I'm playing whack-a-mole in Siberia

Chapter 846 Bonus Points

Many countries have a clear label. The United States’ label is freedom, France’s label is democracy, and the United Kingdom’s label is order.

Russia's previous label was barbarism, and George hopes that Russia's future label will be civilization.

The concept of civilization is very broad. Britain and France define civilization as material development. The so-called gentlemanly manners and chivalry are all based on material development.

That's true. When one's stomach is full, one will know etiquette.

The United States is not qualified to define civilization.

George hopes that Russia, based on its material development, can give more meaning to "civilization", such as equality, democracy and justice.

No matter how the British package it, social Darwinism has nothing to do with the word "justice".

Russia has made mistakes and for a long time was the epitome of barbarism and backwardness.

Thanks to the efforts of Witte, Felix and Guchkov, Russia has reached a considerable level of productivity development. Now it is time to strengthen the rectification of the official group.

Apart from George, only Vasily could do this job.

Mannerheim had to admit that he was indeed not as decisive as Vasily in this regard.

Vasily's methods were so drastic that even George was surprised.

Compared with Felix, Guchkov was already considered a "cruel official".

But compared with Vasily, Guchkov pales in comparison.

After Vasily took office, he immediately amended the criminal code, stipulating that any case that threatens Russia's security shall not be subject to appeal or pardon, and if there is a death penalty, it shall be executed immediately.

During Guchkov's three years in office, more than 3000 people were sentenced to death in Russia, an average of about 1000 people per year.

Less than three months after Vasily took office, more than 2000 people were sentenced to death in Russia and more than 1.2 criminals were exiled to Siberia, so much so that even The Times began to exclaim: Russia is returning to the imperial era.

This conclusion is obviously wrong. During the imperial era, the number of people executed each year usually did not exceed three digits.

George didn't know why the editor of The Times was concerned about Russia. Most of the British media's focus at this time was on the romantic affairs of Crown Prince Edward.

Although the Crown Prince, who is 38 years old this year, has not yet married, he has many girlfriends, including Frieda Ward, the Marchioness of Furness, etc. His latest love is a married woman - Mrs. Wallis Simpson from the United States.

Wallis' husband is a British businessman. Their marriage is still going on, but their relationship has broken down and they are both doing their own things.

Although this situation is common in the UK, it is still very rare for the royal family. In recent months, the whole of Britain has been paying attention to what is going on in the crotch of the Crown Prince.

George was not concerned about the so-called royal secrets. As Vasily's work continued to deepen, Warsaw, Finland and other places also began to carry out rectification, and the controversy caused by Vasily became increasingly greater.

Objectively speaking, Vasily's work was fruitful. As a large number of officials with outdated ideas and improper behavior retired or were exiled, the administration was cleaned up. A large number of young people with higher education background and work experience came to the front and began to take charge of the work, and administrative efficiency was greatly improved.

Vasily's "brutalism" also made everyone feel insecure. No one knew when and for what reason they would be invited to have tea by the Ministry of the Interior or the Ministry of Justice.

It's better to be investigated by the Ministry of the Interior. If you explain the problems clearly, you will most likely have a chance to reform.

Being targeted by the Ministry of Justice is a matter of life and death, and even "laziness" can be a reason for early retirement.

Warsaw did not cause much disturbance due to the special care of the Russian government.

Finland's problem is more serious.

Finland's current Speaker of Parliament, Gustav, served as Prime Minister of Finland during the provisional government. Due to his pro-German stance, he resigned after Germany's surrender.

Last year, Gustav began to serve as the Speaker of the Finnish Parliament and was committed to fighting for more rights for Finland. From Russia's overall standpoint, Gustav's behavior violated Russia's interests.

"If everyone is like him, only caring about local interests and ignoring the interests of Russia, then the country will no longer be a country!"

Vasily has been under a lot of pressure recently, with mixed reviews.

As the descendant of a military god, Vasily has received countless honors and enjoys great reputation in the military and among the people.

During the Warsaw exercises, Vasily caused controversy because of Nicholas' suicide. Many people believed that Nicholas was not killed, and Vasily should not be so cruel to this general who had made great contributions to Russia.

