An article in the leading newspaper of Spain is discussing the idea that Putin is the world’s most powerful leader as a very wide-spread and commonly accepted one. The article’s author agrees with this belief but points out that Putin’s power will not be long-lasting.

Be that as it may, today nobody even doubts that Putin is the most powerful leader in the world. As the Russians say, a holy place will never remain empty. When the US steps back, somebody has to step forward, and the likelihood it will be somebody better is pretty much nil.

The billionaire gangster Khodorkovsky has announced he wants to become the president of Russia. If anybody has been wondering what could be worse than Putin, this is worse.

Both of these animals belong to the same organization – the one that used to be called KGB. So ideologically, the difference is nil. However, Khodorkovsky has pumped enormous amounts of money into buying the loyalty of every public intellectual and dissident (these words mean the same thing) in Russia. Putin is supported by 86% of Russians. Khodorkovsky will do all the same things but his support will be 100%. Even the current anemic and pathetic dissident movement will not exist any longer.