Oddly Enough Blog
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Cool dudes, dashing in haberdashery…
Okay, it’s the last day of voting in our scientific Coolest Leader Dude poll, designed to confer that title on one international leader – Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, Britain’s Prince Charles, or U.S. President Barack Obama.
I must warn you that after a week of balloting, Charles has a massive lead. I plan to spend my whole weekend cooking the results, but I do need something to work with, like a couple of votes for Obama or Putin.
Today we’re looking at the three nominees in hats, which can make a guy look very cool if it’s chosen right and worn well.
For want of official names, we’ll refer to this headgear as Obama’s Indiana Jones hat, Putin’s Aussie bush bonnet and Charles’ uh, groom-on-the-wedding-cake thingy.
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Above: Britain’s Prince Charles attends the first day of the Royal Ascot race meeting, June 16, 2009. REUTERS/ Eddie Keogh
Left upper: U.S. President Barack Obama tours the Egyptian Great Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx in this handout photo taken June 4, 2009. REUTERS/Pete Souza/The White House/Handout
Left lower: Russia’s President Vladimir Putin fishes in the Yenisei River in Siberia in a 2007 file photo. REUTERS/RIA Novosti/KREMLIN
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How can there possibly be any doubt?
If anything, this sequence settles the score:
- Obama’s Indy hat is nice, but clearly borrows on somebody else’s coolness and image, and hence is a bit fake.
- Vlad’s semi-military thing is… how to put this? Let’s just say that it reminds me a lot of Gilligan.
- Charles is, by miles upon miles upon miles, the coolest looking leader with his elegance, his savoir-faire, his understated manhood…
Was there really ever a contest in this case after all?
Based purely on dashing haberdashery, I’m afraid I’ll have to go with Charles as well. Now, put Obama in a bowler and a tux, and Putin in a military cap and uniform, and you’d have yerself a much tighter race.
Charles always seems to be sporting a facial expression that says, “I’m not positive but i might’ve just soiled my trousers.”
I don’t know, Mr. Putin has that “I’m ready to crush your puny little uprising” look. I wouldn’t want to be on his bad side since I’m allergic to most types of radiation.
So your allergies aside, is that a vote for Putin?
Neither Obama nor Putin can even look at the camera they’re so embarassed with their hats.
Charles is thinking “Watch me pull a rabbit out of my hat.”
“I do need something to work with, like a couple of votes for Obama or Putin.”
Okay Mr. Basler, I’ll lend you a hand this time, but ONLY because I happen to have a very similar Stetson hat, and seeing Obama wearing his reminds me of the movie Blazing Saddles . . .
Oh who am I kidding! I cannot deny the unparalleled coolness of Prince Charles! Top hats -are- pretty cool as it is, and as we have seen, hats happen to be one of Chuck’s specialties. So stick another, even bigger feather in his cap–for he has my vote once more.
And why is Putin shirtless again!
Its Chuck by a landslide! Look at how dashing he is rockin the “groom-on-the-wedding-cake” hat
Oh man I so gotta get me a tophat. This top it Charles for sure.
I’m sorry, I was voting for Putin the whole time, but I have to go with Charles on this one. He’s rockin the top hat
You guys are just jerking my chain now, aren’t you?
Part of cool is to own your look. Now Obama looks pretty good in that hat, but it just isn’t his look. Putin needs to throw on a shirt to even be in the running. But Chas, now Chas totally belongs in that hat. He truly owns the look.
Only because we love you Bob.
And because we love Prince Charles even more.
My votes (I’ve been keeping tally in my head), prior to this last post, were all for Obama. However, this last one goes to Charles. He really can pull off that top hat well. So, that’s four votes for the ‘bama, and one for the Prince.
How appalling, Robert! I am utterly dismayed!! Do you really think we, your loyal readers, would even dare think of having a laugh in this, your blog?
Still Charles all the way man.
I have an assignment for you, Bob. Your mission…should you choose to accept it…is to find 5 shots of Putin WITH a shirt…Do they exist?
Oh no, it’s over?! Say it ain’t so. A quick Chucky image search reveals that this could go on… err, forever. I particularly like the one where he is receiving the Tilak. His forehead looks suspiciously concave. Oh yeah, I’m still contrary. Obama!
I held my vote until yesterday, when I voted for Chuck, and this set confirms my vote once again. Barry is apparently trying to cash in on the Indiana Jones fad (which died over a year ago), while Vlad’s hat remind me of something you’d see on a late night cable fishing show, complete with frayed seams.
Meanwhile, Chuck is obviously paying tribute to some of the coolest Top Hat wearers in history: Fred Astaire, Mark Twain, Slash, and more recently, Madonna. Chuck is by far the coolest.
No, K., they don’t exist. I thought I hit paydirt with the series of shots of Putin speaking before the United Nations in January, but the clip-on bowtie was just clasping bits of his skin. There was still no shirt.
OK, OK. If I must vote, I’ll put in for Putin.
I still vote for Willy Wonka
Nope, sorry, it is Charles, why do you keep bothering us with this. We have spoken
I’m gonna go for Obama, mostly because he knows whats hip and whats not. Despite attacks from the right and the left Obama is still playing it cool. Putin is a Bad-a$$,but he dosent have the cool factor The Big Obama has.
obama’s head is too small for indy’s hat. putin is terrifying, no matter what he wears: i’ll give him that. but charles is so civilized. ponce? maybe, arguably even, but SO civilized! charles gets my vote.
Voting for Charles just to spite you for trying to ‘fix’ the results of the poll!
I vote for Obama in this one. The hat fits him, although he looks like a bird jutting his head forward. I would vote for Charles, but you want some odd Obama-and-Vlad votes so that it gives you something to work with.