Anyone that doesn't recognize that from DAY ONE that Putin as the leader of Russia, that he was nothing more than a murderous thug, KGB thug, just is not paying attention.
He has ZERO reverence for life.
Evidence:
Men trapped on the submarine Kursk. A number were alive and the USA and Britain both offered to use a small sub to go down and rescue them, and Putin said to stand back. He let those men die.
Beslan - remember the school that was seized by a handful of Chechen terrorists, and when Russians attempted to seize the school, about 130 hostages died. The Russians killed all but one of the terrorists.
The seizure of the Moscow Dubrovka Theater by Chechen terrorists and when the Russians took it back, 170 hostages died, most because of the gas Putin had pumped into the theater.
And now the war in Ukraine. He tells his people they are rescuing Russian heritage folks from Nazis that are part of the Ukrainian military, a group called the Azov group. Are there Nazis in Ukraine? Yes, there are, but no more than are in Russia or the USA. Fact is, about 1.5 million of the Russian heritage folks have escaped to Russia. What Putin is doing is waging a war to seize the eastern half if not all of Ukraine, I believe for control of the mineral wealth. He is violating international treaty, so where is the effort in the UN to stop this? There is no effort.
This war stinks, and it could easily progress to WWIII!!!!
A friend who worked in Ukraine for 7 years has many friends in Ukraine, and he is told there are 180,000 Russian casualties in this war to date. Russia is amassing a huge offensive for this coming year, and the young men of Russian will be fed into the meat grinder for NOTHING! Putin continues to kill Russian youth in huge quantities. He just does not care about life, any life.