What if Putin has another, private plan in mind?

I’ve been thinking this since day 1 of the Ukraine invasion and wondered why nobody else seems to be talking about it.

What if Putin has a private plan to push the button, let it all blow, and leave laughing?

There have been rumors for a while to the effect that Putin, 69, is harboring some disease, maybe Parkinson’s. If he is looking at something incapacitating or fatal, of course that is going to color his actions. He could make a grand exit, taking out whatever capitals and major cities he wants, and then swallow a quiet pill, no repercussions for him.

He might even have some sort of elaborate scheme laid out for what happens next, i.e., after him, to the greater glory of Russia.

Many have said he doesn’t look well. People who’ve seen him up close think something isn’t right with him. His grasp on reality has been questioned. And there’s that bizarre recent photo of him sitting alone on one side of an enormous round room while his rows of minions are as far away as possible on the other side. Maybe that’s not just a political or a power statement. Maybe he’s worried about covid. Or maybe he doesn’t want them close enough to get a good look at his symptoms and conditions.

I just think we aren’t anticipating all possibilities if we aren’t considering that he might have a terminal diagnosis and might want to stage a dramatic exit.

And that, of course, would make him far more dangerous and unpredictable than he has been before now.

I’ve also wondered if there are any Russians plotting an assassination. Surely they have thought of it.

What do you think?