The way Vladimir Putin is handling the situation with Ukraine reminds me of an old joke my Grandmother loved to tell.
Let me say right off, Grandma and her brother immigrated from Ukraine in the very early 1900’s. She was 19 years old at the time.
Grandma hated, just hated, the Russians. She would literally spit on the floor at the mention of Russia. Her reasons probably had something to do with what one Tsar or another had done back in the day. She never said. But on to the story.
It seems a Frenchman, an Italian, and a Russian encountered a genie one day. The genie granted each man one life changing wish.
The Frenchman said, “I want to learn to cook and to become the greatest Chef the world has ever known and be remembered for the delicious dishes I created.”.
The Italian had a similar idea. He said, “I want to be the greatest opera tenor the world has ever known and be remembered for some of the greatest arias ever sung.”.
After thinking for a moment, the Russian said, “ I want my neighbor’s mule to die”.