Books on Russians

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Actually it is. Putin overhauled the history textbooks and the changes included casting Stalin in a more positive light.

You're so cute, you remind me of a rhyming contest Russia ran in jest a few years ago. The poem had to have two lines, and the second had to be "Yes, it must be Putin's fault." I remember the entries that went like" Did you your girlfriend cheat on you? yes, it must be Putin's fault. Did your skating practice suck? Yes, it must be Putin's fault." It's much funnier in Russian.

The real answer, my little darling, has nothing to do with any alleged education reform (certainly, not enough people would have graduated school with the new textbooks - if they existed - to make any difference!) The real answer is that for a substantial number of Russians, life under Stalin and his successors was substantially better than it is today. And all the Hedricks of the world won't be able to do a damn about that.

Huh?!

It was better to suffer mass repression and labor camps?

Are you really unaware of the new textbooks Putin has introduced throughout the years? It’s a big reason for the improvement in his image over the last 20 years. You can read about it here: https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/16/stalins-approval-rating-among-russians-hits-record-high-poll-a65245

[Anonymous]

This article talks about how state propaganda helps feed a sense of nostalgia about what people think life was like under Stalin: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bbc.com/news/amp/world-europe-47975704

If you look at a Russian textbook used in schools (which I have), you’ll see these messages echoed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Actually it is. Putin overhauled the history textbooks and the changes included casting Stalin in a more positive light.

You're so cute, you remind me of a rhyming contest Russia ran in jest a few years ago. The poem had to have two lines, and the second had to be "Yes, it must be Putin's fault." I remember the entries that went like" Did you your girlfriend cheat on you? yes, it must be Putin's fault. Did your skating practice suck? Yes, it must be Putin's fault." It's much funnier in Russian.

The real answer, my little darling, has nothing to do with any alleged education reform (certainly, not enough people would have graduated school with the new textbooks - if they existed - to make any difference!) The real answer is that for a substantial number of Russians, life under Stalin and his successors was substantially better than it is today. And all the Hedricks of the world won't be able to do a damn about that.

Huh?!

It was better to suffer mass repression and labor camps?

Are you really unaware of the new textbooks Putin has introduced throughout the years? It’s a big reason for the improvement in his image over the last 20 years. You can read about it here: https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/16/stalins-approval-rating-among-russians-hits-record-high-poll-a65245

This doesn't say anything about the textbooks. And you kind of buried the lede here, didn't you? According to the article, the big reason for the surge in Stalin's popularity is that he's seen as an alternative to the current government, viewed as "unjust and uncaring". So if Putin made all these changes to boost his own popularity (as is your assumption), then it kinda backfired on him, don't you think?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This article talks about how state propaganda helps feed a sense of nostalgia about what people think life was like under Stalin: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bbc.com/news/amp/world-europe-47975704

If you look at a Russian textbook used in schools (which I have), you’ll see these messages echoed.

I don't know what to tell you. I have a niece who's a freshman in college, so her school experience is pretty recent. She reports that Stalin was covered in very critical terms as recently as two years ago. Read less BBC, talk to more people.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Actually it is. Putin overhauled the history textbooks and the changes included casting Stalin in a more positive light.

You're so cute, you remind me of a rhyming contest Russia ran in jest a few years ago. The poem had to have two lines, and the second had to be "Yes, it must be Putin's fault." I remember the entries that went like" Did you your girlfriend cheat on you? yes, it must be Putin's fault. Did your skating practice suck? Yes, it must be Putin's fault." It's much funnier in Russian.

The real answer, my little darling, has nothing to do with any alleged education reform (certainly, not enough people would have graduated school with the new textbooks - if they existed - to make any difference!) The real answer is that for a substantial number of Russians, life under Stalin and his successors was substantially better than it is today. And all the Hedricks of the world won't be able to do a damn about that.

Huh?!

It was better to suffer mass repression and labor camps?

Are you really unaware of the new textbooks Putin has introduced throughout the years? It’s a big reason for the improvement in his image over the last 20 years. You can read about it here: https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/16/stalins-approval-rating-among-russians-hits-record-high-poll-a65245

This doesn't say anything about the textbooks. And you kind of buried the lede here, didn't you? According to the article, the big reason for the surge in Stalin's popularity is that he's seen as an alternative to the current government, viewed as "unjust and uncaring". So if Putin made all these changes to boost his own popularity (as is your assumption), then it kinda backfired on him, don't you think?

I said the textbooks echo these messages. Just read them and you’ll see.

Also, you don’t understand how Putin puts down the government to elevate himself. It’s a really well known tactic in Russia and the fact that you aren’t aware of it just shows your own ignorance.

[Anonymous]

Stalin died in 1953. Who the heck remembers what it was like in 1953?!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This article talks about how state propaganda helps feed a sense of nostalgia about what people think life was like under Stalin: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bbc.com/news/amp/world-europe-47975704

If you look at a Russian textbook used in schools (which I have), you’ll see these messages echoed.

I don't know what to tell you. I have a niece who's a freshman in college, so her school experience is pretty recent. She reports that Stalin was covered in very critical terms as recently as two years ago. Read less BBC, talk to more people.

Where does she go to school?

I did talk to people and read the actual textbooks. I have a copy of one in my house. Did you read the Levada poll I posted? The majority of Russians see Stalin in neutral or positive terms. That was as of this March.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Actually it is. Putin overhauled the history textbooks and the changes included casting Stalin in a more positive light.

