[Sacajaweau]

From Rocky to Napolean...Goodness...

[Tea Party Terrorist]

Yep.

[DesScorp]

Putin is the only one acting with any rationality in
europe right now. He’s a Russian leader following Russian interests for Russian people. None of this multi-culti nonsense.

[RightOnTheBorder]

Crimea was traditionally part of Russia thus it contains I high percentage of ethnic Russians. It has a number of oil and gas lines running through it, and most importantly it contains Russia’s only warm water port and access to the Baltic. Given that nobody is going to stop him, why would Putin not annex Crimea? It is the most rational thing in the world.

[MeganC]

I remember stealing another kid’s candy when I was little.

Was it irational? Yes, it was.

But at the end of the day I had all the other kid’s candy.

[Gaffer]

Pat is so frigging stuck in the 80s it isn’t funny. He passed being relevant decades ago. It’s really pathetic.

[dfwgator]

He doesn’t always make sense, but I must say, I find little to disagree with Pat here.

[4rcane]

I agree with Pat on this. Too many Conservatives on this forum and elsewhere are reading Putin wrongly. Putin is a nationalist who is doing what he could to protect Russia, against the hypocritical Europeans/Americans.

[dsc]

John Kerry made his contribution to the bonkers theory by implying that Putin was channeling Napoleon: “You don’t just, in the 21st century, behave in 19th century fashion by invading another country on a completely trumped-up pretext.”

Well, he just did. What are *you* going to do about it, Ensign Band-aid?

Besides, have you seen the uniforms on the palace guard? (On Drudge now.) Very tsarist.

[ChildOfThe60s]

I’m not a Pat B fan, but I can’t find fault with his analysis in this piece.

[Red White and Blue patriot]

More anti-American drivel from Puchanan. Why don’t you move to Russia and become a speech writer for Putin, Pat?

[greene66]

Putin is making perfect sense. He’s acting in the same manner and interests as seen throughout world history. To the benefit his country and expand its power. Heck, it’s almost refreshing to just see such basic, old-fashioned rationality... especially in comparison to America, which has descended to such sheer madness.

Putin’s troops take Crimea. Our troops put on drag-queen shows.

[cripplecreek]

Putin is the one who has chosen a clear direction and is moving in that direction. It doesn’t matter if I agree with it or not.

Obama is downright erratic and paranoid with a tendency to punish the American people when he doesn’t get his way.

[Qiviut]

Too bad Obama doesn’t feel about America the way Putin feels about Russia.

[Williams]

I am unaware of a pledge to keep NATO out of Eastern Europe. Quite the contrary.

Pat lost me when he analogized Russia to his nemesis, Israel.

[Timber Rattler]

Pat’s 100% right.

[DoodleDawg]

If the true question is who is more irrational, Putin or Buchanan, then the answer has to be “I don’t know”.

[McGruff]

Is Putin irrational? No.
Is Obama irrational? Duh.
Is Merkel irrational? No. She’s just a loud mouth.

[pgkdan]

I completely agree with Pat on this one. Here's the real money quote:

He saw a Mother Russia that had been looted by oligarchs abetted by Western crony capitalists, including Americans. He saw millions of ethnic Russians left behind, stranded, from the Baltic states to Kazakhstan. He saw a United States that had deceived Russia with its pledge not to move NATO into Eastern Europe if the Red Army would move out, and then exploited Russia's withdrawal to bring NATO onto her front porch.

[caveat emptor]

Hopefully Putin's invasion of Crimea will be a wake-up call to a somnolent West. Here's an excerpt from an article in today's National Post:

The recent Strategic Outlook by the CDA Institute made three specific recommendations in this regard [Canada beefing up defence] — Canadian participation in a continental ballistic missile defence shield; creation of a maritime NORAD, integrating Canada’s navy and coast guard with that of the U.S.; and, a sufficient number of ships to patrol Canada’s three coastlines.

David Bercuson, director at the Centre for Military and Strategic Studies at the University of Calgary, talks about the “Finlandization” of Europe — the concept that smaller countries try not to challenge larger neighbours in foreign policy, while attempting to maintain national sovereignty. “We’re back to Finlandization, on a smaller scale. There’s no undoing it, even if the Russians pull out of Crimea,” he said. [a dated comment. Crimea's part of Russia now]

The prospect is already causing a radical re-think of policy in countries like Sweden, which is flirting with the idea of NATO membership, after nearly 200 years of “splendid isolation.” Jan Bjorklund, Sweden’s deputy prime minister, floated the idea, warning Russia could seize Gotland, a Swedish island province in the Baltic Sea, if it chose to attack Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.

The only concept Mr. Putin does appear to understand is Cold War orthodoxy, the balance of power.

On its own, Canada is as impotent as Finland. But in a re-energized, re-financed NATO, the united military potential dwarfs that of the Russians.

“Canada has to frame its defence policy in this reality,” said Dr. Bercuson.

Obviously a pipe-dream as long as Obama is in office, but the clock is counting down.