yahoo.com", "followers_count": 6453, "following_count": 97, "publication_following_count": 4, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*J9F2mHrN0sL_itFoce2KYQ.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2025-09-18 16:54:14", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://ko-fi.com/huckfinn11988", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "f84a16d162b8", "tags_followed": ["dogs", "politics-and-protest", "life-lessons", "retirement", "c-sharp-programming", "astronomy", "entrepreneurship", "orgasm", "investing", "love", "women", "cycling", "sexuality", "erotica", "dating", "aging", "sex", "psychology", "relationships", "writing", "self-improvement", "pornography", "life", "apple", "mindfulness", "politics", "ukraine", "mac", "innovation", "business", "history", "exercise", "humor", "fitness", "ukraine-war", "sports", "music", "technology"], "count": 38}}}
|
That's a good one, and sobering. Thanks Wesley. Appreciate you stopping by.
|
b9dd9605795f
|
f84a16d162b8
| 1,675,205,726
| 3
|
Preview mode - no LLM call made
|
[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/citizens-united-explained\", \"text\": \"corporations are people\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-opposition-to-helping-ukraine-grows-wsj-poll-finds-11667467802?mod=hp_lead_pos6\", \"text\": \"In a recent poll\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"voters\": [\"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"29600ca2a056\", \"fe02b663d9df\", \"3eeaeb28137b\", \"906cb1be1b90\", \"937785503154\", \"e5752215892b\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"49378aaaab39\", \"e6d8a06d5a88\", \"42bedb004c10\", \"1b97f638966d\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"587a277ea2a0\", \"733bd9cfe632\", \"e13577882625\", \"d7376aa404e1\", \"6e2d305e3872\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"468fb5f1c113\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"ce21459ea3f8\", \"fc59a045d6e6\", \"2961299e20db\"], \"count\": 25}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"responses\": [\"50012853154b\", \"3012422e69b4\", \"20fe7f42f932\", \"ca074e1618ea\", \"98ecf1420652\", \"bcd897ad2044\"], \"count\": 6}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "50012853154b", "title": "Ah, the echo of Eisenhower's famous words.", "subtitle": "", "author": "f84a16d162b8", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 11:55:36", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-01 11:55:36", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 2, "voters": 1, "reads": 0, "views": 9, "word_count": 31, "responses_count": 1, "reading_time": 0.1169811320754717, "url": "https://medium.com/@rhammond2448/ah-the-echo-of-eisenhowers-famous-words-50012853154b", "unique_slug": "ah-the-echo-of-eisenhowers-famous-words-50012853154b", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "50012853154b", "voters": ["e13577882625"], "count": 1}, "responses": {"id": "50012853154b", "responses": ["b225ef1f179"], "count": 1}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "f84a16d162b8", "username": "rhammond2448", "fullname": "R C Hammond 😎 TWM", "bio": "Devoted dog dad and practicing husband. NO BS or AI. I don't F4F so don't bother. Reach me by email: rhammond2448@yahoo.com", "followers_count": 6453, "following_count": 97, "publication_following_count": 4, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*J9F2mHrN0sL_itFoce2KYQ.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2025-09-18 16:54:14", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://ko-fi.com/huckfinn11988", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "f84a16d162b8", "tags_followed": ["dogs", "politics-and-protest", "life-lessons", "retirement", "c-sharp-programming", "astronomy", "entrepreneurship", "orgasm", "investing", "love", "women", "cycling", "sexuality", "erotica", "dating", "aging", "sex", "psychology", "relationships", "writing", "self-improvement", "pornography", "life", "apple", "mindfulness", "politics", "ukraine", "mac", "innovation", "business", "history", "exercise", "humor", "fitness", "ukraine-war", "sports", "music", "technology"], "count": 38}}}
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Ah, the echo of Eisenhower's famous words. "Beware of the industrial military complex". We were warned. War may be hell, but it's still a lucrative business. Thank you sir. Good write.
