Something I realized a while ago seems relevant; war is an economic system. it's probably the oldest economic system, and one of the most successful. When you realize that, some things start to make sense.

I can't remember where I was going with this, but when you realize how much Russia has invested in this war, and how little they have to lose (as a nuclear state with one of the largest arsenals[hey, I just realized you can't spell arsenal without arse, lol]), you can see why the "no good guys" or "no good guys or bad guys" point of view exists, even if you dont agree with it.

Just my two bits.