The case of Kim F. (also known as La Russophobe) is an interesting and edifying example of neurotic escapism when a person develops a special mechanism of escaping freedom by negating the personal independence and merging her Ego with something or someone superior, thus gaining powers that the individual personally lacks.

Here is how Konstantin starts off his blog: ""Entia non sunt multiplicanda praeter necessitatem." The universal methodological principle, known as Okkam's razor, says "Entities are not to be multiplied above the necessary." I try to use this principle to understand Russia." So I guess it takes one to know one, huh Konstantin?

The source of Kim F’s psychological problems certainly lies in her childhood. She was bred up by a very authoritarian, rigorous and stern Parent. In her childhood there was no place for love, for self-reliance or for feeling of confidence. Kim’s attitude towards power, as symbolized by her Parent’s figure, is ambivalent. On one hand there is always one power she hates and another power she worships. She is filled with severe loneliness, feebleness, spite but at the same her craving to rule over minds of other people is limitless. This irrational thirst for power and desire to be loved is what makes an authoritarian personality. It is not yet clear what exact roles Kim’s parents played in forming her personality but the fact that the object of her irrational hate is hard power autocratic Mother Russia and the object of her love is soft power theocratic Father America gives us some better understanding on the subject of role structure of Kim’s family.

Gee, how fascinating. La Russophobe has never tried this method of analysis before. Let's give it a try, shall we. Granted, we don't know anything about Konstantin personally, but we don't need to ask him or anything, because we can read what he's written and gain wonderful insights about his character. Hmmm . . . what do we find?

• Well, for starters, there is not one single word written on Konstantin's blog about Russia's problem with race violence. Therefore, Konstantin is obviously a racist.

• Next, all the comments about this post come from men. Therefore, Konstantin is obviously a homosexual.

• Konstantin didn't write to La Russophobe to ask her any questions about her background, which obviously means he's a coward, especially around women. Probably comes from a broken home.
  

• Finally, Konstantin does not understand the need to document his credentials or to get the correct name of the subject of his analysis and diagnosis, which obviously means that his parents gave him savage beatings when he was a child, causing permanent brain damage.

How am I doing, Konstantin? I'm sure my conclusions are equally as valid as yours, right? ;)

Distinct forms of this mechanism could be found in the striving for domination and for submission. In everyday life this mechanism manifests itself in masochism and sadism. Let us start with the analysis of Kim F’s masochistic tendencies. At the core of masochism lies the feeling of inferiority, feebleness and insignificance. Kim F. always provokes other people to insult her and then finds immense pleasure in desperately fighting back provoking yet more abuse and humiliations. It comes as no surprise that Kim’s favorite poet is Mikhail Lermontov – a romantic Russian poet whose masochistic behavior was the major cause of his tragic death at the age of 27. Kim F. is fascinated with Lermontov’s poem “Mtsyri” that tells the story of a youth who run away from monastery, spent several days fighting for his life in the wilderness, started a hopeless fight with a mountain ounce and was mortally wounded by it. Kim F. associates herself with Mtsyri when she goes on with her personal crusade against Mother Russia.

Isn't it interesting, these are exactly the same things that the Soviet dicators said about Alexander Solzhenitsin just before they shipped him off to a gulag and then out of the country. They made all sorts of insightful psychiatric diagnoses and clearly proved that Solzhenitsin's opposition to their dictatorship was the result of mental illness and poor upbringing. But I would like to thank Konstantin, a real neo-Soviet man, for clearing up the matter of Lermontov. La Russophobe had always thought that Lermontov was killed in a Tsarist plot just the way Pushkin was, because Lermontov bravely stood up for Pushkin after the attack. She thought his poem was about placing the value of freedom above the value of personal comfort, something Russians desperately needed to learn. She had no idea Lermontov was just a mental case. Thanks for the correction!

By the way, can anybody tell La Russophobe what a "mountain ounce" is? She's never heard of that animal before. Is it native to Russia?

It is evident that Kim F. is neurotic. In her fight with the Evil Empire her rhetorical instrument of choice is reductionism. She singles out some fact about life in contemporary Russia and makes broad generalizations on the “evilness” of Russia in general. This is not surprising as she approaches her own health in exactly the same way. Kim F. believes that she is a very sick person. She views one cough as a sign of TB, stomach pains as a sign of ulcer and headache as a sign of meningitis. Such neurotic phobias also manifest themselves in Kim’s hate of her body or of any human body in general. She is horrified at Myskina photographs in GQ that she calls soft porn and the idea of Russian banya disgusts her immensely. Most probably Kim F. is obese or unhealthy anorexic. It is also possible that the fear of human body is a result of strict religious education in the childhood.

Just what Chamberlain said about those who didn't "understand" Hitler and were "overreacting" to him. La Russophobe is proud to have official medical confirmation from a credentialed expert like Konstantin that she suffers from this malady. She hopes it gets much, much worse.

Masochism in Kim’s personality comes together with sadism that is not at all surprising. Sadism is just another side of inferiority complex and utter loneliness. Kim F. enjoys abusing and humiliating people as it makes her feels stronger, smarter and more significant as she actually is. The rationalization of her sadistic behavior is simple, “Every means is right when you fight people who support the Evil Empire”.

La Russophobe must pick a nit. Most means, to be sure, but not every single one. La Russophobe would not stoop so low as to get the subject of her attack's name wrong. She does have some standards.

At the same time Kim F. is incredibly sensitive towards flattery. She meets every commendation with almost childish joy and happiness. In case nobody cares Kim F. can indulge in self-flattery.

From now on, La Russophobe will try to cry and pout whenever she's complimented. Hopefully, Konstantin has now set her properly on the path to adulthood.

We could not help but notice that Kim’s severe depressions became less frequent and less severe as she started blogging. Blogging is definitely a perfect means of sublimating the patient’s irrational fears and phobias. Blogging makes Kim F. famous - Fame and Glory is what she values above all as they are evident proves of the person's Power.

Tell that to the people who say that Kim isn't even her real name, and that she is anonymous, won't you Konstantin? It's hard to get famous when people think you are writing under a pseudonym.

We wish Kim F. well and ask all bloggers she comes into contact with to support the treatment of the patient by satisfying her sadomasochistic needs in the virtual reality.

Gee, every blogger in the world reads Russian Blog. La Russophobe had no idea! But Konstantin doesn't want fame or anything, he's just doing a great public service by helping to rationalize the rise of dictatorship in Russia. Thanks Konstantin! I couldn't agree more that "I thought Washington Post and NYT are outlandish when it comes to Russian politics." Clearly, it's your blog and not these major newspapers which is to be trusted where Russia is concerned.