No one is writing about the energy foundations of this war. The media has agreed that it is only because Putin is a present day Tzar/Madman/tyrant/ etc. - take your pick.

No modern nation/state, especially a nuclear one with a large complex military can or will go to war on the whim of one man! Let's please stop saying that. As oil gets more scarce the US won't be able to project power as it has been. Putin knows this, we know this. Although estimates are about 88 million bbl/year the Pentagon's real oil consumption is classified and is probably higher.

When 25-30% of the "proven" oil reserves are gone in about 8-10 years, the nuclear nations will have to content with "Western Hemisphere" and "Easter hemisphere" oil and separate into blocks, and try to conserve and stretch out what little oil is left. This is the beginning of how the world will sort itself out for the next 20 years. If we are lucky we can re-establish stability..for a while longer.

Europe is becoming a liability for the US. and we might not be able to hold on to the Middle East. Then it's Americas v Eastern block. In another 10 years after that, by 2040 or 2045, when we are all down to the last 35-40% of the 1.6 trillion bbl "proven reserves" of today, things are going to get really scary.