Man of the Year?

Wall Street Journal ^ | 12/23/2007 | Garry Kasparov

[winner3000]

Vladimir Putin will now use Time magazine's honor to enhance his own power.

BY GARRY KASPAROV Sunday, December 23, 2007 12:01 a.m. EST

Ever since President Vladimir Putin took office eight long years ago, the political and media leadership of the West have had a full-time job trying to look on the bright side of Russia's rapid turn from democracy.

The free press has been demolished, elections are canceled and rigged, and then we hear how popular Mr. Putin is. Opposition marches are crushed, and we're told--over and over--how much better off we are today than in the days of the Soviet Union. This week Time magazine named Mr. Putin its 2007 "Person of the Year."

Unfortunately, there is no silver lining to Russia's descent into dictatorship. If anything there is a look of iron to it.

Condoleezza Rice, hardly a Putin critic, said recently that Russia "is not an environment in which you can talk about free and fair elections." A good start, but this comment was not made where one would imagine--perhaps at a press conference insisting that Putin's Russia be removed from the G-7 for making a mockery of democratic practices. No, her remark came as a side note to her very early endorsement of Mr. Putin's handpicked heir to the throne, Dmitry Medvedev.

[winner3000]

Time will have blood on its hands. God bless the Wall Street Journal for having the guts to print the words of a dissident, who genuinely speaks truth to power. Unlike critics of George Bush who flatter themselves for being courageous (knowing that the biggest risk they face is too many compliments from the media), Kasparov keeps risking his life every time he criticizes Putin.

[Eyes Unclouded]

checkmate.

[Rome2000]

I assume that Time nominated the worst of the KGB as "Man of the Year"?.

The guy who has woman journalists shot in cold blood and irradiates to death his critics?.

The editors at Time will one day be brought to task for their arrogance.

Communism sucks and so does TIME MAGAZINE.

[BGHater]

He is a contributing editor for the WSJ.

[AnotherUnixGeek]

Vladimir Putin will now use Time magazine's honor to enhance his own power.

I'd be more concerned if Time magazine mattered even slightly anymore. Between the ongoing death of old-style media and Time's abandonment of serious journalism and analysis in favor of op-eds masquerading as news articles and blatant shilling for environmentalist causes, this is about as important as my group vice-president's semi-regular proclamation of which actress he'd most like to nail, but less interesting.

[LibFreeOrDie]

“Speaking about Kasparov, former KGB general Oleg Kalugin has remarked: “I do not talk in details—people who knew them are all dead now because they were vocal, they were open. I am quiet. There is only one man who is vocal, and he may be in trouble: [former] world chess champion [Garry] Kasparov. He has been very outspoken in his attacks on Putin, and I believe that he is probably next on the list.” [29]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garry_Kasparov

29. Rivkin, Amanda (July 2007). Seven Questions: A Little KGB Training Goes a Long Way. Foreign Policy. Retrieved on 2007-08-11.

[Cindy]

BIG DITTO, gentlemen. -Cindy

#

http://threatswatch.org/rapidrecon/2007/12/general-david-petraeus-man-of/

QUOTE:

General David Petraeus, Man of the Year

It is difficult to imagine how there can be much argument that Gen. David Petraeus is 2007’s Man of the Year. For the reasons you stated and more, Bill Kristol, I personally concur.

By Steve Schippert on December 23, 2007 at 1:53 PM | Permalink

#

http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/014/518ffvyn.asp

“Gen. David Petraeus,
Man of the Year
Time magazine got it wrong.”
by William Kristol
12/31/2007, Volume 013, Issue 16

[the invisib1e hand]

I think even putin would think twice about “liquidating” Kasparov. He’s extremely high profile; anything but a long life followed by a natural death would be suspect; and every dictator needs a critic, if only to give the illusion of being fair.

[robomatik]

"BY GARRY KASPAROV"
a joke by pootie?

[robomatik]

good G-d, it IS the kasparov!

[dayglored]

> Time will have blood on its hands.

HUH? TIME's "Person of the Year" designation is about a person having influence over world events and people, not their character.

Don't you read these articles? TIME's choice has nothing whatsoever to do with whether that person is morally or ethically good, or evil, or neutral. They make that perfectly clear -- and in past years they've selected truly evil men sometimes, because of their influence. And Putin undeniably has had incredible influence over world events and people this past year.

If you want a designation based on morality or ethics, look elsewhere -- TIME is not what you want.

Please note I'm not defending either TIME or Putin. I'm only saying, you give TIME too much credit for making a choice based on morals or ethics. They don't.

[SaxxonWoods]

Hey Putin!

You can’t carry my jock.

Sincerely,

SaxxonWoods
Time Person of Year, 2006.

[skeptoid]

You can watch a recent one hour interview with Kasparov on C-SPAN's After Words. He discusses his disapproval of Putin.
Note that you can click for a Stand Alone Player (better audio).

[GregH]

Kasparov is as popular in Russia as Kucinch in the US.

[LjubivojeRadosavljevic]

Kasparov is as popular in Russia as Kucinch in the US.

You're right.

Indeed, the average individual in Moscow would say the following: "Yes, of course, I know who Kasparov is, but I would tell him to stick to chess."

[rvoitier]

The most revealing moment in Ms. Rice's comments came when the topic of Mr. Medvedev as the next president was first broached. The official transcript reads: "SECRETARY RICE: Well, I guess, they're still going to have an election in March. [Laughter.]"

I hereby withdraw my support of Sec. Rice for president.

[robomatik]

billions upon billions will miss your humor (and your font) :)

[VeritatisSplendor]

Wrong. The “popularity polls” in Russia are worthless (I speak from professional experience, from 2002 through 2006 I was the director of election polling for SurveyUSA). Kasparov would do very well in a free election where he was allowed to be on the ballot and to campaign freely and get his message out on Russian TV.

Although he was probably the greatest chessplayer ever, in the chess world he was not well-liked because he was hard-nosed and self-centered. However, his personal integrity was unquestioned, and as far as likability is concerned, compared to Putin he is a pussycat. Nobody else has the necessary combination of high profile, vigor, intelligence, flexibility, and toughness to challenge Putin.

[Brad from Tennessee]

Instead of progressing Russia is moving backward. Not back to Soviet socialism but all the way back to Imperial Russia and the Czar. Putin and Medvede are not about ideology. The state is a vehicle for the exercise of their power and the gathering of their wealth.

[LjubivojeRadosavljevic]

Kasparov would do very well in a free election where he was allowed to be on the ballot and to campaign freely and get his message out on Russian TV.

You're dreaming, of course.

Merry Christmas.