In Moscow last week, basic foods were in ominously short supply. To combat hoarding, bakeries were plastered with posters urging DONT BUY MORE BREAD THAN YOU NEED. Potatoes had vanished from government-controlled stores, while in the "free" markets, they were selling for up to 45 kopecks (50ยข) a pound, or 900% higher than the standard state-fixed price.
Shortages outside the capital were more severe. At Moscow's nine railway stations, hordes of villagers could be seen lugging bundles of food homeward. This drain on the capital's supplies had led police to cut...
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