I assume that Putin will close the borders to stop the exodus of men fleeing conscription. What else is he to do to control the humiliation? Then there are reports of Putin personally directing his generals on the battlefield. CNN reports, “Russian President Vladimir Putin is himself giving directions directly to generals in the field, two sources familiar with US and western intelligence said – a highly unusual management tactic in a modern military that these sources said hints at the dysfunctional command structure that has plagued Russia’s war from the beginning.” Wow! This sounds familiar. Where have I heard this before? Where, oh, where? A dictator personally instructs his generals what to do tactically while he is hundreds of miles away from the frontlines. If I could just place this scenario within some sort of historical context. It’s on the tip of my tongue. Oh, yes! Now I remember. It was Hitler. That’s right. He didn’t trust the generals to implement his grand losing strategy, so he gave direct orders to battlefield generals while he was tucked away at his Rastenburg headquarters. Clearly, Hitler’s micro-managing of generals worked well. I do not doubt that Putin will improve on history; he’s done splendidly so far.