# Turkmenbashi

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/turkmenbashi/265740>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [September 23, 2004, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/turkmenbashi/265740 "2004-09-23T20:07:17Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![New\_Iskander](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/db5fbb/32.png) [@New\_Iskander](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/New_Iskander)\
**Post date:** [September 23, 2004, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/turkmenbashi/265740/1 "2004-09-23T20:07:17Z")

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(translated from “[Radio Svoboda](http://www.svoboda.org/hotnews/2004/09/23/30.asp?newstopic=%D7%E5%F7%ED%FF)”)

> [@](#):
>
> Today in Turkmenistan, state TV interrapted it’s scheduled programming for two hours, to allow the president Saparmurat Niyazov to read his verses on the air. His new collection of poems, including such as “My Democracy” and “Renaissance of Turkmen Nation” is due in October. Recently Turkmenbashi published a second volume of his main work-“Ruhnama”. “Ruhnama” is proclaimed to be “spiritual constitution of Turkmen people”, is mandatory for study in schools and colleges, it’s name is given to the month of September.

[Straight from the horse’s mouth.](http://www.ce.metu.edu.tr/~turkmens/RuhnamaCD/ruhnama-en/index.htm)

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**Author:** ![TellMeI\_mNotCrazy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tellmei_mnotcrazy/32/3419_2.png) [@TellMeI\_mNotCrazy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TellMeI_mNotCrazy)\
**Post date:** [September 23, 2004, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/turkmenbashi/265740/2 "2004-09-23T20:09:53Z")

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The man is clearly a loon.

All I hear are the quirky stories about him; is he crazy in any harmful kind of way?

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**Author:** ![World\_Eater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@World\_Eater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/World_Eater)\
**Post date:** [September 23, 2004, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/turkmenbashi/265740/3 "2004-09-23T20:12:28Z")

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> [@TellMeI'mNotCrazy](#):
>
> The man is clearly a loon.
> 
> All I hear are the quirky stories about him; is he crazy in any harmful kind of way?

Not that I’ve seen. He banned gold teeth a little while ago. 😃

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**Author:** ![TellMeI\_mNotCrazy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tellmei_mnotcrazy/32/3419_2.png) [@TellMeI\_mNotCrazy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TellMeI_mNotCrazy)\
**Post date:** [September 23, 2004, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/turkmenbashi/265740/4 "2004-09-23T20:18:36Z")

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And why?

Because:

> [@](#):
>
> “I watched young dogs when I was young,” the Turkmen president said. “They were given bones to gnaw. Those of you whose teeth have fallen out did not gnaw on bones. This is my advice.”

What does that even MEAN?

And there’s a national holiday for melons (July 10th.)

And male newscasters can no longer wear (pancake) makeup - because it was getting hard for dear old Turkmenbashi to tell the men from the women.

I see Turkmenbashi, and I know I’m in for a chuckle.

Loony.

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**Author:** ![World\_Eater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@World\_Eater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/World_Eater)\
**Post date:** [September 23, 2004, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/turkmenbashi/265740/5 "2004-09-23T20:38:49Z")

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How could I have forgotten about the ice palace in the desert?

[http://homepage.mac.com/rondavis/iblog/C791896557/E1478594199/](http://homepage.mac.com/rondavis/iblog/C791896557/E1478594199/)

This dude is a trip.