|
b9dd9605795f
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f84a16d162b8
| 1,675,205,726
| 1
|
Preview mode - no LLM call made
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[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. 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We were warned. War may be hell, but it's still a lucrative business. Thank you sir. Good write.", "role": "f84a16d162b8", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"50012853154b\", \"title\": \"Ah, the echo of Eisenhower's famous words.\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"f84a16d162b8\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-02-01 11:55:36\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-01 11:55:36\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 2, \"voters\": 1, \"reads\": 0, \"views\": 9, \"word_count\": 31, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.1169811320754717, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@rhammond2448/ah-the-echo-of-eisenhowers-famous-words-50012853154b\", \"unique_slug\": \"ah-the-echo-of-eisenhowers-famous-words-50012853154b\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"50012853154b\", \"voters\": [\"e13577882625\"], \"count\": 1}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"50012853154b\", \"responses\": [\"b225ef1f179\"], \"count\": 1}}"}, {"content": "There was that (in)famous jibe during the Vietnam War: \"War is good business. Invest your son!\"", "role": "d9fb50bdc6e7", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b225ef1f179\", \"title\": \"There was that (in)famous jibe during the Vietnam War: \\\"War is good business. Invest your son!\\\"\", \"subtitle\": \"\", \"author\": \"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-03-05 01:14:59\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-03-05 01:14:59\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [], \"topics\": [], \"claps\": 26, \"voters\": 1, \"reads\": 1, \"views\": 2, \"word_count\": 16, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 0.06037735849056604, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/@wobblygong/there-was-that-in-famous-jibe-during-the-vietnam-war-war-is-good-business-invest-your-son-b225ef1f179\", \"unique_slug\": \"there-was-that-in-famous-jibe-during-the-vietnam-war-war-is-good-business-invest-your-son-b225ef1f179\", \"image_url\": \"\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": false, \"is_shortform\": true, \"top_highlight\": \"\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b225ef1f179\", \"voters\": [\"f84a16d162b8\"], \"count\": 1}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b225ef1f179\", \"responses\": [\"e01b5a98f29e\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "e01b5a98f29e", "title": "That's a good one, and sobering. Thanks Wesley. Appreciate you stopping by.", "subtitle": "", "author": "f84a16d162b8", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-03-05 05:53:41", "last_modified_at": "2023-03-05 05:53:41", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 0, "voters": 0, "reads": 0, "views": 2, "word_count": 12, "responses_count": 0, "reading_time": 0.045283018867924525, "url": "https://medium.com/@rhammond2448/thats-a-good-one-and-sobering-thanks-wesley-appreciate-you-stopping-by-e01b5a98f29e", "unique_slug": "thats-a-good-one-and-sobering-thanks-wesley-appreciate-you-stopping-by-e01b5a98f29e", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "e01b5a98f29e", "voters": [], "count": 0}, "responses": {"id": "e01b5a98f29e", "responses": [], "count": 0}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "f84a16d162b8", "username": "rhammond2448", "fullname": "R C Hammond 😎 TWM", "bio": "Devoted dog dad and practicing husband. NO BS or AI. I don't F4F so don't bother. Reach me by email: rhammond2448@yahoo.com", "followers_count": 6453, "following_count": 97, "publication_following_count": 4, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*J9F2mHrN0sL_itFoce2KYQ.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2025-09-18 16:54:14", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://ko-fi.com/huckfinn11988", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "f84a16d162b8", "tags_followed": ["dogs", "politics-and-protest", "life-lessons", "retirement", "c-sharp-programming", "astronomy", "entrepreneurship", "orgasm", "investing", "love", "women", "cycling", "sexuality", "erotica", "dating", "aging", "sex", "psychology", "relationships", "writing", "self-improvement", "pornography", "life", "apple", "mindfulness", "politics", "ukraine", "mac", "innovation", "business", "history", "exercise", "humor", "fitness", "ukraine-war", "sports", "music", "technology"], "count": 38}}}
|
Ah, the echo of Eisenhower's famous words. "Beware of the industrial military complex". We were warned. War may be hell, but it's still a lucrative business. Thank you sir. Good write.
