Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Humanities/2019 August 29

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August 29

Stalin

Our article provides very little information on the details of his various escapes from prison. I would please be curious to read any documents, books or articles relating to how he escaped and how he travelled from one place to the next. Thanks Anton 81.131.40.58 (talk) 08:09, 29 August 2019 (UTC)

he never escaped prison, AFAIK. He fled Siberia when deported there, which is somewhat different (not "prison break"-like at all) . The way he did it would be detailed in the document/books our article use as ref. Gem fr (talk) 09:24, 29 August 2019 (UTC)

Agreed; but actually Stalin was exiled to Solvychegodsk in Arkhangelsk Oblast which is some way to the west of Siberia, but a remote location all the same. He had a one-room apartment and was kept under police surveillance, but apparently not continuously guarded. There was a already a community of other political and criminal exiles in the town, and he used their help to make his getaway. Stalin: An Unknown Portrait by Miklơs Kun (pp. 97-99) has a description of the event. With two other Bolsheviks, he crossed a forest before travelling on the Northern Dvina River (presumably in a stolen boat but this is not specified) and then took a train alone to St Petersburg. Alansplodge (talk) 12:42, 29 August 2019 (UTC)

Brown's Chicken massacre: Amount stolen

Our article on the Brown's Chicken massacre (a 1993 restaurant robbery turned mass murder) says that the killers made off with "less than $2000". I was hoping to insert an {{inflation}} template to indicate what the amount they stole means in present-day terms, but the figure of "less than $2000" makes for an awkward inflation value ("The assailants stole less than $2000 from the restaurant. This is the equivalent of less than [whatever] in [year]." seems awkward to me). I was wondering if there was an approximate amount or even an exact amount that they stole in any sources, particularly ones from the cases, but I'm having trouble finding anything. Thanks! —/Mendaliv/^2¢/_Δ's/ 21:44, 29 August 2019 (UTC)

I actually just found a source that says "$1800 to $1900". That might be as good as it gets. —/Mendaliv/^2¢/_Δ's/ 23:46, 29 August 2019 (UTC)

Why not just say: "The killers made off with less than $2000 ($3551 in 2019 dollars)" ... or something similar? That sounds OK, no? Joseph A. Spadaro (talk) 05:58, 30 August 2019 (UTC)

Well, what it sounds like to me is false precision, and for that matter a needless conversion. Why not just leave the item as it was? --76.69.116.4 (talk) 07:22, 30 August 2019 (UTC)

To answer your question ("why not leave it as it was?") ... I imagine that the editor wanted to give the 1993 value of $2000 some context. Today, most people really can't appreciate dollar values in 1993 dollars, so a conversion to today's (2019) dollars would be useful and helpful to give perspective. To show how significant -- or insignificant -- the robbery amount was. That's my guess. Joseph A. Spadaro (talk) 18:38, 30 August 2019 (UTC)

Hitler's standard variation

At 0:27 there's some sort of Hitler's personal standard different from the usual one. Is it a variation for music band or something else? Brandmeister^talk 21:54, 29 August 2019 (UTC)

"The usual one" is the standard of the LSSAH, who served as Hitler's bodyguard, in addition to later rolls. I have not been able to spot anything on commons or the larger internet that matches the one in that video. The sunburst beneath the flag resembles the one on the Nazi version of the grand cross, but that didn't help me learn anything about it. Someguy1221 (talk) 22:38, 29 August 2019 (UTC)

Smells like a question of chronology. 1st_SS_Panzer_Division_Leibstandarte_SS_Adolf_Hitler#Expansion mention that "On 13 April 1934, Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler ordered the Leibstandarte Adolf Hitler (LAH) to be renamed "Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler", while it previously origined from 1st SS-Standarte, assigned to protect AH instead of previous militaty unit when AH became chancellor. With each change of the name, a change of standard would also occur. If so, the film should anterior to April 1934 Gem fr (talk) 23:53, 29 August 2019 (UTC)

A similar emblem to that in the clip appears on this Early SS LAH Drum Skirt, which "would date to the period of 1933/34". Alansplodge (talk) 12:51, 30 August 2019 (UTC)