Need an Aspirin in Occupied Luhansk? Go Ask the Secret Police

In the so-called LPR, local pharmacies and hospitals have basically run out of medicine. But don't worry, the occupation authorities have a brilliant, totally-not-dystopian solution: if you want a pill, you have to go beg the local security forces.

Yes, the actual siloviki. To get basic prescription drugs or even standard meds, residents now have to file requests with the people who usually spend their days hunting down dissenters. Imagine explaining your chronic heartburn to an armed guy in a balaclava just to get an antacid.

The local puppet administration claims this is "humanitarian aid distribution" and "combatting the black market." In reality, they've just turned basic survival into a loyalty test.

Nothing screams "we came to liberate you" quite like having to pass a security clearance check just to get some cough syrup.