Wednesday, December 03, 2014

Keep an eye on oil...Ukraine might be the victim. Updated.


UPDATE:  Check this out from Business Insider...
Russia has lost its ranking as the world’s eighth biggest economy, shrinking in just nine months from a $2.1 trillion petro-giant to a mid-size player comparable with Korea or Spain.
Countries have been under less stress and gone to war.  The US State Dept, Pentagon and EU remain quiet.  This is bad.  Real bad. 
 
The decline in oil prices has been to the benefit of the average consumer but its fall points to serious trouble ahead.  Check out these articles.

*  Banks including Barclays and Wells Fargoare facing potentially heavy losses on an $850m loan made to two oil and gas companies



Be aware.

Falling oil prices are great for us but possibly bad for the world...as its currently constructed.  Low oil has increased the value of the US dollar which means that our exports are high priced...including the F-35.  Additionally we're on the verge of a worldwide recession as long as this continues because not only is Russia taking a beating but so is Nigeria and other oil exporting countries.

That points to the possibility of even more instability worldwide.

Closer to home we have two banks that have admitted that they're vulnerable.  Some analyst are saying that oil prices will increase in short order but if they don't then these oil companies will have more than a short term cash flow problem.  They'll be in serious trouble.  Additionally we don't know how exposed small banks in the upper Midwest are.  Wildcat oil companies might go under and that could have a ripple effect.    What no one wants to talk about is the fact that we're seeing another bubble pop.  Did you ever wonder how the world could suffer the greatest economic contraction since the Great Depression yet gas prices move higher?  Its simple.  The market defied common sense dynamics, you had a rush of investor money into oil and oil related business and the price was pushed up artificially.

Now all that is unwinding.

My biggest fear?  Russia is getting hammered by economic sanctions from the West, and will look to punish those that are causing the pain. Ukraine is going to be nastier than anyone can ever imagine.

48 comments :

  1. Ukraine will be the "boy to beat" for Russia, they will vent it's frustration in it. Just like the bully that maltreat the little ones because he can't touch the ones who bully him. World is "bullying" Russia for what it did, in response Russia will "bully" Ukraine.

    It's always sucks to be on the lowest rung of world ladder.

    Btw: you saw that vid from Donetsk how seps hide near civis blocks and rocket strike the Ukrainians positions trying to provoke counter battery fire from them? Using civis as shields... classic terrorists act I will say.

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    1. World is "bullying" Russia for what it did, in response Russia will "bully" Ukraine.
      @in response Russia will "bully" Ukraine. "@
      And Russia bullies Ukraine in response of Kiev riot by bloody hands of Nazis under open support of “shining democracies” (including Poland). This blame game has no end. And you obviously confuse “World” and “West”, pan Shas.
      @Ukraine will be the "boy to beat" for Russia@
      Not for Russia only. How many words polish politicians said about “European civilization choice” of Ukrainian nation? And what is Polish (or European in general) help to Ukraine, faces Russian obvious aggression? How many does Poland take of Ukrainian refugees? – Zero. What is Polish (or European) military help to Ukraine? – some second-hand blankets and other scrap. Western regimes openly took part in kicking Yanukovich-no-balls out of Kiev. And now only point anger finger in Russian side and cry-cry-cry. Sanctions? Oil prices? Bggg.
      Or may be Russians became calm after stomach Ukraine, ?
      This deal can be resolved only with force.
      @? Using civis as shields... classic terrorists act I will say.@
      Ukrainains do the same – their positions in Peski village near Donetsk airport.
      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QhtVkdj9BHs

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    2. @obviously confuse “World” and “West”

      Well China did not support Russia, Japan condemn, Australia condemn... ect, and they are on the East an South of Russia. Too much nations all over the world don't like what Russia done to put them all in the "west" basket.

