The Ruskies

Today I found out the Vladamir Putin was named Time Magazine's Person of the Year. I was a little surprised that he beat out names that appear in the headlines more often, so I cannot wait to read the article about why he was chosen. I do not follow foreign policy as much as I would like, but it makes me wonder if the Russians are coming (back).

Now I have many friends, and in fact blog readers, who are very lovely Russians. However, I will admit that Russian people equally intrigue and intimidate the heck out of me. Maybe it was watching too many James Bond movies or episodes of Alias with Russian villains. Maybe it was watching emotionless Russian gymnasts and figure skaters pose the greatest challenges to American Olympians. Maybe it is my fascination/fear of organized crime. Maybe I was indoctrinated when I was in the womb with Cold War Rhetoric.

Ok, I am not against the people of a country as a whole, but tell me that Vladamir Putin's picture does not intimidate you. Now if that is not the icy cold stare of a James Bond villain, I do not know what is. This image is of course reinforced with news stories of the murder of a journalist critical of Putin, the bizarre radiation poisoning death of a KGB Officer investigating the murder, and more. I remember being enthralled by those stories because it read like an Agatha Christie novel.

Maybe I should make a new years resolution to read more about world news, and not just the juicy conspiracy theory stories. Then I would have a better idea of why Putin is staring at me from the cover of Time.