"Today, Russia's war on Ukraine gave us a penetrating snapshot of democracy and autocracy."

[Joinfortmill]

"Russia specialist Anne Applebaum tweeted: “Putin’s call for a ‘self-purification’ of Russian society can have only one intention: To remind Russians of Stalin and his ‘purges.’ He wants them to be haunted by dark, ancestral memories, to remember their grandparents' stories and to be petrified with fear.

Meanwhile, sanctions imposed by countries around the world are strangling the Russian economy. Reuters today reported that Russia is “on the brink of its first default on international debt since the Bolshevik revolution [of 1917].” A Russian political scientist tweeted: “I have collected some thoughts on the immediate impact of sanctions on the Russian economy.” The short version: “30 years of economic development thrown into the bin.” “All in all, no other economy in the world has experienced anything like this—extreme de-globalization in a matter of days.”

https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/march-16-2022?s=r

[SheltieLover]

1. Kicking for visibility

[PatSeg]

2. "Extreme de-globalization in a matter of days."

Putin certainly didn't plan for this invasion very well.

[TheBlackAdder]

3. Welcome to the "America First" self-purification campaign.

[OneGrassRoot]

4. This

That's what Trumpism is all about and they definitely have followed Putin's playbook all along -- more specifically the playbook of "Putin's brain", Aleksandr Dugin.

[niyad]

5. KNR

[Farmer-Rick]

6. I would call it extreme de-capitalization in a flash.

That's the problem with capitalism, it will control you one way or another. In this case it is punishing a tantrum throwing psychopath's captured citizens. Maybe they will fight back. Even Machiavelli warned brutal kings to not get their citizenry to hate them.

[blueinredohio]

7. But sadly, Trump humpers do not see it.

[musclecar6]

8. Gee

I thought Putin was supposed to be a fucking genius. Isn’t that what TFFG said ? Looks like the megalomaniac psychopath is making bonehead moves as he tries to be a modern day Stalin/Hitler combo person. Maybe his goal is to be worse than either one of those two tyrants and be known as the worst ruler in history. Let’s hope his reign of terror is short lived.

[PatrickforB]

9. I'm not seeing additional sources corroberating this, but it is a very nice thought,

and certainly not surprising.