Hello, you're listening to The Explanation from the BBC World Service,
recorded on the 5th of November.
I'm John Simpson, and this is Unspun World,
the programme that goes behind the headlines to find out what's really going on.
On this week's programme...
How serious is war weariness becoming in Russia as the fighting in Ukraine grinds on?
Ukraine is more successful with the strikes and now they manage to strike certain energy options.
So there were power cuts, low access to petrol.
The government shut down in the United States.
How is it affecting ordinary Americans and who do they blame for it?
There's a lot of frustration that these parties,
especially on Capitol Hill, are not talking to one another.
And another international climate conference this time in Brazil.
But is there any hope whatsoever of effective action?
Some optimists would say, look, the world is transforming itself.
The economics are so favourable now that it's happening without the need for politicians to get that involved.
Some Russians are using a newly coined slang expression Puzhikovshina.
It's used to describe the corruption and incompetence of the Russian military in the Ukraine war and it refers to a frontline commander called Colonel Igor Puzhik.
Just under a year ago,
two experienced drone pilots under Puzik's command accused him of gross corruption.