More Bad News for Russia

[ML]

And remember the Germans have already succeeded in building such a bridge, that lasted for awhile . . .

[JayH]

No doubt about the  great leader- just look at what he has achieved ! ( NOT) !!!!
There has been a significant fall in the number of deaths from cardio-vascular illness, tuberculosis and cancer in Russia.  That’s if you believe the statistics, and don’t ask too many questions about the increase in deaths from a number of other illnesses, as well as from ‘unknown causes’.


Dead Souls for Putin: Even Death Statistics are Fiddled in Russia



It is likely that the answer to just one question would suffice, since all of this appears to be linked with one of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s ‘May decrees’ back in 2012.

In that decree, Putin demanded that particular attention be paid to lowering the mortality rate for cardio-vascular illness; cancer and tuberculosis, as well as infant mortality and deaths from road accidents.   

It is since then that Russians have begun dying of rare illnesses, and unknown causes, Vedomosti reports, citing statistics from both RANEPA [the Russian Presidential Academy of the National Economy and Public Administration] and the Federal State Statistics Service.

Ramilya Khasanova from RANEPA points out that such developments are observed only in some regions.  Her monitoring suggests that these regions are trying to carry out the objectives expressed in the 2012 decree, as well as in the Framework for Demographic Policy until 2025.

Putin, for example, recently boasted in an address to the Federal Assembly of success in fighting cardio-vascular disease.

http://khpg.org/en/index.php?id=1520943894

[JayH]

Official deaths at 64 -- but very strong rumours of over 400 are circulating.
What a joke Putin's words are -- his corrupt kleptocracy presides over corruption as a way of life -- then he has the temerity to blame the deaths on others -- for their corruption.

This is a truly shocking tragedy .This type of centre sounds very similar to many others all across the FSU.



Public Fury Over Children’s Deaths in Mall

Eager to keep control of the story, Mr. Putin warned people to stick to official information. “You know it very well that social media is a murky source unfortunately,” he told officials and relatives in Kemerovo. “We need to rely on the results of the actual inquiry.”

That Russia is far from being a monolithic one-party state, despite Mr. Putin’s lopsided re-election, was clear Tuesday evening in the two events organized to mourn the dead in Kemerovo.

One was state-sponsored, near the Kremlin; the other was held in Pushkin Square, by Muscovites who wanted no part in the official gathering. The alternative wake began as a solemn vigil with mourners burning candles and laying flowers, some of them in tears, but gradually turned into a small-scale political rally with chants of “Russian without Putin!” “Corruption kills!” “Shame on television!” and “Silence means death!”

Instead of fuming at the United States and its allies, Mr. Putin, during his Siberia trip, used another tool in his repertoire of responses to most problems: He set the security apparatus to work, telling relatives of the victims that the Investigative Committee, Russia’s answer to the F.B.I., had deployed 100 investigators and would find those responsible for the fire and punish them.

He blamed “criminal negligence” and “slovenliness” for the blaze, which started in a children’s play area and then swept through nearby cinemas crowded with young people.

http://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/27/world/europe/russia-kemerovo-fire.html

[jone]

Official deaths at 64 -- but very strong rumours of over 400 are circulating.
What a joke Putin's words are -- his corrupt kleptocracy presides over corruption as a way of life -- then he has the temerity to blame the deaths on others -- for their corruption.

This is a truly shocking tragedy .This type of centre sounds very similar to many others all across the FSU.



Public Fury Over Children’s Deaths in Mall

Eager to keep control of the story, Mr. Putin warned people to stick to official information. “You know it very well that social media is a murky source unfortunately,” he told officials and relatives in Kemerovo. “We need to rely on the results of the actual inquiry.”

That Russia is far from being a monolithic one-party state, despite Mr. Putin’s lopsided re-election, was clear Tuesday evening in the two events organized to mourn the dead in Kemerovo.

One was state-sponsored, near the Kremlin; the other was held in Pushkin Square, by Muscovites who wanted no part in the official gathering. The alternative wake began as a solemn vigil with mourners burning candles and laying flowers, some of them in tears, but gradually turned into a small-scale political rally with chants of “Russian without Putin!” “Corruption kills!” “Shame on television!” and “Silence means death!”

Instead of fuming at the United States and its allies, Mr. Putin, during his Siberia trip, used another tool in his repertoire of responses to most problems: He set the security apparatus to work, telling relatives of the victims that the Investigative Committee, Russia’s answer to the F.B.I., had deployed 100 investigators and would find those responsible for the fire and punish them.

He blamed “criminal negligence” and “slovenliness” for the blaze, which started in a children’s play area and then swept through nearby cinemas crowded with young people.

http://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/27/world/europe/russia-kemerovo-fire.html

The number I heard was 340 Killed.  Absent a free press, there seems to be the old Soviet Underground that is spreading news quickly.