You're so cute, you remind me of a rhyming contest Russia ran in jest a few years ago. The poem had to have two lines, and the second had to be "Yes, it must be Putin's fault." I remember the entries that went like" Did you your girlfriend cheat on you? yes, it must be Putin's fault. Did your skating practice suck? Yes, it must be Putin's fault." It's much funnier in Russian.

The real answer, my little darling, has nothing to do with any alleged education reform (certainly, not enough people would have graduated school with the new textbooks - if they existed - to make any difference!) The real answer is that for a substantial number of Russians, life under Stalin and his successors was substantially better than it is today. And all the Hedricks of the world won't be able to do a damn about that.

Huh?!

It was better to suffer mass repression and labor camps?

Are you really unaware of the new textbooks Putin has introduced throughout the years? It’s a big reason for the improvement in his image over the last 20 years. You can read about it here: https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/16/stalins-approval-rating-among-russians-hits-record-high-poll-a65245

Of course mass repressions and labor camps were awful, but you have to remember that for a majority of the populace, that was something that happened to other people. I don't know why your imagination is so limited that you can't digest that life under Stalin was good to some people, and perestroika brought many unwelcome and highly painful changes to a large enough number of people to bring about nostalgia for the old times when pensions were paid on time and actually bought something.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This article talks about how state propaganda helps feed a sense of nostalgia about what people think life was like under Stalin: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bbc.com/news/amp/world-europe-47975704

If you look at a Russian textbook used in schools (which I have), you’ll see these messages echoed.

I don't know what to tell you. I have a niece who's a freshman in college, so her school experience is pretty recent. She reports that Stalin was covered in very critical terms as recently as two years ago. Read less BBC, talk to more people.

Where does she go to school?

I did talk to people and read the actual textbooks. I have a copy of one in my house. Did you read the Levada poll I posted? The majority of Russians see Stalin in neutral or positive terms. That was as of this March.

In Moscow, as it were. Smack in the middle of it all!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Actually it is. Putin overhauled the history textbooks and the changes included casting Stalin in a more positive light.

You're so cute, you remind me of a rhyming contest Russia ran in jest a few years ago. The poem had to have two lines, and the second had to be "Yes, it must be Putin's fault." I remember the entries that went like" Did you your girlfriend cheat on you? yes, it must be Putin's fault. Did your skating practice suck? Yes, it must be Putin's fault." It's much funnier in Russian.

The real answer, my little darling, has nothing to do with any alleged education reform (certainly, not enough people would have graduated school with the new textbooks - if they existed - to make any difference!) The real answer is that for a substantial number of Russians, life under Stalin and his successors was substantially better than it is today. And all the Hedricks of the world won't be able to do a damn about that.

Huh?!

It was better to suffer mass repression and labor camps?

Are you really unaware of the new textbooks Putin has introduced throughout the years? It’s a big reason for the improvement in his image over the last 20 years. You can read about it here: https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2019/04/16/stalins-approval-rating-among-russians-hits-record-high-poll-a65245

Of course mass repressions and labor camps were awful, but you have to remember that for a majority of the populace, that was something that happened to other people. I don't know why your imagination is so limited that you can't digest that life under Stalin was good to some people, and perestroika brought many unwelcome and highly painful changes to a large enough number of people to bring about nostalgia for the old times when pensions were paid on time and actually bought something.

Do you not get that the notion that Stalin brought good things to Russians and so should be considered with nostalgia is a myth? Memorial produced a video about exactly that point and also more generally about the myths that underpin public opinion regarding Stalin.

https://www.levada.ru/2019/06/10/funktsii-mifa-o-chem-govorit-nam-dinamika-massovogo-otnosheniya-k-stalinu/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This article talks about how state propaganda helps feed a sense of nostalgia about what people think life was like under Stalin: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bbc.com/news/amp/world-europe-47975704

If you look at a Russian textbook used in schools (which I have), you’ll see these messages echoed.

I don't know what to tell you. I have a niece who's a freshman in college, so her school experience is pretty recent. She reports that Stalin was covered in very critical terms as recently as two years ago. Read less BBC, talk to more people.

Where does she go to school?

I did talk to people and read the actual textbooks. I have a copy of one in my house. Did you read the Levada poll I posted? The majority of Russians see Stalin in neutral or positive terms. That was as of this March.

In Moscow, as it were. Smack in the middle of it all!

LOOLLL

You’ve got to be joking. Of course things are different in Moscow!! That’s a center of elites. You can’t generalize for the rest of Russian education based on someone’s experience in Moscow. The Levada poll is just one of a million pieces of evidence to substantiate that.

You really don’t know much about that country.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Stalin died in 1953. Who the heck remembers what it was like in 1953?!

People whose family members were killed by Stalin?

[Anonymous]

Here’s an article that references the 2007 history textbook I read.

I found an English language article so people here who don’t read Russian can read it.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.dw.com/en/why-stalin-is-causing-a-classroom-storm-in-russia/a-39866244

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Stalin died in 1953. Who the heck remembers what it was like in 1953?!

People whose family members were killed by Stalin?

Yep.

Look up the organization Memorial and the struggles they’ve had operating in Russia, and then try to tell me about how reasonable life was under Stalin and how the Kremlin isn’t trying to bury anything about his crimes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Stalin died in 1953. Who the heck remembers what it was like in 1953?!

People whose family members were killed by Stalin?

Wouldn't most of them be dead by now? The family members that were of age to remember things from back then? Or super old? I am almost 50, and my grandparents are all dead. My dad passed away, and he was born in 1938, my mom was born in 1947, I bet you she only "remembers" things wrongly from when she was 8!