In the game of foreign policy chicken, Russian President Vladimir Putin is willing to go further and take more risks than the West. As Russian tanks roll through the Ukrainian countryside and the Great Bear’s soldiers take up arms against the defenders of Ukraine, the Obama administration calls it an “escalation.” Never mind that if Canadian solders ever stripped the Stars and Stripes from Anchorage, Alaska, we’d be calling the action for what it is: an invasion. Vox asks, how do you cross an American red line? Answer: slowly. Inch across the line, wear out attention and emotions and when the headlines scream the line has been crossed, America will be too worn to lead. Obama and the West need to stop the rhetoric against a show of force. President Theodore Roosevelt’s guide in politics was, “Speak softly and carry a big stick” – something the Obama administration has ignored for years.