Putin, a classy man in a classless society.

Marx would be smiling right now if he was not so dead.

While taking a bit of a breather from oppressing the Georgians, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin really showed his stuff by saving an entire camera crew from certain digestion.

The Prime Minister was in the “far east” visiting a group of scientists studying the Amur tiger. The tigers have made a remarkable comeback from near extinction in recent years and the scientists were gathering data and equipping the cats with transmitters in order to track their movements.

During Putin’s visit, one of the trapped tigers escaped and made a run for the camera crew. The Prime Minister shot the tiger, saving the crew and creating some wonderful PR. The Georgians are really going to have their work cut out for them trying to spin this one.

What an incredible example of public service. One of the most influential people in Russia rolled up his sleeves (which created some amazing dramatic tension by the way) and “got his hands dirty” – saving a bunch of commoners. Let’s hear it for a classless society!

But the story does not end there. There are more than just a handful of photographers that can be singing the praises of fixed elections. There is something here for the card carrying PETA member in all of us. Putin had the foresight to shoot the tiger not with bullets, but with a tranquilizing dart. Both the cat and the crew live to tell the tale because of this quick thinking man of the people.

With presidential elections looming it does the heart good to see a leader of such quality. Before you go to the polls in November you may want to ask yourself, “How many tigers has Obama not killed lately?” Food for thought indeed.