Obviously I can’t speak for Pat but i suspect that he agrees with you that Russia is run by “tough customers.” But if asked, I think he would compare the current Kremlin leadership more to PRI Mexico than to Stalin’s USSR.

This brings up an interesting point. Many of us don’t like the merging of all the old cultures of Europe into the European Union. But only such a Union could deter a serious Russian attack. It’s a quandary.

That is, is everyone so sure that the nature and stability of Russia today are such that we ought to walk away from the intellectual and material architecture so laboriously constructed over the decades so as to contain her?

Don’t get me wrong, I’m all in favor of trying to essentially welcome Russia into being a modern European-type nation as soon as possible. And I’ll even grant that even if handled as delicately as possible the very existence of NATO can somewhat work against that.

But it still would be nice to see at least a few more years go by of apparent moderation and stability in Russia, and apparent moderation and stability that is more clearly being attained other than at the point of what can seem a pretty tough bunch of Kremlin customers and the periodic mysterious shootings of journalists and etc.

And I also would ask whether those who are in favor of walking away from NATO now aren’t conceeding that the West ought to just accept it if, say, Russia forcibly re-annexed a number of her former Republics, including a big chunk of the Ukraine if not all of it.

If, after all, the rationale for walking away from NATO is that Russia is already merging with modern Europe, well, we wouldn’t *want* that merging to happen anyway if it *did* go re-absorbing the Ukraine and otherwise being revanchist, would we?

Maybe instead of killing off NATO it should just be kept at a lower profile for awhile. We’re talking an issue with huge consequences here that so far seems to have been handled to produce fairly happy results. In any event some extreme prudence would seem called for I think.

Yet, Russia cannot defend its rapidly depopulating eastern provinces from China. Russia will be suprised to be forced into an alliance with China only to be betrayed and lose its eastern provinces.

Yet Europe (western, central and eastern) cannot survive without Russian oil, gas and natural resources. Increasingly those resources are more important than any stimulus from US troops and bases.

Europe and the US are still partners! Partners in culture, partners in western civilization, partners in technology and economy, partners defense, etc BUT increasingly the future visions of national interest are different for the US and Europe.

The US should encourage Europe to embrace Russia and Eastern Europe by pulling its permanent troops and bases out. We can still use european bases as via a permanent invitation as needed.

Look at the current crisis in North Korea. Issue an ultimatum to China, Russia and Japan. Either unify North and South Korea or we will bomb and declare war on North Korea. We can then pull our troops out of a unified North Korea.

Nato needs to be reorganized as a Western European Defense structure with the Mediterranean basin, Africa and the western North Atlantic as it’s Sphere of influence. Of course the European Union’s defense apparatus may make the whole thing moot.

One question remains. Who’s job is it to see that oil keeps flowing through the straits of Hormuz?