      @ow many does Poland take of Ukrainian refugees? – Zero

      You need to put some more 0 and other numbers before that last 0. From the start of fights the number of Ukrainian citizens that ask for temporary stay permission was about 16.500 Number of people that want to archive status of "refugee" was 1419... and that's the data from September this year. In November this number supposedly was double. I don't have the actual data on this day, will try to find it.

      @What is Polish (or European) military help to Ukraine?
      You perfectly know that we can't send them arms without NATO or EU permission. But what did we as Poland send them, not to mention those blankets and food supplies. Vests, shit tones of bulletproof and tactical vests, shit tons of helmets... very large transports of "non offensive equipment' as they call that. This is the "hole" in law and international agreements of NATO and EU membership that we can use, but without support and permission, no offensive weapons or ammo.

      And you know that if that would happen the Kremlin will go full bat shit crazy, don't you?

      @Sanctions? Oil prices? Bggg
      Not to make jokes or anything... but info' a little more time and Rubel will go soo deep down that it will resurface in China from below. Sanctions need time to be painful, and Russian economy start to feel first solid sparks of pain... and it will be worst with every next month.

      @How many words polish politicians said about “European civilization choice” of Ukrainian nation?
      Many, the independent Ukraine outside Kremlin control is important for us for obvious reasons, but we are on the border of this all mess, we and Baltic States. But we are not major power in EU or NATO. We have more of it then Balts but still... Germans have the cards, French and GB sit in the table, they decide. Not the perfect situation but this is how it's looks.

      About that vid you show it, I did see the dug in forces... but they are here to stay. Not to send a rocket salvo in the middle of civis houses and run. Most of those buildings also looks deserted. Nobody is "white and shine" in this conflict but the seps motivation why they fire from that place is rather obvious.

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    3. Btw: info' I did some research from past couple of weeks about that PoW's from 1920 war, you want to know what I found?

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    4. @Btw: info' I did some research from past couple of weeks about that PoW's from 1920 war, @
      I would be very pleased.

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    5. @Well China did not support Russia@
      Of course they don’t – “Taiwan problem” can be the reason Why. But they do not bully Russia.
      @Japan condemn, Australia condemn...@
      These are all parts of the generalized West.
      @I don't have the actual data on this day, will try to find it.@
      If you be so kind, very interesting.
      @but without support and permission, no offensive weapons or ammo. @
      I was said by my comrade I trust that Polish some profs were on commanding positions and as technical specialists in Donetsk airport. I guess it was done without any official permission. Formal things mean nothing if it goes to political decisions. The West just used Ukrainians to resolve geopolitical goals as it was done with Georgians before. And now Ukrainians suffered civil war alone – without proper Western (because of political decision) support alone. This is my take.
      @And you know that if that would happen the Kremlin will go full bat shit crazy, don't you?@
      Kremlin propaganda will be crazy in internal sources. For Putin’s oligarchic regime it is the best of the best. You know, pan, whenever I visit my kitchen in holidays evening prime-time – I find my wife’s mother watching TV’s propaganda scrap about Ukraine –“enemies are approaching, they are around us” etc. And I feel myself being pushed step by step from my beloved sofa to a trench. I saw what war-torn territory is, I don’t want to any global war, because afraid to die. But it doesn’t mean I forgot my oath and will refuse to calling. Why all this Nazi shit in Ukraine was needed? For what? Democracy, be cursed? LBGT rights, be double cursed?
      @Sanctions need time to be painful, and Russian economy start to feel first solid sparks of pain@
      Painful – of course, but the problem is more complicated - and have positive features too. All this Muppet show, named Russian economy, needs a lot of good blows to became better. And standard of living slowdown will be used to show that West is bad – again. Sanction are not effective against Putin’s regime in the current circumstances.
      @Nobody is "white and shine"@
      Agree.

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    6. @But they do not bully Russia.

      Well I would no be soo sure, as one commentator said "when Russian delegation walk out from the room where they sign oil deal with China they look like someone just flush there heads in the toilet in opposition to that Chinese that walk out with look on there faces that say: we just score the hottest girl in the school and we will NOT call her next day". Most of opinions is that Chinese made an excellent deal, that they did not ask, they demand... and Russians, they just bend over and relax to be fuck really good by Asians. But time will show how both sides will profit from that deal.

