ONE evening, a Soviet joke relates, Stalin decided to see if he was as beloved as his cronies insisted, so went to a Moscow cinema in disguise.

• 苏联曾流行这样一个笑话。一天晚上，斯大林想要知道自己是不是真如自己的亲信所言万众敬仰。于是他乔装打扮去了一家莫斯科电影院。新闻影片开始后，斯大林在暗处坐下。