This is a good op-ed by George Soros, whose reputation as a boogieman among some American conservatives interests me far less than his much more deserved fearful reputation among dictators in the former Soviet Union. He pressed for individual freedom across the former Soviet Bloc and his Open Society Foundations continue this work. I must tweak Soros a little, however, as I have been writing nearly identical phrases myself for quite a while. Of course, it is the goal of any op-ed writer to spread his views, so I should be flattered and not complain!
Soros repeats key points I have long been making about Putin: that he is an opportunistic tactician and not a strategist, jumping around causing trouble but digging himself in deeper; that he is far more dangerous to the free world than terrorists like ISIS because he is targeting the structural unity of the EU and other stabilizing institutions; that he is using his intervention in Syria to create more refugees to weaken the EU.
Soros’s article concludes with a theme I have used regularly, that the value of human life is what separates the free world from the dictators and terrorists, and that they will use this against us. The final line also restates what I have been saying about Putin for nearly a decade: that while stopping him may be difficult now, it will only get harder tomorrow.