      @These are all parts of the generalized West.

      In past year I start to think that "west" is everything outside Russia. Really, I even heard month ago that Vietnam and China is now 'west"... 0_o

      @refugee

      I dig more and found more numbers. The more precise data will be published probably at the start of 2015. I only found that in November number of people that want to archive refuge status rise to 1740 or almost 2000, but I more believe the source with 1740 number.

      @I was said by my comrade I trust that Polish some profs were on commanding positions and as technical specialists in Donetsk airport.

      I put that information thru some of my lads. They negate that anyone is there from units, there are some "observers" in HQ but no one in front line. But they have a point that in Ukraine there is a number of Polish diaspora and people with root's in Poland that can be mistaken for Poles. For now we know about two men with Polish citizenship that died there, both live in Ukraine from child. The one died yesterday, civi from Donetsk, he got a road accident with on of seps... in normal time you would call a traffic police or try to deal with it to not loose insurance cash. But in this situation, they just shoot him. And the one alcoholic looser that join seps... but that's all.

      [rumor zone]There are some, rumors that some time ago there was an "shipment" of things that you can "buy in every survival shop" from Ukraine, especially elements of Kontakt-5. If you know what I mean. But this is only a rumor. [end rumor zone]

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    7. This is an excellent conversation. In most of the conversations between Shas and Info, there is barely any interjecting remark by anyone else. No one interferes. Will this situation happen in real life as well if and when Russia and Poland get into a serious "Conversation" ? Will the rest of us stand back and let them "Talk" or will they intervene ?

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    8. Ok about that PoW's

      The main problem with give a precise number of deaths is that... there is no precise number. For many reasons, the main one is that Polish Archives in most cases were destroyed in WWII. Some burned, some taken by Germans and Soviets, other just lost. This way you can't cross sources as legit way to find that precise numbers. But some of documents survive and I try to work on them.

      The overall number of Red Army soldiers in Polish captivity is unknown, no documents survive that would give a solid number, this is combination from different documents that survive. But still, it can be right, it can be wrong. The maximum number is probably more or less 150.000 captivities. But this is not the number of PoW's as many of them did have a status of interned or join anti Bolshevik movements or even the Polish Army. Ukrainians, Cossack's, white Russians force conscripted in to Red Army. But the problem is that Poles did not create different register of those people, only an general of prisoners that were captured. The precise number of them is probably impossible to determine. Also some reports of captives is inflated by officers to express own "glorious deeds". But this is nothing new, and everyone do this for propaganda & morale reasons. The number of Red Army captives that were put in to PoW's camps at the end of war is probably oscillating between 80 and 100k. The number of deaths is between 17 and 18,5. The data about deaths is a little more precise, more documents survive and even some very precise ones. In 1919 and especially in winter of 1919/20 in the first wave of epidemic there was some 3k victims, in the peak of epidemic, again winter of 1920/21 12-13k victims. With more or less precise number of those who died from other reasons, in escape, wounds and in transport the number is as I write before up to 18,5k.

      The most "infamous" caps were in Tuchola and Strzałkowie. In Tuchola there was some 5.5k PoW's and in Strzałkowo (and here we have a precise data) 1933 PoW's and 55 interned. The largest number of epidemic deaths was not in Tuchola (as I meet with that statements in Russian sources) but in Strzałkowo. In the last one in the huge epidemic outbreak in the end of 1920 died in total 1558 men, in Tuchola "only" 900. At the end death toll was about 2k death in Tuchola and 9k dead in Strzałkowo.

      CDN...