|
b9dd9605795f
|
f84a16d162b8
| 1,675,205,726
| 1
|
Preview mode - no LLM call made
|
[{"content": "The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\n\nIt is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\n\nHistorically, American Republicans have been the \"war hawks\" in Congress. They also happen to be the party of big business - as in, corporations are people.\n\nThis is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. In a recent poll, nearly half of registered Republican respondents said that they believe the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukraine. Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\n\nWhat's more, several prominent Republicans in Congress oppose further aid packages to Ukraine.\n\nDon't they realize that by equipping Ukraine's armed forces, they are creating a huge windfall for many U.S. corporations? Particularly the defense industry, which has secured lucrative government contracts over the past 48 weeks.\n\nSpringtime for Arms Dealers\n\nAlthough it can vary year to year, most investors would view an average annual rate of return of 10% as a good return for investments in the stock market.\n\nAnd yet, if you bought shares in Lockheed Martin, one of America's leading defense contractors, in January of 2022, you would experience a 30% return on your investment today.\n\nIt's simple: As the U.S. sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, some from existing stocks and some newly manufactured, America's defense industry is reaping the benefit.\n\nThe five largest companies in the world that manufacture weapons are all American: Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics.\n\nIn fact, 51 of the top 100 producers of arms are based in the U.S., while twenty are European.\n\nThe U.S. has sent roughly 8,500 Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, which are made by Raytheon and Lockheed Martin. The cost of each missile is about $78,000 (\u00a366,000) and the reusable launcher is another $100,000 (\u00a385,000).\n\nThe U.S. also donated counter-artillery radar systems made by the same companies, along with American defense giant Northrop Grumman.\n\nThe Stinger anti-aircraft missile, manufactured by Raytheon, has also been sent in large quantities (1,600). Because of this, Raytheon was awarded a $625m (\u00a3494m) contract to replenish the stocks.\n\nLockheed Martin makes the HIMARS rocket system (U.S. sent 38), AeroVironment makes the Switchblade loitering munition (U.S. sent 700), and the company Olin is the U.S. Army's largest small-arms ammunition supplier (U.S. sent 50+ billion rounds).\n\nAeroVironment's stock is up 63% year-over-year.\n\nRaytheon Naval & Maritime Integrated Systems makes the patrol boats that the U.S. gave Ukraine - we sent 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats.\n\nFrom body armor to radar, communications systems, optics, commercial satellite imagery services, secure radios, tactical vehicles, and much, much more, each one of these capabilities has a defense contractor behind it set to cash in.\n\nAnd it's not just U.S. firms who benefit.\n\nBefore 2022, European banks were disinvesting from the arms industry under citizen pressure.\n\nArmin Papperger, the head of Rheinmetall, one of Germany's main arms manufacturers, complained in January 2022 about investment banks' reluctance to work with his firm.\n\nNow, Commerzbank, one of the major German banks, has announced its decision to shift part of its investment toward the arms industry.\n\nBy the way, Rheinmetall also makes the main 120mm canon found on the American M1A2 Abrams.\n\nGermany just agreed to send dozens of Leopard 2 tanks. Before the war in Ukraine, Germany had a long tradition of banning weapon exports to active warzones, which, in turn, limited sales.\n\nNow, Scholz has put the last remnants of Germany's post-1945 military self-limitation into the shredder.\n\nThe Ukraine War is a humanitarian tragedy for Ukrainian civilians and soldiers on both sides of the conflict. But some individuals are realizing gains from this new European conflict.\n\nI hope that when the CEOs of these defense contractors sit down for dinner each night, they raise a glass to Vladimir Putin for his ill-conceived invasion.\n\nAfter all, it's the defense CEOs and their shareholders are the biggest winners in Putin's folly.", "role": "5f5a6f45b393", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"title\": \"The Real Winners in the Ukraine War are the Arms Manufacturers\", \"subtitle\": \"It is not hard to imagine the euphoria currently sweeping through the manufacturers of war machines in the United States.