The latest nominee for a Nobel Peace Prize is Russian president Vladimir Putin. His name was thrown in the ring by the International Academy of Spiritual Unity and Cooperation of Peoples of the World, which lauded Putin because he “actively promotes settlement of all conflicts arising on the planet.” Translation: He took advantage of John Kerry’s gaffe to make an offer on Syria’s chemical weapons, thereby embarrassing another Peace Prize winner, Barack Obama.

Of course, as noted in The Blaze, the group “made no mention in its nomination announcement of his track record of human rights abuses. The group also made no mention of the role Putin has played in selling arms to unstable and violent regimes (most notably to Syria’s Bashar Assad).”

But since the Peace Prize, which includes recipients such as Al Gore, Jimmy Carter and Yasser Arafat, has long been a bad joke, Putin, should he win, will fit right in.