Russia, the gangster state

I think it was Simon Sebag-Montefiore who was once quoted as saying:

"If you want to know what Russia is like under Putin, watch the Sopranos".

Probably a more accurate analogy than the cold war comparisons the Foreign Secretary has been making. The big difference between the cold war and the present day is that we took the threat from the Soviets a little more seriously. These days, when it comes to dealing with rogue states, we've become a bunch of wimps. Ahmadinejad knows it, and Putin knows it. That's why they can act with impunity against us, knowing the worst they have to fear are a few feeble protests.