There's Vladimir Putin's cult of personality in Russia. According to interrogations of "Levada-centre" every fourth Russian (23%) admits it. 26% consider that there's no cult as such but there are more and more preconditions to its formation. 38% of respondents noticed that they didn't see any signs of cult of personality.
Sociologists notice that more and more people in Russia consider that there is Putin's cult of personality, less and less deny it. If in April, 2007 it was denied by 49% interrogated, by October only 38% of such people remain.
Evaluating Putin's work on overcoming of economic problems respondents put to the prime minister 3,37 points on a five-point scale.
From editorial board: By and large there is nothing especially to be commented - this time "dear Russians" expressed themselves exhaustively.
However, comparing "true" Stalin's cult of personality with present Putin's one, it's necessary to note considerably smaller quantity of deeds and much more modest scale of personality itself. If during Stalin's epoch all important events in the country - whether it's great construction projects or great tragedies - bore distinct sign of personal participation of the leader on them, at present everything happens as if being "emission", rather than personal participation. What are we talking about, if Putin comes to work to the Government House by 11 o'clock and already after 18.00 only separate windows shine in "the White house" - that's all, government work is ended.
The most important is personal participation in the cult of own personality. Stalin, no matter how you treat him, till his last days remained prominent theorist of Marxism and actively wrote on themes connected with direct management by various processes in the country. Written heritage of the leader - volumes of collected works, at that it's known - Stalin wrote them himself.
It is interesting, whether in the "bottom line" of Putin's cult of personality there could be gather at least one volume of his works, even if to take into account his oral performances which amuse till now public with tasty expressions obtained by the national leader from the Leningrad suburbs?
Аnatoly Baranov
PS. To make it clear, if there's cult of personality or there's no such we put interrogation on a theme: "If there's cult of Putin's personality in Russia?"
By the way, the previous question on the them: "What made our people more harm: attack of Hitlerites in 1941 or liberal social and economic reforms begun by Chubajs and Gaydar and continued by Putin and his environment?" gave rather eloquent and statistically very convincing result. 553 respondents consider that more damage was put by Hitler and 3 661 left priority for liberal reformers together with Putin. So the scale of personality turned out to be considerable - the question is just with plus or with minus.
А.B.