\", \"author\": \"5f5a6f45b393\", \"publication_id\": \"*Self-Published*\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:55:26\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"ukraine\", \"war\", \"politics\", \"culture\", \"europe\"], \"topics\": [\"politics\", \"world\"], \"claps\": 265, \"voters\": 25, \"reads\": 226, \"views\": 358, \"word_count\": 685, \"responses_count\": 6, \"reading_time\": 2.7849056603773588, \"url\": \"https://wesodonnell.medium.com/the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"unique_slug\": \"the-real-winners-in-the-ukraine-war-are-the-arms-manufacturers-b9dd9605795f\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"This is why I was taken by surprise at Republicans' disdain for continued Ukraine support. 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Contrast that with 81 percent of Democrats who said that they support additional financial aid for Ukraine.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*Kt4eQ8NqVAfUWBb6B3xoew.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/citizens-united-explained\", \"text\": \"corporations are people\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.wsj.com/articles/republican-opposition-to-helping-ukraine-grows-wsj-poll-finds-11667467802?mod=hp_lead_pos6\", \"text\": \"In a recent poll\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"voters\": [\"d9fb50bdc6e7\", \"29600ca2a056\", \"fe02b663d9df\", \"3eeaeb28137b\", \"906cb1be1b90\", \"937785503154\", \"e5752215892b\", \"bf981982bcd5\", \"49378aaaab39\", \"e6d8a06d5a88\", \"42bedb004c10\", \"1b97f638966d\", \"12f2800a7d40\", \"587a277ea2a0\", \"733bd9cfe632\", \"e13577882625\", \"d7376aa404e1\", \"6e2d305e3872\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"468fb5f1c113\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"ce21459ea3f8\", \"fc59a045d6e6\", \"2961299e20db\"], \"count\": 25}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"b9dd9605795f\", \"responses\": [\"50012853154b\", \"3012422e69b4\", \"20fe7f42f932\", \"ca074e1618ea\", \"98ecf1420652\", \"bcd897ad2044\"], \"count\": 6}}"}]
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{"counts": {"id": "50012853154b", "title": "Ah, the echo of Eisenhower's famous words.", "subtitle": "", "author": "f84a16d162b8", "publication_id": "*Self-Published*", "published_at": "2023-02-01 11:55:36", "last_modified_at": "2023-02-01 11:55:36", "boosted_at": "", "tags": [], "topics": [], "claps": 2, "voters": 1, "reads": 0, "views": 9, "word_count": 31, "responses_count": 1, "reading_time": 0.1169811320754717, "url": "https://medium.com/@rhammond2448/ah-the-echo-of-eisenhowers-famous-words-50012853154b", "unique_slug": "ah-the-echo-of-eisenhowers-famous-words-50012853154b", "image_url": "", "lang": "en", "is_series": false, "is_locked": false, "is_shortform": true, "top_highlight": ""}, "assets": {"other_embeds": {}}, "fans": {"id": "50012853154b", "voters": ["e13577882625"], "count": 1}, "responses": {"id": "50012853154b", "responses": ["b225ef1f179"], "count": 1}, "user_metadata": {"user": {"id": "f84a16d162b8", "username": "rhammond2448", "fullname": "R C Hammond 😎 TWM", "bio": "Devoted dog dad and practicing husband. NO BS or AI. I don't F4F so don't bother. Reach me by email: rhammond2448@yahoo.com", "followers_count": 6453, "following_count": 97, "publication_following_count": 4, "image_url": "https://miro.medium.com/v2/1*J9F2mHrN0sL_itFoce2KYQ.png", "twitter_username": "", "is_writer_program_enrolled": true, "allow_notes": true, "medium_member_at": "2025-09-18 16:54:14", "friend_since": "", "is_suspended": false, "top_writer_in": [], "has_list": true, "is_book_author": false, "tipping_link": "https://ko-fi.com/huckfinn11988", "bg_image_url": "", "logo_image_url": "", "tier": "MEMBER"}, "interests": {"id": "f84a16d162b8", "tags_followed": ["dogs", "politics-and-protest", "life-lessons", "retirement", "c-sharp-programming", "astronomy", "entrepreneurship", "orgasm", "investing", "love", "women", "cycling", "sexuality", "erotica", "dating", "aging", "sex", "psychology", "relationships", "writing", "self-improvement", "pornography", "life", "apple", "mindfulness", "politics", "ukraine", "mac", "innovation", "business", "history", "exercise", "humor", "fitness", "ukraine-war", "sports", "music", "technology"], "count": 38}}}
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Very good write. Since their battlefield victories seem limited, why not throw your garbage at the enemy too. Thanks for your reporting.
