[elhombrelibre]

"After years of bluster and suggestions by Mr Putin that the US is a paper tiger, the Kremlin is now coming face to face with the cataclysmic consequences of what it has done by invading Ukraine and changing Europe's borders by force."

[Dog]

Thank god for cheap oil...:-)

[Dog]

I do have some concern Putin lashes out.

[Bon mots]

A cornered bear can be dangerous.

News showing tanks on the move... Putin is a megalomaniac.

[Bon mots]

Need I remind anyone...

[Steely Tom]

Will Putin starve the population to keep his Bears in the air?

[yldstrk]

The Russians should shift to a market economy

[Teacher317]

Putin will not put up with the Saudi's cheap oil play for long. He cannot afford it.

(The Saudi's are flooding the market to lower prices to help slow down the US exploration and use of shale and oil sands, which are currently only viable over $60-70/barrel.)

[McGruff]

Well I guess we can expect EuroMaiden like riots in Moscow any day. /sarc

[nathanbedford]

The currency crashed to 100 against the euro in the biggest one-day drop

It's difficult to tell where the ruble is this minute, it is undoubtedly exceedingly volatile and might well depend on with whom you are dealing and your own credibility.

But it does look like my source in Moscow was right.

[Old Teufel Hunden]

"The measures include $350m of military assistance to Ukraine, and authorize Mr Obama to impose curbs on energy companies investing in Russia, as well as to prohibit credit to Gazprom. "

This bill may be a blessing in disguise to American Banks and Energy companies. I can see at some point Putin attempting to nationalize foreign owned companies if he gets pushed too far. All foreign investors would be wise to pull all their assets out of Russia right now. I hope my mutual funds are doing that....

[blam]

Russia Is Throwing The Kitchen Sink At The Ruble To Try To Stop Its Collapse

[I want the USA back]

One communist tactic is to destabilize the civil order, then use the confusion to rush in and establish a new form of government.
Watch carefully to see if this is happening in Russia.

[captain_dave]

Some people may not like Mr. Putin, but this economic war against Russia will have unintended consequences that will not be good for us. Other countries see us using money as a weapon.

What happens when Russia is forced to renege on its dollar denominated debt, as it eventually must? The shock waves will undermine the already fragile European banks.

What will China do? They were stunned by how quickly the US wiped out Iraq in the Gulf War 1, and are feverishly modernizing their military. This will cause them to reevaluate their economic position. They will realize - they probably do already - that they are too tied to the US and too vulnerable to this sort of economic warfare.

I think we are seeing the beginning of the end of the Dollar as the international currency.

[dfwgator]

My fear is that it could push the Russians even further to the Left, into the arms of Zyuganov and the Communists.

[Thunder90]

Time to go in for the kill shot. Declare Russia a terrorist state and shut them off from the world.