What Ginni Thomas and Vladimir Putin have in common

Ginni Thomas and Vladimir Putin.
(Image credit: Illustrated | Getty Images, iStock)

You know what Ginni Thomas and Vladimir Putin have in common? They are both sealed inside information bubbles of their own making, to disastrous ends.

Let's start with Putin. Russia's invasion of Ukraine has gone badly, but why? Brian Klaas, a politics professor at University College London, says Putin blundered into the war because he didn't have anyone around to tell him what he believed — that Ukrainians don't really have their own national identity, that the invasion would be a cakewalk — might not actually be true. Klaas calls this the "dictator trap."

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Joel Mathis, The Week US

Joel Mathis is a writer with 30 years of newspaper and online journalism experience. His work also regularly appears in National Geographic and The Kansas City Star. His awards include best online commentary at the Online News Association and (twice) at the City and Regional Magazine Association.