as usual

 Well, the economy is a mess. Inflation taking a toll. What's the surest way to improve the economy? War, get involved in a war. That's how it works. Looks like Russia is doing what it can to draw us into a conflict. It will be great for their economy as well. You could say it's a quid pro quo situation. What with Bidens' son not getting a salary from the Ukraine anymore, an interruption in energy revenues and all that. Putin is playing old Joe like a fiddle and Joe; Joe will dance to his tune.

 Yes you hear about how the United States will join its' allies in support of Ukraine. Oh, it is to preserve freedom for all mankind, the noble thing to do. But take a good look at how much support the allies are providing compared to our contribution. I admit I haven't really taken a look, but I will guarantee we are providing the bulk of it! Tell me a time when we haven't. It's the same with NATO and any other "help" we provide. Heck, we practically support NATO by ourselves. Remember when Trump wanted the other nations to pay their fair shares? The Democrats were sure upset about that. Imagine that, the United States not paying the lions share! The truth is, allies may or may not join us. 

 The thing is we are talking about world politics. We are also talking about a world economy. War is a profitable business. It can make the general population forget about or excuse a whole lot of things! Human rights are not the least among these rights to be set aside for the noble causes. What is the importance of Ukraine? It's geographic location is of primary importance. Ukraine provides Russia a gateway to commerce. Add in the fact that Ukraine was really a part of Russia for a few hundred years or more and you have the reason. The latter reason may not mean much to us, as Americans, but it is important to Russians. Remember when those pesky Confederates seceded from the union? Man, that created a big issue awful fast, didn't it? Ukraine, back in 1991 basically did the same thing. Yeah its' been thirty years but mother Russia hasn't forgotten. Putin feels like Ukraine is a part of Russia. I'm no world historian but I get it. Britian thought they owned America, in fact tried to take it back in 1812 because they felt it was their territory. Hitler invaded Austria because Austria was a part of Germany. Yeah, leaders can sometimes feel like that. Especially if there are profits to be had. 

 Personally, I'm not worried. No one wants to blow up anything of financial value. Nuclear weapons aren't going to start flying. I expect there will be a skirmish or two, lives will be lost. It's unfortunate but many will suffer. Putin will attempt to flex his muscle, attempt to dominate by sheer will of personality. 

 Will Ukraine fall and be absorbed by the Russians? No, I don't think that will happen. The goal is financial gain, not necessarily territory. It is complicated by some religious roots, however. Ukraine is considered the birthplace of Christianity in that area of the world. So, you do have the crusade element. People, indeed, nations, can get pretty vehement when it comes to that. Yes, religion and money are usually the driving forces behind any war. Everything else is just a smoke screen, a distraction. 

 I'm no fan of Joe Biden or this administration. Still, I can't place the blame on that. I do think it sped up the timeline a bit. With Trump I do believe Putin would have been a bit more cautious. The action would have been the same, just the timeline would have been different. Russia is having some financial woes, and this is a path to remedy that situation. We will respond accordingly. It won't be with any big offensive, no strike. We haven't done that since WW2. Sadly, it's just business as usual.