Russian Writer Awarded by Putin

[Aliciapiano99]

Solzhenitsyn was a traitor and liar who hated his own country and it's people. He wrote a lot of lies that presented as absolute truths and grossly exaggerated everything. He is partly responsible for the current situation in Russia. It was a tragedy for the Russian people that NkVD didn't kill him in 1945. He caused as much harm to Russia as Putin is causing. They worth each other.

[Hippophilee]

Solzhenitsyn was an artillery officer on the front in 1943 when he was arrested and sent to a Soviet concentration camp. Another victim of communism. His books revealed the reality of totalitarianism. They tell how little humans of all classes can resist this monstruous system, with just courage and honesty.

Soljhenitsyn also wrote a masterwork on the beginning of world war 1 in Russia, "August 14", one of the best war books I've ever read.

[TarlanT]

Thank god this stinky russian racist pig is dead!

[Fridaey13txhOktober]

I´m glad he was butchered like the pig he was.

[GANZZZwhitesoldier]

Solzhenitsyn - a dirty beast, a traitor, a provocateur, an informer of the NKVD, a liar and a forger, calling for "democratic West" to destroy their homeland.

I hope to hell it's not cold

[yendytok]

This is good place to start - A brilliant interview with one of the greatest researchers ever, Professor Antony Sutton, the author of Wall Street and the Bolshevik Revolution and Wall Street and The Rise of Hitler, where he showes how bankers, businessmen and politicans in the west supported and financed both the communist and the nazis, all according to their hegelian dialectic plan for world control. PLEASE WATCH

[Sexisttroll]

hahaha he told Boris Yeltsin "fuck off you worthless piece of shit!" hahaha but its true Boris Yeltsin ruined Russian economy even more that it was already. Maybe he should also receive an award for such a impossible task...

[iydsysstole101]

20 a star is born

[TomCat2800]

What's Putin doing? Honoring him my ass.... Putin is KGB and we all know it, had it been about a decade ago in the USSR, Putin would have been the one to put Alexander in the Gulag, or shoot him. What hypocrisy, Putin thinks he fools the eyes of the world...

[Action102090]

You never lived in Russia. How you can judge the man, if you know about him only that speak on your telechannels??? About Osetia what spoke to you earlier too much, and unless it was the truth? Let judge those who better there lives. You are prevented by stereotypes. I am sorry for English.

[TomCat2800]

Yes, and with family having lived under Stalinist Russia and the Warsaw Pact. I cna judge him because I've read dozens of books about him, written by either his staff or Russian citizens. And no, no country is innocent. Our US presidents aren't either, they have both shed blood.

[beargrizly67]

That is right. But there is a hypocrisy not only on part of Putin, but on part of solzhenitcyn as well. Solzhenitcyn knows who Putin are and what he is all about.

But I am not surprised at all. All his life Solzhenitcyn was a man with no principles, no scruples while pretending to be just the opposite.

[Ninelon]

Solzhenitsyn is traitor and the greatest LIER ever! Check the guy Valeriy Shalamov! He also was in Stalin's camps, but he saying that he will never lie and he said that Solzhenitsyn lieing about Gulags and victims of it, because West bought him!

[TomCat2800]

No comrade, Stalin bought you...

[METALwhore696969]

your a fucking idiot.

[Alaqueine]

Solzhenitsyn is the embodiment of Russophobia, and he has caused much harm to my country, more than Hitler. All ideological myths about the mass repression based on his ravings book The Gulag Archipelago. Thank Heavens he died last year.

[Action102090]

What for you so?... Camp - it all the truth (learn a history normally). Solzhenitsyn in youth itself has carried away by socialism, but вкоре has understood what is it only error. (he about it told)

[cosmonaut004]

Quite a magnific writer!

[Vitryss101]

one of the greatest men ever lived! makes me proud of my russian heritage. peps like stalin make me want to throw up!

