We do confess, we did not know there was still such as thing as the Russian Communist Party. But, apparently, there is. If its most recent descent to characteristic indecency did not deal with such a serious matter, we would regard the whole matter, and the party itself, as rather ludicrous. We can think of no better entry for the Chutzpah Dept.
Seems that the Russian communists have asked Russia for a day-long moratorium on criticism of Soviet dictator Josef Stalin as the party celebrates his 130th birthday.
Despite overseeing political purges and a widespread famine that killed millions of Soviet citizens, Stalin is still embraced by Russian communists nostalgic for Soviet times.
Of course, a moratorium on Stalin-criticism is like asking for a moratorium on Hitler. One murderous, maniacal dictator can no more easily be cut some slack, even posthumously, than another. Perhaps there are also a few remaining nostalgic Nazis who would also seek a reprieve from the guilt associated with Germanys state-sponsored murder of millions of innocents.
Of infinitely greater import, perhaps there grow in parts of the former Soviet Union, including the former East Germany, political forces who would bring back the policies of Hitler, if they could. It is hardly the vigilance, which is the eternal price of liberty, to grant the Russian Communist Party its request.
Josef Stalin is also remembered as the inventor of political correctness. It is he who supposedly said that the death of an individual is a tragedy, the death of a million individuals is a statistic. The request for a day to refrain from remembering his evil is an appropriate touch by his out-of-touch devotees.
