Cotton Shoppers

Let history be judged: the lesson of Perm-36

I set out with a driver to the village of Kuchino, some 120 kilometres north-east of the Russian city of Perm , just west of the Ural Mountains, during its first snowfall of the season. The desolate landscape was barely visible in the blowing snow. We turned off the highway on to a dirt road, drove by the tilting, abandoned homes of Kuchino, and pulled up in front of a large green metal gate. A high white wooden fence crowned with rows of barbed wire defined a perimeter. Green-painted watchtowers peered out. A sign read: ‘Memorial Historical Centre of Political Repression Perm-36’. We had arrived at the only preserved Stalin-era Gulag in all of Russia.

The museum , in the middle of nowhere, is a solitary monument to the millions of political prisoners who suffered and died under communist repression, not only during Stalin’s rule, but decades afterward. Twenty years after the disintegration of the Soviet Union, the legacy of Stalinism and totalitarianism still cast a shadow over the Russian polity. Russia has not officially judged this dark chapter of Soviet history and is struggling even today with its historical narrative. The failure to issue a legal judgment on its past and free the country from its lingering grip has retarded Russia’s ‘modernisation,’ contends Mikhail Fedotov, head of the Presidential Council on the Development of Civil Society and Human Rights. The idea that the past must be faced for the nation to develop is the purpose of the museum of Perm-36; its expanding civic and educational mission; and its objective to place the museum on the map.

Source: Open Democracy

Happy Valley Primitives: Celebrate in a Heartfelt Way

by Happy Valley Primitives

Hi! I'm a stay at home mom who loves stitching up primitive home decor and beautiful wearables for women and girls. I've been selling locally at craft shows and online for many years now, and recently launched my own line of patterns, which include sewing, embroidery and needle felting for the beginner to intermediate artist! Stop on by and let's get to know one another! BRAND NEW PATTERN RELEASE! Show off some star powered style with this whimsical embellishment on a simple to sew tote bag! Learn how to create dimensional shapes on the felting pad that add texture and depth and a reversed felting design. This epattern includes complete written instructions as well as photo illustrations and diagrams to create a beautiful tote bag. Epattern will be delivered via email within 24 hours of payment. This exquisite snowflake pincushion was...

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Nothin' Better To Do by LeAnn Rimes music video | lyrics | Slack-Time

by LeAnn Rimes

Hung my cotton dress on rusted wire
Up there on Pilahatchee Bridge
Just a crazy roughneck's daughter
Jumped head-first into the water
Baptized away my sins

Hitched to town with Bobby Jo and Tommy
Couple of lookers, new best friends
We slipped in the back of Sunday service
Know them church ladies, they heard us
Bum smoke money from the offering

Mama said, "Idle hands are Devil's handywork"
Oh, the trouble you'll get into
You got nothin' better to do, got nothin' better to do
You got nothin' better to do, got nothin' better to do
Yeah!

Oh, yeah

Sign read: BAIT, CHIPS BEER and AMMUNITION
That Slim-Jim bag boy hadn't a prayer
Well I hiked my skirt and did the talkin'
While them boys were busy walkin'
Case of .5 out the back door

Hid deep...

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Cotton Dress on rusted wire News

Let history be judged: the lesson of Perm-36

Open Democracy - Jan 01, 1970

There is no sign identifying it. The white wooden fence is festooned with barbed wire and has a large green, rusty, metal gate. Inside, a jumble of tangled barbed wire and metal and wood fencing of different types present a formidable barrier.