Putin is A Walking Dead

The cover image for this story is one of my favorite cartoons by Alesha Stupin because of its symbolism and allusions to various images, incidents and facts in Putin's life. It is based on the famous photo of topless Putin riding a horse that is often used to illustrate his masculinity and strength.

But here, he is riding a trash bag - an allusion to the estimated 400,000 Russian soldiers killed in Ukraine who are sent home for burial not in zinc coffins as it was during the Afghanistan war but in body bags that were quickly memed "trash bags."

On his head, Putin is wearing the symbol of Russian imperial power - the Monomakh hat. Vladimir II Monomakh was the Grand Prince of Kiev from 1113 to 1125 and is considered a saint in the Eastern Orthodox Church. He was also the great-grandson of Vladimir I the Great (aka Vladimir the Red Sun, Vladimir the Baptist who converted Kievan Rus to Christianity in 988), with whom Putin often compares himself as a statesman. His head is obviously too small for the hat.

On his chest, Putin is wearing the pendant with the Soviet hammer and sickle - the symbol of his Soviet-time service in the KGB and its later resurrection in the form of FSB, as well as his longing for and desire to reconstruct the Soviet Union. On his right arm, Putin is wearing a Phillippe Patek watch - an ultimate symbol of luxury that was a subject of investigation and ridicule by the Navalny Foundation: why would a leader of a country where most people are poor wear the watch that is priced many times more than his annual state salary?

On the ground, you see a pile of sh*t - an allusion to the fact that Putin has a special security officer who follows him with a briefcase to collect his excrement because he is afraid that if someone else gets access to his sh*t they will be able to figure out his medical conditions. This is the ultimate North Korea-like paranoia that probably comes from Kim the Third himself. Finally, the bottle on the ground is probably an allusion to the water bottle with Novichok traces that confirmed for the German investigators that Alexey Navalny had been poisoned by Putin in August 2020.

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On Feb.16, 2024, just several days ago, Putin killed Alexey Navalny. Not with his own hands, of course, but given how he believes in supernatural forces working for him, I would think that it made Putin happy, to know that Alexey Navalny died in prison two days after the Valentine's Day and two days before the anniversary of the Ukrainian Revolution of Dignity. I wrote a story about Navalny's death here:

Several months ago, in October 2023, when the rumors of Putin's death broke out, I wrote a series of stories about that. This one made a Top Story:

The second story was based on Putin's response to the rumors of his death:

And the third story was my reflections on how immortal Putin is:

As a side, I also wrote a piece on the Overton window, a technique that is often used in Russian propaganda:

I obviously have my own long history with Putin. I decided not to return to Russia when it became painfully clear to me that he turned full-on dictator after his 2007 Munich Security Conference speech where he said that the collapse of the Soviet Union was "the greatest catastrophe of the 20th century." A year later, he started his project of returning the lost lands with Georgia and I wrote a story about this:

Two days after Putin invaded Ukraine 0n February 24, 2022, I published this emotional story as I was trying to grasp the reality of the war:

A little over a week later, I wrote another story baring my emotions:

Ever since, for two years now, the war colors my life in both expected and unexpected ways. Sometimes life gives me something to laugh about even at the horrific background of the Russian-Ukrainian war, and gives me hope that it will end soon:

But most of the times, it's more somber and horrifying as I try to dissect and explain the effects of Russian propaganda:

In summer 2023, I wrote a story about an accidental encounter that punched me in the gut with the Russian-Ukrainian war's unexpected affect on people I didn't even know but were made visible to me by the encounter:

I write satire as a way to cope with the impossible things we humans have to deal with and live through, so this was my attempt to explain modern Russian history to western audiences in understandable and easy terms:

Finally, I will finish this index with the reference to my other long-running series - satirical conversations between Trump and Putin where they discuss pressing issues. When Trump calls Putin, it's Calling Moscow, and here is the first one:

When Putin calls Trump, it's Moscow's Calling, and here's the first one that I published here on Vocal. I previously published them in a book that is available on Amazon and referenced in my profile:

I will create a separate index story for these series, but here's the most recent one:

Thanks for stopping by here. I will continue updating this index story as I write more on Putin, Russian-Ukrainian war, and other related issues.