[gumby]

There are waves of that effort periodically (use a different reserve currency) but they always peter out. It's simply too hard for reasons in my original comment. Eventually, yes, but unlikely in the lifetime of anyone alive today.

The policies you describe as "idiotic" are rationally imposed. The assumption is that they will weaken Russia's war effort, and that the cost, while high, is much lower than fighting a hot war down the road if Russia is allowed to continue to invade its neighbours.

You can argue that the policies aren't working, but while looks like that in the headlines, if you look at what's going on inside Russia all the lines are pointing down, even if the government's own figures claim otherwise. You could argue that a slightly different class of restrictions could be more effective.

But the only basis for "idiotic" is if you think it's none of the EU's business if Russia chooses to invade and try to conquer one of their neighbors.