Category: USA

Federal Reserve Under Pressure: Jerome Powell’s Video Address on Presidential Influence | January 12 2026, 21:43

In the Russian-speaking segment, this news is somehow not visible at all, none of the media outlets are writing about it. Yesterday, Jerome Powell, the chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve, released a video message on the official Federal Reserve website’s homepage, stating that the president’s administration is putting pressure on him and his system, and part of this pressure involves trying to charge him for the building’s facade repairs.

The Federal Reserve System is the “bank of banks” and the main printing press of the world. Since the 1950s in the USA, there has been an unwritten rule: the president does not interfere with the Federal Reserve’s operations. If the Federal Reserve starts printing money or lowering rates just because the president needs to “boost” the economy before elections, the dollar will depreciate, and inflation will become uncontrollable.

Quote:

“I deeply respect the rule of law and accountability in our democracy. Of course, no one, including the Chairman of the Federal Reserve, is above the law, but this unprecedented action should be viewed in the broader context of threats from the administration and ongoing pressure.”

“The threat of criminal prosecution is a result of the Federal Reserve setting interest rates based on our best judgment of what serves the public interest, rather than according to the President’s preferences. The issue is whether the Federal Reserve can continue to set interest rates based on data and economic conditions — or whether monetary policy will be determined by political pressure or intimidation.”

If the pressure continues or if Powell is removed/arrested, there is a high chance that the loss of the Federal Reserve’s independence could lead to a sharp drop in the dollar’s value and an increase in the prices of gold and other assets.

As Nikolai Chapaev said in the textbook “Introduction to the Course ‘Philosophy and History of Education'”, “God forbid you live in an era of changes”…

Celebrating a Quarter Millennium: America’s Semiquincentennial | January 02 2026, 04:19

We pass the marker announcing the start of the sestercentennial, also known as the semiquincentennial. The first term contains sester, which means something on the way from 2 to 3. The second term essentially means half of 5 hundreds. Centennial in both words, of course, refers to hundreds of years.

Navigating the Airline Seat Dilemma: Equality and Passenger Size Policy Changes | December 30 2025, 20:21

As I sit on the plane, I ponder how airlines separate excessively obese people from those not obese enough, and how they make the former pay twice as much. And how does this align with the policy of universal equality and equal opportunities? The issue causes “anthropometric dissonance” – over the past decades, the average airplane seat width has narrowed from 47 to 43 cm, while the average passenger weight has significantly increased. As a result, there emerges a rigid classification of passengers into “regular” and officially recognized “Customers of Size” (CoS).

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The main technical criterion separating these categories is the “armrest rule.” If a person’s body extends beyond the outer boundary of the lowered armrest by more than 1 inch (2.5 cm), they are officially recognized as “oversized.” The inability to fully lower the armrest without pain or discomfort to oneself or a neighbor is grounds for requiring the purchase of a second seat.

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Until 2025, Southwest Airlines was considered the “gold standard” for large individuals, allowing them to occupy a second seat for free. However, as of January 27, 2025, the rules changed: such passengers are now required to purchase a second seat in advance when booking. If an individual fails to do this and the flight is full, they may simply be denied boarding and offered to rebook to another flight where two adjacent seats are available.

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The financial risks now almost entirely fall on the passenger. According to the new 2025 policy, a refund for an additionally purchased seat is only possible if the flight departs not fully booked. Considering that the average aircraft occupancy today is 85–90%, the likelihood that money paid for a “comfort seat” will not be refunded is extremely high.

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There exists a “geographical lottery” of passenger rights in the world. In Canada, a unique doctrine of “One Person, One Fare” (1P1F) is affirmed by court. There, obesity is recognized as a “functional disability,” therefore, airlines are required to provide a second seat for free on domestic flights if the passenger presents a medical certificate. In the USA and Europe, no such benefits exist, and comfort is considered a commercial service.

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Technically, there is also a “seatbelt rule,” which is the second most important (after the armrest rule) and serves as a kind of “legal and technical barrier.” Specifically, every passenger must be buckled during taxi, takeoff, and landing. If the belt does not fasten, the passenger physically cannot be seated. This isn’t a matter of comfort, but a question of legality aboard the aircraft. If the standard length of the belt is insufficient, the passenger has the right to request a seatbelt extender, which usually adds between 25 to 60 centimeters. The mere request for an extender often gets recorded by flight attendants as a marker of an “increased size passenger.” This is a critical moment. Most airlines globally explicitly forbid the use of two extenders simultaneously. If the length of one standard belt plus one extender is not enough, the passenger is recognized as “oversized” for that seat type. In this case, the airline has the full right to remove them from the flight or demand the purchase of a second seat, as safety cannot be ensured.

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Airlines’ main argument for imposing limitations is flight safety. According to EASA and FAA standards, a full airplane evacuation must take no more than 90 seconds. A large passenger, who physically does not fit in the seat, can block the aisle or slow the movement of others in an emergency, therefore they are prohibited from occupying seats near emergency exits. Personally, I think this is just a nice reason to avoid spending extra money.

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Identifying “too fat” passengers often happens right in the cabin. Flight attendants have the right to demand that a person undergo an “armrest test” in front of witnesses. If an “encroachment” into a neighbor’s space is discovered, priority is always given to those who fit in their own seat, and the CoS passenger may be removed from the flight for the comfort of others.

Comparing US and Russian Higher Education Systems through Credit Hours | December 10 2025, 17:35

Regarding education in the USA and the USSR/Russia. My degree in the USA is evaluated as a Master of Science degree in Computer Science. My younger colleagues say that a Russian university degree is rarely recognized as a Master’s these days, and often hardly qualifies even for a Bachelor’s. I decided to look at the numbers and was very surprised.

To earn a bachelor’s degree in the USA, you need to spend about 2000 hours in classrooms/laboratories. In terms of credits, this equals 120 credit hours. One credit usually equals 1 hour (50 minutes) of lectures per week for a semester (15 weeks). Laboratory work has a different coefficient (often 2–3 hours in the lab count as 1 credit), so the actual number of classroom hours is slightly higher (closer to 2000+).

So, my diploma states that I spent 7908 hours in classes over five years. That’s four times more than the typical student in the USA. Based on the numbers, it turns out that I spent about 2000 hours on math, physics, and English alone over five years, with a total of 42 subjects.

A colleague shared that in his Russian bachelor’s diploma there are 3140 academic hours, which is twice as less. And can you share how many hours are in your diploma?

Year of graduation, university, specialty, and the number of hours? I’m curious about the range of variation.

Alien Encounter and Parking Woes: A Bizarre Day | December 07 2025, 01:21

Such a “facehugger” jumped out of an egg nearby and attached itself to the windshield of my RAV4, just like that to implant its embryo, but the little car held its ground.

It all started when I went outside with my keys and realized that the car was not in the yard. Damn! I had used it to get to the metro, and Nadia brought me back from the concert in Washington in her Tesla. Well, okay, I’ll call an Uber.

The Uber took me to the metro parking lot, where the local parking attendants had found my car overnight and slapped a yellow card on it. Removing this thing takes five minutes; you just need to pay the fine by scanning the QR code. Luckily, the fine was divine, just 75 dollars accumulated. If I had remembered later, it would have been more.

Exploring Miami: Tips and Must-Visits for a 3-Day Trip | November 25 2025, 20:03

Miami — what to do there? We’re flying out tomorrow for 3 days — Nadya, Lisa, and me. Throw out some suggestions on what’s worth visiting. And if by chance we have mutual friends from Miami, tag them, please, they might recommend something interesting. To be honest, I only have one museum on my “definitely must-visit” list (Perez), and everything else is kind of iffy.