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d6c4619a1920
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f84a16d162b8
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Preview mode - no LLM call made
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[{"content": "Politics\n\nPutin's Poisonous Propaganda\n\nUkraine and Russia are fighting an elaborate information war\n\nAs the Kremlin attempts to repair its faltering war in Ukraine, Vladimir Putin's propagandists are increasingly focused on fighting an information war directed both at the West and Russia's own citizens. To this end, Russia recently outlawed Meduza, calling the popular independent source of Russian language news \"undesirable,\" while threatening to prosecute not only its journalists, but anyone who so much as shares or even comments on one of its articles.\n\nBut the Kremlin doesn't just suppress unpleasant and unfavorable information. Russia has a rich history of crafting sophisticated disinformation campaigns aimed at dividing Western opponents, and muddling its own crimes. These so-called 'active measures' are designed to shape public opinion in the United States and Europe, making use of digital troll farms, kompromat, and hacking campaigns, all in service of the Kremlin's malign political goals.\n\nRussian interference in the 2016 presidential election was exactly such an operation, conducted jointly by the FSB and GRU, Russia's two primary intelligence services, in order to help elect Donald Trump, and harm America's confidence in its own elections. It was a wild success, the gold standard for information warfare.\n\nStill, Russia has struggled to match that success in recent years, amid a poorly planned and executed military debacle in Ukraine.\n\nWartime propaganda\n\nRussia's wartime propaganda is designed to paint a rosy picture of Russian success, and bleak Ukrainian failure, in spite of the difficult reality on the battlefield. By examining the digital breadcrumbs left behind by Russian propagandists, one gains a window into the Kremlin's thinking, fears, and motivations, and valuable insights into Putin's flagging war effort.\n\nThus, the Kremlin's legions of digital warriors are saturating Twitter, Facebook, and other social media platforms popular in the West, in an attempt to recapture what is a disintegrating narrative of Russian victory, virtue, and national victimhood.\n\nMeanwhile, Vladimir Putin is planning on visiting the city of Volgograd to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the Soviet victory at Stalingrad during the Second World War. While such a visit might make for compelling wartime propaganda, the Kremlin seems to have missed the central lesson regarding the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany's brutal occupation, even as fighting reminiscent of Stalingrad consumes the small city of Bakhmut.\n\nHowever, that lesson hasn't escaped the Ukrainians hammering Putin's forces: to resist an illegal and brutal foreign invasion is both just, and entirely achievable, even if it comes at a great cost in lives. Ukraine is proving exactly this day in and day out. Putin's visit to Volgograd merely highlights his strategic blindness.\n\nIn any case, the Kremlin isn't known for producing particularly eloquent propaganda. Rather, it's known for its frenetic pace and volume, and for saturating information spaces, as the Kremlin works to muddy the waters, and fashion its own reality from thin air and dead bodies.\n\nThe fog of war\n\nAs the war enters its second year, the Western powers supporting Ukraine have begun to deliver ever more sophisticated and lethal weapons to Kyiv. Thus, the Kremlin's propaganda is highly sensitive to \"NATO weapons,\" and the following video captures Russia's efforts to appear nonchalant, and unbothered by these gamechanging deliveries.