This is a complex situation the world finds itself facing. The real bottom line is that the global elites have been making their move to subjugate countries to their will. They don't like independent nations. They despise cultural uniqueness. They loathe nations that want monetary independence from their central banking system.

Putin, for better or worse, seems to see Ukraine as a buffer between Russia and the rest of the NWO globalists (think Schwab, Soros, Clintons, Gates). He has been on record as saying Russian culture is on the chopping block with this political ideology and removed Soros' Open Society from the country. (Some 20 other nations, seeing this same agenda, have also removed him from their countries). What does that tell you?

If you want to talk about thugs, why not look at Ukraine? Run by a puppet government that launders Western money for the globalists, and uses Neo-Nazis (think Antifa) to terrorize the populace, it is little wonder that Putin would not want this on his doorstep.

The other real issue is that the rest of the world is not receiving any factual information about what is actually happening in Ukraine. MSM has shown itself to be a tool in the hands of the globalists, and other sources have their own agendas as well.

So is Putin the real villain in this story? I don't know. From my small vantage point, it may appear to be one criminal state against another, but the stakes for the world on the outcome are higher than anyone could expect.