Rzhev.

This is coolbert:

"I was killed near Rzhev..."

Yet again an indication that the overly hyper-sensitve "Russian bear" is back! From this last March:

"Russia to outlaw criticism of WWII tactics"

"The Russian government is to outlaw criticism of Soviet military tactics during the Second World War in the latest example of its heavy-handed approach to dissent."

In particular, a documentary has infuriated the Kremlin and all Russians devoted to an almost hysterical and totally irrational World War Two histiography!

A histiography as might have been [and probably was] written by Stalin himself.

"[A] NTV documentary . . . with a sensitive depiction of the Battles of Rzhev, fought in 1942-3, which killed up to 1.5 million soldiers, two-thirds of them Soviet."

"The controversial plan comes after a television documentary exposed the scale of human losses during one of the conflict's bloodiest battles."

"The programme stirred deep emotions in a country that has traditionally glorified the heroic exploits of ordinary soldiers during the 'Great Patriotic War' but has often ignored the immense human cost behind the victory over Nazi Germany."

"Academics estimate that more than 26 million Soviet soldiers and civilians were killed between 1941 and 1945, a death toll that dwarfed the losses of any other country."

It is generally acknowledged that about 8 million Soviet soldiers died in combat during the war. The remainder of the 26 million dead being civilians. Many of those civilians dying BECAUSE OF ACTIONS TAKEN BY STALIN HIMSELF!! [scorched earth for one!]

There were during WW2 many instances of just plain poor decisions, incompetence and venality on the part of Stalin and his general officers! The common soldier was used as cannon fodder in a manner that was obscenely grotesque and evil! A prodigious waste of ground troops was evidenced many times on the Eastern Front in WW2.

Profligate misuse of the foot soldier in such combat actions as:

* Cherkassy Pocket.

* Destruction of the Second Shock Army.

* The use of penal battalions.

And one of course cannot forget the Vlasov Army and those other Russians and Soviet citizens [1 million strong] that WERE WILLING TO TAKE UP ARMS AGAINST STALIN AND THE COMMUNISTS!!

The venality of Stalin is only compounded by the refusal of those that deny the venality??!!

coolbert.