Now that Vasily has taken ruthless action against the group of officials, ordinary Russians are certainly applauding, while the group of officials is increasingly expressing their opposition to Vasily.

"As a speaker elected by the people, it is his duty to fight for the interests of the local area. If this behavior is wrong, then our Duma system will be meaningless."

The Minister of Justice argued that Gustav was not ignoring the overall interests, but just wanted Russia to keep more tax revenue in Finland and increase investment in Finland.

Russia's fiscal system is that all regions first concentrate their taxes in Alexandria, and then the Duma decides on local fiscal allocations based on local actual conditions, so that local finances can be properly balanced.

Russia's economic development is not balanced. The more developed regions centered on St. Petersburg, Moscow, Vladivostok and Constantinople can provide more than ten times the fiscal revenue of the underdeveloped regions each year.

Some underdeveloped regions, such as an autonomous state near the Arctic Circle, not only have fiscal deficits, but also rely heavily on grants every year to maintain operations.

Finland's economic level is in the middle of Russia, neither higher nor lower.

"Now it is just intercepting tax revenue. Will the next step be self-government? Will the next step be independence?"

Vasily cannot tolerate any flaws in anyone.

"Great! In that case, why don't we ban all knife sales? Because someone might use a knife to kill someone—"

Interior Minister Bilov also disagreed with the investigation into Gustav.

Vasily was very angry and left work early to have a drink with George.

“Politics is different from the military. When we fight the enemy, our goal is to kill him. The art of politics is balance.”

George reminded Vasily not to go too far.

“Does balance mean compromise?”

Vasily's understanding of "balance" is different from George's.

"Sometimes yes, sometimes no—"

George also practices Tai Chi when necessary.

This is actually a balance.

"cut!"

Vasily and George were not at odds with each other.

George was not surprised, as most Russians think in this way, in black and white.

"I have no objection to you killing people to establish your authority, but have you ever considered the consequences if you kill people to the point where everyone is in danger?" George's understanding of politics is deeper than Vasily's.

"It's not you who's in charge, so of course it's easy for you—"

Vasily is still the fearless Vasily.

"You are already at the pinnacle of power and wealth, you have no desires and are naturally detached from the mundane world. But for many people, power and money are more important than their lives. If you make them lose their power, it's like taking away everything from them. How can they just sit there and wait?"

Vasily sneered. Just yesterday, someone tried to bring a bomb into the Alexander Palace.

After the fall of the Russian Empire, no high-ranking officials in Russia had been assassinated for so long that people had forgotten how arrogant the assassins were during the Russian Empire era.

This is also closely related to Russia's enhanced protection of senior officials. Bombs with smaller power are unlikely to cause fatal damage to senior officials in explosion-proof cars.

Of course, if you are like Sergei who refused to take the explosion-proof car and insisted on taking the open carriage, you deserve to be killed in the explosion.

George doesn't speak, and the struggle is always cruel.

Like Russia, conflicts in the United States are becoming increasingly acute.

Hoover did not do nothing. Last year, the Colorado Dam, which had been in preparation for ten years, was finally constructed with a budget cost of 4900 million US dollars. However, this was obviously a drop in the bucket for the United States, which was still suffering from the economic crisis.

When the economic crisis first broke out, many people predicted that this economic crisis would be the same as previous ones. Although it would have some impact on the US economy, relying on the vitality of the US economy itself, the United States would be able to get rid of the impact of the economic crisis in three years at most.

Three years have passed, and the economic crisis not only shows no signs of ending, but the situation is getting worse. Even the most optimistic economists lament that the United States will enter a long period of economic recession.

At the beginning of this year, the unemployment rate in the United States soared to 25%, and factories were seriously under-utilized. After Hoover provoked the tariff war, US imports from Europe decreased by 90%, and exports shrank by 85%.

Delaware Automotive Group was the hardest hit by the tariff war, with the number of cars it exports to European countries, excluding the UK, falling to single digits.

Not only did Joseph not give in, but he also called for a stricter trade ban on Europe under pressure.

As a countermeasure to the United States, some European countries, including France and Germany, directly cut off trade with the United States, which is absolutely an insult to the United States.

