Beau of the Fifth Column: This dude's analysis is good.

[Joinfortmill]

[Warpy]

1. Well, exoept Putin's inner circle seems to have tightened

and now consists of intelligence people who tell him what he wants to hear and military guys looking at retirement and saying "yes sir." The oligarchs seem to have drifted away as so many have left Russia in favor of glitz around the planet. Putin didn't even move his mega yacht until it was almost too late, the billionaires weren't there to warn him of potential confiscation.

There is a story out today that one of the top guys in the Kremlin says he was surprised and appalled by the invasion, an intelligence honcho left out of the loop. It was Sky News, I'll wait until it is posted by somebody reliable before I link it.

In any case, this is looking like Putin's Vietnam and Beau's right, he'd have gone down as one of the better leaders had he stayed within his own borders. He didn't, he won't admit he was wrong, and this is going to be a protracted and deadly mess until he is deposed.