\n\nWhat appear to be two captured Ukrainian soldiers admit to being unable to fire their Western weapons, as a Russian soldier interrogates them, with their dead comrade's body laying nearby. It's a grim exercise in dishonest propaganda, as Ukraine's soldiers certainly know how to use these weapons, having been trained extensively on their use before they get near a battlefield.\n\nStill, it's a chance for Russia to challenge the prevailing narrative about the shoddiness of Russian training, by claiming Ukraine's military training is similarly poor. But in reality, we know this simply isn't true. Rather, Russian propagandists are doing what they do best: lying, and attempting to rewrite an unpleasant reality.\n\nThe next video follows the same narrative arc, although not entirely successfully. Rather, it's actually a bit laughable, this robot machine gun looks like something from Hollywood in the 1980s rather than a modern piece of battlefield hardware, and it's unlikely to do much against M1 Abrams and Leopards.\n\nNonetheless, \"Koba\" (Joseph Stalin's nom de guerre) would like you to believe otherwise. It's typical Russian propaganda, not terribly convincing, but highly aspirational.\n\nThis next video has been making the rounds on Twitter, shared over and over again by accounts which are clearly Russian trolls, if Putin's head stamped on a Russian eagle as an avatar is any indication. It shows what appears to be an M1 Abrams tank sliding helplessly down a snowy embankment, compared to clips of a T-80BV easily conquering similar terrain.\n\nClearly, the Kremlin is concerned about the Western tanks soon to be arriving on the battlefield. These videos merely confirm that nerves are jangling in Moscow.\n\nLastly, on the topic of Western tanks, I'll include a clip from a Russian news show claiming that Russian T-90 tanks are superior to Abrams, based on what they claim were destroyed Abrams tanks in Yemen. Of course, it goes without saying that M1 Abrams and Leopards, NATO-standard main battle tanks, are far and away superior to anything Russia is currently fielding, particularly as problems continue to plague the T-14 Armata program (Russia's newest generation of main battle tank).\n\nThis last video is quite grim, showing what appears to be two hostages clad in Ukrainian uniforms being led into a wooded area by two other men dressed in Ukrainian uniforms, and executed in cold blood. Suffice it to say, this looks like a classic Russian active measure: impersonate the enemy, cause chaos in the rear, publicize the results. These are likely intelligence agents or Spetsnaz, murdering two unidentified men, quite possibly civilians or captured Ukrainian soldiers.\n\nIf nothing else, it's clearly a war crime, one of thousands committed by Russian forces in this nightmarish conflict.\n\nForewarning, it's dark.\n\nUkrainian propaganda\n\nAs Russian propaganda obsesses over Western weapons deliveries, with the occasional crime against humanity spliced in, Ukraine's propaganda is focused on appealing to a broad Western audience. By all appearances, Kyiv's been far more successful at achieving its aims, which include shoring up Western support, and prodding further arms deliveries from Western governments.\n\nMy favorite has been the faux car commercials directed at the French, Americans, and Germans. For the French, a mini commercial, for the Americans, a classic pick-up truck ad, and for the Germans, a sleek Mercedes advertisement. Of course, they're all about tanks.\n\nClearly, these resonated in Western capitals, because Washington has pledged to send M1 Abrams, and Berlin has pledged to send Leopards. These are weapons that will likely alter the battlefield, and perhaps change the trajectory of the war itself. Whether or not Ukraine's extraordinarily clever propaganda campaign played a role is unknown, though it surely didn't hurt.