Eschaton has a round up of the Right’s expressions of love for Vladamir Putin. You can almost feel their hearts, and other body parts, fluttering over Pooty’s assumed manliness. When Mike Huckabee says “I know the only time that Vladimir Putin shivers is when he takes his shirt off in a cold Russian winter,” I want to tell him he and Vlad should just get a room.
Some of this infatuation is gratitude for doing something to make President Obama look bad, but there’s more to it. I found an article from last September on The Secret American Sub-culture of Putin Worshipers that’s fairly disturbing.
Three months ago, Americans for Putin, a Facebook group, sprang up “for Americans who admire many of the policies and the leadership style of Russian President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin” and think he “sounds better than the Republicrat establishment.” The group has an eight-point policy platform calling for “a unified [American] national culture,” a “firm stance against Israeli imperialism,” and an opposition to the political correctness it says dominates Washington. Though that group is relatively small (167 likes as of Wednesday afternoon, ticking up every few hours), the Obama’s-so-bad-Putin-almost-looks-good sentiment can be found on plenty of conservative message boards. Earlier this year, when Putin supposedly caught—and kissed—a 46-pound pike fish, posters on Free Republic, a major grassroots message board for the Right, were overwhelmingly pro-Putin:
“I wonder what photoup [sic] of his vacation will the Usurper show us? Maybe clipping his fingernails I suppose or maybe hanging some curtains. Yep manly. I can’t believe I’m siding with Putin,” one wrote. “I have President envy,” another said. “Better than our metrosexual president,” said a third. One riffed that a Putin-Sarah Palin ticket would lead to a more moral United States.
The Americans for Putin facebook page still isn’t that popular. But see also Michael Tomasky, “Why Neocons Love the Strongman“:
Now of course these people can’t openly cheer for Putin, because that would constitute outright treason, but they can test treason’s perimeter fence and probe it for weaknesses. I don’t quite think they want war with Russia; Russia ain’t Iraq. And obviously I don’t believe that if it came to that they’d be against their own country.
But that said, they are certainly undermining the commander in chief at a pivotal moment—not merely protesting his policies, but denouncing his character.
And don’t we suspect that they’re doing this because there’s a little part of them that wants a full-blown crisis? Of course there is. A crisis would vindicate them. A crisis would make the neocons—at risk of being flushed down history’s toilet by Rand Paul, who’s suddenly being called “front runner†by more and more people—relevant inside the Republican Party again.
Tim F. asks why authoritarians love strong daddy figures, and points to this 2008 interview of Jeff Sharlet on his portrait of the right-wing Christian group “The Family” and its naked admiration for … Hitler? Um, yeah.
See also Republican Hypocrites Attack Obama For Not Being a Thug Like Putin.
This is so 30s. Reminds me, rather creepily, of postcards from my great aunts, who traveled in Italy and swooned over Mussolini.
These people don’t have a rational thought or perception in their heads. I hope Obama lets them keep their guns. Accidents do happen. Really, they are still buying guns and ammo at a fever clip. I can just see the yard sales in 20 years!
Is this too mean? Or am I just too tired?
There’s not enough brain bleach in the world to erase the image of the Huckster and Pooty Poot getting a room together!
Dukkha Earl — great handle!
Our Conservative Authoritarian manly-men LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVES them some shirtless pictures of Vlad!
But only in a Conservative Authoriarian manly-man sort of – totally non-homo, non-gay – way!!!
Their tiny ‘pooty-poot’s,’ rise at attention every time his visage comes in their vision.
Putin’s the man of their – totally non-homo, non-gay – manly-man dreams!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Dukkha,
And ditto what maha said!!!!! 🙂
Oh, and I’m surprised our Putin-loving Conservatives didn’t fake a US birth certificate for Vlad, so he could have run in their 2012 primaries.
He would have won in a landslide!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Maybe I shouldn’t give them any ideas, with 2016 being right around the corner…
This is nothing a drone strike on cpac headquarters couldn’t solve. The right has been calling Obama everything from a closet Muslim commie to a “mommy pants” sissy. In my humble opinion, the president has shown great strength by not having the FBI jerk some of these diloes out of bed at 1 am for a little water boarding session. I’m thinking that’s what Vlad would do, after dusting the bastards with some polonium. They might better be careful about what they wish and pray for.
It’s really creepy how much the right seems to love Putin. It is definitely un-American to love a Communist dictator even more than their own President. But, President Obama did have the audacity to be black.