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    9. Why such large number? well if we look at other camps in different country's in that time... it was not unusual number. Death toll was huge in time of WWI and after it. The main reason was epidemic of typhus, dysentery, cholera. Lack of food, medicament's, proper health care and rather poor conditions. The camp in Tuchola was in very bad shape when it became PoW's point, it was create to accommodate up to 25k people in Strzałkowo it was an 35k people. Those were former German & Austrians camps (Poland did not build any new ones in that time) but after the war they were devastated, by war itself and by civis that steal from them everything. There was a third camp in Czersku but it was in such bad shape that they resign from it as PoW's camp.

      There was a lot of problems with those PoW's, one is that Poland that just became again independent country was absolutely unprepared for that situation. Land was destroyed by both WWI and war with Bolsheviks, very hard winter of 1920/21, lack of everything from cloths, wood for fire to medical staff. And the PoW's were an the end of long chain of needs. There were some instances of bad treatment like in small camp in Puławy which was commanded by officer that family was murdered by bolsheviks. He was put to the trial and sentenced for his actions by Military court after that.

      By now both in Strzałkowo and Tuchola there are monuments describing graves of PoW's that died there, fence around etc. It's not like they were forgotten. By now Polish historians try to recreate the name list of those who died in those camps, for Tuchola is almost ready.

      Btw: info' in some free time can you check what Russian sources say about Polish PoW's in Bolsheviks captivity and the death toll? I had the impression that fate of them is rather ignored and belittle in Russian sources.

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    10. @Sarabvir Singh

      We are not politicians, we are ordinary people, with a healthy dose of culture, open mind and gentleman behavior as you can see we can discuss things and exchange information's and opinions without too much problem. I value info' as person and always appreciate our conversations, no mater if I agree with some of his points or not. He have the full right to have his opinions as I with my, and we will not force them to each others like some many people do. ;)

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    11. @there are some "observers" in HQ but no one in front line.@
      I said the same, pan – to command (on strategy level I guess) and tech support. Not cannon fodder – there are Ukrainians for this. I see nothing bad in this – Polish must do this, and at my take Polish current military presence on Ukraine is not enough to realize Poland-state interests
      @people with root's in Poland that can be mistaken for Poles@
      Agree. Ukrainians from the western regions of the country use Polish to hide the sense of their tactical conversations and bullshit the enemy. Some Russians use quasi-Chechenian for the same.

      @If you know what I mean. But this is only a rumor@
      Hm, I can’t tell everything I know about the issue on the open media like this. But I have an another rumor – Donbass always was a nest of contrabandists, but now they became a real ass pain for us. Kazaks (I guess you now the different between ‘kAzaks” and “kOzaks”) organized amazing supply line for weapon from Donbass to Russia. I don’t now connected it with this or not – but recently some rebels-Kasaks leaders were killed and oppression begins against uncontrolled groups. Surprize-surprize…Bgggg

      @We are not politicians, we are ordinary people, with a healthy dose of culture,@
      Mutual esteem, pan. My practice shows that there is no bad or good nations, and in each nation most of people are “normal’ in conversation issues. But politicians in each nation love set on to fight nations between each other. Of course – in case of war Politicians and their relatives find themselves in generalized bunker in safety with normal commodities supply. But common people otherwise find themselves in generalized trenches or war-torn ruines. There are no good or equal wars ever.

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  2. A romanian oil company, "Petrom" lost 15% of its value....
    I guess is worth it tho, as long as we stick to the road of total independence, which means about 10% left to produce annually, gas and oil.
    then we can take selfies next to a gas pipe and send them to moscow

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  3. Usa are currently repeating reaga strategy on russia : killing oil price to starv russians...with the help of saudis...
    Collateral damage on US shitz gas industry... They destroyed your nature, with loan, and now they won't pay...And another time it's the bankster that have taken all the money..

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    1. May be. But it can be a scheme of Russia and some countries-members of OPEC to screw up USA’s shale gas and oil projects too. Or something….

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    2. Didn't think about that, but it would be very smart and ironic move from russia

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  4. http://en.interfax.com.ua/news/economic/237551.html

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    1. Bad luck... or someone help? I wonder.

