Russian collapse and the death of Putin is almost certainly not imminent
I mean, Putin's not getting any younger. He's already butting up against the Russian average life expectancy rate. And while I don't think the Russian economy is threatened by a market that only seems to reward big O&G exporters, I do think that this protracted war is going to force the kind of domestic cuts that hurt long term domestic growth. Look what Vietnam and Iraq did to the US, as a point of comparison.
Anyway, I’m wondering if most libs are observing this event with literally no context that can allow you to do any analysis other than think the bad guys must just be crazy.
Its not the worst analysis. A lot of these political maneuvers are short-termist, ill-conceived, ill-executed, and ultimately catastrophic for the regions they're implemented. Nothing about the Russia/Ukraine war is good for Europe, for the Middle East, or for North Africa. It is what might classically be described as "crazy". Just plainly and nakedly self-destructive for everyone involved.
Libs simply can't see past the "Foreigners Are Bad!" blinders. They recognize that Putin's role in this is insane and the Russians are paying an enormous price to - at the absolute very best - reinforce their status quo position. But they fail to see how every other player in the region is getting significantly more fucked as a consequence.
Yeah, the Russians are crazy. But no less crazy than the Germans, the Estonians, the Scandinavians, the Turks, or the Americans.
The only sane people in this mess are the Chinese, screaming "Please stop!" from the sidelines.
I mean, Putin's not getting any younger. He's already butting up against the Russian average life expectancy rate. And while I don't think the Russian economy is threatened by a market that only seems to reward big O&G exporters, I do think that this protracted war is going to force the kind of domestic cuts that hurt long term domestic growth. Look what Vietnam and Iraq did to the US, as a point of comparison.
Its not the worst analysis. A lot of these political maneuvers are short-termist, ill-conceived, ill-executed, and ultimately catastrophic for the regions they're implemented. Nothing about the Russia/Ukraine war is good for Europe, for the Middle East, or for North Africa. It is what might classically be described as "crazy". Just plainly and nakedly self-destructive for everyone involved.
Libs simply can't see past the "Foreigners Are Bad!" blinders. They recognize that Putin's role in this is insane and the Russians are paying an enormous price to - at the absolute very best - reinforce their status quo position. But they fail to see how every other player in the region is getting significantly more fucked as a consequence.
Yeah, the Russians are crazy. But no less crazy than the Germans, the Estonians, the Scandinavians, the Turks, or the Americans.
The only sane people in this mess are the Chinese, screaming "Please stop!" from the sidelines.
Oh, it's definitely crazy. I'm just arguing that Putin's playing the same shitty game as everyone else, with at least as much skill.