Rich pretty much laid it out. That Putin is one sharp dude compared to the neo-clod we currently have in the white house. I can't see Obam outmanuvering him, though he will liklley have that strong, Crook County devious streak to draw upon. Don't know about McCain.
And Saakaschwili is a moron. You'd almost think he's a Putin plant given how poorly he handled this.
Charon
Putin doesnt have internal politics or public opinion that he has to worry about. He doesnt have a congress he has to answer to. He doesnt have allies he has to cater to. You can call Bush a neo-clod as much as you want but even that is an expression of personal political opinion that Putin would laugh at if a Russian said it about him. Putin is a Dictator, or as close to one as a sham Democracy can dream up.
Its not Bushs fault we have stupidly convinced ourselves that Putin, or the Russians, are our friends. We did that on our own, or, with the help of our allies. George Bushs leadership has prevented another terror attack on our soil, along with the bravery of our troops, and those of our allies.
"We" are the ones who have to grow up and start looking at the world as realists. This is an old game, with an old enemy, and if NATO doesnt unify and get its act together we might be handing off a real nightmare world to our kids. Its childish to revert to selfish, domestic, political name calling and silly to blame all the worlds ills on George Bush. Bush was right to act unilaterally after 9/11. If he hadnt we'd still be pokeing holes in the air at the UN debating society, "No doubt you'll see a lot of such hot air being blown around concerning Georgia". We simply cant let all our national security decisions be made by popular world vote. You probably notice theres a lot less world condemnation over this brutal attack on pitiful Georgia then there was when we invaded Iraq, despite having 100 x more provocation.
Did Georgia try and kill a former Russian President? Did Georgia violate UN resolutions dozens of times? Did Georgia start two major wars each time invading a neighboring country in surprise attacks? Do you remember the world community screeching when America went after Saddam, an event he could have prevented by simply allowing UN inspectors to do their jobs. And do you hear the thunderous silence now?
This is the hypocritical anti-US world we live in. A world allows China to host the Olympics despite its Government sponsored brutality.
But do call Bush a "Neo-clod". If it makes you feel better then go ahead and let fly.