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    2. @Bad luck... or someone help? I wonder.@
      Systematic infrastructure problem. A lot of years atom power plants (all in gov property), which give about 40-50% of energy production of the country, suffered a low tariffs for their energy then coil plants (vast majority are in oligarchs property) – and atom power plants are forced to reduce their money funds to support and maintain their material and equipment. I have no basement to say that Ukrainians atomic power plants are fubar, but the problem exists and will be more noticeable in current crisis of all Ukrainian energy producing system.

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  5. Cheaper oil means cheaper transport of everything, cheaper transport means lower priced goods. Cheaper transport means farmers running diesel pumps for pump irrigation run cheaper. Lesser national deficits to oil importing countries who will now spend those oil savings on public projects. And there are way more countries importing oil than exporting so the benefit will multiply manyfold. Imagine a country like Japan which now has to spend less on their oil derived energy. Now thats a country that can actually do wonders with money saved on oil. Same thing with South Korea, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Taiwan, China, India etc. And these are the countries expected to power Asia up and provide the next big global stage for investment opportunities.

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    1. Plus lower oil proces in our neighbourhood means more political stability for a variety of reasons. That has to be an overall macroeconomic positive even though Oil Producing countries budgets are hurting.

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    2. you say that and ignore the big 10,000 pound gorilla sitting in the corner. DEFLATION! we've been scared of it in the US since the crisis. Europe is worried about it too. Japan is already in the midst of it and China through my prism appears headed that way.

      what you call a benefit could easily be seen as a signal that the global house of cards is (as I've been predicting) about to unravel.

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    3. That 10,000 pound gorrila is no where existant in India. We have been suffering from High inflation for almost a decade now. Our food inflation has regular tendency to cross double digit inflation. Lower fuel prices will be a god send. Plus, everyone knows that even at this level, these current oil prices are not a true indicator of true market price for oil. There is still a lot of man created artificial margins that need un-doing. For a nation that has soo many people earing 1.25 dollars a day depending on agriculture, lower fuel costs is a god send in everysence of that word. We'll hunt gorrilas another day.

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    4. Ok, whats Deflation basically = doing the same work for less money (and hoping that it will get better after some years ) .
      Look, in some Greek families deflations means that from 3 cars they have to move to 1 .
      In Albania some people work for 150$ a month, so its a matter of prespective.
      People die from hunger or war ...deflation, iflation whatever isn't that hard to survive ;)

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    5. I just read about "deflation" on "Ourfiniteworld", so I think Sol is on to something here.

      One of the startling issues is that the supply of liquid fuels has increased because of unconventional oil extraction, which is only possible if oil is high enough in price to warrant the exploitation of unconventianal oil. Once it lowers enough, it is no longer profitable for unconventional oil to be extracted. Fuck...

      It places us back to square 1, since conventional oil is already being profoundly affected by diminishing returns and depletion, making unconventional oil absolutely imperative for supply viability.

      Things are about to get interesting next year.

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  6. Sol I think you are right on all counts except one. A billion dollar loan for Barclays or Wells Fargo is meaningless. Their balance sheets are enormous and always have some loans that are doing well and some that are doing poorly. Wells makes about 5 billion dollars a quarter, and is widely considered to be the safest bank in the US. Barclays is in a similar situation. Nigeria and Russia are screwed. The Russian services PMI which is a key economic indicator came out last night and was a disaster. Also Ukraine is probably going to go broke. Who knows how that will play out. It could easily get much more ugly in Eastern Europe.

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    1. heads up people. WIlliam has been taking me to school on financial matters in our conversations via e-mail. i honestly expected him to shit can each and everyone of points when he saw this post but if he agrees then things are worse than we're being told. we'll limp through christmas but watch out for 2015. the past year was simply a break from pain and misery. its gonna be real interesting next year.

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  7. the nuclear reactor accident in ukraine few days ago, anyone know how bad it is ? as big as Chernobyl ? the Ukie PM sais it is contained but no more details after that..

