Recyclerz
08-04-2008, 07:41 AM
Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, author of A Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich and The Gulag Archipelago, amongst other works, has slurped his last spoon of borscht.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/04/books/04solzhenitsyn.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin#
By all accounts a cranky bastard, (but maybe a nice long stint in Stalin's forced labor camps in Siberia will do that to a guy), and not really a big fan of the US of A, as presently experienced, nevertheless this guy has to go down as a historical champion of freedom of speech. He was the first literary figure to gain world-wide renown for calling shenanigans on the Stalinist Soviet Union, from the inside, consequences be damned. His books should always stand as a warning to those who think their political ideas are so good that their fellow citizens should be forced to follow them, with whatever "encouragement" is necessary to ensure compliance.
Have a shot (or two) of vodka today to celebrate this guy's life (as if you needed an excuse).
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/04/books/04solzhenitsyn.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin#
By all accounts a cranky bastard, (but maybe a nice long stint in Stalin's forced labor camps in Siberia will do that to a guy), and not really a big fan of the US of A, as presently experienced, nevertheless this guy has to go down as a historical champion of freedom of speech. He was the first literary figure to gain world-wide renown for calling shenanigans on the Stalinist Soviet Union, from the inside, consequences be damned. His books should always stand as a warning to those who think their political ideas are so good that their fellow citizens should be forced to follow them, with whatever "encouragement" is necessary to ensure compliance.
Have a shot (or two) of vodka today to celebrate this guy's life (as if you needed an excuse).