The Western and the liberal consensus on Joseph Stalin:

Stalin was an evil autocrat who seized all power from his people to establish a brutal and murderous authoritarian regime.

Stalin in reality

Stalin: Please, let me resign in peace. This is the fourth time I am submitting my application.

The central comittee: Dear Comrade Stalin, we have rejected your request for the fourth time. See you at work tomorrow.

  • Lemmygradwontallowme [he/him, comrade/them]@hexbear.netEnglish
    23·
    8 days ago

    Sourced from Awoo and Alaskaball on Hexbear

    October 16, 1952 (http://soviethistory.msu.edu/1954-2/succession-to-stalin/succession-to-stalin-texts/stalin-on-enlarging-the-central-committee/):

    This article was taken from the Russian newspaper Glasnost devoted to the 120th Anniversary of Stalin’s birth, was the last speech at the CC [Central Committee] CPSU [Communist Party of the Soviet Union] before Stalin died. The text was being published for the very first time in the Soviet Union…

    …MOLOTOV – [Glasnost -] coming to the speaker’s tribune completely admits his mistakes before the CC, but he stated that he is and will always be a faithful disciple of Stalin.

    STALIN – (interrupting Molotov) This is nonsense. I have no students at all. We are all students of the great Lenin.

    [Glasnost -] Stalin suggested that they continue the agenda point by point and elect comrades into different committees of state.

    With no Politburo, there is now elected a Presidium of the CC CPSU in the enlarged CC and in the Secretariat of the CC CPSU altogether 36 members.

    In the new list of those elected are all members of the old Politbiuro – except that of comrade A. A. Andreev who, as everyone knows now is unfortunately completely deaf and thus can not function.

    VOICE FROM THE FLOOR – We need to elect comrade Stalin as the General Secretary of the CC CPSU and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR.

    STALIN – No! I am asking that you relieve me of the two posts!

    MALENKOV – coming to the tribune: Comrades! We should all unanimously ask comrade Stalin, our leader and our teacher, to be again the General Secretary of the CC CPSU.

    Same attempt (A. I. Mgeladze, Stalin. Kakim ia ego znal. Strannitsy nedavnogo poshlogo. p. 118):

    At the first Plenum of the CC [Central Committee] of the CPSU [Communist Party of the Soviet Union] called after the XIX Congress of the Party (I had been elected member of the CC and took part in the work of this Plenum), Stalin really did present the question of General Secretary of the CC CPSU, or of the post of Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR. He referred to his age, overwork, said that other cadres had cropped up and there were people to replace him, for example, N.I. Bulganin could be appointed as Chairman of the Council of Ministers, but the CC members did not grant his request, all insisted that comrade Stalin remain at both positions.