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    1. *facepalm* ... yes like Chernobyl.

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    2. @ as big as Chernobyl ? @
      Ask American profs who are usual on Ukrainian power plants now)))))
      Chernobil? No anyway – it is the another type of reactor. I heard nothing terrible about the accident.

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    3. You will never know until radioactivity sensors in Sweden or US will go wild.

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    4. i hope the wind of radiation dont blow eastward toward the conflict zone... westward will be fine into poland.. after all, it is poetic justice if poland get radiation cloud from ukraine after it's role in destabilizing ukraine on behest of uncle sam.

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    5. You need to find some help dude... in mental hospital for the start.

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  8. Annual Average
    Domestic Crude Oil Prices
    ($/Barrel)
    year - nominal - inflation-adjusted
    2009 $53.48 $58.20
    2010 $71.21 $76.38
    2011 $87.04 $90.52
    2012 $86.46 $88.11
    2013 $91.17 $91.54
    current (Brent) $70.96

    Ukraine is big because it caused a monumental change in a US foreign policy which has been to keep Russia and China apart, the reason for Nixon going to Beijing in 1972. That has all changed. Russia now has strong economic and military ties with China, as Russia turns away from a declining Europe toward a burgeoning Asia.

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    1. @Russia now has strong economic and military ties with China,@

      not only. Our flirt with Pakistan in military issues - makes me warried about.

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    2. Not sure if you've been following geopolitical news closely for the past half decade at least; but Russian Fed and PRC have been on a strategic path in both energy cooperation and military partnering and increased joint-training and operation well before November of 2013. Regardless of what USG's policy would have been over the past decade, such trend and path was imminent because it was seen as in vital interests by Kremlin side to do so.

      Of course, Kremlin propaganda has exaggerated the reality of the situation and naturally spins the perception that because of USG policy in Ukraine, Kremlin will now react and partner with China. Well, that's sophomoric understanding of the geopolitical reality if you believe such simplistic view of the events. Things are far more complex as you apparently make them seem.

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  9. With all respect, I think there is an inaccuracy and narrow understanding, if falling into the rather simplistic belief that somehow 1) because of USG and NATO policy being tough in countering an ultra-hawkish Kremlin with uncertain agenda, there will suddenly now be instability in Ukraine, Europe and beyond. And 2) that because of low oil prices currently, there will be more increased instability worldwide, etc...

    It's arguably more probable that instability is here to stay for the indefinite uncertain future, regardless of what Oil prices are doing - be they an average $65 next year, or be back up to $105.

    Moreover, regardless of what policy (soft, passive, or hard) USG, EU and NATO are implementing in face of an increasingly hawkish, aggressive and militaristic Kremlin agenda vis-a-vis the status quo in European sector in the post-USSR era; it's likely inevitable that instability and uncertainty will only increase.

    Most likely, the Kremlin has from at least 1999/2000, been developing and implementing an incremental policy to unilaterally reset the order in Europe (and balance of power w/ arch nemesis USA), in the post-USSR era, as the improved strategic position and footing enables Kremlin to do so. Accordingly, it's probably accurate to assess that the Cold War never in fact ended or was conceded. It was merely put in hibernation mode, until advantage and capacity for better execution was gained from the strategy shift to pursue the relentless contest and great game.

    Solution? Perhaps push for a global wide paradigm shift, away from old power constructs of ideological 'us vs them' confrontation, away from zero-sum game chess match thinking, of conquest, ownership and influence. Push towards a more cooperative world paradigm to tackle and prepare for true global challenges (i.e. reducing dependence on fossil fuels) and clean water, food supply, disease, hardening of electric grids from solar flares? etc, etc.

    Thus, the issue should not be whether there is $60 oil, or $110 oil - as means to gain some mythical world stability. The issue should be about strategic global cooperative paradigm shift in the next leg of global evolution as a means to plan and coordinate for a 'sustainable' world track in all spheres, ASAP.

