Authorities Again “Congratulated” Lenin on Own Extremism

More than a half of the Russians (56%) consider that a body of the leader of the world proletariat Vladimir Lenin needs to be buried, results of a poll taken by Public Opinion Fund published on Thursday testify.

According to the Fund, for last six years a number of wishing to commit to earth Lenin's body increased by 10%. The quantity of wishing to leave Lenin in the Mausoleum has been falling since August, 1999 — now only 28% of respondents think so.

According to the results of the poll, on the eve of birthday of the leader (on April, 22nd) 60% of the Russians noted importance of this date. 32% of respondents aren't agree with them and their quantity has been steadily growing since 2004 (26%).

More than a half of respondents (54%) are sure that Lenin was a good man, a bit more respondents note that he played positive role in the history of Russia. 19% of the Russians don't agree with them.

According to the Public Opinion Fund, vast majority of the Russians (68%) are sure that it is not necessary to rename prospectuses, squares and Lenin Street. 94% of inhabitants of million cities consider so.

Weekly poll "Fomnibus" was carried out on April, 14th-15th, 2012 in 43 subjects of the Russian Federation, in 100 settlements, 1500 respondents were interrogated.

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From editorial board: It is interesting that every year important sociological services using state money ask citizens one and the same question: if it is necessary or not to "bury" Lenin's body. As Lenin's body was safely buried in 1924th and it was done in the most honourable way as it is necessary to do with the body of the founder of the Soviet state and the greatest theorist whose works defined in many aspects the destiny of mankind for at least last 100 years, it turns out that citizens are asked the question: "Whether you want to ruin burial of the founder of the state? Whether you wish to outrage upon his corpse a little bit?"

Let’s imagine that someone will start making annual polls on a subject, whether it is necessary to return remains of the condemned state criminal Nikolay Romanov into their place - to a hole near Yekaterinburg? Or to dig somewhere away the state criminal Kapppel reburied with unclear honor on means of the head of state Putin? Or, let us assume, to rebury remains of the organizer of revolution Yeltsin somewhere on a cemetery for criminals under accession number?

For some reason it seems to me that it would qualify as extremism. Though all characters listed above really committed high treasons. While Vladimir Ilyich Lenin didn't make any crime, moreover, he became the founder of that state where we live now - under the Constitution the Russian Federation is legal successor of the RSFSR, not of the Russian Empire, the Moscow Kingdom or Vladimiro-Suzdalsky principality.

By the way, there’s no doubt that November, 7th, 1917 (October, 25th on old style) is the day of foundation of the Russian Federation, when the power was taken by Bolsheviks led by Lenin. But for some reason the authorities refuse to celebrate this date, as well as to pay necessary state respects to the founder of the state.

If it could be different? After all the first in our history constitution was adopted by Bolsheviks - imperial Russia had no constitution, bases of its system were, respectively, unconstitutional. The power of the Provisional government which followed tsarism was not unconstitutional, but - it is accepted to hold back it now - that government was appointed by tsar Nikolay Romanov, he was the source of legitimacy for that government. Then it was naturally dethroned – by one of the members of that government - Kerensky - who declared the Directory and himself, respectively, the head of that directory. The Soviet power threw that public away from the Winter palace, the Soviet power which had Soviets as a source of legitimacy - that is the direct power of people. That very power was recognized by people and that recognition was proved by 70 years of existence of the Soviet power.

That very Soviet power was liquidated by Yeltsin with accomplices as a result of revolution of 1993, though he had no enough courage to refuse former legitimacy completely and recognized the Russian Federation legal successor of the USSR. The representative of the Russia Federation occupies now place of the RSFSR in the United Nations and the UN Security Council.

So why opinion polls on similar subjects (as well as their active replication by the state mass media) aren’t interesting either to prosecutor's office, or the Investigatory committee usually so sensitive to manifestations of all extremism?

Here you are our poll, the quantity of its respondents makes it possible to say that it’s no less representative than the one of the Public Opinion Fund:

What will you celebrate on April, 22nd?

Birthday of Lenin (671)

Easter (61)

Standing in prayer in defend of the Russia Orthodox Church (28)

Other (54)

Nothing (1337)

As we see a third of the respondents not simply positively treat memory of the founder of the Soviet state, but also intend to celebrate his birthday actively. Let's compare: 10 times less citizens intend to celebrate church holidays actively imposed to citizens. At that let’s note that Easter as all-Christian holiday are going to be celebrated twice more people, than propaganda action of the Russian Orthodox Church - and 20 times less, than Lenin's birth.

Naturally, the vast majority won't celebrate anything in general and it’s normal. Even during the Soviet period Lenin’s birthday was not "red letter day” - it was usual working day, schoolboys often became pioneers that day and the All-Russia community work day - real holiday of communistic work – took place the day prior to it.

Anatoly Baranov

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