Putin And The Presidents - 2023 - 6/10

Five US Presidents so far, and counting.
Putin comes across as a calculating gambler.
Aside from Biden, the Presidents range from hopeful to gullible to appeasing.
Putin, while not necessarily sympathetic, is understandable.
He sees encircling democracies as a threat to his position, his regime.
Refashioning the Soviet Union is a long game, and he judges the West as short term players.
Democracy itself strikes me as a codeword for Capitalism.
That form seems to work best in societies that have an ascending middle class.