[commie84]

Yeah, Solzhenitsyn, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy make me very proud to be Russian (at least ethnically as I was born and grew up in Ukraine).More people should know about them so that the stupid western cliches about the cold war and long lines for toilet paper can be replaced by something of tremendous cultural value!

[Redfingers]

Putin is a dirty son of a bitch. I'd love to see Putin admire and award his modern day citizens for criticizing his administration.

Instead, he squelches them and then puts on this pathetic facade.

[ComradeFlorian28]

Putin and Bush are equally evil, just like US and Russian capitalist imperialists are equally evil.

[Redfingers]

I agree, sir.

[Domety]

'People criticizing Putin's administration" are clowns with good PR. At least those who are well-know abroad. Because many others who criticize Putin's administration at the same time support Putin in general and can't be popular in anti-Russian medias.

[fitenow]

you are a fuckin idiot, a raving unstoppable fuckin idiot...you admire stalin and call alex a traitor?

[Ninelon]

Shut your fucking mouth, bitch! Russians hate this Alex! Ask russians!

[casperado666]

You are a tipical example of a russian moron who never read anything and only believes what he sees on the "Russia" channel. People (or should i say dumb pieces of excrement) like you are a disgrace for humanity. I hope a white-blue-red dildo which Putin puts up your ass all the time will kill you someday you fucken imbecile

[pontala]

wow Russian are really changing

[Domety]

You had at least 20 years to notice it.

[rafaelbrom]

Looks like that professional KGB killer Putin was able full him too.

[ComradeFlorian28]

A mass-murderer on behalf of the new Russian capitalists awards an apologist for the murders committed in the name of Czarism!

[RockyBalboa211]

God bless him!!

[unsaturated609]

R.I.P i love you!!!!!

[Fawksian21]

Hate to be a downer right after he died, but that's really the only time people listen. So here it goes: Solzhenitsyn was not perfect. He was, in fact, wrong about a lot of things, particularly things about America. He was a monarchist and quite possibly an anti-semite. Yes, "Gulag" and "One Day..." are priceless and worthy books, but have some perspective.

There I said it. Now everyone hate on me and then pretend to respect freedom of speech.

[flachiche]

He was NOT a monarchist. In his entire life, Alexander Solzhenitsyn rejected the legitimacy of the Tsar Nicholas II and his regime.

[Fawksian21]

Well, he did argue that the tsars were less repressive than the soviets, constantly lauded Russian nationalism and supported Putin. Whether or not he was explicitly for a monarchy, he seemed to be ok with authoritarian measures. Look at his opinions about America and Vietnam.

[Domety]

He was a true patriot, though his works contain mistakes.

[Jacobitess]

I think it far too soon to dismiss Solzhenitsyn as erring in this matter. History has yet to pronounce full judgement on democracy, and I am a constitutional monarchist myself. It certainly has less evil deeds to atone for.

[Domety]

Solzhenitsin never rejected monarchy. He rejected the personal merits of Nicholas II and pictured Nicholas's demise as an act of a criminal weakness.

[Domety]

A perfect man seems to be the one, who says just the same things those are published in American newspapers.

[Fawksian21]

What do you mean? I never said something like that. I was simply trying to bring some perspective instead of just singing praises like everyone else. I said that some of his work is "priceless", but always remember that he was a human being like the rest of us.

[Jacobitess]

"He was a monarchist" Bravo, I admire him even more. What good has 'democracy' done man? And can one name any country where it truly even exists? It always degenerates into an oligarchy of the rich and powerful (occasionally something truly abominable, like Hitler). Unless one is living in a state composed of maybe twelve families, democracy is impracticable.

[Fawksian21]

At least in a democracy there's a chance to fix things. What are you gonna do when the ruling potentate becomes oppressive, as inevitably happens? Complete, unadulterated democracy may well be impractical, but human society has evolved past monarchies.

