It appears to me that the Biden administration is doing what it can to give Putin the exit option. Biden is executing well, IMHO. He and his team are showing how crucial it is to have knowledgeable, mature, and experienced leadership in times of crisis.
I read what Zelensky had to say. And I think he is right. He says Ukraine must be part of any negotiations. He is asking the West why they are waiting and calling for Europe and the US to put in sanctions now. He is asking why the West would wait until Ukraine is crushed before acting. I am asking why, too. I am also asking why Ukraine cannot be part of NATO.
I’m also wondering why there aren’t sanctions ahead of an invasion. As to the question of Ukraine being in NATO, I read that Hungary would not allow it, would vote against it.
I found this newsletter quite illuminating in that Putin is not thinking in the way we perceive he is.
Things on the ground are now moving very quickly. A good analysis for a few days ago, but the phony panic evacuation of civilians from Donbas has probably rendered it in error. Please, given the new circumstances, a fresh consideration?
I wrote this after that, and after a series of other provocations. So if I am wrong, I don’t have the excuse of being out of date! I am not saying here that Putin won’t choose war. I am saying that he is not in fact boxed in. He can just walk away. More from me is on the way.
Putin plays a chess game using Ukraine as his pawn. Nobody really knows how his mind works. I think that’s why the KGB liked him so much. He’s a devious soul and does not care about his own people as he continues to deceive them. He is a proud narcissist and what he wants to achieve is complete autocracy over neighboring countries. He also cannot stand the fact that Zelensky, a Jew, is the ruler of Ukraine. It eats at him terribly and I think that is something else we should be looking at. At this current time, Putin is agreeing to a “summit” with Biden, in France. Let’s hope he takes that exit you speak about.
I'm not sure Putin cares all that much about saving face inside Russia. I don't think he gives one whit as to what people in Russia are likely to think about whatever he may choose to do anywhere and at any time. They have no say in the matter. But he does fear humiliation in the international arena. He wants, after all, to be viewed as Biden/Macron/Johnson/Scholz's equal. He wants to be feared, which in his mind is tantamount to being respected. He expected the West to splinter further along the transatlantic lines and retreat in the face of his saber-rattling. He miscalculated badly. The last vestiges of his hypothetical reputation as a still minimally adequate and reliable political partner are gone. So yes, I do believe he's painted himself into a corner and doesn't quite know how to extricate himself.
I agree with you on Putin. I’m wondering if all those Botox injections to keep his appearance youthful (in truth his face looks bloated) have gone to his brain.
Numerous Botox injections and cosmetic surgeries -- and for what? To look more handsome? To look younger? I doubt it. More likely, to become unrecognizable to himself. To become essentially faceless. A lot of suppressed (or maybe not so suppressed) self-loathing.
It's true, however: people who regularly subject themselves to Botox injections and cosmetic surgeries do not tend to be suicidal. And invading Ukraine would ultimately prove suicidal for him.
It appears to me that the Biden administration is doing what it can to give Putin the exit option. Biden is executing well, IMHO. He and his team are showing how crucial it is to have knowledgeable, mature, and experienced leadership in times of crisis.
I read what Zelensky had to say. And I think he is right. He says Ukraine must be part of any negotiations. He is asking the West why they are waiting and calling for Europe and the US to put in sanctions now. He is asking why the West would wait until Ukraine is crushed before acting. I am asking why, too. I am also asking why Ukraine cannot be part of NATO.
I’m also wondering why there aren’t sanctions ahead of an invasion. As to the question of Ukraine being in NATO, I read that Hungary would not allow it, would vote against it.
I found this newsletter quite illuminating in that Putin is not thinking in the way we perceive he is.
I've read some experts say that sanctions could be used by Putin as "provocation" to invade.
Things on the ground are now moving very quickly. A good analysis for a few days ago, but the phony panic evacuation of civilians from Donbas has probably rendered it in error. Please, given the new circumstances, a fresh consideration?
I wrote this after that, and after a series of other provocations. So if I am wrong, I don’t have the excuse of being out of date! I am not saying here that Putin won’t choose war. I am saying that he is not in fact boxed in. He can just walk away. More from me is on the way.
Putin plays a chess game using Ukraine as his pawn. Nobody really knows how his mind works. I think that’s why the KGB liked him so much. He’s a devious soul and does not care about his own people as he continues to deceive them. He is a proud narcissist and what he wants to achieve is complete autocracy over neighboring countries. He also cannot stand the fact that Zelensky, a Jew, is the ruler of Ukraine. It eats at him terribly and I think that is something else we should be looking at. At this current time, Putin is agreeing to a “summit” with Biden, in France. Let’s hope he takes that exit you speak about.
I'm not sure Putin cares all that much about saving face inside Russia. I don't think he gives one whit as to what people in Russia are likely to think about whatever he may choose to do anywhere and at any time. They have no say in the matter. But he does fear humiliation in the international arena. He wants, after all, to be viewed as Biden/Macron/Johnson/Scholz's equal. He wants to be feared, which in his mind is tantamount to being respected. He expected the West to splinter further along the transatlantic lines and retreat in the face of his saber-rattling. He miscalculated badly. The last vestiges of his hypothetical reputation as a still minimally adequate and reliable political partner are gone. So yes, I do believe he's painted himself into a corner and doesn't quite know how to extricate himself.
I agree with you on Putin. I’m wondering if all those Botox injections to keep his appearance youthful (in truth his face looks bloated) have gone to his brain.
Numerous Botox injections and cosmetic surgeries -- and for what? To look more handsome? To look younger? I doubt it. More likely, to become unrecognizable to himself. To become essentially faceless. A lot of suppressed (or maybe not so suppressed) self-loathing.
It's true, however: people who regularly subject themselves to Botox injections and cosmetic surgeries do not tend to be suicidal. And invading Ukraine would ultimately prove suicidal for him.