Just about every Russian leader for the past several hundred years has at one point or another felt compelled to weigh in on the country's national pastime, drinking. For some observers, it's a bit of a mystery why they bother, as these efforts have failed to make much progress in battling this deadly problem. Perhaps in response to the recent report from The Lancet which found that alcohol kills more Russians than war, President Dmitry Medvedev has recently weighed in, expressing his bewilderment as to why Russians are drinking even more today than they did in the dark 1990s, when evil oligarchs ruled the land instead of the enlightened rulers of more recent times.

Medvedev's radical solution to the

This post features a five-part video interview by ConsumerReports.org with economist Nouriel Roubini. Given the nature of the host, the interview naturally looks at matters from the consumer’s point of view.

In Part 1 Roubini gives his take on what’s ahead.

Click the links below for the other four parts of the interview.

Part 2 - Economic Survival How to survive these tough economic times.

Part 3 - What to do now? With the economy in turmoil, Roubini offers strategies for weathering the storm.

Part 4 - Falling prices Lower prices sound like a good thing, but Roubini warns deflation could bring more trouble.

Part 5 - Help for homeowners Roubini offers a radical solution to stop foreclosures that are forcing people out