What good has democracy done man? It's promoted human and civil rights, for one thing. Show me one dictatorship or 'monarchy' where people were more free than in a democracy.

[WeCanAllGetAllong]

Alexander Solzhenitsyn R.I.P

Helluva guy!

read his stuff it's mind blowing!

[PhilipDK5800]

A great man, truly. He's book "A day in Ivan Denisovitjs life." Simply stunning.

[canopin]

Descanse en paz señor Alexander.

[aparkinson1980]

A truly great man. A palpable sense of moral outrage emanates every page of his great works, but this is anchored by the impeccable turn of phrase and acerbic wit that will ensure that the lessons contained therein will live on for many generations to come.

[AnnaHeidiBourne]

RIP Alexander Solzhenitsyn

[JPGiardina]

May he rest in peace.....

[peacebruva]

RIP Solzhenitsyn. One of the finest minds of the 20th century.

[jvarela965]

Greatest Living Russian

[raksyana]

A living classic. I would, in a heartbeat, trade all my Russian classics, for A.S. works. Truly an inspiration. I agree with above statement to read "Gulag of Archipelago" (the sequel portion, part II), it will change your perspective on life.

[frankenshank]

Alexander Solzhenitsyn

my HERO...

Read Gulag Archipelago, it will change the way you see the world.

LONG LIVE Alexander Solzhenitsyn!

[highonhayek]

I'm just starting that book. Russian literature is very difficult for me. Plays on words, untranslatable phrases, puns that are Russian culture & history.

As one can tell from my screenname, I absolutely hate Communism, fascism, anarchism, socialism and... environmentalism.

[madbcc]

its not ironic. putin was and is a reformer who actively participated in glasnost and perestroika. yeltsin was a party secretary. i mean come on

putin is clearly not at ease. but thanks god this is happening.

[coldstatic]

KGB man giving an anti-communist radical traditionalist an award. Strange times are ahead. They are men among the ruins, to be sure, but are they rebuilding or dismantling?

[madbcc]

they are dismantling and rebuilding. jesus. again, yeltsin was a party secretary. and its no coincidence that solzhenitsyn has not accepted the ward from yeltsin but does now from putin.

[kingofthethrill]

Hooray for Alexander Solzhenitsyn...a true patriot to his country! If only we had more people like him in the UK!

[Politeama]

Men like Solzhenitsyn are necessary everywhere. What a man! Principles and honesty, something very much missed from today's world and from our human race. Everybody knows that Communism is a deplorable thing, nevertheless they are still around very dandy.

[Jitpring]

Is Solzhenitsyn the last great man left on Earth?

[Fawksian21]

I started to read "Gulag" once and should probably re-visit it soon. However, I am skeptical of Solzhenitsyn's views on war (particularly the Vietnam War) and nationalism, at least from what I've heard.

[ksdaf]

I was put off by his later political/religious views as well, but the Gulag Archipelago is kind of untouched by that. It isn't a vehicle for those views at all, its just 1600 pages of (fantastic, brilliant) moral outrage that any human being can share in. I recommend you revisit it!

[Fawksian21]

Oh I certainly will someday, but it might not be for a while. It's just not a book you can pick up and set down at your leisure (which is what I tried doing). And yes, I too felt that it was more objective in tone from the little I read. Hell, it's more or less an autobiography, so there's no use in critcizing it to much, if at all.

[creativeevolution]

I reed his book "Gulag archipelago" twice and appreciated it.

[RoyalistScum]

Wow, I would have loved to be a fly on the wall for that meeting, Putin and Solzhenitsyn together at the same table, awesome. Says a lot about Putin that Solzhenitsyn would accept an award from his administration!

[libertyeconomics]

This shows that the Russians have moved into greater freedom than the United States presently has. Could anybody imagine President Bush honoring, say, Daniel Ellsberg?

[CharlesCoburn]

What an ignorant and illogical analogy. Did Carter or Clinton honor Ellsberg when they had the chance?

