A not insubstantial number of Russians are firmly inclined back toward monarchy: Ganging Up On "God's Oligarch" http://russia-insider.com/en/christianity/ganging-gods-oligarch/6242 "the majority of traditional Russian Orthodox Christians are monarchists, and view it as the best form of government This so-called liberalism, tolerance, and freedom, these are just words, but behind them you can see the totalitarianism " And this Russian movement is gaining pace: Restore Russian Monarchy? 'We're Ready to Discuss It' - Top Church Official http://russia-insider.com/en/christianity/restore-russian-monarchy-were-read... In the tech computing world we have become familiar with the concept of the Benevolent Dictator For Life or BDFL. The primary attributes which might inform the Russkies in this regard could be: - BDFL-ship is achieved in general by achievement - the creation of something that many others find compelling and worthy of contributing to / participating in. In contrast, a monarch is typically by blood/ descendants, and the outcome of this has been seen to be the degredation arising from inbreeding to maintain power - Egypt's Tuten Khamoon comes to mind. Rome's model wasn't so much better either: http://listverse.com/2010/05/09/top-10-worst-roman-emperors/ The main contrast in the world of monarchs is the Scottish kings who were beheaded if they did not perform, and elected to the dictatorship too in many (most?) cases - Jim Bell's AP may inform some modern branch of such a concept. - The cost to fork a programming project is in some ways relatively low, so if the BDFL (or sponsoring organisation) is seen as belligerent, the community can readily fork the project. Examples: X window system, OpenOffice -> LibreOffice. Monarchs on the other hand, especially when "sanctioned by God" (in the minds of the people), tend to have a rather strong hold on the power (much more so than software BDFLs), and surprisingly tend to cling to their power and to groom (or give birth to) their replacements. The question is, if Russia actually heads in this direction, can a new system of monarchy in Russia be modified in such a way as to mitigate the historical tendendency for the people to be unable to handle the situation when a despot arrives in the seat of autocratic power? It might be wise for those in Russia promoting and intending to recreate a Russian autocratic monarchy, to consider the failings humanity has witnessed throughout history, and to be informed by these failings and by mitigating concepts. - balance of powers - radical transparency - individual autonomy and sovereignty - duty of care to our fellow humans - no sanction for power except in benevolence We (humans in general) are evidently at an interesting point in modern history. Good luck :)