By now it should be clear, even to the most naive of us, that in Vladimir Putin we are dealing with a pathologically romantic thug obsessed with his distorted view of history and the egomaniacal pursuit of his legacy. And the response by the U. S. and the West so far has been totally devoid of the imagination and resolve sufficient to deal with this level of irrational ego. The result of this, regardless of the final outcome in Putin’s war on Ukraine, is to have completely reordered American and Western policy priorities and strategies, both foreign and domestic, in order to deal with a revived, now two-front cold war. Long gone is any notion of the “end of history”; the global “Green New Deal” is dead; the loony progressive left should be sidelined; and America First-style isolationism is a pipe dream. This event will mark the end of an era of Pax Americana, and the post-Cold War I world order is over. Cold War II is upon us.
For Joe Biden this is a defining moment. It represents the urgency of a complete reset of his presidency. Will he recognize its transformative implications and respond accordingly? Maybe we’ll get at least a hint in his SOTU speech this coming Tuesday, because whatever he had originally planned to say is now pretty much irrelevant.
This is a perilous time for our nation. Biden is not fit to this great threat. He is fit for little. He is not fit to address the inflation in our economy, the immigration flood at our border, the cost of gasoline, etc.
What challenges has he ever been fit to resolve? Surely his career is no shining example of anything other than partisanship.
The incompetence of our president is a greater danger to our nation than is Putin alone. Biden has surrounded himself with incompetent persons. In which if his cabinet people would we find confidence?
I agree that priorities have scrambled for this “president.” But what hope have we in his handling of any of this? The Republicans must retire their old guard and bring to the voters a new class of American leadership with statesmanship in their blood. The days of the Bushes, Rockefellers, Nixons and the old elite clan are finished,
It is not just the incompetence of the President we face. Look anywhere in government’s most aggressive agencies and one can’t help but notice we have been overtaken by ship of fools. Education? In California, though perfectly talented and capable upon arrival, by 8th grade, 75 per cent of young black men cannot read at the minimum required level. It defies mere chance that such a result could happen by accident. Consider our enormous civilian and military intelligence community arriving at the conclusion Russia would win the war in three to five days. Sorry but anyone who knew the Ukrainians would have known, at last, an ally that would fight to the death. We have to RIF and clean-out our agencies and pick less woke military leadership. Woke doesn’t work in war time – or in the Secretary of Defense. We need to wipeout all 4 of Russia’s active airbases in the Crimea, the Kerch bridge, the air defense facilities at Bielo Gorsk, the Russian Black Sea Navy, the big Russian base on the east side of Cemferopol, and the Russian logistics at and around Armyansk. We should have done this as soon as the Russians crossed the birder from Belarus.
As always Jim you stated it perfectly. And your responder stating the incompetence of the administration is right on mark. I have little hope they will change. American citizens are in the greatest danger they have been in their lives as no one is in charge.
How many people might have survived if Biden had taken NATO membership off the table for Ukraine and told Putin that we would convince NATO to actively defend Ukraine if he invaded? Early intervention in WWII might have saved many. Look at all the examples like Rawanda , Cuba, Poland etc where ego and hesitancy saved nothing and did more damage.
Quote of the year.
“ KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was asked to evacuate Kyiv at the behest of the U.S. government but turned down the offer. Zelenskyy said in response: “The fight is here; I need ammunition, not a ride,” according to a senior American intelligence official with direct knowledge of the conversation.”
(Source Chronicle update this morning)
Well said. Your responders are correct. The Cadaver-in-Chief is incapable of making the right decision on anything and this is no exception. The Republicans need leadership.
This is a terrible humanitarian and geopolitical crisis which Democrats will tolerate, as they do all things authoritarian. GOP responses have been insufficiently macho. see Rep. Jim Jordan, its House leader. My Rep., Higgins, would not be and is not mealy-mouthed.
Sleepy Joe has unilaterally driven the price of oil from $40 per bbl to $100, a huge multi-billion slush fund for Putin as the result, in just one (1) year. Petroleum revenues are a critical mainstay of the Russian economy.
NATO is a toothless tiger with too many weenie governments, though unexpectedly Turkey’s Erdogan the Islamist has said the formidable Turkish army, the best in NATO other than the USA’s, is ready to go if any NATO country, even tiny Estonia, is attacked. Turkey has a very long border with Russia to boot.
Germany’s Green insanity has driven it into Putin’s arms. Unless Biden reverses his domestic anti oil, anti pipeline stances, Germany will in time crumble into Putin’s lap. Germany desperately needs Nordstream 2, if Biden’s stupidity remains as is and we cannot produce and ship enough refined petroleum products and LNG to Germany.
Merkel was raised in East Germany, and that is the genesis of her disordered thinking on many fronts. Scholtz is unlikely to be better.
And of course Biden is at home in Delaware this weekend. What a guy!
While Ukrainians are fighting and dying in the streets, John Kerry and company fear Putin will forget about the climate. That about sums up the folly of the Biden team.
I certainly agree with David Richards that “Republicans need leadership”. There hero Trump along with Pompeo thinks Putin is a genius and great .statesman, Biden is being praised and most folks are just happy Trump is not in charge. He never liked Nato and always loved Putin.
It’s interesting under Trump/Pompeo foreign policy Putin never attacked Ukraine and gave U.S. forces in Syria a wide berth. Now comes Droopy, Blinky and Lumpy. First, the disastrous Afgan withdrawal and now the brazen attack on Ukraine. What changed except the players?