The 'Cardboard Khomeini' meme originated in 2012 during a ceremony in Iran marking the anniversary of Ayatollah Khomeini's 1979 return from exile. To reenact the historical moment, officials used a life-sized cardboard cutout of the late leader, which was escorted by uniformed guards and saluted by military personnel. The resulting images were unintentionally surreal and quickly went viral globally, becoming a symbol of bizarre political theater and forced symbolism. In meme culture, it is often used to represent awkward situations, people being physically present but mentally checked out, or instances where a replacement is painfully obvious.