[libertyeconomics]

I never said Clinton or Carter did. What does that have to do with anything? So, Clinton and Carter are establishment, political hacks, too. You don't see this bipartisan sellout of our liberties?

[CharlesCoburn]

Do you think Ellberg's history in any level compares to Solzehnitsyn's? You're obviously ignorant of Russian history and the Russian present and are just using this to make an idiotic point about our supposed loss of freedoms. Funny there's so much visible and vocal dissent despite the alleged oppression.

[Aristocles2]

A great man indeed. Sad that this message board seems to be saturated with chumps who buy the media cliches about Putin. Just because he doesnt roll on his back for American, he is a threat to democracy. So stupid.

[cziffra444]

is that Mikhail Pletnev in the audience at 1:17?

[pgg804]

For people (especially Americans or English) to be cricizing Putin when George Bush is reponsible for starting a war that has cost the lives of 600,000 Iraqis is really interesting. I think if you listen to half truths and lives enough, you can convince people of anything.

[ganbattekyle]

Can't you criticize them both?

[TomCat2800]

Haha, as an American, we generally dislike George Bush; besides the idiot said he "saw into Putin's soul through his eyes and realized he was a good man." -biggest load of crap ever...literally...

[lhcarter]

Well then I guess he fooled Solzhenitsyn too. Or maybe Putin just changed.

[beargrizly67]

Haha, as an American, I like George Bush. But on this one I agree: Putin as a good man does not make a lot of sense.

[FatherWarhol]

"Official Hypocrisy" Take note Putin

[SovietWarrior]

Solzhenitsyn finally opening his Nationalistic cards.

He connects his future with Russia, and thus, obviously, any dark designs from USUK to dismember Russia will find in him a staunch intellectual opponent. Naturally Putin, as a strenghtener of Russian statehood fits Alexander's worldview, I bet that he would prefer somebody even more pro-Russian, than the current complacent figure.

[pochelie]

AS always requires such worthy praise. Putin is using this opportunity for a photo op. If only we could have someone of Sanya's courage to speak to the Russia of today. AS is just too old to address the corruption of the country and the greatness that could be Russia again. I only wish this great man could be young again and writing about the Russia he sees today.

[breeeegs]

How ironic that Solzhenitsyn, the great anti-communist, anti-fascist dissident persecuted by the Soviet Union, is being paid tribute by a man who seems on the verge of converting his country once again into the totalitarian police state Solzhenitsyn so despised.

[karoshi1201]

The announcer gave incorrect impression that AS remained in Germany for 20 years. This is not the case. He left Germany and moved to USA where he remained for that time, living as a recluse, almost a hermit near village of Cavendish in the state of Vermont.

[raimarpratin]

"Two Hundred Years Together", STILL mysteriously untranslated into English, is availabe in France, in French, of course. It earned him the scorn of certain

ethnic lobbies here in the US - who apparently felt threatened by the AS thorough, searching look into the origins and "feats" of the Bolsheviks.

[raimarpratin]

he is a witness to one of the darkest periods of history...what's surprising is that some of his books on Russian-Jewish relations have yet to be translated into English, even while available in French and German. Those who try to defame him, still, only discredit themselves in the end.

[duepotvin]

Let's hope one day we can welcome an English translation of The Red Weel. For the time being I recommend the French edition (Fayard, Paris). Note the huge compliment to the USA in the first volume of the third knot. (The only writer's note in this volume!)

Dirk POTVIN (Belgium, Brussels)

[TheSanityInspector]

I'm glad AS lived long enough to receive this. It is indeed ironic that ex-KGBnik Putin is the one awarding this to him. Be sure to see AS's new collection, The Solzhenitsyn Reader. Thanks for posting.

[neothomist1275]

I don't think its ironic, simply a fraud. I'm with Golitsyn. Putin is a very dangerous man.