Look who wants to be Russian president - again.

By Rick Moran

Why Vladimir Putin continues the charade of running for any office is beyond me. He should just drop all the pretension and declare himself president for life.

Luke Harding and David Hearst of the Guardian have the details:

Vladimir Putin dropped the heaviest hint so far that he aims to return to his former post as president in 2012, a move that could see him still in the Kremlin in 2024 - aged 72. Speaking to a group of international scholars and journalists at his country residence, the Russian prime minister refused to quash rumours that he would return as president when Dmitry Medvedev finished his first term.He said the process of deciding who would be president would follow the same pattern as in the run-up to the last election, when Putin effectively called all the shots and picked Medvedev as his successor. An election took place, but the result was a foregone conclusion.

"Was there any competition in 2007? No. Then we won't have this in 2012," Putin said. Smiling broadly, he added: "We will agree because we are people of one stamp. We will take all these things into account and then decide."

Putin even sought to use Britain as a defence of the Russian example of a ruling elite deciding over the head of the people who should lead the state.

"Look at Great Britain, when a friend of mine [Tony Blair] retired and automatically promoted Gordon Brown to the post of prime minister. Did the people of Great Britain participate in this? There was a change in leadership in the country and they just decided. Whereas when my term expired I supported Dmitry Medvedev because I thought he was the best person to be leader, and I was right."

Putin's false equivalence with the transfer of power in Great Britain neglects to mention that Mr. Brown could have called for early elections to strengthen his position if he believed it necessary. Or, the opposition could have passed a vote of "no confidence" and elections would have been held that way.

Does anyone seriously believe Putin would allow such an election?

So, while Communism has been pushed into the background in Russia thanks to Reagan, Putin and his KGB thugs will continue to rule. Democracy, while not completely dead, nevertheless is under attack - literally. Putin doesn't arrest opponents very often. He simply has them murdered. In that respect, Putin is worse than the Communists and will continue to rule with an iron hand until he is deposed or until he dies.