There are accidents, and there are "accidents".

I went on the record as pronouncing this a genuine accident--one that smart people were quick to take credit for, but ultimately an accident. To believe otherwise strains plausibility.

Now this, on the other hand, is no coincidence:

An expert on Russian intelligence was critically injured in a shooting in front of his suburban Washington home, authorities said.

The shooting of Paul Joyal, 53, came days after he accused the Russian government of involvement in the poisoning of former KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko. The FBI was assisting in the investigation.

Joyal was shot Thursday by two men in his driveway, police said.

The shooting appeared to be a random robbery and street shooting, a law enforcement official with knowledge of the case told The Associated Press.

Paul Joyal, via PBS.

It's a "random street robbery", but the FBI is involved.

And it probably wasn't a robbery:

Officials said Paul Joyal, 53, was walking up his driveway on Lackawanna Street in Adelphi at about 7:30 p.m. ... Thursday when he was confronted by two men and shot. Sources told News4's Pat Collins that nothing was taken from Joyal and that someone heard one of the men tell the other man to go ahead and shoot Joyal.

Joyal was a lobbyist and outspoken advocate for Russian rival Georgia.

In 1998, he represented the Georgian government before the U.S. Congress and Departments as its first lobbyist.

I don't think it was an accident. I don't necessarily think Putin was behind it, though I certainly think he's capable of it; but it may have been one of Putin's enemies, wanting to complicate his relationship with the U.S.

PS Readers of this blog may find Joyal's views on racial profiling interesting.