Scary Thought of the Day

Vlad Putin is in a tough spot, that is a given. But what if the urge to find a Western angle to Russia's woes morphs into something more pre-emptive, like going through Serbia to get to suspected terrorist hide-outs in Bosnia? Oh wait, new NATO states Bulgaria and Romania are in the way. Now what?

Far-fetched, yes, but Putin and his buddies seem intent on deflecting all responsibility for events in Beslan—which at a minimum includes a seriously botched rescue attempt—to somewhere, anywhere else.