Although Hoover did not stop the tariff war, he secretly sent Stimson to visit Europe, hoping that European countries would cooperate with the United States to reduce the intensity of the tariff war.

In Joseph's view, this was a betrayal of the United States.

Joseph’s current attitude is: he is not resolutely anti-European, but he is resolutely not anti-European.

So when Fred, the director of the Democratic presidential campaign office, visited Joseph, Joseph told Fred that if the Democratic Party could introduce more protective policies for the automotive industry, the Delaware Automotive Group would fully support the Democratic Party's candidacy.

The Democratic Party has not yet decided on its presidential candidate, and the most popular candidate is New York Governor Franklin Roosevelt.

Although the Delaware Automobile Group's headquarters is in Delaware, the Dolgorukov family's estate is in New York. Joseph himself also lives in New York and is no stranger to Roosevelt.

"Of course, the auto industry is one of the main pillars of the U.S. economy. If the Democrats win the election, we will definitely introduce more protection policies for the auto industry."

Fred was overjoyed. If he could get the support of the Dolgorukov family, it would not only mean a huge amount of campaign funds, but also bring hundreds of thousands of votes to the Democratic Party.

Not to mention the distant future, as long as the employees of the Delaware Automotive Group vote for the Democratic Party, the Democratic Party can at least get the votes in Delaware.

Later, Joseph was invited to a banquet held by the Democratic Party.

At the entrance of the conference hall, Joseph happened to meet little John who was also attending the banquet.

When Joseph saw John Jr. for the first time, his expression was a little embarrassed. After all, not long ago, Joseph was one of the biggest donors to the Republican Party.

But there is nothing to be embarrassed about. John Jr. was also the largest donor to the Republican Party not long ago.

It should be noted that attending the Democratic Party’s banquet does not mean that Joseph has completely turned to the Democratic Party.

If Hoover went to Joseph next, Joseph would also sponsor Hoover to continue his election.

Hoover would also understand Joseph's attendance at the Democratic banquet.

As for the game, don't put all your eggs in one basket.

"Damn it, the weather is terrible—"

Little John doesn't like cloudy days, nor does he like sunny days with scorching sun, and he dislikes rainy or snowy weather even more.

It's just a greeting to ease the awkwardness, the content of the greeting is not important.

"I didn't expect to see you here. How are you doing?"

Little John didn't like the way Joseph greeted him, and it was not easy for tycoons these days.

John Jr. actually does not support the tariff war. The problems Russian oil faces in the US market are similar to those faced by Rockefeller in Europe.

Russian oil, combined with shipping costs and tariffs, is also uncompetitive in the US market.

So during this period, the relationship between Little John and Joseph became a little distant.

"It's terrible that the Russians have discovered another large oil field in Persia, but fortunately, the Russians will not create new competitors for themselves."

John Jr. had always wanted to expand Rockefeller's business to the Persian Gulf, but faced many difficulties.

The location of the Persian Gulf is very special. It is neither in the Atlantic Ocean nor in the Pacific Ocean, and the US fleet is out of reach.

Persia's oil has always been lukewarm, and the key lies in Russia's attitude.

Russia has the right to exploit oil in Persia, but has not increased its efforts to develop Persia. It only uses the oil extraction equipment left behind by the British, and the profits it brings to Persia are pitifully small.

The Persians have always believed that the reason Russia does not increase investment is because the oil reserves in Persia are not large enough and lack appeal to Russia.

However, after the discovery of new oil fields, Russia is still unwilling to increase investment. This is not a question of reserves.

"Will the governor's health be an obstacle to his entry into Whitehall?"

Joseph's appropriate concerns dispelled little John's doubts.

In every US presidential election since the 20th century, the Dolgorukov family has chosen the right target. This is no longer a question of political vision, but fucking metaphysics.

It is precisely because of the correct investments time and time again that the Dolgorukov family has developed to its current stage.

Before this, John Jr. had the same problem as Joseph, worried that his health would affect Roosevelt's image.

This is indeed a disadvantage, but if handled properly, it may become a plus.

(End of this chapter)