Putin has no use for a cold war, but he has a big ego; in addition, he is sensitive to perceived slights (he is responsible for the timing of some of the events in the Ukraine but still takes genuine offense that events were occurring during the Winter Olympics).
He may not care one way or the other about Republicans or Democrats but here’s something to consider: if you’re in an age that is switching to alternative energy (and most Europeans are heavily committed to this switch) and you have an economy heavily dependent on oil and natural gas, unlike the mix of many other economic activities going on in the U.S. and any number of other countries, you may start thinking you need to look for advantages to stay in business. The Ukraine pulling away is not good business. The growing independence of Europe away from fossil fuels and away from Russians selling fossil fuels, has got to worry Putin, particularly since his oil and gas is not doing that great at the moment. (It should be noted he has asked for help from various American and European oil and natural gas companies: but this is probably neither here nor there, since Russians are notoriously difficult to work with; but Putin seems very interested in Fracking, a technique good for a serious but short-term bubble and not much beyond that.)
In the United States, Republicans are heavily committed to fossil fuels (and Fracking) and would like the fossil fuel companies to stay dominant in our economy despite the obvious need to switch to alternative energy. Putin is not easy to read and one has to be very cautious about that, but part of his thinking has to be that an American government controlled by Republicans would be very good for his oil and natural gas interests.
I am sure many Republicans are aware of this. And some of this may be playing a role in their ridiculous man love.
I thought Obama was a “Chicago thug” and “dictator” and thus would be admired by sad authoritarian-followers craving a powerful daddy.
I can’t keep up with these rightward propaganda meme of the day without a scorecard.
“I know the only time that Vladimir Putin shivers is when he takes his shirt off in a cold Russian winter,â€
How does he “know” that”. Does he have carnal knowledge of Putin?
maha & cundgulag,
Heh! Old enough to appreciate early ’60s doo-wop, are you?
Here’s one to take you down memory lane.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YzGzYIpwEu4
Oh, figured that maybe some of you conservative readers might enjoy a different version. Instead of envisioning your arms locked around your buttercup while listening to the Earls version, maybe you can envision having your hands locked around your communion cup while listening to this version.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXN18dfYuSY
A whole lot of ‘Christianity’ seems to obsess about gender roles. Christ didn’t seem to, but conservative churches have added it as a tenet. They also seem to think their addition to the Gospel is a societal tenet which can’t change as human standards become less judgmental.
Putin vindicates their bigotry – a global leader who fits their definition of ‘manly’ – a president with no qualms about criminalizing homosexuality and encouraging their persecution. This looks like virtue to them. One can only hope it becomes a movement, because most Americans don’t identify with Putin as a role model, and won’t identify with a movement that does.
“A whole lot of ‘Christianity’ seems to obsess about gender roles.”
Conservative and dogmatic factions within all the major world religion obsess about gender roles and keeping women’s sexuality in check. It’s something of a syndrome, I think.
You do know that Putin hired an American PR firm to coif his image.
OT, I’ve been reading about the CPAC convention, and while it’s very early to handicap 2016, my nightmare scenario includes an establishment GOPer at the top (maybe Gov Walker of Wisconsin) and Rand Paul as VP, to placate the libertarian/Tea Party wing.
Try to have a good day.
moonbat,
Walker could put a CPA to sleep.
And, as the great Charles Pierce says, you give a Paul 5 minutes, and you find yourself agreeing with him!
Then, after 5 minutes, they go off the rails into La-la-Land!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ted Cruz-ader is by favorite boogyman right now.
But, hell, any and every Republican scares the poop out of me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him: and he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying,
Cursed are the abortionists, for they are the killers of babies.
Cursed are the homosexuals, for they commit unnatural acts.
Cursed are they who compel retailers to provide contraceptive coverage for their employees, for verily I say unto you that recreational sex without reproductive consequences is an abomination.
etc.
Stephen….Amen, brother. Speak it out!
How about a reading of the parable of the young conservative?
Check out Mythopedia, a searchable database of right wing lies, put out by Media Matters. Go on – type something in…
And He said unto them:
Blessed are the self-righteous, for theirs is the publicity;
Blessed are the hypocrites, for theirs is the purity;
Blessed are the war-makers, for theirs is the power and glory;
And blessed are the malefactors of great wealth, for theirs is the impunity.
A. Smart money is on Putin to win Iowa Republican Caucus in 2016.
B. Obama is a metro-sexual? Seriously? He dresses almost as bad as I do.