Putin - The Man, The Myth, The Legend

Although these days Russia's president, Vladimir Putin, is almost always regarded with a certain air of disdain, it cannot be said that Putin hasn't gone to extremes to ensure a good public image. From finding ancient Greek ceramic jugs whilst scuba-diving to riding horses lacking a shirt, Putin has definitely made an effort to show the people not only his bounding masculinity but also a gentle side rarely believed to exist in Russia nowadays.

Simply Google "Vladimir Putin shirtless," and hundreds upon hundreds of results will pop up. The man clearly doesn't mind being seen without a shirt, unlike several other notable presidents today (Mr. Obama...). The common folk have even gone so far as to Photoshop Mr. Putin riding a bear, a dragon, and numerous other interesting things. While this undoubtedly secures Vladimir the number 1 spot in the testosterone category for presidents, he doesn't stop there. While on a trip to Siberia, Putin reportedly rescued the camera crew from almost certain death at the hands of a rare Siberian tiger. Unfortunately, the unbelievably courageous act of heroism was not caught on camera.

However, masculinity itself does not make a great president. Putin simply couldn't let the commoners of the world see him as a simple, one-sided brawn-oriented man that had no respect for the gentler folk. While scuba-diving back in 2011, Vladimir and the crew managed to find broken pieces of vases from Greece well over 2000 years old. Since then he has admitted to the pieces being planted, but hey, it was worth a shot, right? However, leaving you all with Putin in such a bad light would be unfair to Mr. Vladimir, so I shall conclude with this. In 2010, Putin received a young Bulgarian Shepard as an expression of thanks from the Bulgarian prime minister. Being a smart man, he seized the opportunity when he saw it. Mr. Putin offered up the naming of the puppy to the common folk of Russia. Finally deciding on the fierce name of Buffy (don't forget Fluffy from Harry Potter now, this thing could be highly dangerous), Putin not only invited the 5 year old boy who somehow managed to come up with this legendary name into his home, but made sure he left with none other than a signed football from the man himself.