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    1. Yuri, we forget human nature. As long as one person wants power and has the will and skill to make it happen, it will happen. Human beings only want to share and be nice (relatively) within their group or tribe. We don't play well across ethnicity, religion, language, etc.. Pleasantville will always be a pipe-dream for the few or the have-nots. I don't see this working out well for humanity.

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    2. Agree in all points, but I'm afraid it is possible in case of global mortal Threat (possible huge meteorite blow for example). Otherwise all this penis-measuring issue will continue — "divide and rule”.

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  10. This strategy falls apart the moment China threatens to dump its dollar holdings. We should watch out for dragons when we poke the bear these days.

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    1. China can't dump its dollar holdings

      China buying dollars IS the attack, not China selling them.

      China buying dollars is an economic tool, its purpose is to prevent the Yuan rising against the dollar.
      If China dumps its dollars, the yuan returns to 1.6 to the dollar and the cost of employing Chinese assembly line workers increases 4 fold.
      The iPad factory in China loses its contract to a factory in vietnam, and China Explodes in riots protesting unemployment.

      This is very much Saudi settling scores with Russia.
      Well, prince Bandar settling a score with Putin.

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    2. TrT, assuming you hypothesis is correct that this is saudi's moves to settle things with russia, what option for russia to counter this ? pure economic response or covert military response to saudi arabia ?

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  11. Here in Russia average citizen is on hype, by how "we" taken back "our" Crimea, and how this Ukrainian "fascist" military battered down by "freedom fighters" any other point of view simply does not exist on russian TV. Majority of population in Russia is working class and ex working class retirees, who watching TV while munching cheap food they bought on their pitiful (even before "CrimeaIsOurs" started) salaries.

    For now its all quiet -- cheap food still widely available. But rouble become cheaper by almost TWO times, majority of food supplies comes from abroad, and soon (weeks or few months) food prices in stores would rise sharply, and some basic foods will be distributed by "food stamps". This will be the wake up call even for working class and retirees. Not to mention that "high end products" like cars and flats was always tied to dollar and euro prices, and the prices on them already starting to rise.

    But even this probably may not motivate russians to do something, because few understand russian mentality -- the best source of joy for russian is, "Look, the neighbours cow have died!". Try to pronounce this phrase with overwhelming joy and idiotic smile -- now you know what typical russian is feeling about people dying in Ukraine.

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    1. @Here in Russia average @ @majority of food supplies comes from abroad@
      WTF? Where do you live in Russia? Most part of food in shops I visit – is domestic-made. Of course –luxury food and fruits are as a rule import goods. But it is not everyday food.

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    2. We've got some USG anti-Russia sock-puppets here--don't take them seriously.

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  12. RuSSian army in Ukraine? That can't be right.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v91bCWYIBHg

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  13. and poroshenko the US puppet in ukraine just naturalised 3 foreigner (american, lithuanian, georgian) into Ukraine goverment.. It seem when the local puppets dont perform, they have to import foreign talents to smooth the total take over of ukraine by USA.. and all western media silent about this farce..

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    1. bunta - Read the truly fascinating and humbling History of Ukraine and then discuss more deeply? Contemplate that Ukraine has historically been a strategically located central portal nation-state in constant flux. Ukraine has for more than a 1000 years existed and sustained hereself by way of incorporating (infusing) foreign ethnics and migrants into her makeup and leadership. Sure, Ukraine has for over 1,000 years (by nature of her strategic location and valuable resources, including human/slaves) been the natural target by raiders, invasions, barbarians and contesting imperial powers alike, but Ukraine has somehow managed against all odds to still survive today in some semblance of continued sovereign existence. That said, the act of giving naturalized citizenship to various Ukrainian-loyal outsiders (potentially those with some Ukrainian heritage too) in a leadership position, is nothing new over many hundreds of years. It is arguably a strength of Ukraine and not a weakness and the reason Ukraine still exists today. Perhaps think less bigoted and more in promotion of a peaceful and civil settlement.

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