Wednesday, January 7, 2009

Coercion and Extortion


From a news a story on the net: “Russia's decision to choke off natural gas supplies to a shivering Western Europe couldn't have come at a worse moment — and that's just as Moscow would have it. As icy temperatures chill European households normally heated by Russian gas, a diplomatic race is underway to resolve the Russo-Ukraine dispute behind the cut. Moscow seems in no hurry. Wednesday marked the second straight day that many European nations received but a trickle of Russian gas pumped via Ukrainian pipelines. Ukraine is pivotal to Europe's gas supply; about 80% of Russian gas normally flows through Ukraine, and Russia provides 25% of Europe's gas.” I say this is a ridiculous situation for the Europeans. All they really have to do is wear more and heavier clothing, no? I don’t really know. This is no time for high hemlines though.