Hey Condi: Are you reading my blog?

The day after I post about Putin's fantasy of returning to the old Soviet Union, Condi Rice talks about this very topic on "Face the Nation" this morning. While Condi does not claim Putin wants to bring back the hammer and sickle like I do, she does state that Putin has brought Russia a few steps back from the peak of gains in democracy.

I think the moment of truth for Russina democracy will come when Putin's term expires. Putin has claimed he will not make changes to allow him to run again. Continued erosion of democracy could occur either mildly by changing the law to allow another term or dramatically by shamelessly taking the reins of power on a permanent basis. The iron hard look in Putin's eye tells me he would not hesitate to do this if he felt he could get away with it. I can't imagine Putin allowing another hardliner in power after him; not because of pure motives, but because he would want himself in power. I can't see anyone less than a hardliner, though.

My underlying point is that the Soviet Union took such a center stage in world events until the fall. Things have been too quiet, and I think events are budding for a resurgence to the world scene. With a simultaneous continued growth of China as a powerhouse, radical Islam's sleeper cell awakening in every major western country and the growing leftist movement in South America the movement of these world events promise a very challenging world future. The liberal elite do not understand the serious creature being created from the mixture of these areas, but it certainly cannot be addressed from a position of weakness and appeasement.