Russians scuttle a ship near Crimea

Russia shows no sign of backing down, Ukraine may be willing to fight but would lose without outside support, and the US has engaged in diplomacy that appears fruitless at this point. We don't have the political will to threaten them militarily after our long OIF/OEF combat deployment cycle, Secretary Kerry has mentioned sanctions but Russia has laughed that off, and they seem to have no incentive to bargain on this issue. Whether we like it or not, it seems that Russia will end up ding as it pleases in Ukraine just as it did in Georgia. Granted, these two former USSR republics are within the Russian "sphere of influence," but does that mean that we must allow them to bully their neighbors who are also our nominal allies?