Maxime Marquette
MadMax is an independent bilingual news outlet based in Québec, publishing analysis on geopolitics, technology, democracy, and culture.
Our mission: rigorous, source-cited analysis carried out with full editorial independence — no sponsorship, no party line.
Our editorial standards: sources are cited inline, corrections are fixed and logged publicly, and any use of artificial intelligence is disclosed.
“Burn rather than rot. Write rather than stay silent.”
Fire first. Sentences after. No lukewarm takes.
Always answer the strongest version of the opposing point. No strawmen.
No commissioned pieces. No editorial masters. No compromise.
Columns by Maxime Marquette
4,540 columns published
COLUMN: Novak and the Import Gamble, What This Power Shift Reveals
When an oil-exporting country publicly announces it is considering importing fuel, something important has just shifted in a balance of power it thought it…
EDITORIAL: Simferopol in the Dark, a Week Later, the Reckoning
A week after the strike that plunged Simferopol into darkness, it is time to take stock of what this attack actually changed, beyond the…
INVESTIGATION: Western Sanctions, What the Numbers Actually Confirm
On October 22, 2025, the U.S. Treasury sanctioned Rosneft and Lukoil, Russia's two largest oil companies, a decision presented at the time as a…
REPORT: A Third of Russian Refining Capacity Is Offline, and the Context Everyone Forgets
The figure is enough to surprise even the most attentive observers of this conflict: roughly a third of Russia's refining capacity is now offline,…
DECODING: the Kremlin and the diplomacy of waiting in three parts
On June 18, 2026, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called on Russia to take concrete diplomatic steps to end the war, according to a report…
ANALYSIS: Yaroslavl in flames, between rhetoric and reality
In late March 2026, yet another Russian refinery found itself in the news for the wrong reasons: the one in Yaroslavl, several hundred kilometers…
OP-ED: Tuapse, Four Strikes and a Question Worth Asking
Four times since March 2026, the Tuapse refinery on the Black Sea has been struck, according to an AP count reported by the LA…
FACT CHECK: Fuel Lines and Rationing, What Western Observers Are Taking Away
More than 90% of Russian regions report, as of July 2026, some form of fuel rationing or shortage, according to Al Jazeera.
PORTRAIT: Putin Facing His Own Price Cap, a Strategic Reading
On June 26, 2026, Vladimir Putin signed a decree extending a measure through the end of 2027, according to Interfax. This seemingly technical gesture…