Russia's Ruble Rumble

I am not generally a conspiracy theorist. I believe astronauts landed on the moon, I don't think aliens crash landed in Area 51 and I don't believe in the Loch Ness Monster. But I do smell a rat from time to time. 

Apollo 11

I may be joining a few dots too many or adding 2+2 and making 5 but there is a little in me that suspects that the current "crash" in the Russian Ruble is a little too timely. 

To be honest I don't follow the Russian currency as a rule. Under the Communists it was worthless. I don't know that it has improved that much since. It may also be true that this sort of thing happens frequently to the currency. I have just not been interested in the past and, more importantly, neither has the press that I partake of. So I should investigate this a little further before I go and shoot my mouth off

So a quick "Google" of the topic brought me to this website. I have not checked the providence of this link so you will all have to take it on trust.

If I have read the data correctly this is a sharp drop in value against the US dollar. And this has not happened to such an extent since 1993. 

My conspiracy antenna were alerted though when I heard OPEC were not going to relax oil production even in the face of the most significant drop in price for several years. How galling to find though that someone has already published an article on the topic on which I was to espouse. Still it saves me from having to explain it all. Just read her article. 

OPEC flag

What puzzles me is why OPEC has allowed the oil price to drop to this value. I seem to remember that around the end of the last century the oil price was quite low. Compared to today. I remember afterwards, when oil prices started to rise that OPEC found this level too low and we would be set for the higher price that we paid subsequently. That OPEC (obviously) much preferred a cost around the $80-$100 per barrel. 

So why would they allow that to drop below $60? When most producers (especially the smaller ones) find this price does not suit their needs It is too convenient in my view. This falls into the hands of the the US and their need to reign in the Russians over many things of which Ukraine is one but also it's increasingly belligerent attitude around it's neighbours.

So my mind got thinking. The US is currently spending large sums of it's taxpayers money to fight the Islamic State in what was/is Syria. This state directly threatens the Sunni Muslim led governments of the Oil producing nations most notably Saudi Arabia. So could it be possible that the US has prodded the gulf states to behave in this way as a thank you to the US for their continuing diligence in the Syria matter?

Makes you wonder. 

My only fear is that Russians are historically a terribly defensive lot. There are well documented moments when the Russians would happily slash and burn their own country than allow it to fall into enemy hands. I think back to Napoleon's march on Moscow and the Nazi Barbarossa campaign of the 1940's. All of which fell into disarray because Russian decision makers WILL sacrifice their own for the victory. 

In a bulk standard democratic nation the economic woes of a country all the fault of the government and that government fails at the next election. Russia could not be described in any shape or form as "bulk standard". My guess is that this will harden the resolve of Russia rather than bring it "into line" with what the US want. 

Pushing a bear into a corner does not make it want to roll over and have it's tummy tickled

Just saying!