This is another example of "Navernoye, seno vkusno pakhlo" -- a flippant remark about danger, the final sentence of the autobiography/memoir that Putin published in 2000, to introduce himself to Russia, and the world. He was trying to establish a reputation as a man who could be wild and unpredictable, therefore you would never want to play a game of chicken with him, because you could not be sure how far he would take it.<p>This is from the well-regarded Fiona Hill / Clark Gifford book:<p>----------<p>In fact, the Putin book turns out to be the only source for this story, something that ought to have set off alarm bells. Ot pervogo litsa was intended to be a campaign biography, or “semi–autobiography.” The publication of the book was orchestrated by Putin’s staff in the spring of 2000 based on a series of one–on–one interviews with a carefully selected troika of Russian journalists. Putin’s team’s task was to stage–manage the initial presentation, to all of Russia, of this relatively unknown person who was now standing for election as president of the country. It was crafted as a set of conversations with Putin himself, his wife, and other people close to him in his childhood and early life. Every vignette, every new fact presented in the book was chosen for a specific political purpose. The journalists who interviewed Putin also used some of the material for articles in their own newspapers and other publications.<p>What, then, could Putin’s purpose have been in revealing such a character flaw? The answer becomes evident when one reflects on the curious ending of the book. Ot pervogo litsa ends with the interviewers noting that Putin seems, after all the episodes in his life that they have gone through, to be a predictable and rather boring person. Had he never done anything on a whim perhaps? Putin responded by recounting an incident when he risked his own life and that of his passenger, his martial arts coach, while driving on a road outside Leningrad (in fact when he was at university). He tried to grab a piece of hay through his open car window from a passing truck and very nearly lost control of the car. At the end of the harrowing ride, his white–faced (and presumably furious) coach turned to Putin and said, “You take risks.” Why did Putin do that? “I guess I thought the hay smelled good” (Navernoye, seno vkusno pakhlo), said Putin. This is the last line in the book. The reader clearly is meant to identify with Putin’s coach and ask: “Wait! What was that all about? Just who is this guy?”<p>See more here:<p><a href="https://demodexio.substack.com/p/mr-putin-operative-in-the-kremlin" rel="nofollow">https://demodexio.substack.com/p/mr-putin-operative-in-the-k...</a>