For example, repeatedly resorting to war crimes when a war isn't going your way, pretending to show up in public when there is a chance of assasination (but I guess Putin has plenty of enemies so it makes sense 🤣),
You sure his reasoning for performing those war crimes is because the war wasn't going his way? I could see him performing them regardless of the outcome - it aligns with his ruthless behavior.
I still wouldn't it cowardly though.
pretending to show up in public when there is a chance of assasination (but I guess Putin has plenty of enemies so it makes sense 🤣),
Of course he does: he's a ruthless dictator. What do you expect? The dynamic has always been the same for people like that; Stalin, Hitler and Sadam each dealt with the same problems.
poisoning and killing anyone who doesn't show 100% loyalty to you
If you're a dictator, a lack of 100% loyalty implies you're dealing with someone who would try and kill you if given the chance.
In the dictator's regime, this isn't cowardice; it's survival.
and even jailing and using excessive force against protestors for simply appearing upset.
Again, he's a dictator and a fascist. There's nothing out of the ordinary here for someone who chooses to play that role.
At this point I am curious how this ends for him and Russia, but I am sure it won't end well.
Well, yeah. The entire world is against what he's doing.
Putin is just a dictator. You can't survive as a dictator without doing all of these things that you're associating with cowardice.
But that's the thing: we're talking about someone who would laugh if he was called a coward. He doesn't care what you think.
But if you want to pretend that you're a part of a country that holds a moral high ground above Russia's dealings, you have that right in a non dictatorship.
The US government has been involved in and supported some of the most haneous shit you can imagine.
Yes, Putin is a scumbag. If you're going to criticize someone, though, you should do it in a way that actually makes sense.
Otherwise, you're just a part of the media mob circlejerk.