The War: 8 Mar 2022 (Mid-day)

 1.  Kinda comical but western cosmetic companies have cut off the supply to Russian beauty 'ointments/creams'.  N-TV brought this up in the mid-morning....Estee Lauder is cutting out deliveries.

So what the Russians say is that they can 'create' and market their own cremes and ointments.  Prior to the war....90-percent of what was on the Russian market....came out of Europe.  So now?  Combination it appears....Russian/Chinese products.  Same reliability and value?  Hard to say (BS-factor of '7' here).   

One thing that I would ask.....how can you charge Estee Lauder rates for Russian no-name cremes?   I'll predict some black market deal arrives, with Turks flying in pallets of European products and selling them for 300-percent above the old prices.

2.  German Federal Minister of Economics Habeck (Green Party) says the threat of Russia cutting off natural gas supply is near zero.  If they do it.....they will automatically get the label of 'unreliable partner' and it'll be near impossible to ever create a 'deal' later.

3.  Ukraine's Ambassador to the United Nations (Serhiy Kyslytsia) urged Russian colleagues to pick up the phone and call Britain's mental health hotline. Direct quote: "Let me remind Russian diplomats that if you're concerned about your sanity in London, you can dial 111."  

4.  Another Russian general dead?  General Vitaly Gerasimov.  Ukrainians just confirm he's dead....nothing much else.  Indian TV suggests as his helicopter was landing...it came under attack.

5.  N-24 news in Germany put up a video (probably from a private Russian).....empty grocery shelves, and commentary that stores are now having a problem stocking certain items.  

Lot of this may be hamster-buying where people go out and buy 300 rolls of toilet paper because they think a crisis is brewing.  So I won't say there is a true empty shelf problem going on in Russia.  

Now, if you came up with ten different grocery stores, and more than half the shelves are bare, with the other half marked up 30-percent.....then yeah, Putin has a problem in supplying 190-million Russians, and they are halfway to being North Korea-status.  

I will say this....by this weekend, I expect the vast amount of internet in Russia to be throttled down to nothing, and there's likely to be no video to 'escape' the country.  Putin can't allow images like this to get around Russia or to be seen by the EU/US folks.