The New Middle East: The Case for Puitn

By Guest Blogger General Vladimir Vladimirovich, Red Army (retired)

My Dear Americankanski Friends:

Warm greetings, from St. Petersberg, Russia.

I write today as admirer of your great nation and all that it has accomplished.

On personal note I would like to say that my father Ivan Vladimirovich fought in Red Army during Great Patriotic War and met many of your fathers and grandfathers on banks of River Elbe. Father enjoyed himself immensely and spoke very highly of American GI.

But on to serious matter.

I write to America today about your involvement in Middle East. Since 1979 this region of despots and religious, how you say, Tooney Loons has given you nothing but trouble, would you not agree? From Ayatollah, to Colonel Qadhafi to Saddam to al Qaida, Taliban, Isis, on and on. Your president, wisely in my estimation, has decided to largely disengage from region. Oddly to this observer your president's one interest in Middle East remains, how you say, sticking it to your greatest ally, Israel. This makes no sense to me, but America has always been somewhat baffling to us in Soviet...er Russia.

In vacuum created by Obama has stepped our own President Putin. As I write this Russian forces are battling Isis in Syria and Iraq and establishing bases therein.

Let me, please, explain why I feel this is good for America.

Vladimir Putin is not man to make angry. He has shown this with intransigent Ukraine, no? Also Georgia. Forgive me, my American friends, I fear you think I mean your state of Georgia. No I mean Republic of Georgia on southern border of Russia. President Putin made mince meat of them, no? And only late intervention of your President Bush prevented complete collapse of Georgian nation. These are but trivialities frankly, compared to actions President Putin took in Chechnya. In his own words President Putin 'Cut it off, where it not grow back.' He flattened Grozny and killed thousands of Chechen fighters in process. He has rebuilt Grozny and put his own strongman in charge. This is great victory for Putin and great victory for Russia.

I know, you have two concerns. First, oil. Really, comrade, you still worry about this commodity when you have become world's largest energy producer? Why do you still think you need those, how you say, camel jockeys in Saudi Arabia?

Now your second concern, Israel. As Noted in this very space, Vladimir Putin is friend to Jews and had very productive meeting with Prime Minister Netanyahu this year. Sure, there may be disagreements, but ask yourself who has treated Israel worse over years, Obama or Putin.

So I say, as your friend and admirer, why not let our President Putin deal with situation in Middle East? What have you to lose, America? He'll kill many terrorists, da?