1. Russia's conventional military did not learn from nor recover from their Afghanistan mis-adventure. Their strategy and tactics are stupid in the face of the fight that the Ukrainians are bringing to them. Russians are respected as excellent chess players. They certainly do not let chess players be generals. I hope our leaders and generals learn from Afghanistan.

2. Putin has been very successful at consolidating and controlling all power in Russia. Virtually all aspects of a free press and the freedom of speech and expression have been destroyed. Russia is now like the USSR of 1953 or the world of the novel 1984.

3. Putin can no longer be considered a benevolent dictator. His actions have brought him into the realm of the malevolent stereotype of a dictator and which includes the usual suspects...Hitler, Musolini, Idi Amin, Pol Pot and Saddam Hussein. When this is over he deserves the fate of Saddam Hussein, not the dignity of a war crimes trial in The Hague.

4. Putin is not a genius. Neither is Trump for saying so.

5. Putin should not be trusted to refrain from the use of chemical, biological, or nuclear weapons. President Biden and other world leaders need plans to prevent this. If there is a plan, I am unaware of it. If Putin uses these weapons against Ukraine, perhaps they will become the first salvos of World War III.

6. Putin should not be trusted at all, ever... under any condition.

7. Ukraine should have kept its nuclear weapons when the USSR dissolved. They trusted Russia to continue to recognize their sovereignty.