President Obama Opinion Creates hole in world power The Olympics are over and they were magnificent. Russia did themselves proud in hosting, constructing the facilities, and clearly demonstrating that they had committed to their athletic programs. The opening ceremony was an amazing spectacle of creative artistry, technology and mechanics, guiding the world through the long and sorted Russian history. Putin was there throughout the games, chin in, back straight, chest out, making sure the world knew who was in charge. His moment in the sun was not wasted. He was proud; Russians were proud and rightfully so. The fear of terrorism, ever present, didn’t occur; we will never know if it was squelched, or never existed, but I have little doubt that the show of strength by the Russian military was a significant deterrent. We now know that while the games were the focus of world attention, while Putin was reveling in “his” Olympics, Russian troops were being staged around Ukraine, one of the crown jewels of the once mighty Soviet Union. Why? Just a few months ago, the President of the United States, the only remaining “super power,” had drawn a red line in Syria; it was violated, and nothing happened. A year ago our embassy in Libya was destroyed and we did nothing but lie about it. Just a few months ago, President Obama was “saved” from public embarrassment while trying to negotiate a nuclear arms agreement with Iran. His savior? Putin. We have given Putin a free pass to do as he pleases, to rearrange the chess board of nations to fit his legacy. He is pumped full of testosterone; who is to stop him? Europe? China? The U.S.? We have created a huge vacuum in the world power equation and given whoever chooses, at least three more years to back fill it, as we internally are negotiating how significantly we should reduce our military so we can give away more food stamps and disability checks. “Walk softly and carry no stick” may have sounded like a cool strategy to the flower children of the ’60s, or to the dope-smoked dorms of Harvard in the ’90s, or the academic theoretical pacifists of our current administration, but it’s frightfully naïve in the real world we live in.
Posted on: Wed, 05 Mar 2014 15:00:45 +0000