Tragic as this is, it's also interesting. This might wind up being a lesson for all fans of authoritarian rulers- when you stifle dissent, and surround yourself with yes-men, you don't get all the information you need to make an intelligent decision. In the days leading up to this, apparently, there wasn't a single person in Putin's inner circle who was willing to tell him this was a bad idea.

Democracies might be slower to act than a dictatorship, but the huge advantage of a free society is the ability to argue openly about things.

It's a fluid situation, unpredictable to be sure, but there's a growing possibility that this is a colossal disaster for Putin.

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