Blinkov "4 TYPES OF TRAGEDIES"

Economic catastrophe in Russia (end of August 1998)
A brief survey.
Prior to this collapse, the Russian government maintained the following financial policy:
1) keep the stable budget
2) by any means avoid inflation
3) try to maintain a fixed ruble/dollar rate

The problem was that all of that was not really connected to the needs of the Russian people. It was more like just a good-looking theory, but in reality it didn’t work.
To accomplish the above goals the government used its own resources plus huge loans from the West. Finally these resources came to an end and there was nothing else to do than to let the ruble go according to its real market value. Just for the last 10 days of August the ruble felt down for almost 100%. It was not just a problem, but a real catastrophe.
People rushed to the banks and took their savings away. Everybody knows that if the majority of bank’s clients would take out their savings at the same time the bank would be a bankrupt. This happened to the many Russian banks both large and medium within one week.
As a result of that many plants and factories have stopped all of their activities for at least one month and may be longer. The army of unemployed people has multiplied.
Using this crisis communists and nationalists are joining their forces to impeach president Yeltsin (whose position was weak even before the crisis) and put their own men in power. Communist-dominated State Duma made Yeltsin another blow on Monday Aug. 31st by rejecting his choice of acting Prime minister Viktor Chernormyrdin. Besides all of that Yeltsin’s health obviously is very poor. Situation is frightening...
Now I want to draw a parallel with the current situation in Russia to the situation in America from 1937 till 1939. President Hoover tried to do his best to reach about the same goals as the Russian government is trying now. His policy was partially responsible for leading America to the Great Depression.
It was definitely God who gave such a wisdom to the next American president Franklin Roosevelt who was able to lead America out of economic chaos of 1930s.
Today in Russia we are in desperate need of the same God’s given wisdom and compassion for the needy as president Roosevelt had.
Will you please join us in prayer for our country, for the economy and banks systems and for the wisdom for president Yeltsin as well as for the new Russian government?
Don’t forget that we are in the same boat. The only difference is that we are on opposite sides, but if one side is sinking, what will happen to the other?..
God bless you!

Andrew Blinkov