\n\nFinally, I'll include this slick Ukrainian Air Force video of an Mi-8 helicopter in combat. It's vivid, and absolutely enthralling.\n\nIn any case, Ukraine's creative propaganda is obviously winning the day, if Western weapon shipments are any indication. Still, Russia can be expected to continue to pour resources into its own information warfare, even as its conventional forces struggle to achieve Putin's goals on the battlefield.\n\nThe Russians are nothing if not stubborn, and they can be expected to produce increasingly shrill wartime propaganda, even as they endure setbacks on the actual battlefield. With this war entering another dynamic new phase, expect the Russian propaganda machine to become ever more hysterical, and neurotic.", "role": "4229f274cb19", "metadata": "{\"counts\": {\"id\": \"d6c4619a1920\", \"title\": \"Putin\\u2019s Poisonous Propaganda\", \"subtitle\": \"Ukraine and Russia are fighting an information war\", \"author\": \"4229f274cb19\", \"publication_id\": \"55ba4cd43db3\", \"published_at\": \"2023-01-31 22:46:28\", \"last_modified_at\": \"2023-02-02 00:26:41\", \"boosted_at\": \"\", \"tags\": [\"politics\", \"ukraine\", \"russia\", \"putin\", \"news\"], \"topics\": [\"world\"], \"claps\": 452, \"voters\": 27, \"reads\": 178, \"views\": 346, \"word_count\": 1289, \"responses_count\": 1, \"reading_time\": 5.064150943396227, \"url\": \"https://medium.com/indian-thoughts/putins-poisonous-propaganda-d6c4619a1920\", \"unique_slug\": \"putins-poisonous-propaganda-d6c4619a1920\", \"image_url\": \"https://miro.medium.com/1*RdA9lW04ZlWyzCvKO_pk7w.jpeg\", \"lang\": \"en\", \"is_series\": false, \"is_locked\": true, \"is_shortform\": false, \"top_highlight\": \"As the Kremlin attempts to repair its faltering war in Ukraine, Vladimir Putin's propagandists are increasingly focused on fighting an information war directed both at the West and Russia's own citizens. To this end, Russia recently outlawed Meduza, calling the popular independent source of Russian language news \\\"undesirable,\\\" while threatening to prosecute not only its journalists, but anyone who so much as shares or even comments on one of its articles.\"}, \"assets\": {\"other_embeds\": {\"alexziperovich.com\": [{\"title\": \"Join Medium with my referral link - Alexander Ziperovich\", \"href\": \"https://alexziperovich.com/membership\"}]}, \"images\": [\"https://miro.medium.com/1*RdA9lW04ZlWyzCvKO_pk7w.jpeg\"], \"anchors\": [{\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/DefenceU/status/1614670593949077507/photo/1\", \"text\": \"Ministry of Defense\"}, {\"href\": \"https://meduza.io/en/feature/2023/01/26/if-it-s-a-fight-they-want-it-s-a-fight-they-ll-get\", \"text\": \"outlawed Meduza\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.propublica.org/article/infamous-russian-troll-farm-appears-to-be-source-of-anti-ukraine-propaganda\", \"text\": \"troll farms\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.fbi.gov/wanted/cyber/russian-interference-in-2016-u-s-elections\", \"text\": \"Russian interference\"}, {\"href\": \"https://meduza.io/en/news/2023/01/30/vladimir-putin-to-visit-volgograd-to-mark-80-years-since-battle-of-stalingrad\", \"text\": \"Stalingrad\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.newsweek.com/us-abrams-tanks-russia-t14-armata-tanks-ukraine-comparison-1777349\", \"text\": \"T-14 Armata\"}, {\"href\": \"https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/01/29/war-crimes-ukraine-prosecution/\", \"text\": \"war crime\"}], \"twitter.com\": [{\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/GabeZZOZZ/status/1618224390520602627?s=20&t=6agdJ_ES_vu7vKLDgpmwRQ\", \"title\": \"Gabe on Twitter: \\\"Two Ukrainian Nazis got captured cause they didn't know how to use those fancy NATO weapons, which apparently some malfunction pretty often.Only Sergey knew how to fire... and got denazified for