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Indeed, losing the revolution was awful. But Sachs himself has stated that part of the reason Shock therapy was as bad as it was in Russia, and not so in Poland, was the foreign aid sent into Poland, and the absence of that in Russia.
This is fairly consistent with what we now can see are the US/western goals with Russia- it was never about Russia being equal as a capitalist country (as Gorbachev naively thought) but to wholely return Russia to its place pre-revolution for the ransacking of the countrys wealth, while having Poland as an ally in the region.
At its core shock therapy really is just getting a capitalist economy in place at the expense of, well, everything (and everyone). It’s still going to be shit, but at least according to Sachs (and this the specific point where I don’t know if we can really agree/trust him on) it might not have been as much of a humanitarian disaster for Russia.
Maybe he is just trying to save face, or he feels bitter at what he makes sounds like the IMF pulled a fast one on him…Or maybe he is genuinely remorseful for what happened. It does seem a bit far fetched that someone like him would have been ignorant of what the US really was aiming for. Who knows.
Incredibly valid point, it’s easy to adjust your self narrative after the dust settles in order to make yourself the good guy, but it’s too late as multiple generations already went through the misery created by people like him.
Kind of reminds me of how after China was liberated from Monarchism, the Last Emperor of China would be chaperoned by CPC officials and he would meet and speak to the poor ex-slaves and serfs and “commoners” as they told him how hard life was for them and how shitty he was. One person I think assaulted him, and afterward he completely understood why and didn’t blame him.
It does seem a bit far fetched that someone like him would have been ignorant of what the US really was aiming for.
I’ve met too many highly educated and otherwise intelligent genuine converts to assume that higher-ups fully understand the implications of capitalism. Sachs could be an exception, but I would not be surprised to learn that he really was that ignorant but has since gained some perspective and reflected on what happened during and since the USSR’s fall.
Indeed, losing the revolution was awful. But Sachs himself has stated that part of the reason Shock therapy was as bad as it was in Russia, and not so in Poland, was the foreign aid sent into Poland, and the absence of that in Russia.
This is fairly consistent with what we now can see are the US/western goals with Russia- it was never about Russia being equal as a capitalist country (as Gorbachev naively thought) but to wholely return Russia to its place pre-revolution for the ransacking of the countrys wealth, while having Poland as an ally in the region.
At its core shock therapy really is just getting a capitalist economy in place at the expense of, well, everything (and everyone). It’s still going to be shit, but at least according to Sachs (and this the specific point where I don’t know if we can really agree/trust him on) it might not have been as much of a humanitarian disaster for Russia.
Maybe he is just trying to save face, or he feels bitter at what he makes sounds like the IMF pulled a fast one on him…Or maybe he is genuinely remorseful for what happened. It does seem a bit far fetched that someone like him would have been ignorant of what the US really was aiming for. Who knows.
I wouldn’t trust a capitalist or a neocolonizer, but they might occasionally say something interesting out loud.
I’m sure part of him suspected that interfering in Russia post the USSR was never about humanitarianism, he just doesn’t want to admit it.
Incredibly valid point, it’s easy to adjust your self narrative after the dust settles in order to make yourself the good guy, but it’s too late as multiple generations already went through the misery created by people like him.
Kind of reminds me of how after China was liberated from Monarchism, the Last Emperor of China would be chaperoned by CPC officials and he would meet and speak to the poor ex-slaves and serfs and “commoners” as they told him how hard life was for them and how shitty he was. One person I think assaulted him, and afterward he completely understood why and didn’t blame him.
I’ve met too many highly educated and otherwise intelligent genuine converts to assume that higher-ups fully understand the implications of capitalism. Sachs could be an exception, but I would not be surprised to learn that he really was that ignorant but has since gained some perspective and reflected on what happened during and since the USSR’s fall.