He is no genius
I have heard many people talk about the “genius of Putin” over the years. Yes, a hard, twisted, narcissist of a man, but a very smart dictator … I am not sure about this. Not that I ever thought he was ever that clever.
A few days ago I was texting with my old friend Branko and I said to him, “What if Putin is actually an idiot?” and he responded with, “That is my big worry.”
If Putin really did fear NATO expansion will then this insane war of his has backfired. NATO is re-energized and now Sweden and Finland are discussing joining. And as soon as that happened we read headlines like, “Russia threatens Sweden, Finland with ‘negative consequences’ of joining NATO”.
If Putin really wanted to disarm Ukraine then this has also backfired. Ukraine is united like never before, and armed to the hilt, with more and more hardware rolling in all the time. Yes, the opposite is happening. Ukraine is becoming the most armed country in Europe and their military experience is by now through the roof.
Putin is no genius. I am starting to believe he is an idiot. And what kind of a superpower is Russia? Their army is incompetent and unprofessional. Barbaric is the word, and out of touch. With no purpose or clue.
I was listening to Fiona Hill on an Ezra Klein podast and she says, “Putin wants to make this war about the United States, NATO and Russia”. This guy may actually be off his head. If Putin is in fact a mad idiot then God knows how this is going to play out. But it does give me hope that his days are numbered. It can’t be that everyone around him is the same. Surely at some point they are going to want to get rid of this idiot.
Ex-top investor in Russia explains what’s really driving Putin
“A desperate little man who is afraid of being killed. A small little man who is worried about the people rising up against him.” – Bill Browder
Noam Chomsky and Jeremy Scahill on the Russia-Ukraine War, the Media, Propaganda, and Accountability
“I think is important for people to understand, is that Vladimir Putin, for whatever reasons he made the decision to do this in Ukraine, ultimately has created conditions that the U.S. has long wished were there for the United States to assert total dominance over European decision-making on issues of militarism. It also is an enormous boondoggle for the war industry.”
The present
Me: I’m not saying a word without my lawyer present.
Cop: You ARE the lawyer.
Lawyer: So where’s my present?
Ukraine needs heavy weapons – #ArmUkraineNow
Numbers
America and the West are helping for sure, but Ukraine keeps begging for more and more support. How many people have to die before the West moves into a higher gear. And what is with Germany? Like SA, not looking to be on the right side of history. But seriously – what is the number? How many deaths will tip the scales? And what of all the displaced people – most of them have nothing and nowhere to go. They will mostly all suffer and a lot will die spiritually. We are talking millions of innocent people here. Millions!
Everything is about numbers. If Putin’s numbers were better in his own economy then I am sure this war would not even have began. If Russia was doing better they would care less about their cool neighbour. And yes, Ukraine is cool, Russia is not. Russia was going backwards, their economy was in the toilet, and their population largely lives poorly and struggles. Ukraine was growing at a very healthy pace, and more and more people were being lifted out of poverty (of course the pandemic did mess the world up a bit, Ukraine included). This must have pissed Putin off. The ex-girlfriend was doing good. The jealous ex-boyfriend was angry.

This is a war about good and evil. And if evil wins here, God forbid, it will spread. I don’t think anyone has a clue what will the end result be, and this is a scary thought. Of course, if the West stepped up their game, the Ukrainians predict they will be able to repel the Russians. But if this happens won’t it make the violent ex-boyfriend even angrier. Or, will the world finally put Putin in his place. He is not pressing the nuclear button. He is a total narcissist and he does not want to die. It is reported that this evil maniac is the world’s richest man. Once again the numbers tell a story. He is not going to risk dying by entering into a nuclear war. I just don’t buy it.
Ukraine needs more support. Again, the numbers spell it all out. If I was walking past your house and it was on fire I would help put out the fire. I would try find a hose pipe and start spraying water. And I would of course call the fire brigade. What I wouldn’t do is leave a glass of water on the patio (ala Germany). And If I saw you in the window screaming for help, I would try and save you. But the West is so slow in Helping Ukraine, all because the are not in the club. If I was walking past your house and you were in trouble, I would help you. I would not start discussing the fact that you are not in the club. Ukraine tried to join the club, for years, and they never were allowed in. And yet, their neighbours are in the club: Poland, Romania, etc.

Ukraine’s Fight to Keep Educating Its Children | Zoya Lytvyn | TED
History can’t be changed
People wrote about Ukraine long before anyone ever heard of Russia.
Russia is now trying to rewrite history. They are trying to spread a lie that says that Ukraine did not exist before Russia. It is simply not true. Russia will not succeed at changing history. The fact is that Kyiv existed before Moscow. That part of history cannot be changed. No amount of lies, or this insane war, will change the facts.

Ukraine will win this war because Putin is living a lie, and the truth always wins out.
One interesting thought about this war. Putin is paying mercenaries to fight this insane battle. Ukraine has volunteer soldiers from around the world coming to fight for freedom. This speaks volumes.