his knowledge \\ud83e\\udd23\\u26b0\\ufe0f#Bakhmut #WagnerGroup #UkraineWar #Soledar #USA #UkrainianArmy pic.twitter.com/9ApqQA7rxW / Twitter\\\"\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/Roberto05246129/status/1618634713249513474?s=20&t=6agdJ_ES_vu7vKLDgpmwRQ\", \"title\": \"Koba on Twitter: \\\"New Russian \\\"Marker\\\" robot that'll be sent to Ukraine war.Former Roscosmos head Dmitry Rogozin says \\\"it'll be taught to hit Leopards and Abrams\\\". pic.twitter.com/B3AZNzqEsO / Twitter\\\"\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/JoeDoge6/status/1618926795973349377?s=20&t=6agdJ_ES_vu7vKLDgpmwRQ\", \"title\": \"Ukrainian Watchdog \\ud83c\\uddf7\\ud83c\\uddfa on Twitter: \\\"\\u203c\\ufe0f\\ud83c\\uddfa\\ud83c\\uddf8\\ud83c\\uddf7\\ud83c\\uddfa\\ud83c\\uddfa\\ud83c\\udde6 Abrams vs. T-80BV from 1985! \\ud83e\\udd23\\ud83e\\udd23\\ud83e\\udd23#Ukraine #UkraineRussianWar #UkraineWar #Russia #NATO #USA #Selenskyj #EU #NAFO #UkraineIsLosing #Kharkiv #Soledar #Bakhmut #Ugledar pic.twitter.com/QHCEv9reLo / Twitter\\\"\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/Gerashchenko_en/status/1619266027933634560?s=20&t=gCvmcudHapa8azeFC9-zcg\", \"title\": \"Anton Gerashchenko on Twitter: \\\"\\\"Russian tanks are so much better than Abrams tanks!\\\" - Russian propaganda received a new task. pic.twitter.com/B6q4pnTGC1 / Twitter\\\"\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/abundance_x/status/1619425297593696257?s=20&t=6agdJ_ES_vu7vKLDgpmwRQ\", \"title\": \"ABUNDANCE on Twitter: \\\"#Ukrainian soldiers liquidated themselves #Russian #Leopard2 #UkraineWar pic.twitter.com/Waq97DKZme / Twitter\\\"\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/DefenceU/status/1615613082742423553?s=20&t=UCx83GL38EnRG94reabY4A\", \"title\": \"Defense of Ukraine on Twitter: \\\"We appreciate there's still a bit of angst about sending tanks to Ukraine. We're here to help.#freetheleopards pic.twitter.com/4hFK7onQBr / Twitter\\\"\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/DefenceU/status/1615967295746048001?s=20&t=_WKlKLE2dpq9jcrWVgi15g\", \"title\": \"Defense of Ukraine on Twitter: \\\"Western nations wax philosophical about what is and is not a \\\"tank.\\\" And so do we, bien s\\u00fbr. pic.twitter.com/GxOvi7jYRs / Twitter\\\"\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/DefenceU/status/1613599573955444751?s=20&t=MipF3qz3Wi9A-mdOPojgwg\", \"title\": \"Defense of Ukraine on Twitter: \\\"Western countries are so worried about sending tanks to Ukraine, they're arguing about what is and isn't a \\\"tank.\\\" We offer our humble suggestion. pic.twitter.com/MNU50lw4O1 / Twitter\\\"\"}, {\"href\": \"https://twitter.com/KpsZSU/status/1617828142546300928?s=20&t=gCvmcudHapa8azeFC9-zcg\", \"title\": \"Ukrainian Air Force on Twitter: \\\"Pilots of Mi-8 helicopters of the Ukrainian Air Forceperform combat missions in the east and south of \\ud83c\\uddfa\\ud83c\\udde6 every day. Each such departure is accompanied by great risk, but this does not stop our heroes from continuing to bring Ukraine closer to victory and destroy the \\ud83c\\uddf7\\ud83c\\uddfa invaders. pic.twitter.com/9cWfLeKDvJ / Twitter\\\"\"}]}, \"fans\": {\"id\": \"d6c4619a1920\", \"voters\": [\"9d889dc5e2c2\", \"c6b7fb626c8d\", \"73af26450a5a\", \"44eb9176d022\", \"4828faff89e3\", \"ba05a86e6088\", \"d56f2e4e303d\", \"937785503154\", \"b563f1e273c1\", \"b84e8569d965\", \"92f0d50bc51c\", \"dc18012069e5\", \"84b6578d409\", \"f3386c3d1acd\", \"5a517325f7d1\", \"68c396ccd796\", \"ff649a0e793c\", \"54c3d749d4ce\", \"f84a16d162b8\", \"a64c053df3d7\", \"2f6a41cda2fb\", \"4fc2a0f2d990\", \"1566c4fb346\", \"787bb9cd4ce3\", \"c2cd468dfaa6\", \"dc266813aac2\", \"92d4c70c7716\"], \"count\": 27}, \"responses\": {\"id\": \"d6c4619a1920\", \"responses\": [\"a801da359c65\"], \"count\": 1}}"}]
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