Mass Grave Discovered, probably from Stalin era

From: The New York Times

World Briefing | EUROPE
Russia: Workers Find Mass Grave
By REUTERS
Published: June 9, 2010

Workmen building a road outside of Vladivostok discovered a mass grave with at least 495 skeletons, probably dating to Stalin’s purges in the 1930s, municipal authorities said Wednesday. At least 3 ½ tons of bones were extracted from the site, the city government said. Many of the skulls had gunshot wounds. Millions of Soviet citizens were executed or died in labor camps during Stalin’s rule.

130th Birthday of Joseph Stalin - "Let's remember the good times"

The "money quote" from this tidbit is the final line. Wow. You can't get much more blatant than that when talking about amnesia and politics. Now might be the time to mention that this sort of request to forget does not just involve erasing the sins of former dictators, but also, those of former democratic leaders. Amnesia is an ideologically-neutral practice (not sure if "practice" is the right word here, but it will do for now).

From: The New York Times
Russia: A Celebration of Stalin
by Clifford J. Levy
published December 21, 2009

The Communist Party celebrated the 130th birthday of Joseph Stalin on Monday with an appeal for people not to bring up the more unseemly aspects of his record. Stalin is a polarizing figure in Russia, still popular for winning World War II and industrializing the Soviet Union while reviled for the purges that killed or displaced millions of people. On Monday, the Communists sought to focus on the achievements, lining up in Red Square to lay flowers on his grave, above. “We would like very much on this day for the discussion about any mistakes of the Stalin era to stop, so that people can reflect on the personality of Stalin as a creator, thinker and patriot,” said Ivan Melnikov, a senior party official.