Russia: A new sick man?

[frigidmagi]

Economist

[quote]ON A recent Friday night the beau monde of Chelyabinsk, the industrial armpit of Russia known during the war as Tankograd, drove out to the edge of town for the gala opening of a new Mercedes dealership. Inside the neon-lit avtosalon, half-naked dancers covered in silver paint and goosebumps greeted the city’s dressed-up business elite. Girls in sparkling skirts tap-danced. A Vladimir Putin lookalike promised “supportâ€