[BillyB]

He blamed “criminal negligence” and “slovenliness” for the blaze, which started in a children’s play area and then swept through nearby cinemas crowded with young people.

Putin should start charging government officials. They write the building codes and their inspectors can be bribed to allow shoddy construction. More fire resistant materials should be used and a fire sprinkler system would help slow any fire. More fire exits would help too. It's an extremely rare event that just happened so no need for knee jerk reactions. Change takes time but the first change needs to happen at government levels.

[deccie]

Putin should start charging government officials. They write the building codes and their inspectors can be bribed to allow shoddy construction. More fire resistant materials should be used and a fire sprinkler system would help slow any fire. More fire exits would help too. It's an extremely rare event that just happened so no need for knee jerk reactions. Change takes time but the first change needs to happen at government levels.

Disasters on this scale may be rare but fires in buildings happen on a regular basis and are frequent. The standard of most electrical work is very low. I've seen a lot of distribution boards that did not even have fuses, let alone breakers. I've seen a lot of sub standard wiring used as well.  Even if there were more fire exists how do you get around them being locked by staff? From my perspective the disaster represents a systemic issue from top to bottom of the entire system here. But you will probably see a few mid level officials blamed and perhaps the complex owner as well. Nothing will change as a result though and we will just move onto the next disaster.

[deccie]

The first apartment we lived in here had the distribution board go up in flames. The electrical company came out and "repaired it" with electrical tape. We moved.

[Boethius]

Disasters on this scale may be rare but fires in buildings happen on a regular basis and are frequent. The standard of most electrical work is very low. I've seen a lot of distribution boards that did not even have fuses, let alone breakers. I've seen a lot of sub standard wiring used as well. 

That's a post Soviet development.  Fuses and breakers were on every board in Soviet times.  They also had inspectors, and like here, a code.  If it was a city owned building, the city even had centralized systems which told them of any fuse that went out.  My husband says after the collapse, when things were privatized, a lot of gangsters took over those services.

[deccie]

That's a post Soviet development.  Fuses and breakers were on every board in Soviet times.  They also had inspectors, and like here, a code.  If it was a city owned building, the city even had centralized systems which told them of any fuse that went out.  My husband says after the collapse, when things were privatized, a lot of gangsters took over those services.

Privatisation is the  easy excuse for Russians but there is more than that at work. For example my wife witnessed a supermarket manager deliberately altering the food expiry dates on perishables. He also abused his staff and denied them basic toilet breaks. My wife had a manager try to get her to be involved in a scheme to falsely bill to staff stock that had supposedly "gone missing". Except the scheme was completely fake. Essentially there are a large group of people out there trying to defraud others every chance they get. They see it as the way to get ahead. That is why you need to be very careful what food you buy here - because a lot of that is also altered now.  Fake cheese is one big issue in places. Water injected into vegetables to increase weight is another and I could go on and on... Medical scams is yet another.

[BillyB]

Fuses and breakers still need to be installed by people who know electricity. If a wire can handle 20 amps before it starts to get hot and burn and a person installs a 30 amp fuse or breaker with the wire the wire will burn before the breaker or fuse works.


There would be more tragedies in the FSU if the homes and apartments were made out of wood instead of brick and concrete.

[SANDRO43]

Water injected into vegetables to increase weight is another and I could go on and on...

Old scams seem never to die completely . I remember when I was a kid and coal-burning was still the preferred house-heating method, seeing open delivery lorries driving around town with delicate fume spirals emanating from their cargo due to excess water evaporating .

[deccie]

There would be more tragedies in the FSU if the homes and apartments were made out of wood instead of brick and concrete.

How much time did you spend in the FSU Billy?
Many still ARE. We are in the centre of the city, yet there are still many houses over a century old made of wood still in use and even some apartment buildings.

[BillyB]

How much time did you spend in the FSU Billy?
Many still ARE. We are in the centre of the city, yet there are still many houses over a century old made of wood still in use and even some apartment buildings.

Plenty of time. Even spend time out in the middle of nowhere. The percentage of wood used and the percentage of homes that use wood are much lower than in America. If shoddy construction happened often in America, a lot of homes would be burning up.


Seattle and San Francisco had huge fires over a hundred years ago. Almost 75% of San Fran burned down and 20 blocks of Seattle burned up. Seattle rebuilt their downtown with stone and brick to prevent fire. New construction codes were created. Although shoddy construction happens in the FSU, the huge amount of stone and brick construction they have saved lives.

[deccie]

Fuses and breakers still need to be installed by people who know electricity. If a wire can handle 20 amps before it starts to get hot and burn and a person installs a 30 amp fuse or breaker with the wire the wire will burn before the breaker or fuse works.

Of course Billy. But I'd also add another proviso. People need to care to do good work. So they may well know the possible result and do shody work anyway. It is VERY common to see extension leads in use that are over 20-30 metres. That alone is quite dangerous. And my pet bug bear is the Chinese Christmas lights that can start a fire on their own. Banned at home!

