Not that big of a deal -- he just did it a couple of weeks earlier than the Russian constitution calls for.

X,

Is this your, "Whatever foreign governments do is always excuseable but what America does is never forgiveable" philosophy?

Just wondering why you felt the need to defend Germany so quickly here.

Bleh... I hate typos:-( meant Russia.

what am i defending? a constitution written up by a country that has free elections? something that increases putin's approval rating by the people? that isn't a big stretch, dude. all they've done is hire replacement coaches for their baseball team for the next two weeks.

Maybe he is a fan of The Apprentice.

"Mikhail Kasyanov, you're fired"

Maybe he can't afford to make payroll.

Speaking of which...

Bankrupt' Forces may shut 5 bases
Internal reports say $500M shortfall may cause closures from Winnipeg to
Labrador

Chris Wattie
National Post

Tuesday, February 24, 2004

Canada's army, navy and air force are facing a funding shortfall of up to half a
billion dollars, defence sources told the National Post, and the military is
recommending drastic measures to make up the difference, including closing
some of the largest bases in the country.

The federal government is stalling the release of internal documents that outline
the looming financial crisis, but military sources said the reports indicate that in
the fiscal year beginning on April 1, the air force expects to be $150-million
short of funds needed to fulfill its commitments, the navy will be $150-million
shy of its needs and the army will be as much as $200-million short.

he army is said to be in the worst financial state of all three branches of the
Canadian Forces. "Everyone knows that the army's broke and has been for a
couple of years," said one military source familiar with the reports.

Colonel Howard Marsh, a former senior army staff officer now working as an
analyst for the Conference of Defence Associations, said he was not surprised
by the size of the shortfall.

"This is a look forward ... at what they need in order to keep the army going,"
he said. "Nobody has ever seen a bankrupt military in a developed country....
This year I predict we will see that in Canada."

The average age of the equipment in the Canadian Forces is over 20 years
and it hasn't been well-maintained."

The Liberal government reduced defence spending by 23% and cut the
number of regular military personnel to approximately 60,000 from 80,000
between 1993 and 2000. There were 120,000 people in the Canadian military
in 1958.

In 2003, the defence budget was increased $800-million to $12.7-billion, the
single largest increase since the Liberals came to power. But that still left the
total below that of 1991, when the Mulroney Conservatives committed troops
to the Gulf War and the defence budget stood at $12.8-billion.

Jay Hill, the Conservative defence critic, said the reports outline the result of
more than a decade of Liberal cuts to the Canadian Forces.

http://www.canada.com/national/nationalpost/news/story.html?id=97f7dbbe-981a-4085-9686-e87fab611fbb

Seems like I keep hearing Canada, and others, question the funding of the US military. But what happens when you don't fund your own obligations is that your neighbors and allies end up having to pay for them themselves, or else suffer the reduction in security unilaterally. Maybe America needs to look into whatever contractors Israel is using to build their fence.

It is unfortunate, but I believe the day of TOTALLY OPEN (and safe) borders between the U.S. and Canada is over.

This article is an indication to me that the U.S. border controls MUST be increased to the North as well as the South.

Who needs a military when you've got Beaver Man!

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