Back in the USSR

So I was at a talk given by two officials from the Afghan national bank (Da Afghanistan Bank) this afternoon. And I look across the conference table, and another student was wearing a throwback CCCP sports jersey. And I kind of thought to myself: what kind of moron wears a CCCP jersey to a talk given by officials from a country that the CCCP invaded and occupied (and set off a consequent civil war in) for over a decade?

I am all for the vintage look, and throwback jerseys, and even political statements on t-shirts. But the Che shirts. They've got to go. The man ran the first death squads and labor camps in Cuba. Not cool. And wearing an CCCP shirt to a talk where the speakers repeatedly mention the legacy of the Soviet invasion and subsequent resistance and civil war. Not cool.

I have friends who collect Soviet memorabilia. Probably, there's no real harm in it. But somehow, it makes me uncomfortable that symbols of dictatorship and oppression (which I believe CCCP now is) are now a kitschy fashion statement.

Addendum: in defense of the student in question, he took off the jersey early in the talk. Of course, maybe he was just hot.