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It is sad that so many know so little of Stalin in Russia. But remember that in this country we have an electorate that voted in Bill Clinton, not once, but twice. So we have an equal share of ignorant masses.

Solzhenitsyn and many others are still working to straighten the Russians out on this.

In May the first major museum dedicated to Stalin in half a century will be opened in Volgograd by his three grandsons.

This is the same kind of crap which The Telegraph, World Net Daily, News Max and other rags put out about the statues of Stalin, Churchill, and Roosevelt being that was going to be erected in Volgograd (Stalingrad.) My wife and I maintain an apartment and have friends there, and so I contacted them regarding the statue. They immediately contacted the director for Stalingrad war memorials. He not only didn't know about the statue, but let them know he would not approve it. I contacted these papers, and let them know what he said. They ran the same crap again. The statues are still not in Stalingrad. Furthermore, there are only 3 statues of Stalin in all of Russia, and one has the nose knocked off. However, to be absolutely fair I am going to contact Volgograd, and find out about this Stalin statue.

I think you are right. I found this..... Sounds like NPR kind of propaganda.

In the monument park, near the statue of Joseph Stalin, a singer muses about the condition of Russia today. "Since Soviet times, we have lost something," he says. "Some people have prospered. Many have not. Hearts have been broken. We are tearing each other apart." The singer's lament reflects the fact that Russia has sorely been tested in its 14-plus years of post-Soviet independence. The test has been rigorous. Much as what Russia endured in the years after Stalin's death, and after Khrushchev's secret speech. Ironically, if it was Khrushchev who sought to bury Stalin, Stalin today is enjoying a surge of popularity. Public opinion polls show that at least 50 percent of Russians view him favorably. A salve for some who pine for an iron hand and a sense of order in a time of uncertainty and change. An uncertain and troubling trend for others who were inspired by Khrushchev's secret speech, who remember the past and who value human dignity and freedom above all else. http://americanradioworks.publicradio.org/features/stalin/transcript.html

Advice to Joe

You will see the lightning flashing, hear atomic thunder roll.
When Moscow lies in ashes, God have mercy on your soul.
here's a question, Mr. Stalin, and it's you who must decide:
When atomic bombs start fallin',
Do you have a place to hide?

Roy Acuff, 1950

From the article:
"He is popular among the young, say pollsters, mainly because of rising nationalism, the result of the humiliation of Russia's diminished place in the world.
Volgograd University students lauded Stalin on everything from collectivisation, the agricultural policy that resulted in the deaths of millions through famine, to his supposed love for human rights.
"To change a weak country into the world's greatest power, we had to collectivise," said Andrei Ivanov, a history student. "We were able to produce tractor factories and to win the war."

Do any of you guys care to elaborate on this? Do you want to tell me again how the Russians were really just victims of Stalin, and therefore they bear NO responsibility for a communist holocaust?