After the collapse of the Soviet Union, I had a lot of hope for Russia. Now, it seems they are headed for Soviet Union Part Two.
Seems to be much the same cycle Germany went through last century.
The German army was allowed to leave the field intact at the end of WW1 and that fed the delusion that they could have won if they’d only held out a little longer. Then came economic hardship and loss of national prestige. Exploiters stepped up to capitalize on the chaos and we got WW2.
The Soviets were allowed to do much the same thing in allowing to quit the field in the Cold War without being forced into full and abject defeat. Then came economic hardship and loss of national prestige. Now we see exploiters stepping up to capitalize on the chaos. What we end up getting is still to be seen. The pattern is there, though.