Once a war dog, always a war dog

 

"Should Zelenskyy and Putin stay on this path, and eschew peace at any cost, the future for both Ukraine and Russia looks murky and grim. Yes, Ukraine will probably eventually fall to Russian forces. It is all about the numbers. And Russia's victory will be pyrrhic at best. Have no doubt - if this war ended tomorrow, the carnage it caused and leaves behind will be a huge blot on the sordid history of Europe."

Don't look now, but the fragile, very fragile limited cease fire in Ukraine is about to go in the toilet. With the massive amounts of killing which has taken place over the past three years, the best that Trump's skilled negotiators could come up with was a thirty (30) day pause in bombing each other's utilities. That's it. Sounds simple, right? But it was a bridge too far for both sides. The killing has continued, as has numerous bombings on each side's utilities. 

Zelenskyy is not innocent with this war going on and on and on. But make no mistake, the bigger war dog is Putin. Mr. "Blood and Guts" himself. The former KGB officer who lives for the day that Mother Russia can rule all of Europe once again. But there is the thing - and this is painful to even put in writing this morning. The world, especially Europe, is ready to move on from this conflict, this throwback to the two World Wars. Meaning - Europe is ready to join America in the upcoming "Golden Age". Where improvement of life far supersedes the joyless folly of combat related death and dying.

But wait - that does not include Vladimir Putin. He is stuck in the vortex of yesteryear. Where might makes right. Putin has suffered over a hundred thousand dead and wounded soldiers. He does not give a whit about that. That is all part of the sacrifice to make Russia TOUGH again. But the reality is this - the Ukraine excursion has NOT made Russia TOUGH again - on the contrary, it has only made Putin look loose and foolish. Not a true leader, only a despot whose vision is locked in the past.

Should Zelenskyy and Putin stay on this path, and eschew peace at any cost, the future for both Ukraine and Russia looks murky and grim. Yes, Ukraine will probably eventually fall to Russian forces. It is all about the numbers. And Russia's victory will be pyrrhic at best. Have no doubt - if this war ended tomorrow, the carnage it caused and leaves behind will be a huge blot on the sordid history of Europe.

The other day, Secretary Rubio all but threw up his hands in disgust. "The United States is only days away from pulling out of the peace negotiations. Without some significant progress (now my paraphrased words) and a willingness to work towards a permanent peace, we are done." As much as Donald Trump abhors war and killing, he is getting ready to pull his team. Let Putin and Zelenskyy beat each other to bloody pulps

Why? Putin, mostly. Once a war dog, always a war dog. And a dog like that, cannot be trained. Only locked away in seclusion.