Russian Newspaper Plays US at Its Own Card Game: Bush's card

Russian Newspaper Plays U.S. at Its Own Card Game
9/25/03

MOSCOW (Reuters) - A Russian newspaper has trumped the U.S. government with playing cards featuring top American figures -- a parody of decks issued to U.S. troops during the Iraq war depicting the most-wanted figures in Saddam Hussein's ruling elite.

Reuters Photo of Bush card:
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&u=/030924/170/5dfkm.html

President Bush is the jack of hearts in the new pack, which went on sale ahead of a meeting this week between Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

In the decks, which are selling out in Moscow, Bush's father, former President George Bush, is the ace of hearts, while Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan is the ace of spades.

Many figures on the 36 cards, the standard pack for many Russian games, are depicted in traditional Russian medieval dress and headgear, some with staffs or spears.

Hearts in the pack are dubbed "the family," spades are "the careerists," diamonds are "the moderates" and clubs are "the neo-conservatives." The aim is to remind Russians who is who in the White House.

"We want to show our readers the various faces of the current U.S. political elite,...that it is a complex, living organism with varied and vivid personalities," said Azer Mursaliyev, foreign editor of the business daily Kommersant, which designed the cards.

The cards come complete with brief anecdotes about the figures, including "Laura Bush: Wife of President Bush Jr. She made her husband quit drinking."

Cards for the rest of the Bush gang:
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?g=events/iraq/082701iraqplane&a=&tmpl=sl&ns=&l=1&e=1&a=