inflation

[eekee 182]

The Russians I talk to in Russia view Medvedev, Putin, Bush & Cheney as the same type (bad). They think Putin has made their country worse (less democratic; and, becoming nearly impossible for many economically), and they think Medvedev will widen the disparity Putin has created. Also, a member of the DUMA told me four days ago that there was probably only one person in the DUMA that thought Medvedev should have become the new president. These are facts and not government-approved statistics.

but it's not based on any empirical evidence. my friends and colleagues are anti-edinaya rossiya, but i don't consider my own personal sphere of friends to be representative of russia as a whole. my friends range from anarchists to tsarists, but no edinaya rossiya supporters.

if you asked your friends how they felt about the other candidates, well, no good choices there. Zhirinovsky? What a joke.

[1HappyGuy 45]

Ever notice how the talk of inflation always gets back to the cost of gas. And that generally gets to politics which goes nowhere. At least one thing can be said. Inflation is hitting everyone, but mostly from the cost of gas and the resulting effects it has on food prices.

I know that we have increased the amount of support for my mother in law in Ukraine by 25% and this is even though she got a 33% increase in her pension. Of course, when the pension was $60 a month and is now $90, that doesn't help that much. The really sad part is that people who survive on fixed income or those earning poverty wages are the ones that will suffer the most from these food increases. Subsistence living doesn't change even though your costs when up. You still need a minimum amount of food to survive. I'm just glad I can help out my mother in law without a severe impact to my family here.

[slim 1,525]

I'm no mathematician here, (and I wasn't in any of those AP classes either) but isn't going from $60 a month to $90 a month more like a 50% increase?

True, 60 is 33% of 90, but if you go from 60 to 90, that's a 50% increase, not a 33% increase as stated above. (A 33% increase from 60 would only take her to 80.)

Either way, 30/month isn't really helping anyone. Well, maybe the starving kids you see on TV. Definitely not mother-in-laws in Ukraine.

[LvivLovers 39]

I'm no mathematician here, (and I wasn't in any of those AP classes either) but isn't going from $60 a month to $90 a month more like a 50% increase?

True, 60 is 33% of 90, but if you go from 60 to 90, that's a 50% increase, not a 33% increase as stated above. (A 33% increase from 60 would only take her to 80.)

Either way, 30/month isn't really helping anyone. Well, maybe the starving kids you see on TV. Definitely not mother-in-laws in Ukraine.

Well done, Slim! And I thought your wife only married you for your looks!

[slim 1,525]

I'm no mathematician here, (and I wasn't in any of those AP classes either) but isn't going from $60 a month to $90 a month more like a 50% increase?

True, 60 is 33% of 90, but if you go from 60 to 90, that's a 50% increase, not a 33% increase as stated above. (A 33% increase from 60 would only take her to 80.)

Either way, 30/month isn't really helping anyone. Well, maybe the starving kids you see on TV. Definitely not mother-in-laws in Ukraine.

Well done, Slim! And I thought your wife only married you for your looks!

No, she married me for the money too, but much to her dismay, just because I can add and subtract doesn't mean I have any extra. (I believe the running balance right now is around $30... which isn't bad considering everything's current, tanks and fridge are full.... life is grand.)

[1HappyGuy 45]

Yeah, I guess I goofed on that percentage. But, seriously, is an extra $30 a month really going to matter when things like beets have gone from 2 hrivna per kilo to 16 hrivna per kilo. And, winter is just a few months off. I wonder how much Russia is going to hold up Ukraine for heating oil this winter. I'm afraid that Putin and his puppet still think of Ukraine as their territory.

[Brad and Vika 129]

Yeah, I guess I goofed on that percentage. But, seriously, is an extra $30 a month really going to matter when things like beets have gone from 2 hrivna per kilo to 16 hrivna per kilo. And, winter is just a few months off. I wonder how much Russia is going to hold up Ukraine for heating oil this winter. I'm afraid that Putin and his puppet still think of Ukraine as their territory.

No doubt about that. I have really enjoyed watching Ukraine shake hands with Russia while simultaneously slapping it in the face with the other hand. For example, Timoshenko opens a free trade zone with Russia on an island near Crimea, while Yuschenko goes public with his hopes to move Ukraine towards NATO and EU membership. Belarus solved the oil problem by increasing the surcharge for transporting fuel in the pipelines across their country by an amount equal to the price increase for the oil. The US also enjoys putting a thumb in Russia's eye occasionally (Kosovo recognition, applauding Croat EU movement loudly). Better than TV!

[slim 1,525]

I'll watch Timoshenko on TV any day. There are some pretty good clips on YouTube as well. (A friend told me... I wouldn't know.)

[eekee 182]

Yeah, I guess I goofed on that percentage. But, seriously, is an extra $30 a month really going to matter when things like beets have gone from 2 hrivna per kilo to 16 hrivna per kilo. And, winter is just a few months off. I wonder how much Russia is going to hold up Ukraine for heating oil this winter. I'm afraid that Putin and his puppet still think of Ukraine as their territory.

No doubt about that. I have really enjoyed watching Ukraine shake hands with Russia while simultaneously slapping it in the face with the other hand. For example, Timoshenko opens a free trade zone with Russia on an island near Crimea, while Yuschenko goes public with his hopes to move Ukraine towards NATO and EU membership. Belarus solved the oil problem by increasing the surcharge for transporting fuel in the pipelines across their country by an amount equal to the price increase for the oil. The US also enjoys putting a thumb in Russia's eye occasionally (Kosovo recognition, applauding Croat EU movement loudly). Better than TV!

well, ukraine is pretty much half and half, isn't it? the east is pro-russia, the west is pro-EU/US.

[LvivLovers 39]

Yeah, I guess I goofed on that percentage. But, seriously, is an extra $30 a month really going to matter when things like beets have gone from 2 hrivna per kilo to 16 hrivna per kilo. And, winter is just a few months off. I wonder how much Russia is going to hold up Ukraine for heating oil this winter. I'm afraid that Putin and his puppet still think of Ukraine as their territory.

No doubt about that. I have really enjoyed watching Ukraine shake hands with Russia while simultaneously slapping it in the face with the other hand. For example, Timoshenko opens a free trade zone with Russia on an island near Crimea, while Yuschenko goes public with his hopes to move Ukraine towards NATO and EU membership. Belarus solved the oil problem by increasing the surcharge for transporting fuel in the pipelines across their country by an amount equal to the price increase for the oil. The US also enjoys putting a thumb in Russia's eye occasionally (Kosovo recognition, applauding Croat EU movement loudly). Better than TV!

well, ukraine is pretty much half and half, isn't it? the east is pro-russia, the west is pro-EU/US.

That is correct.