We must Arm Ukraine to the Teeth to Knock Out a few of Putin’s or he will Prevail

Putin is a classic bully who is more about instilling fright than an actual fight

Contrary to conventional wisdom, bullies usually hate fighting. They aren’t looking for challenges, but easygoing ego boosts to lift their sagging self-esteem and all-encompassing inferiority complex. That’s why everyone recognizes the archetype of an angry, musclebound hooligan kicking beach sand in the face of a scrawny nerd.   

Bullies carefully choose their victims, so they have little chance of losing face or getting punched in the face. The sadistic goal is often humiliation coupled with easy victory to increase the public perception of strength. When faced with a worthy opponent, however, bullies become blowhards that resort to bluster. They puff up like peacocks in the hope of intimidating rivals, so it never comes to actual blows. A genuine fight risks the ruination of reputation and loss of social standing, a terrifying thought to the bully’s fragile mindset.  

Vladimir Putin is the classic bully. When dealing with a thug like Putin, peace will never be achieved through passivism. That is why it is essential that we arm Ukraine to the teeth, to knock out a few of Putin’s. The world will only be safe when Putin is exposed as a feckless coward who can dish it out but can’t take it.

It’s key to remember that the Russian dictator is a performance artist. He cultivated his burly image with hilarious circus stunts, such as tranquilizing Boris the Siberian tiger. But he was surrounded by wildlife experts and the feat was about as dangerous as force feeding Ambien to Tony the Tiger.

Putin also rode a horse while shirtless for a photo-op, but unlike rugged cowboys, he didn’t actually break the horse. He essentially went on a half-naked pony ride.

The bad boy then went for a dip in frigid Lake Seliger. While he gets some credit for that, a bunch of pale chubby guys perform a similar antic each year in Chicago’s Lake Michigan. Finally, to show off his alleged athletic prowess Putin put on skates and went to the hockey rink. Although relatively new to the sport, he miraculously scored eight, nine and ten goals in various exhibition games against professionals. Sure, hockey players love the ice, but probably not enough to piss off Putin and end up getting traded to Siberia. (Had Donald Trump’s Jan 6. insurrection succeeded, he'd likely be dribbling circles around LeBron James.)  

When it comes to war, Putin undeservedly gained his “tough guy” reputation by hammering the helpless. He obliterated little Chechnya. His armies stepped on its tiny neighbor Georgia, which probably has less firepower that Atlanta, Georgia. Then he took his traveling War Crimes Tour to Syria, where he rained terror from the skies on Aleppo.

In Ukraine, Putin became the Butcher of Bucha, while honoring the brigade accused of war crimes that devastated this forlorn village. The Associated Press reports :

Ukraine’s prosecutor general has already opened over 8,000 criminal investigations related to the war and identified over 500 suspects, including Russian ministers, military commanders and propagandists. Networks of allies are documenting – mass graves, apparent assassinations of civilians, indiscriminate shelling, repeated attacks on hospitals, forced disappearances, torture, sexual violence, cities under siege, denied food, water and humanitarian aid. 

Like a quintessential bully, when Russia retreated from Kiev with its tail between its legs, it pathetically blamed its stunning defeat on outsiders and filed a formal diplomatic note warning the U.S. to stop arming Ukraine. Of course, Russia doesn’t want to face resistance, preferring to bomb terrified civilians in cities and starve people in Mariupol. It’s certainly easier to set cities on fire than win firefights against fully armed Ukrainian soldiers.    

There is only one way to stop Putin’s desire to reconstitute the Russian Empire and prevent World War III. That is defeating Vladimir Putin militarily – and that process begins today. It is imperative that NATO provide Ukraine virtually every weapon and gadget in its arsenal. This includes attack helicopters, fighter jets, anti-ship missiles, the latest missile defense systems and actionable intelligence inside Russia to destroy fuel depos and resupply lines.  

I write this with great trepidation, knowing that there is always a danger of rapid doomsday escalation. For this reason, I still oppose a NATO enforced “no fly zone” or a naval blockade that would put Americans in direct contact with Russians. However, we must give brave Ukrainians the full toolbox needed to defeat the Russian menace. There are only three possible outcomes to prevent a future global catastrophe:

1)    Ukraine beats back Russia. Economic sanctions take a devastating toll. These factors lead to a palace coup or popular revolt that overthrows the dictator

2)    Ukraine stalemates Russia, destroying enough armor that Russia doesn’t have the financial wherewithal or military capacity to threaten a future invasion of the west. Putin is 69 years old, so such an embarrassing setback might run out the clock on his mortality.

3)    Ukraine’s military prowess forces Putin to the table for a settlement. Putin will claim victory, but the whole world will see it as a defeat. His air of invincibility punctured, Putin would likely be forced from power or hang on in a weakened capacity.

In all these scenarios, civilization overcomes savagery and democracies are strengthened worldwide. However, if we don’t do enough to defend Ukraine and it falls, Putin will likely believe that he is untouchable and unconquerable. He will surely plot his next conquest. The dictator will also convince the Russian people, “The entire world took on Mother Russia and only I had the strength and wisdom to prevail.”

If Ukraine becomes Russian real estate, and Putin emerges stronger, I suspect future history books might say:

In the 2022 Ukraine, Russian war, Vladimir Putin was on the ropes after his overconfident forces were repelled from the Kiev suburbs. The United States President, Joe Biden, masterfully put together an international coalition that financially squeezed Russia with devastating sanctions. Forced to retreat to the East, Russia regrouped to take its last stand.

Unfortunately, NATO did not provide the military hardware needed to finish the job. Despite desperate pleading from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for fighter jets and state of the art missile defenses, he was rebuffed. Left vulnerable to attack, Ukrainian cities were reduced to rubble, citizens who didn’t flee were pulverized by artillery, countless war crimes occurred, including rape and torture, and Zelenskyy was captured and executed on live Russian television. Though brave and honorable, the Ukrainian’s were demoralized and ultimately defeated. The country ceased to exist and was absorbed into Russia.

Recognizing the new reality on the ground and in need of Russian natural resources, including oil and wheat, NATO became bitterly divided and sanctions collapsed. Two years later, a more powerful Vladimir Putin invaded NATO member Estonia, calling it a suburb of St. Petersburg. Republican President Ron DeSantis agreed, saying it was time for ‘a new day with Russia.’ A year later, Putin invaded Poland, claiming that Warsaw was part of the historic Russian Empire.”     

It's time to give Ukraine everything it needs to stop Russian aggression in its tracks before it’s too late. We should also refrain from further humiliating President Zelenskyy by forcing him to beg, hat-in-hand, like a forlorn park hobo. Arming Ukraine is in our own national security interest, because crushing Putin is the best chance at stopping World War III.

If Putin prevails it will only be due to appeasement. When bullies aren’t pacified, they pounce. Russia is on the ropes, and we must do whatever it takes to help Ukraine knock out Putin and his delusional, grandiose dream of world domination.