Which will you be choosing this winter…?

[Myster]

Try iy here in the middle of Winter.  But the Wood Burner is a God Send.

As your burner is fired up continuously throughout Autumn and Winter then that too will help keep the solid(?) stone walls dry, obvs.... far more effective than oil- or gas-fired central heating switched on intermittently, say twice daily... as mine is.

[Eleanor]

As your burner is fired up continuously throughout Autumn and Winter then that too will help keep the solid(?) stone walls dry, obvs.... far more effective than oil- or gas-fired central heating switched on intermittently, say twice daily... as mine is.

But both houses were empty for a number of years before I bought them.  They both smell the same today as they did them.  Solid wood floors in the bedrooms help.  Oak and Walnut.

[Wonderfulspam]

When you freeze or starve or both this winter, remember, it's worth it for Ukraine.

Just think of those poor Ukranian babies, & Nazis.

Boris Johnson: Endure energy crisis to counter Russia in Ukraine

Outgoing UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said households "have to endure the cost-of-living crisis" to counter Russian aggression during a visit to Ukraine.

Mr Johnson said the West must "stay the course" on Ukraine despite rising living costs, driven by the war.

He said while energy bills were high "the people of Ukraine are paying in their blood" for Russia's "evils".

Speaking in Kyiv, he warned that British households would "have to endure the cost-of-living crisis" in order to counter Russia's "inevitable manipulation of energy prices".

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-62663247

[Wonderfulspam]

The 80% rise in the U.K.'s cap for consumer electricity and natural gas bills this fall will drive millions of households into energy poverty this winter as the worsening cost-of-living crisis stokes fears of recession. 

All the chatter today among British people is energy regulator Ofgem's rise in the cap on power bills to a record £3,549 ($4,189) beginning Oct. 1 from £1,971 ($2,330) at present. That cap is expected to rise to £5,439 ($6,427) by January and £7,272 ($8,594) by spring -- all due to skyrocketing wholesale NatGas and electricity prices caused by declining Russian energy supplies to Europe, made worse by Western sanctions that have backfired.

..........................

The higher cap rate could push inflation to even more elevated levels as U.K. economists at Citi warned CPI inflation could reach a mindboggling 18.6% print in January due to soaring energy prices.

The last time CPI printed above 18% was during the stagflationary years of the mid-1970s (more precisely, 1976) after an oil supply shock led to soaring energy prices worldwide.

Currently, the CPI stands at 10.1% in July for the first time in four decades, primarily driven by skyrocketing food and fuel prices as households crumble under the weight of the cost of living crisis.

Inflation at decades highs has pushed U.K. Misery Index, an economic indicator to gauge how the average person is doing, to three-decade highs, a sign discontent is emerging.

"It's going to be horrendous," said Bill Bullen, chief executive officer of Utilita Energy Ltd., which supplies 810,000 homes in the U.K. "We are going to see a big increase in people struggling to pay for their energy bills."

Last winter's cap was £1,277, but that was before European leaders sanctioned the hell out of Moscow for the invasion of Ukraine. With the cold season just a few short months away, power prices are already at record highs as Russia's Nord Stream 1 NatGas pipeline to the bloc experiences supply disruptions.

UK NatGas prices are also hyperinflating.

This winter could be one of the darkest in decades for U.K. households

https://www.zerohedge.com/commodities/uk-passed-debt-and-death-sentence-million-increasing-energy-price-cap-80

[Carana]

Rising gas and electricity bills: How does the UK compare with Europe?
By Joshua Askew  •  Updated: 29/08/2022 - 08:40
https://www.euronews.com/2022/08/26/soaring-energy-prices-how-does-the-uk-compare-with-europe


‘Relying on luck’: why does the UK have such limited gas storage?
Jillian Ambrose Fri 24 Sep 2021 15.46 BST
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2021/sep/24/how-uk-energy-policies-have-left-britain-exposed-to-winter-gas-price-hikes

[Carana]

I may have to give living without central heating a go this winter, though it’s not good for the house as it will get damp.  TBH, I am really dreading this winter, hard to believe it’s on its way soon as I sit here in sweltering heat.

Does your house have a functioning fireplace?

[Carana]

(snipped)
All the chatter today among British people is energy regulator Ofgem's rise in the cap on power bills to a record £3,549 ($4,189) beginning Oct. 1 from £1,971 ($2,330) at present. That cap is expected to rise to £5,439 ($6,427) by January and £7,272 ($8,594) by spring -- all due to skyrocketing wholesale NatGas and electricity prices caused by declining Russian energy supplies to Europe, made worse by Western sanctions that have backfired.

If it is true that Putin's goal is to reconquer the sovereign states that were once part of the former Soviet Union as some kind of new empire, limiting income to fuel his invasion (no pun really intended) is one way of doing that. Some European countries have been over-reliant on Russia's gas supplies (e.g. Germany, in part due to a strong reaction against nuclear power stations).

It's not clear to me how far the Russian gas saga is directly related to the current UK energy price crisis as opposed to the decision to shut down the UK's major gas storage facility in 2017 (cite in earlier post), and / or a general lack of investment.

[Venturi Swirl]

Does your house have a functioning fireplace?

no

[Venturi Swirl]

Given that we are where we are we have 3 choices as I see it:  stop funding the war in Ukraine, try and broker a negotiated settlement between the two countries,  hope that the Russians will show mercy on Ukraine and Europe, turn the gas back on full blast and not try to spread their war any further west into other former Eastern Bloc territories
OR
Carry on as we are, funding the Ukranians in their struggle whilst enduring a severe cost of living crisis in the meantime and hope that eventually the Russians are put back in their box, the West hasn't completely bankrupt itself and  business returns to usual as far as the gas supply is concerned
OR
All out World War III, no winners, everyone loses.

Not a great selection of choices really.  I suspect Liz Truss has ruled out the first option and sits somewhere between 2 and 3.  Scary times!

[Carana]

Given that we are where we are we have 3 choices as I see it:  stop funding the war in Ukraine, try and broker a negotiated settlement between the two countries,  hope that the Russians will show mercy on Ukraine and Europe, turn the gas back on full blast and not try to spread their war any further west into other former Eastern Bloc territories
OR
Carry on as we are, funding the Ukranians in their struggle whilst enduring a severe cost of living crisis in the meantime and hope that eventually the Russians are put back in their box, the West hasn't completely bankrupt itself and  business returns to usual as far as the gas supply is concerned
OR
All out World War III, no winners, everyone loses.

Not a great selection of choices really.  I suspect Liz Truss has ruled out the first option and sits somewhere between 2 and 3.  Scary times!

From what I can gather, Putin's been crawling ahead for years, pausing to see how the West would react, then moving a step further. I very much doubt he'd stop at just Ukraine either.

An interview with Alexander Dugin (whose daughter was blown up recently), who some call Putin's Rasputin.

"We have our special, Russian truth..."
https://youtu.be/GGunRKWtWBs

And another interview. Interestingly, Brexit gets a mention.
https://youtu.be/Du7fOoW_euE