How Has Lenin Affected You Or Your Families Life ?

[Tania+]

Many people were affected by Comrade Lenin, personally or indirectly by his regeime. How were you, or your family affected ?

Thanks in advance for your sharing.

Tatiana

[Russian_Duchess_#5]

I was affected in many a ways.  
The rise of communism, I have Lenin to thank   for that, upheld the rise of communism in my grandparent's homeland, Cuba. I am more Spanish than Cuban, but back to the topic. I believe that if it wasnt for Lenin ( )
there would have been no communism, or at least, not AS much!!

Sofi

[Mie]

Well.. if I understood the question right, I want thank him. Yeas.. I wanna thank Lenin.. isn't it funny? I do not like the man and not those things he did but if he wouldn't not come the ruler of Russia my homecountry Finland would never get free and get independent. and who knows what situation we could be now without Lenin... :/ really ucly i believe

[AGRBear]

95 % [maybe more] of the  members of  both my mother's and father's who didn't escape Russia were killed by the Bolsheviks by execution, died in cattle cars headed to Sibera and if survived then perished in the camps, or died the horrible death from starvation in the home villages because the Bolshevik refused them food.

Those who did survive, wrote letter after letter begging for clothes and money.

It was later discovered tha some of the letters were forged by the local communists who profited from the items sent.

When the letters stopped, there was silence thereafter.


AGRBear

[antti]

Mie, I totally disagree with you. After the declaration of independence in 1917 Finland went through the 4month civil war. This war won by the whites gave us a indipendence. At that time Lenin with his soviets was too busy with their own civil war and left us in peace. And that is the only reason why we are independent now. The story of Lenin giving us a independence is nothing else than propagandist story from the cold war times.

[Nathalie]

Being a Hungarian, Lenin and his ideas affected my country and my family as well....As for the first one, I think it is will known by history-fans (firstly the temporary communist revolution in 1919, by Bela Kun, secondly the "liberation" from 1945:S ), as for the second, it is a long story and I suppose, might be boring for most of you... But to sum it up, I think in this post-communist region almost every family has tragedies, stories which would be as interesting and amazing as the royal family has.

[hikaru]

I think that for us , the name of Lenin is equal to the word " revolution". So it completely destroyed the country anf all lives of the people of this country.
So, saying in one word , he was  dictator - destroyer.

[frimousse]

Had Lenin not existed, I would not have been on earth...because my grand parents would not have been in exile when they knew each other...
So evil gives birth to good...That is an interesting philosophical question: problem of evil, problem of time, theological question also. I let this theme to specialists    They are better than me to answer this !

[Belochka]

Lenin's rise to power affected every individual inside the country. Everyone's destiny changed. It would be doubtful that any one family could claim otherwise.  

My grandparents lost their identities and everything they owned and strived for.

My parents were affected in their own ways by the laws that became entrenched after Lenin death.
 

[historywriter]

Hello everyone,

I can't say that Lenin has affected my life very much personally because my ancestry is British.  However, my brother was very attracted to Communism during the Vietnam War and my parents were extremely upset about that.

Also when I went to Griffith Uni we had to do about seven assignments on Marxism.  The class actually groaned in the end!  

Best Regards,

Lisa

[IvanM]

well, I remember his portrait on the wall when I was in kindergarten, and teachers telling that we should study well as "grandpa Lenin" was watching (that was back in 1987-ish, so things were already starting to get shaky). That's pretty much it, as far as "personal" experience is concerned.

Apart from that, I have (almost) always seen him as someone who screwed up my homeland pretty badly by throwing it off its steady economic growth path and exterminating almost everyone except the proletariat. And, oh, as recent evidence suggests, also as someone likely responsible for assassination of the royal family. (sorry for the sarcasm).

reason for edit: typoz

[Belochka]

The trouble is that there are still too many lenin statues standing. I was told by a local historian that "he was part our history" and that is why he continues to stay. I disageed with her, because destroyers such as he should not be elevated on a pedestal. More befitting he should join his comrades gathering moss and bird detritis in the Moscow Sculpture Park.  

[IvanM]

Belochka,

agreed, the statues are indeed excessive. Guess it simply costs too much to remove them all at once (after all there was quiet a bit of them made ).  I don't mind leaving some of them though, as after all, Lenin is a part of out history, and many (esp. the elders) still do see him as someone who deserves to be on pedestal. Nevertheless, his figure is still way to central in many cities, which doesn't fit that well in the context of modern Russia.

 - Ivan

[Tania+]

Dear Hikaru, and Members and Viewers,

Although I live in a free country, there is not one moment in time,I don't forget the cost of lives that were lost in Russia, to Lenin, and leaders who followed his address of brutality and wholesale mass murder. Both my family, and my husband's family suffered losses of family. It's one thing to read about history, it is another indeed to know a loved one, or loved ones have lost lives because of dictator. Because we live, we must continue to speak out on their behalf !

I want to state to Nathalie, please don't think or continue to say, it would be boring for people to continue to hear about the personal stories of those who went through such issues of tyranny, and extensive tragedies. Not so ! The world has not heard enough apparently, because in our history books, not enough has been written, or shared about the deceit, lies, and out of control police state, Russia was subjected to, as well as many other Eastern block counties, and how so many lives lost all but their soul.

It is all the more important forums as this, exist, whereby you, and other countless human hearts can and do step forward to cite repeatedly such vast information and stories of despair, and loss of lives during these years of Lenin, and after. Without their witnessing, yours and my'n, our freedoms would mean very little.

Do you ever notice how many viewers come to watch each thread, and how many really step forward to voice their thoughts on anything ? Many still may be people, and children still unwilling to say anything, because they were brought up in fear, control, etc.

I'm glad the many of you who have responded, even here, have stated your feelings. I can't see a better way of expressing our unity, so that others will know, it is the right thing to do. No person or government can fill the place of what freedom allows. May freedom always stay well and alive !

Thank you all for sharing your thoughts, your energy. It does make a difference, really !

Tatiana+

I think that for us , the name of Lenin is equal to the word " revolution". So it completely destroyed the country and all lives of the people of this country.
So, saying in one word , he was  dictator - destroyer.

[Belochka]

Belochka,

agreed, the statues are indeed excessive. Guess it simply costs too much to remove them all at once (after all there was quiet a bit of them made ).  I don't mind leaving some of them though, as after all, Lenin is a part of out history, and many (esp. the elders) still do see him as someone who deserves to be on piedestal. Nevertheless, his figure is still way to central in many cities, which doesn't fit that well in the context of modern Russia.

 - Ivan

[ch1047][ch1076][ch1088][ch1072][ch1089][ch1090][ch1074][ch1091][ch1081][ch1090][ch1077] [ch1048][ch1074][ch1072][ch1085]! (Hello Ivan!)

When I was young and learning to read and write Russian, my parents had ripped out the picture of lenin just inside the first pages of my <<[ch1056][ch1091][ch1089][ch1089][ch1082][ch1072][ch1103] [ch1075][ch1088][ch1072][ch1084][ch1084][ch1072][ch1090][ch1080][ch1082][ch1072]>> (Russian grammar) so that I would not see his image everytime I opened my Russian textbooks.

I agree that lenin is very much out of place in trying to modernize Russia and his "presence" does not assist a few Russian people in thinking beyond the "glorious" soviet era.

Unfortunately that ugly mausoleum with lenin's rotting fungus ridden corpse in Red Sqaure does not help in Russia's recovery..