August 16, 2008

QOTD:

“ While the perturbed Russian response was predictable, I really have to wonder whether, in internal Kremlin discussions, there was any understanding that the military action against Georgia would provoke balancing behavior. In particular, I wonder whether Bill Kristol’s Russian counterpart patiently explained to Putin and Medvedev that the offensive would “change the map of the near abroad” and intimidate Poland into giving up on the missiles. Imperial minded aggressors, after all, very often seem to believe that “the enemy only understands force” and that the wage of assertive action will invariably be meek compliance.
Lawyers, Guns and Money