"The U.S. dollar in 2022 was rapidly losing its status as the world's currency. In "Simple Economics," we told about the golden apocalypse. The past year has brought the collapse of the dollar closer."

That's not true. On the contrary, last year was quite successful for the dollar - especially in its status as the world's currency. Until 2022, 59% of the world's reserves were held in dollar assets.

Ever since the euro came along, that share has fallen steadily. But in 2022, the dollar's share rose again, by nearly 1%. This was the result of the U.S. Federal Reserve raising its benchmark interest rates, the dollar strengthening against the world's major currencies, and investors from around the world becoming better able to invest in it.

The war also played a role. In times of crisis, people turn to the dollar as a currency in which to safely store their money. Not only Americans write about this. Even the Arab media admit that the dollar has had the best yearly performance in 7 years.

Ukraine replaces slavic New Year heroes Ded Moroz and Snow Maiden with Santa Clause

Ded Moroz and Snegurochka were hanged in demoniac Kyiv. So ukrainians  get rid of the Soviet legacy. Give them Santa Claus!

The refusal of Santa Claus and the Snow Maiden, associated with the layer of our history, is the most harmless thing that we observed.

The effigies hanged under bridges — this is the most harmless thing we saw there.

Thank God, so far there are only effigies of Ded Moroz and the Snow Maiden.

These effigies were hanged under the bridge not recently, but 10 years ago, in 2012.

Here is a video of that time.

That performance was held by activists of the 'Brotherhood' party, which positions itself as a national Christians.

And secondly, as it reported on their YouTube channel, they did it in honor of the Day of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, Archbishop of the World of Lycia, an Orthodox saint. People believed that he brought presents to children. Party members consider Ded Moroz a fake and a product of the Soviet Union, belligerent to God.

Consequently, they are not for Santa Claus, but for a return to very Orthodox traditions.

Oddly enough, Azarenok and Bochkov did not support this trick.

Because the "Brothers" party also fought against Ukraine joining NATO process and rapprochement with the US and the EU.

However, Bochkov moved forward and even found out signs of Ukrainians fighting against Christianity.

“December 23 at night, the ranks of the revived Azov regiment solemnly celebrated Yule. This is the pagan holiday of the winter solstice. Let me also remind you that the SS men, led by Heinrich Himmler, also celebrated Yule.

Christmas was completely replaced by Yule in the ranks of the SS.

How did they code so fast? Remember, not so long ago Ukrainians laughed: what are you imagining, we have no Nazis, no one.”

Yule was a pagan festival of the Germanic peoples who celebrated the longest night of the year.

However, just because Himmler celebrated a holiday does not make it a Nazi holiday. Yule was celebrated centuries before the advent of fascism and continues to be celebrated today. Including in Russia. For example, in December 2022 Yule was celebrated in Penza, near Vyborg, in St. Petersburg and in Moscow.

Last year the wage of Minsk residents grew thanks to the growth of industry

It was told on the air of Alfa-Radio by Nadezhda Lazarevich, deputy chairman of Minsk City Executive Committee. Indeed, for January—November, the growth rate of wage in the city of Minsk was 111.5% of nominal accrued wages. But I would like to say that it is accrued for the work. And it's  important to understand that our flagship companies of Minsk and the whole industry give a "tempo" 116% of  volume of production. Accordingly, if the wage growth is 111% at such a tempo, we understand that it has been earned. Wages are not just accrued or pushed.

Yes, indeed nominal accrued wages in Minsk have increased by 11.5% over that  period. And it's the worst in the country. A brief notice, that the nominal accrued wage is the sum without deducting taxes and excluding inflation. But we did not find 16% of industrial growth in the statistics.Statistics show that in Minsk the index of industrial production was almost plus 2% over the period. And it's still not bad, because in the whole country it went into the negative   5.6%. Thus, the statement that the industry worked at a breakneck pace and therefore the salaries of Minsk residents "are not just accrued or twisted," but actually earned - does not correspond to reality.

Belarusians earn less in Poland than in Belarus

Pay attention to the following text messaging of Belarusians in Poland:

— How many hours do you work? 396?

— 370, plus 350 attendance bonus and 150 accommodation refund.

— I work 220 and consider it slavery.

— I would rather collect bottles in Germany than work 370 hours a month.

