A Musician Politician — Fantasy vs. Reality
— What happens here happens there — why a Cold War?
Not many folks think of Vladimir Putin as a Donovan-like folk musician who worshiped Grace Slick and once performed on his guitar the Doors Crystal Ship song at the Paris grave of Jim Morrison. Fewer realize the young KGB agent performed street music, busking for money on the streets of Paris (see Daily Kos human interest story at the end of this writing).
Hmmm!
Let’s start by hearing a Donovan tune:
It’s likely most Americans do not realize the Russian music scene includes just about everything — variations of punk rock, heavy metal, epic folk tales and much more. I suspect, however, Putin more appreciates classical music. But there does exist a video of him riding a Harley, leading a retinue of bikers to an annual heavy metal biker-music festival in Crimea.
Music in Russia
Queen has performed in Moscow. So has Metallica. In 2019, Giorgio Moroder performed the David Bowie cover tune Cat People in Moscow. Annually there is the Midsummer Night’s Dream costume ball, full of electronic music, at Moscow’s Floating Gardens. DJ, rap music and gay discos flourish throughout the city. Musicians perform for coins on city streets. What we get here in America, they get there too.
But you’d never know this by reading America’s media!
Below, is a reflection of the actual Putin! While once waiting for Chinese President Xi Jinping to appear at his Beijing residence, Putin performed, on the Chinese president’s Steinway piano, Moscow Windows and City over the Wide Neva.
Contrary to impressions most Americans hold of Russia — that it is a nation comprised mostly of white folk — there are over two dozen different ethnic minority populations residing within Russia. Music and the arts are assigned great importance throughout Russian culture.
This is best exemplified when the Russians helped Syria recapture the ancient city of Palmyra from the ISIS terrorists. Shortly after victory, Putin brought in the Russian Mariinsky Orchestra to perform the Pray for Palmyra symphony concert at Palmyria’s ancient amphitheater ruins. This is one of the best — if not the best — musical performance-ever anywhere at any time. But we in America never got to learn or hear much about it!
“Pray for Palmyra” — Russian Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra
Today, America just got past a president who has sported an ugly mobside mentality. Donald Trump more resembled Tony Soprano the mob boss than he did an actual world leader. Where Putin — who reads — excels at chess; Trump — who doesn’t read — dumbed down on checkers and golf mulligans.
But Trump’s ignorance aside, he is just like any other US president when it comes to dropping bombs on people. No other nation on earth compares to the USA when it comes to bombing innocent people and showing off military might.
A Most Remarkable Story
If you read the below account of the writer who makes a claim he once met and partied with Putin in France, one would get an impression Putin doesn’t wish to bomb anyone.
But I do wish The Daily Kos writer were not a Russiagater. Perhaps the writer needs to talk with Putin again. I also wish our American presidents would share some of the qualities of Putin. In fact, I wish every country on earth could have a musician president.
Perhaps the Daily Kos writer, what with his remarkable story, has a good point about magic mushrooms. Maybe all of the presidents in the world should gather and eat mushrooms. Then they could return to their respective nations and deliver harmonious state of the union speeches.
But I’m sure America ultimately would ruin this by making the cost of the mushrooms overly expensive and utterly unaffordable for anyone. You see, America, to keep its drug war and control over its population, prefers to flood markets with cheap heroin and cocaine. It wouldn’t want magic mushrooms to gum up what America otherwise perceives as a very good thing!
