Good news, comrades! The future is here — and it looks a lot like 1985.

Senior lawmaker Vladimir Gutenev, who also heads the State Duma’s Industry and Trade Committee, recently urged Russians to prepare for “regular and necessary” internet shutdowns. 

“We’re used to paying with cards or smartphones and having constant connectivity,” he said. “But now it’s important to accept temporary restrictions as a necessity.”

Then, with a patronizing jab, Gutenev added: “Don’t turn into a hipster who only lives in the centre of Moscow. Life is not limited to comfort.”

The reason? National security, of course. 

Also, Ukrainian drones. 

Also, because we said so. 

So, forget your cards, your banking apps, your streaming services. The Motherland demands cash payments, offline living and an end to all this whining about modern comforts.

These outages, which have hit 77 regions, sometimes all at once, are officially meant to stop Ukrainian drones from using mobile networks to find their targets. In practice, they have stopped shopkeepers from taking card........

© The Moscow Times