Go the exact opposite direction
Pretend not to know who Joseph Stalin is. Assume it was a T shirt of Groucho Marx.
And if people tell you to look him up, pull up a communist source and say things like "oh wow this guy beat the Nazis?"
this post was submitted on 25 Sep 2023
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chapotraphouse
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That’s a pretty good bit 
Refuse to debate anyone. Just make jokes anout large spoons 
Enjoy yourself. Be the party you and the world needs 
Idk about the large spoon jokes. A couple or few million people died during that famine. Deliberate or not, that is a lot of human suffering. To libs or those who don't know enough history to understand that this was not a deliberate famine, it will seem like you are mocking genocide. For those who do know that history, it will seem like you're mocking a terrible tragedy.
I suggest that a better funny anecdote to get people engaged is the Tehran conference https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tehran_Conference
Stalin proposed executing 50,000 to 100,000 German officers so that Germany could not plan another war. Roosevelt, believing that Stalin was not serious, joked that "maybe 49,000 would be enough." Churchill, however, was outraged and denounced "the cold blooded execution of soldiers who fought for their country."
Despite my shirt, I plan on being on being as normal as possible. So I’ll skip the large spoon jokes. Thanks for the alternative anecdote!
Good point! I definitely plan on enjoying myself.
I'd really examine your motive here to be honest
Do you want to be funny? What's probably going to happen is people are going to want to engage in conflict with you and think you're despicable, so it probably won't be funny. If being funny only for you and a couple of your friends and unpleasant for everyone else works, that's fine.
Do you want to convert people to communism? Again, this is more likely to be read as "look at this, a communist is being argumentative and worshiping le evil red fash, I hate that and I hate communism". There's a reason it's a pipeline, of the many people I have ever converted I have never not even once mentioned Stalin to any of them within the first six months of discussion, except to cede ground that he wasn't perfect and fucked a lot of things up.
Do you want to engage in conflict for the sake of conflict? Probably a good fashion choice then. In that case, there's not really any point in learning any of the history or rebuttals, because they're going to see that the same way you see defending Hitler. Your best bet in this case is to just be prepared to meet abrasion with abrasion.
Do you want to wear it because it's your shirt and you like it and it makes you happy? Sure, 100% valid. Be prepared to engage in conflict and have rapport shut down before it begins, but don't let that stop you from living your truth.
All good points to consider. Mostly the first and last ones; if possible, I’d prefer to minimize any conflict while still wearing the shirt I like. I definitely don’t think I’m gonna be converting anyone. Maybe I should just wear it at home and be happy with that.
I have a RTFM Mao shirt from the IT crowd which is fun to wear. Gives you multiple outs and some people recognize it from the show while others just recognize mao and strike up conversation
I think the clear play here is to have multiple copies of Blackshirts and Reds passed out to everyone as required reading
Walking around the party with a mug that says “Don’t talk to me until ~~I’ve had my coffee~~ you’ve read Parenti’s Blackshirts and Reds.”
Michael Parenti personally emails you one upon completing each of his works
Yeah honestly I would recommend not doing this 
TrueAnon Rule #1
the 30's stalin letter about the ills of antisemitism is iconic. also the list of his possessions at death being a woefully small amount of personal material. really shits on the idea that he lived as an opulent dictator when you realize he lived in an apartment and the ussr essentially just didn't value destroying the previous architecture. also the contradiction about how marvelously rapid the standard of living was raised when the ussr came to power.
All good points, thanks! 
I mean it’s not a brand. Or at least it shouldn’t be. Only do it if it would be very funny.
I’ll be going with a few friends who’re communists and they’ll definitely find it pretty funny.
People are saying it's a bad idea on "don't argue at a party" grounds, but that's missing the point. Is it a good shirt? Does it make you look in the mirror and feel pretty? Or does it look goofy? Does it match the rest of the outfit? You will shame yourself and Stalin by being dweebie but if it looks fashion you will inspire the revolution
It’s a pretty cute shirt, and I definitely look good in it. People usually stop me in the street to compliment my fashion, this look just happens to be Stalin-themed.
luv 2 seek out needless confrontation at a social event
Death to America
Why bring politics to a party? I would instead focus on who to get laid with.