Quote of the day 18th August 2024

 "Don't shoot, we're conscripts!"

(Surrendering Russian troops as they gave themselves up to the Ukrainian army, according to an account published in today's Sunday Times.

There are two equal and opposite mistakes the West could make about Putin's Russia. The first would be to forget that this lawless rogue state is extremely dangerous.

The second would be to imagine that Russia is invincible. It is not, particularly under a leader as utterly incompetent as Vladimir Putin has now proved himself to be. At last, incompetent at everything except murdering any potential political opponents and any other innocent people who get in his way.)