Now that the mini-war is apparently about over, would anybody like to share thoughts on the matter? One thing that I just found out is that this is the first time in history that a shooting war and a cyberwar coincided (see link).

Some people have compared Russia's actions to how Hitler grabbed the Sudetenland. Some people, especially in eastern Europe, have also compared it to the Russian invasions of Budapest in 1956 and of Prague in 1968.

I've been trying to decide what I would do if I were president. On one hand, the current Georgian government is a staunch ally. On the other hand, it appears that they may have been rather impetuous in this case. Furthermore, a great power, with world-wide responsibilities, cannot let any and every small ally drag it into war willy-nilly.

On the third hand, it would have been interesting (at least academically) to see if two major powers, each with thousands of nukes, could have fought an all-out war without using any nukes.

I do think that I would have responded more forcefully, however. I'm not sure what form or forms that would take. One possibility is firing a single cruise missile at a point on Russian soil where it would do no harm, but still be noticed, as a warning to the Russian government. I think I would certainly have ordered F-16's to briefly intrude into Russian airspace at various points, also as a warning. Beyond that, I'm not sure.