Putin's Invasion of Russia: The Politics of Invasion and Intervention
What light can an old philosopher, like myself, shed upon a global event such as the invasion of Ukraine by Vladimir Putin and the Russian Army? Most philosophers begin by identifying key concepts that shape human political behavior, such as: leadership, followership, military invasion, industry, politics, defense, external intervention, economic sanctions, and national and global media responses. Let's start with the puzzle of leadership and followership. How does an aspiring leader, like Putin, rise to power in Russia and maintain that power, without inspiring political opposition? Evolutionary Politics (as an academic discipline) acknowledges several facts. First, worldwide, the overwhelming majority of high-level political leaders, corporate leaders, and military leaders are all older men. Soldiers who follow military leaders are mostly young men, who need a reliable paycheck to support their families. Historically, soldiers are either drafted (involuntarily) or enlist (volun