Man or Monster?

Listening to NPR on the way to work this morning, Morning Edition ran a piece on the 90th anniversary of the Bolshevik revolution's seizure of power in Russia - "a revolution that ushered in a totalitarian dictatorship that killed and imprisoned tens of millions of people."

A very poignant comparison was made between 90 year-old Lev Mishchenko who lived during the terrible Communistic regime years after World War II, and a 34 year-old, Syleia Daripova.

A quote from Mr. Mishchenko:

"Stalin was a maniac," he says. "People say he led us to victory against the Germans. In fact, he drove the Soviet Union into the ground. The war was won only because of the heroism of those who fought in it."

And a quote from Ms. Daripova who believes Stalin was a "great man":

"Not every person can accumulate power in his hands like that," Daripova says. People say he murdered half of Russia … but, still, he was a unique personality. There are very few like him in history."

What, other than a very successful brain-washing could persuade a Russian to believe Stalin was anything less than monstrous?

You can read more about Lev Mishchenko's experiences here.

Very disturbing that the disillusioned Syleia Daripova will most likely never know Mr. Mishchenko's story - that is if she's lucky enough to escape experiencing a similar fate firsthand.