[deccie]

Plenty of time. Even spend time out in the middle of nowhere. The percentage of wood used and the percentage of homes that use wood are much lower than in America. If shoddy construction happened often in America, a lot of homes would be burning up.


Seattle and San Francisco had huge fires over a hundred years ago. Almost 75% of San Fran burned down and 20 blocks of Seattle burned up. Seattle rebuilt their downtown with stone and brick to prevent fire. New construction codes were created. Although shoddy construction happens in the FSU, the huge amount of stone and brick construction they have saved lives.

Been through several fires myself. One was a hotel fire in New Orleans (on our floor)and another was in the apartment complex I lived in back in Montreal. I have to disagree with you on this since most fatalities are due to asphyxiation or Carbon Monoxide poisoning. It's the fuel load and type that will cause the most deaths. So the prevalence of plastics and other  combustibles that make  toxic gases when they burn will be far more important than concrete and steel. The hotel fire back in NO was memorable for the people of floors above us throwing their suitcases down the stairs.  Had to dodge them as we got out... Couldn't get to the fire escape. That was where the fire was..

[deccie]

I would also add the Russian penchant to store crap in their balconies adds an easy vector for fire to spread from apartment to apartment. Some designs also have a storage area outside the main door. (Ours is one of those designs. But the people in our complex are generally good and don't store a pile of crap there.)

[BillyB]

most fatalities are due to asphyxiation or Carbon Monoxide poisoning.

That is true, most people die before fire reaches them but the deaths are still a result of fire.

[deccie]

Plenty of time. Even spend time out in the middle of nowhere. The percentage of wood used and the percentage of homes that use wood are much lower than in America. If shoddy construction happened often in America, a lot of homes would be burning up.

I think electrical fire rates are increasing again due to the disposable nature of many appliances now.  I know dishwashers are one risk item in western homes.  Use of smoke alarms certainly helps things on the western side. As for "middle of nowhere", my wife has a more colorful phrase to describe this type of location. She calls such places "Arse of the world".

[Anotherkiwi]

...As for "middle of nowhere", my wife has a more colorful phrase to describe this type of location. She calls such places "Arse of the world".

When my company did a project in the Solomon Islands some years ago, I was told by someone (before I went) that it was "the armpit of the Pacific."  Once I had been there a couple of days I knew exactly what they meant. 

[deccie]

When my company did a project in the Solomon Islands some years ago, I was told by someone (before I went) that it was "the armpit of the Pacific."  Once I had been there a couple of days I knew exactly what they meant. 

I've been to Guadalcanal myself. I loved the place, but that was pre-civil war days. I  disliked Fiji on the other hand.. My Father managed to pick up malaria in Honiara though so that was a significant down..

[DaveNY]

The list of oligarchs being arrested, reportedly on orders from the Kremlin, meaning Putin, is getting longer. Moscow authorities were in such a hurry to arrest Russian billionaire Ziyavudin Magomedov  that he was sent off to jail in his track suit.

Magomedov and his family were headed for his private plane and a vacation in Miami or was it to seek asylum in Miami? His older brother, Magomed, a former member of Russia’s Federation Council, is already behind bars. Possibly Putin is planning a family reunion in prison for the brothers?

U.S. sanctions have cost Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska over a billionaire US dollars in a single day. Even for a billionaire that must hurt.

Add in the repercussions of US sanctions against Russian billionaires and perhaps the oligarchs are beginning to feel the pinch and maybe they're starting to rebel? Are the arrests Putin's way of saying he's still in control?

http://www.thedailybeast.com/vladimir-putins-billionaire-buddies-are-getting-scared-and-not-just-of-sanctions?yptr=yahoo

[Sting23]

Just another day in paradise.

[BillyB]

A few rich Russians took their families and packed their bags for America or Europe. They can't get arrested in the West but some do get assassinated. Putin is sending a message "If I can't have you, nobody will".

[msmob]

Add in the repercussions of US sanctions against Russian billionaires and perhaps the oligarchs are beginning to feel the pinch and maybe they're starting to rebel? Are the arrests Putin's way of saying he's still in control?

Oleg came to  many in the west's attention when he send escort girls to Navalny s offices with a TV crew. Navalny,  whose  name VVP will not have mentioned in his presence (hearsay?) investigated the 'visit' and tracked said Oleg's girlfriend to secret meetings with government  officials, abroad.

Yesterday, the journo credited with the research that saw instagram and Google asked to remove evidence 'commited suicide'....

 

[krimster2]

is that the same Russian journalist who recently fell out a window?
the one who helped uncover informatze that the Kremlin funded Russian private security firm Wagner had "hundreds of losses" in Syria inflicted by American forces, or is it another journalist?  how many journalists are left in Russia, 3-4???