Ahh...if only Russia produced something we could boycott.

[Samrob]

What do they make that anyone wants to buy?

[BGBD]

1. Whiskey is better than vodka

[iemanja]

9. Most vodka we see here isn't Russian

there is also a lot of domestic vodka these days.

[lark]

15. I really hope Grey Goose isn't Russian.

It's my go-to drink (I only drink about 1-2 cocktails a week) and no other comes near. I love the hint of natural lemon in Grey Goose and look forward to my one Grey Goose and tonic with 2 big orange slices squeezed in. Yum, yum, yum.

[Cuthbert Allgood]

16. It's French.

[lark]

28. Bien!

[Cuthbert Allgood]

30. Rumor is that Costco/Kirkland brand imported vodka is Grey Goose.

I kind of believe it. It's a LOT cheaper if you have the ability to buy it there.

[lark]

31. I can always tell the difference between Grey Goose and other brands, so I will be able to tell.

My husband and our bartender friend would occasionally test me with other brands and I never missed in catching the "ringers". I will have to renew my Costco membership so I can try that out.

[Cuthbert Allgood]

32. Looking forward to your report.

Bad news is that you have to buy a handle of it. It's good vodka even if it isn't Grey Goose.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

43. A buddy of mine did an experiment with cheap vodka run through a Brita filter versus good vodka.

It was pretty interesting. A couple times through the brita really cleans it up.

I could tell as I was a vodka drinker back then. But most of the people at the party couldn’t tell when we did the taste test.

I’m on the brown liquor now so I don’t know what’s out there. I was an Absolute guy but enjoyed plenty of Grey Goose and Kettle One.

[iemanja]

18. It's French

You're good.

[lark]

27. I thought it was French, but wasn't sure.

Alons Francais

[BGBD]

44. I still prefer whiskey.

So much complexity to it, it doesn' t need anything added to it.

Bourbon, Scotch, or Irish. I'd take it even over a beer.

[lark]

45. My husband is majorly into bourbon & I like a sip or 2 myself.

I just like the caramel flavor of a good bourbon so I have a sip or 2 of his once a week.

[TheBlackAdder]

40. There's also fierce debate that vodka was actually a Polish alcohol before Russia claimed it.

[TheBlackAdder]

41. ... and whisky is better than whiskey.

[WarGamer]

2. nuclear warheads and hypersonic missiles?

Oh and matroshka?

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

3. Petroleum and sex workers

We can get petroleum elsewhere and I don't pay for sex.

[Beartracks]

4. Boycot Republicans. They're owned by Russia.

[crickets]

5. 👆👆

[SheltieLover]

11. Bazinga!

You win the thread!

[Beartracks]

22. Woo hoo!!

==============

[SheltieLover]

24. 👍

[Sunsky]

13. +1000

[Spider Jerusalem]

6. Russia supplies nearly half of the EU's imports of natural gas. (n/t)

[herding cats]

8. Which they rely on for energy.

For one example, the price of energy in Germany has been crippling recently for some. They need heat, that's not a luxury. It's a basic need for survival.

I don't think we Americans appreciate how deeply they've already been impacted by this run up to the invasion and other geopolitical factors.

Putin is playing his hand extremely well and the pain he's inflicting is often being overlooked on our shores.

[Captain Zero]

7. Doesn't a Russ Oligarch own the Brooklyn NBA TEAM?

Boycott their games.
?

[maveric]

19. He sold all of his interests a couple of years ago.

[hlthe2b]

10. Russia is the world leader for exporting wheat and ranks among the top for global sales of crude oil

[LiberatedUSA]

12. They produce Fox News. I've been boycotting that forever. N/t

[MichMan]

14. They are a major source of Titanium metal which is used in manufacturing knee and hip implants

[Nittersing]

25. And Ukraine is the 6th largest producer of Titanium per wiki

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_Ukraine#Mining_and_production

[Johonny]

17. Nothing

They have a third world economy that sells natural resources. When is the last time anyone bought a Russian made product? Well, Trump and that steel deal, but that's Trump in a nutshell. Putin is all smoke and mirrors because the Russian economy is 19th century.

