The silver lining is that the crudity and consistency of the official narrative is destroying its credibility. Plenty of people have figured out that we are not being told the truth. The collapsing ratings for much of the MSM suggests that this phenomenon is gaining force. The absurdity of the claims being made (that inflation is due to Putin, that the economy is sound and that everything is fine) is obvious to just about everyone. The regime is weakening.
To believe the official narrative, one must simultaneously believe that Putin is all-powerful, yet at the same time has no idea how to use his superpowers and also is malevolent for its own sake, even to the point of damaging his own interests just so he can be mean. Even comic book supervillains are more believable.
Of course, there is another explanation - the official narrative is so many lies, just like it was in the case of Iraq, Syria, Yugoslavia, Libya, etc.
The incoherence of the narrative on Russia is breathtaking. Putin is alleged to be a Marxist, a Tsarist, a religious fanatic and a corrupt gangster, as well as the world's richest man and psychologically insecure too. We are told that Russia has no manufacturing and is backwards...no mention of nuclear ice-breakers, satellites or space exploration.
I am reading one of Richard one of Richard Sakwa’s books about Russia at the moment. It’s probably a bit too detailed for me, but it so clearly demonstrates how cartoonish the portrayal of Russia/Putin in western media is. Countries like Russia and their leaders simply serve as bogeymen in our discourse - the reality is that their politics and histories are as varied and multifaceted as anywhere else.
And after he is dead we can look forward to rumours of sightings, as well as conspiracy theories involving reincarnation, cryogenics, time travel, alien abduction and frozen sperm.
A financial system based on MMT is possible, but it requires state force to impose value on the money. In classical (?) theory, people believe in fiat money because they think it represents something else of value, like a precious metal, which exists in theory somewhere, or could be collected (by force) if necessary. MMT suggests that the state just print the money anyway, but unless people believe in the money it won't work as a reliable store of value and medium of exchange. So when disbelief occurs, the state has to summon value, by force if necessary, to revaluate the money it issued. It must tax, expropriate, draft, conquer the needed value. (Value could be anything people accept as such.) So the system implied by MMT isn't that different than what we have already, where the value of the money is upheld by similar means.
The silver lining is that the crudity and consistency of the official narrative is destroying its credibility. Plenty of people have figured out that we are not being told the truth. The collapsing ratings for much of the MSM suggests that this phenomenon is gaining force. The absurdity of the claims being made (that inflation is due to Putin, that the economy is sound and that everything is fine) is obvious to just about everyone. The regime is weakening.
To believe the official narrative, one must simultaneously believe that Putin is all-powerful, yet at the same time has no idea how to use his superpowers and also is malevolent for its own sake, even to the point of damaging his own interests just so he can be mean. Even comic book supervillains are more believable.
Of course, there is another explanation - the official narrative is so many lies, just like it was in the case of Iraq, Syria, Yugoslavia, Libya, etc.
The incoherence of the narrative on Russia is breathtaking. Putin is alleged to be a Marxist, a Tsarist, a religious fanatic and a corrupt gangster, as well as the world's richest man and psychologically insecure too. We are told that Russia has no manufacturing and is backwards...no mention of nuclear ice-breakers, satellites or space exploration.
I am reading one of Richard one of Richard Sakwa’s books about Russia at the moment. It’s probably a bit too detailed for me, but it so clearly demonstrates how cartoonish the portrayal of Russia/Putin in western media is. Countries like Russia and their leaders simply serve as bogeymen in our discourse - the reality is that their politics and histories are as varied and multifaceted as anywhere else.
Don't forget that we are constantly told Putin is dying so I don't see what they are so worried about
And after he is dead we can look forward to rumours of sightings, as well as conspiracy theories involving reincarnation, cryogenics, time travel, alien abduction and frozen sperm.
Off-topic, but have you looked into Modern Monetary Theory (MMT)?
Because if everything you're being told about foreign policy is a lie, everything you're being told about the US economy is a lie, too.
MMT is an empirical study of how an economy with a fiat currency works. Empirical study = looking at an economy with your eyes open.
A financial system based on MMT is possible, but it requires state force to impose value on the money. In classical (?) theory, people believe in fiat money because they think it represents something else of value, like a precious metal, which exists in theory somewhere, or could be collected (by force) if necessary. MMT suggests that the state just print the money anyway, but unless people believe in the money it won't work as a reliable store of value and medium of exchange. So when disbelief occurs, the state has to summon value, by force if necessary, to revaluate the money it issued. It must tax, expropriate, draft, conquer the needed value. (Value could be anything people accept as such.) So the system implied by MMT isn't that different than what we have already, where the value of the money is upheld by similar means.
Yeah, MMT better explains the last 40 years than classical monetarist theory.
I am aware of MMT.
The fact that the regime is relying more and more upon overt censorship and naked repression of dissent shows the truth of your last sentence.