Thank you Mr Bush

... and special thanks to Mr Saakashvili. You two have strengthened Putin's regime like nobody else. Before the war in Georgia it looked like Putin may finally retire and his cronies gradually go with him. Now it appears, that the military party in Russia is indispensable - especially when everyone around is yelling "Isolate Russia". 

1. I never liked Putin. But will I criticise him, when the war is around? No. Nobody ever will. That's what Brits taught me: before the war started we can be anti-war, but with the first shot, we'll all back our army (that's what they said about Iraq).
2. You only need clever, moderate, sensitive politicians in peacetime. Imagine Al Gore reacting to 9/11 - I'm afraid that might be a disaster. The US exactly needed a heavy-handed Bush to fight terrorist bullies. Yeah, with illegal ops, with undeclared prisons, with Guantanamo and Abu-Ghraib - but that yielded some result. Now, many Russians may ask: is President Medvedev tough enough? Another Cold war is seen coming. Maybe let Putin stay in charge?