Zhirinovsky's jester nationalist Liberal Democratic Party of Russia may not be good at winning elections but they sure make up for it by keeping the Russians entertained. In their latest stand-up routine
they ask since Moscow is bent on forcing malign foreign organizations to register as "foreign agents" why not start with American junk food chains:
State Duma (lower house of parliament) Deputy Boris Chernyshov, a member of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDPR) apparently wants to spice the propaganda war by adding a food fight.
Chernyshov suggested that food chains like McDonalds, KFC, and other American fast food restaurant chains operating in Russia should also be designated as foreign agents. Chernyshov didn't specify whether the receipts and food wrappers should have printed a "served to you by a foreign agent" label.
However, Chernyshov told the RBC business portal on Friday that he had sent a letter to Russia's food and media watchdog proposing that ads for the fast food chains be marked as belonging to a foreign agent.
The next step, he suggested, would be to include fast food chains in the foreign agent registry. "Research has shown that food sold by American fast-food restaurants is damaging to people's health," Chernyshov said. "But ads show only the positive side of consuming these products." Chernyshov was cited by Russian media on Friday criticizing the chains for contributing to the decline of Russian cuisine.
Some critics of Chernyshov's proposal say McDonalds food is so crappy that they probably would see a foreign agent label imposed on them as free - James Bond-style advertising.
Comment: Chernyshov is giving
Zhirinovsky a run for his money. But given how ridiculous American policy towards Russia has been lately, who can blame him? And all joking aside, he's right about American fast-food's effects on health. This man deserves a medal, and an English Twitter account.
Comment: Chernyshov is giving Zhirinovsky a run for his money. But given how ridiculous American policy towards Russia has been lately, who can blame him? And all joking aside, he's right about American fast-food's effects on health. This man deserves a medal, and an English Twitter account.