Nokia Cell Phones with Stalin Wallpaper Show Up in Russia

I'm not sure why this is such a surprise. In a recent poll Josef Stalin was deemed the third-greatest Russian of all time. Based on that, why wouldn't Russians want cell phones with Stalin wallpaper?

Yes, we know that Stalin was responsible for the deaths of millions of Soviets in labor camps and purges, but he led that poll, run by state-run TV station Rossiya nearly the entire way. It took a plea by the station manager that viewers vote for "someone else" for Stalin to fall to third.

Still, Nokia wants to be absolutely sure that consumers know that they had nothing to do with this "promotion." They said:

“Even if Nokia was on the brink of ruin and release phones or panel with a portrait of Stalin was the only chance to save our business, Nokia [would not do] that.”

Since the wallpaper is obviously being post-loaded on these phones, any buyers should probably ask for a discount, as they are technically used. Don't expect the warranty to be honored, either.