US: No link to Russian gov't in plane downing

[Jack Rabbit]

47. It should be no surprise that there is no evidence linking Russia to the downing of the jet

Neither is there any evidence that the Frat Boy or the Big Dick knew prior to invading Iraq that Saddam had no WMDs. That doesn't mean they're not responsible for invading Iraq based on information that was not true.

However, if you are simply asking what Putin knew and when, you're asking the wrong question.

The anti-government rebels in Ukraine got the missile launcher from the Russians. There is no other way they could have obtained it. There is no way Putin doesn't know this nor is there a way that supplying the rebels with this kind of equipment was done without Putin's approval, although it may have been deliberately tacit approval.

I do not believe the rebels knowingly fired at a passenger jet. If they didn't know it before, then they certainly know now that it's not good for public relations. The question is how they could have mistaken a passenger jet for a target of any military value. What kind of training did the Russians give to the rebels who operated that missile launcher? Based on what happened, it doesn't appear to have been adequate training.

That was a Russian missile fired from a Russian missile launcher by Russian-backed rebels in a foreign state. The Russians, therefore, are responsible for making certain that those operating the missile launcher knows how to use it. Knowing how to use the equipment encompasses knowing how to tell the difference between a Ukrainian military cargo plane and a Malaysian passenger jet.

The Russian government, and especially Vladimir Putin, cannot escape responsibility for this tragedy. Which side is right and which side is wrong in the overall conflict has nothing to do with 300 passengers and crew members being dead.

Warning to the Russians: next time these fools whose training you neglected fire one of your missiles from one of your launchers, you better make sure it isn't firing at one of your planes. I doubt the Russians would be so concerned about hiding the facts if the downed plane had been an Aeroflot jet.