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by Animats 6 days ago
This is an essay by Andrey Melnichenko, one of the richest Russians. He's mostly stayed out of politics, until now. Now he's worried about the future of Russia. He sees four possible paths, all either bad or very bad. None lead to a democratic Russia.

This is one of the more insightful views of the future of the world. This is someone who trained as a physicist, yet made his money by focusing on the fertilizer and used pipe industries after the USSR went down. (Essential industries, and mostly ignored by others with political power.) A very practical business type, knows everybody important from Putin on down, and looks at the future as a failure analysis problem.
2 comments
ZeroGravitas 6 days ago
On the other hand, it read to me like an oligarch threatening a nuclear attack on Europe if Russia doesn't get its way.

Maybe that's a practical business take on matters but if anything it makes me less interested in saving Russia from its own stupid mistakes.

Maybe threats is how you make billions in post-Soviet-collapse finance. Clearly it's not by building a better society for the people who live there.

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bigbadfeline 5 days ago
> one of the richest Russians

"The richest Russians" wanted that war, they used Putin to get it, he was selected for his nationalism and nationalism is going to ruin Russia regardless of the outcome of the present war.

Neither fertilizer nor concessions can't change that, so what's the point?

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