Or stable…
A certain derangement can set in even for smart people when they go all-in on a rash and unwise course of action. Things tend to snowball from there. It’s one of the reasons I characterised him as a reckless gambler…
Putin’s Derangement Syndrome
Same here. I cannot figure out what his exit strategy is. Victory is the easy part. After that, your choice is either a ruinously expensive occupation to keep your imposed government in power, or looking like a right idiot when the government you overthrew is back in power 2-3 years after you leave.
The 1950’s Finland model or the Byelorussia model worked because those governments were not externally imposed. Integration into the empire only works in a non-Democracy, and Putin still maintains much of his legitimacy with Russians via his electoral success (even if the elections are corrupt).
I think he’s way up the creek without a paddle. Moreover most of his cronies will still be Oligarchs without him, so very few powerful men depend on him to survive. Not a good situation for an tyrant to be in unless they enjoy wide popular support (which he had until now).
Agreed. As the invaders, the Russians have to win. The Ukranians just have to not lose. They can make life uncomfortable for the Russian occupiers for a very long time.
I posted a similar tweet earlier, but this one has a little more info and the accompanying thread makes me a little worried…Hopefully someone in Putin’s inner circle has had enough of him.
And if some Ukrainian intel reports are to be believed, The Shirtless Wonder has 10 days to win before his logistics and supply completely crap out on him. He was expecting to be in total control of Kyiv by today at the latest and that’s not happening.
That’s before you take into account his own conscripts being surprised by the invasion, the unexpectedly large protests against his war at home, the international community not rolling over for him again, etc.
The Russian soldiers the Ukrainians are capturing are “conscripts” with an average age of 19, these are very green not trained cannon fodder. Bonus round is that when captured they are allowed to call home to theirs Mothers to tell them they are OK, genius move on the part of Ukraine.
The main reason demagogues see juice in this issue is that, if America tells Russia not to invade Ukraine, and Russia does it anyway, then that makes America look weak. By pretending to want the inevitable invasion, they shift that stank onto Democrats and reinforce their own brand’s association with “winning” (even if the winning in question is that of a foreign enemy).
But of course their support for Putin is utterly transactional; if he doesn’t deliver the win, he doesn’t get the beej.
In terms of doing anything about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, there isn’t actually much disagreement between Western political factions. The far right just have an evilly pragmatic understanding that this frees them to root for the bad guy, if that rouses more rabble.
They hung Lord Haw Haw. Just saying.
Only if they can afford to keep fighting. An active war is eye-wateringly expensive and they’ve just been cut off from international finance systems. Every day the Ukrainians hold them off is another day closer to Russia running out of money. And it’s not like the Russian state is flush with cash, because it’s a kleptocracy.
The guy who attacks all Democrats, all Republican leaders, the Pope, NATO, Gold Star families, POW’s, only refrains from criticizing one man.
Agree with everything except the body bags. Appears that unless you are an officer, you just get cremated and your ashes dumped in the nearest ditch. Lots of Russian mothers will be told this son has decided to stay in Ukraine. Problem is if Russia can’t hold Ukraine, that lie will be completely exposed.
Yeah. I’ve been flinching that way too whenever I read something along the lines of “Russia will of course takeover Ukraine eventually.”
Um, nooooooo, that is not looking inevitable.
Fired? No.
But poisoned? Maybe…
You know, I can remember when the importance of ordinary citizens being ready to take up guns to resist a tyrannical government was a standard Republican talking point.
Strange that none of these people seemed to consider that as a possibility, or really anything other than a simple victory for the tyrant. 
