COM 325 / Week Three Discussion: How should we view Red Russia's contribution to the World War II victory over Fascism?

       In the most dreadful days of the Cold War years, President JFK acknowledged the great sacrifices made by the Soviet Union for the world salvation from Nazi domination. He said:

     "...no nation in the history of battle ever suffered more than the Soviet Union suffered in the course of the Second World War. At least 20 million lost their lives. Countless millions of homes and farms were burned or sacked. A third of the nation’s territory, including nearly two thirds of its industrial base, was turned into a wasteland, a loss equivalent to the devastation of this country east of Chicago."
    
       Did you know that during WWII, the Soviet Union was the victorious ally of the United States in the fight against the Axis Powers (although there was mutual distrust)?  Have history textbooks and the mass media done a good job of explaining why a victorious ally ended up as an "Evil Empire"?  How?