MILWAUKEE— After years of tension between Ukraine and Russia, and hours after the Russian military began to attack the former Soviet republic, one of the big questions everyone's had is, "Why now?"

"I personally think that what's really driving him is concern over his grip on power in Russia," University of Wisconsin sociology professor Ted Gerber, who heads up The Wisconsin Russia Project, said. It's only Putin— Putin alone who decides everything— so my sense is that the timing is really driven by his own perception that this is his do-or-die moment."

Gerber added that the majority of Russian people are likely opposed to the attack, something Gerber said Putin clearly doesn't care about.

"Either he's completely lost his mind or he thinks this is his last chance, his moment, and he's decided to take a huge gamble... and will probably fail," Professor Gerber said.

You can watch the entire interview with Jason Fechner and Ted Gerber above.