What are yalls opinions of Putin becoming Man of the Year? I'm not in school this week so I haven't read the article. Does anyone know what it says. I know he highly respected in Russia by the youth.
2007-12-19 17:26:54 · 5 answers · asked by Anonymous in Travel ➔ Air Travel
Personally I dont like the man, but we have to admit it takes a man like him to govern a country like Russia today. American style democracy is good,but it may not work in certain places. Still I like to believe Russian democracy is a work in progress. We should not expect it to become what other countries have become simply because communism had already died there. Remember, Russia never had substantial experience in democracy even before the Russian Revolution of 1917. If Putin's governance style still leaves so much to be desired, at least he is a great deal of improvement from the communist thugs that used to rule the country. I think he is still the best man for Russia at the moment, a country confused about its future and threatened on one side by the minions of an antedeluvian Red Bear and on the other side by mutant capitalists with the mentality of Al Capone. Taking all things into consideration, I don't begrudge Time the prerogative of choosing Putin as their Man of the Year, after all, this distinction is not a canonization, but simply a recognition of the newsworthiness.
2007-12-19 19:54:00 · answer #1 · answered by mjlocad 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Well.. I read the interview with him in Time and for the first time I was impressed with him - but has been brutal (had a Russian spy killed in England) and his policies miss the mark of a direction toward freedom very often.
I learned today that Stalin and Hitler had been Time's People of the year also... it is not about just being effective in a positive way but having an effect in the world good or bad.
And Time is NOT going to pick Petraeus or Bush against their agenda - so they had Al Gore who had already won the Nobel Peace Prize and an Oscar - no news there... so Putin it is.
He did give kudos for Gorbachev having the guts to fight against a failing government- and said that is why Russians have freedom. He said he didn't know if he could have done what Gorbachev did.
2007-12-19 17:39:44 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
We may not like him, and he does seem to be an ends-justify-the-means kind of tyrant, but you have to give credit to a man who took a country the size of Russia from economic and social turmoil to a position of strength (petrochemical) and solidarity (cult of personality).
Remember, MotY is a commemoration of the entity that affected the world the most in that year. Hitler and Stalin (in addition to many more conventional "important people") were both MotY at some point.
2007-12-19 17:36:07 · answer #3 · answered by dtewsacrificial 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I think there people this year who were more deserving of the title Man of the Year than Vladmir Putin. But there it is. TIME Magazine didn't call me to ask my opinion on the matter.
2007-12-19 17:56:43 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
No, he isn't a very reputable man or a very good president, anyways, my opinion is that Man of the Year should be "Person of the Year."
2007-12-19 17:35:09 · answer #5 · answered by Mashu 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