-
Report on Russia and Ukraine
As Cats are aware, I’ve been in Russia for the past month and have reported separately on various aspects such as daily life and cost of living etc. In my first post I mentioned that I was gathering input from assorted friends, family and others on their attitude to the Ukraine conflict and present a…
-
Report from Moscow
(Currently in Sheremetyevo airport awaiting my flights to Doha > Brisbane.) With a population of well over 20 million, fascinating history, brilliant public transport, near endless places of interest and modern facilities, Moscow is one of the world’s great cities. Moscow never seems to sleep with any number of stores, clubs, shows and restaurants/cafes open…
-
Report from Kislovodsk #2
It occurred to me that there are probably many aspects about life in Russia that most westerners are unaware, so I thought I would compile a list to give an insight into income, daily life and the cost of living. I have used a conversion rate of 60 rubles per $1 AUD and categorized the…
-
Report from Kislovodsk
Ahhh, Kislovodsk. Love this place. For those unaware, Kislovodsk is approximately 1,500kms SSE from Moscow located in the Stavropol Krai region (North Caucasus) located between the Black and Caspian Seas (each about 300kms away). The resident population of about 150,000 swells to well over 200,000 during the summer holiday period. ? Temp ranges are acceptable…
-
Report from Syktyvkar
Greetings from Syktyvkar, Russian Federation. Syktyvkar is located on the Sysola River and is the capital city of the Komi Republic as well as its largest city and administrative centre. Syktyvkar is a moderate sized city with a population around 200,000 located some 1,200km NE of Moscow. Founded in 1586, it was granted city status…
-
Follow the breadcrumbs
In a recent article in the Australia, Greg Sheridan wrote “How China and its allies are winning the new cold war”. To slightly paraphrase one section, Sheridan wrote: “Beijing is taking every step to equip itself to fight a major war against the US. All the authoritarian (nations) have built, or are building, wartime economies.…
-
Electric Vehicles 2023
Doesn’t time fly. It was more than a year ago since I last poked my head above the parapet and regaled Cats with stories of the electric vehicle (EV) world. In this edition I won’t bother discussing hydrogen fuel cell vehicles because only six were imported into Australia in 2023. For clarity, I offer up…
-
Simandou and other dark clouds
We once proclaimed that our wealth was derived by riding ‘on the sheep’s back’. More recently, we have ridden the iron ore train but all good rides come to an end and dark clouds are gathering on the horizon. The threat to our long-term prosperity is becoming clear. Currently, China and Australia are bound together…
-
Israel’s potential response to Hamas
The events of October 7 were terrible with a brutality and viciousness rarely witnessed. The subsequent rallies in support of Palestine were littered with antisemitic chanting and the MSM have encouraged Israeli ‘restraint’ whilst showing pictures of Gaza residents, especially children, in hospital. Incredibly, some of the footage is accompanied by a Hamas spokesperson commenting…
-
Sport – who really pays
After the Matildas lost their game to England last Wednesday the TV talking heads tried to outdo each other in their calls for more government spending on sport. It was probably inevitable that, sensing an opportunity to appease the women’s lobby and maybe garner a couple of votes, Albo swung into action and pledged $200…