Agreed, Peter the Great was an exception. You have probably read Peter Massie's biography of him -- great book. For some reason one detail I remember is that crime was so rampant in Russia at the time that people slept with their money (coins) in their mouth.

>Not always, Mike. Peter the Great tried hard to Westernize Russia as he was an early student of European geopolitics - so he was a rational nationalist I suppose but understood that Russia should align with Western culture and politics.
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>Russia does have a history of cold, aloof leaders. I dunno why, maybe it's in the leadership psyche. What's weird about that is that the Russian people are amongst the warmest, friendliest, and emotional you'd ever meet. As I've said before, I'm a Russophile and I can't recall a Russian I ever met who I didn't get along with great.
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>>That's a great point. Russian leaders have always been nationalists, and ambivalent about the west, but it's hard to think of one as cold as this guy. Then again, there probably haven't been too many avuncular types running the KGB.
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>>>It's not for me to comment on the Russian President's sartorial accomplishments (lol).
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>>>Putin is simply a nationalist. When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, Russia suddenly found itself kicked out of superpower status. The Soviet system had whithered and they had to accept foreign funds to keep the government functioning. This had to hurt someone like Putin and his actions are understandable from that perspective.
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>>>Putin wants Russia to be seen as a great country again. Hence the enormous expansion of the military government and the crackdown on dissidents. It also explains the love-hate relationship with the US.
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>>>But what is chilling is Putin's response to national tragedies. When the Kursk sank he was slow to respond and acted like he was annoyed with the whole deal. The Beslan tragedy where Chechnyans massacred a bunch of schoolchildren drew the same lukewarm reaction. This guy seems to have no heart for his own people.
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>>>>>Srdjan,
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>>>>>No, I am not talking about KGB archives, I'm referring to military communiques. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, a large number of records from the Defense Ministry and Party were declassified by the Russian government. Apparently, in the last few years, the Russian government has reimposed restrictions on access to those records. This is a fact and not an attempt to "recreate an arch-foe".
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>>>>Putin is KGB personified, and he is driving the country. The new president is also a bad dresser!<g>