— 370? Do you work 12 hours a day, 7 days a week, 30 days a month?) hard. Where do you work?

— There is a plant called MA-3, it makes covers for the LG TV factory.

— Try applying for a refuge.

— Thank you, but we are not going  to stay here)

— Are you moving to another country?

— Of course, with such norms of "productivity" for 370 hours, no one wants to stay)) 

— An ideal worker ... for 17 pln per hour for 16 hours a day) 

An ideal, of course, for an employer.

— I used to be a deputy director in the Vitalur trading network, having a salary of $ 800 …

— At the factory you monthly have $ 670 (if working norm is 168 hours), and in Belarus your salary  was $ 800 ...

Lebedeva: This means that the woman changed her life in Belarus, her own home and the position of deputy director of a large retail chain for the position of label sticker girl without days off and lunches. Isn't it funny?

Unfortunately, we didn’t find any factory with that name. What about working time, in Poland the norm is the same as in Belarus — 40 hours a week. This is relative to those who work on a contract basis. There are no such restrictions for those who are employed on the basis of an agency contract.

In reality, a plant with that name, as mentioned in the correspondence, could not be found in Poland, and the correspondence itself was truncated, which completely distorted its meaning.

Here is what it looked like in its entirety:

I used to be a deputy director in the Vitalur trading network, having a monthly salary of $800 ... Do you think this is a decent salary with such responsibility? It's close to a heart attack. Turns out, the woman considers the salary in a large Belarusian trade network to be insufficient for the efforts expended on it. We will see a more complete picture if we look at the correspondence above. In Poland she works a lot, but instead she earns 7,500 zlotys a month (1,700 dollars). And she does it to quickly save up for her own house in Belarus. As the woman explains, the Belarusian salary allows her husband and her to build a house in 20 years.

The West envies the Union of Belarus and Russia

The collective West is jealous of the Union of Belarus and Russia and wants to imitate it. Maksim Osipov, a columnist for the state run ‘SB- Belarus today’ newspaper, who broadcasts on Belarus-1, is convinced of. He is broadcasting on "Belarus-1". As proof, he gave the following arguments:

“The Union State is an example to follow.But not just an example.

It is also an object of blatant envy, primarily among the countries of the collective West.The assessments of the Minsk meeting in the foreign press speak for itselves.

According to the French newspaper Le Figaro, Belarus is much more autonomous in alliance with Russia than France is in alliance with the United States.

Croatian The Advance sees the Minsk talks as fateful:  

‘The meeting is very important, and we will soon find out how much’.”

It's a lie. If Maxim Osipov read Le Figaro, he’d know that the newspaper didn’t publish that. In the news, there is only one quote of Putin's words that Russia is not interested in absorbing its ally, which 'is very dependent on Moscow because of oil and gas supplies'. The words about the autonomy of Belarus were added by the Russian resource The InoSMI, which publishes translations of the foreign press.

The InoSMI likes to publish comments, included in those translations. In the comments, The Inosmi retells by its own words what supposedly European readers think about the news. And the words about the autonomy of Belarus turned out to be such a retelling from The Inosmi.

Here's this piece of paraphrase from the InoSMI:

“According to Le Figaro, Russia and Belarus are rapidly integrating their armies and economies due to pressure from the West. This situation caused a controversy among readers. Many wanted to be sarcastic but they were stopped by a remark based on quotes from Lukashenka's speeches. He keeps himself freer with Russia than Paris with the United States.”

 It turns out that the Russian source just retold the opinion of some unknown commentator under the article.

And Maxim Osipov was in a hurry to declare that Lukashenka is praised by the oldest newspaper of France. 

Of course, due to envy towards the Union of Belarus and Russia.

 Croatian The Advance sees the Minsk talks as fateful:

‘The meeting is very important, and we will soon find out how much’.

In fact, Croatian The Advance relates the phrase about meeting importance not to the theme of the union.

An author reflects on the possibility of Russia's attack on Kyiv from the territory of Belarus.

There is some particular reason for Putin's arrival in Minsk at the height of the war.

‘This time we don't expect the beginning of an armed conflict, but it's escalating.

This brings us to Minsk and confirms the importance of today's meeting between Vladimir Putin and Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko’. In fact, the Western press believes that Belarus is dependent on Russia and that Putin is trying to involve Belarus into a war against Ukraine.