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Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia
What's behind Putin's saber-rattling
2022-02-20
The view from Germany.
[DW] The Ukraine crisis, which has been brewing for years, does not come as surprise. But President Vladimir Putin’s actions stem from more than just Russian trauma.

This year's Munich Security Conference has been concentrated on Russian President Vladimir Putin
...President-for-Life of Russia. He gets along well with other presidents for life. He is credited with bringing political stability and re-establishing something like the rule of law, which occasionally results in somebody dropping dead from poisoning by polonium or other interesting substance. Under Putin, a new group of business magnates controlling significant swathes of Russia's economy has emerged, all of whom have close personal ties to him. The old bunch, without close personal ties to Putin, are in jail or in exile or dead from poisoning by polonium or other interesting substances...
's clear but unspoken threat of a military attack against Ukraine.
Posted by:trailing wife

#13  Putin senses weakness. Afghanistan didn't help. The fact that we can't protect our own borders projects weakness. Bad left-wing policies and poor focus also communicates weakness.
Posted by: JohnQC   2022-02-20 17:55  

#12  ^ Cats understand going to the litter box to do their business. I don't grant the top people in the state dept or NSA that degree of knowledge.
Posted by: M. Murcek   2022-02-20 12:08  

#11  Like a laser pointer with a cat, Putin's doing to our ruling class 'best and brightest'.
Posted by: Procopius2k   2022-02-20 12:03  

#10  If Frank Luntz or George Lakoff were advising them, we'd hear a lot of talk now about independence for Ukraine.

Which is easily satisfied by simply giving the Russians their #1 objective, an ironclad guarantee, in a formal signed agreement, that Ukraine shall be independent... of NATO.
Posted by: Merrick Ferret   2022-02-20 09:58  

#9  much better analysis here.

Note to Magoo and his fellow numbskulls: not going to "invade." The tactic is called hybrid warfare, and the strategic goal is to thwart NATO expansion on Russia's front porch without getting bogged down in a conventional war
Posted by: Merrick Ferret   2022-02-20 09:54  

#8  It's not like they can even come up with "You won't be able to get pistachios. Or dates! Or nice hand-crafted Oriental rugs."

All they can come up with is "We will look bad if we don't fight."

I bet even Frank Luntz can't sell that one.
Posted by: M. Murcek   2022-02-20 08:01  

#7  Besides the oddly long protracted Saber Rattling with mid-term's campaigning starting and C-19 controls finally being openly challenged for the Voters.

I still end up asking the same question of the Biden Admin, that I have asked for about 2+ months.

Why is the Biden Admin willing to engage in a war 7,000+ miles away, and offer up US soldier lives, to protect another countries borders. But refuses to properly protect US Border, resulting in an estimated 2 Million violations in 1 year?

A process that has allowed ANTI-USA focused terrorists, Drug Cartels, and other such elements to gain easy entry to US Soil.

A process that can be tied directly to US Citizen deaths and murders?

Is increasing future Democrat Plantation Voter rolls more important to them than USA citizen lives?
Posted by: NN2N1   2022-02-20 07:56  

#6  The long con.

Posted by: Skidmark   2022-02-20 07:18  

#5  I'll take Occam's Razor for $200, Alex.
Posted by: DooDahMan   2022-02-20 06:54  

#4  ^Simple, easy to understand explanations are often best...
Posted by: M. Murcek   2022-02-20 06:26  

#3  /\ Easily explained as well. It's simply Biden being a Russian.
Posted by: Besoeker   2022-02-20 06:24  

#2  Imagine some distant foreign power attempting to interfere with the integrity of our border.

Oh, wait...
Posted by: M. Murcek   2022-02-20 06:20  

#1  Very easily explained. Putin is simply being a Russian.
Posted by: Besoeker   2022-02-20 04:39  

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