There is, of course, a controversy surrounding the
notebook. There are some who say that
the heroic image of Stalin, dressed in a sharp military uniform with a chest
full of medals, is nothing short of propaganda aimed at impressionable children
and that it totally ignores the fact that Stalin was responsible for the deaths
of millions of Soviet citizens; the creation of the gulag system and of a
culture of fear that persisted after his death.
In response to numerous complaints, Russia's Education
Minister Andrei Fursenko said that while he disapproves of the notebooks, he
can't legally block their sale.
The counter-argument is that Stalin was a great
leader, who managed, against all odds, to lead the Soviet Union through the
Second World War (or Great Patriotic War as it is known in Russia) and oversaw
the defeat of Nazi Germany. Many
Russians still regard Stalin's reign as the high-water mark for the power and
prestige of the Soviet Union – which, perhaps, explains why most of the
notebook sales are said to be to adults.
Artyom Belan, art director of the publishing house
that put out the Great Russians series makes a point Stalin supporters often
do: "If we do a series of great Russians, should we strike the 20th
century from the list altogether?" Belan asked in an interview published
by USA Today, in other words,
since we can't ignore the fact that Stalin existed, we may as well celebrate
his accomplishments.
But I can think of a better reason
though not to include Josef Stalin in a series on “Great Russians”: he wasn't
Russian. Stalin was actually born in the
Soviet republic of Georgia.
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