The cost of some raw commodities would go up in a boycott.

[Johnny2X2X]

20. Republicans

Russia right now produces Republican Politicians at an unprecedented rate, boycott them!

[pwb]

21. Kalashnikov produced the A K-47 assault riffle.

Last edited Sat Feb 26, 2022, 02:19 PM - Edit history (1)

Used around the world. A lot of their weapons and ammunition have killed American fighters since Korea?

[Act_of_Reparation]

34. Dozens of countries produce the damn things domestically now anyway.

I don't know how many militaries actually buy them from Russia.

[Dial H For Hero]

39. My semiautomatic AK is 100% made in the USA.

[jmowreader]

48. They haven't produced the AK-47 in...well, forever

The AK-47 has a milled receiver. The receiver is the part that holds everything else together. Because they had no CNC equipment in the 1940s, it probably took a skilled machinist an hour to make one.

The AKM followed it. It was effectively the same rifle, but the receiver is stamped from thick sheet metal. The same skilled machinist could make 120 receivers for AKM in the time it took to make one for AK-47.

In 1974, the current AK-74 was issued. This is like the AK-47 firing a 5.45mm cartridge, with greater accuracy and more reliability. Apparently the Soviets didn’t like their infantry humping too much weight any more than the US did. The easiest way to tell is to look at the magazine. The AKM magazine is steel with some sort of coating to keep it from rusting. The AK-74 magazine is fiberglass, and for some reason they decided to make it burnt orange in color.

The Soviet way of selling rifles was interesting. If you were a National Liberation Movement like the Viet Cong, they sold you rifles. If you had an actual army, they sold you a factory that came with people who spoke your language to train you to make rifles and ammunition in it. As a result most of the Kalashnikov rifles in the world are not made in Soviet or Russian factories.

[former9thward]

23. Oil

[manicdem]

26. Article on why sanctions aren't working

Found this article that explains why sanctions have a minor effect on Russia. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/why-putin-didn-t-flinch-164653122.html. Despite Russia being relatively poor, they have very low debt, budget surpluses, and little foreign borrowing. They've also been saving money for events like this.

Add to this Europe has a growing dependence on Russian gas that can't realistically be replaced for the next 20 years. And Russia would be relatively fine just trading with China and other allies.

Therefore Russia's not afraid of sanctions.

[Liberal In Texas]

29. Saving money where?

If they're in foreign banks, freeze it. The money is no good if they can't buy anything with it. Embargo trade. Blockade as much as possible.

There are ways.

[manicdem]

35. In Russia

The Russian Government holds the money. The government itself has a low amount of foreign investment and debt. The foreign assets being frozen is some russian stuff, but also their corporations and investors

[FSogol]

33. Gosh! After 24 hours, you think Sanctions aren't working?

Well nevermind then. Gotta laugh at the University of Yahoo Financial News!

[manicdem]

36. Theres a point to it

Were still pushing more sanctions that dont work. We should be looking at other thing to stop them. Stopping technology trades to Russia is a good thing they did. Now they have to cut off all gas trade from Russia.

Russia will sell it to their allies like China, then severely punish China. Cut all trade with China. Its going to crush our economy too, but thats what it takes to stop them without going to war.

[manicdem]

46. Heres another one you can complain about

Just 2 days after the yahoo one. You can send them an email to complain.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/02/26/business/russia-economy-sanctions/index.html

Also to the President who said the sanctions werent expected to stop the attack.

[UTUSN]

37. HAH!1

[ironflange]

38. Mail-order wives?

[FSogol]

47. and troll farms!

[Celerity]

42. Russia has the world's largest natural gas reserves, the second-largest coal reserves, the eighth-

largest oil reserves, and the largest oil shale reserves in Europe. It is the world's leading natural gas exporter, the second-largest natural gas producer, and the second-largest oil exporter, and producer. Russia's foreign exchange reserves are the world's fifth-largest. It has a labour force of roughly 70 million people, which is the world's sixth-largest. Russia's large automotive industry ranks as the world's tenth-largest by production. It has a large and sophisticated arms industry, capable of designing and manufacturing high-tech military equipment, and is the world's second-largest exporter of arms.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_Russia