u/jmattchew - originally from r/GenZhou
Question is in the title. I know that everything is more complicated than this, but is it a fair shorthand assessment or not? Could it be too simple to say that feudalism -> capitalism -> socialism, or is this actually the right way to look at it? Did the USSR fail because it went straight from feudalism to socialism and then introduced the wrong reforms?
u/BennieAndTheZ - originally from r/GenZhouThe USSR did not fail, it was dismantled.
u/Aizer3115 - originally from r/GenZhouHere’s something I believe every communist should hear.
The USSR failed. We failed. Had it not failed it would not have been dismantled. Had it not failed capitalism would not have encroached the east once more.
We must not deny this failure, we must not shy away from it. Reality is not what we desire but what it must be.
If we do not accept this fact, if we lie to ourselves. Every observation we shall build henceforth shall be fundamented on a fallacy. One that would never allow us to see the truth.
We failed at our task. Yet we were not defeated, Stalin said it, as Lenin once did. The Worker’s nation would be besieged at all sides by the capitalist powers who would seek nothing but it’s destruction. We stood against impossible odds and the Workers managed to stand tall for 80 years. And it is their example which continues to inspire us, we must not falsify their history for we are not ashamed of it. On the contrary! We must be proud of what they accomplished against the entire Capitalist world.
And from this we shall learn, we shall grow. And with this example of how we fell, we shall never falter ever again
u/Due_Idea7590 - originally from r/GenZhouAccording to the educated individuals on genzedong, they say that the USSR started going downhill ever since Khrushchev came into power as they started to deStalinize the USSR. I don’t know anything about USSR history as I recently became a commie, but if what they’re saying is true then I can see how the USSR was doomed to fail if they kept drifting further away from the left.
u/AnkanBasu - originally from r/GenZhouUSSR fall began because of Khrushchev’s revisionist policies and his softness towards the western block. This was further amplified when more and more incompetent leaders came to power, ultimately allowing traitors like Yeltsin and fools like Gorbachev to ruin everything. Grover Furr’s book “Khrushchev Lied” sheds light on it
u/Thakal - originally from r/GenZhouKhrushchev and co. were merely symptoms of something larger.
For example the power vacuum left by Stalin must have certainly been a huge pressure for those that came after him, somehow they have to now step into his boots. Perhaps some people did never go ahead and run for the position due to this, although I believe that the biggest issue regarding the position was simply that the USSR had two people just die while in power, that is horrible and just strengthens opportunists.
Secondly the USSR was overextending, they had certainly underestimated just how much the west would resist against their efforts by supporting opposition groups. What ended up happening is that all these proxies just drained the USSR, economically, slowly, it is exactly for this reason that China reviewed their policy on this and stopped exporting the revolution.
As for the people on GenZedong, a lot of them probably didn’t read anything, it’s the internet everybody can claim stuff. However this does not mean that their claims are wrong, the Union was dismantled against the will of the people living there and when in 1996 the communists would have won, the capitalists resisted violently against it, thus putting the final nail into the coffin.
We should, at all times, try to understand why the Union failed, we can compare its conditions to China and learn what they are doing differently. Especially regarding foreign policy, China is playing it extremely safe and tries not to endanger the revolution.
If you would prefer to watch a Video or just listen to one, I can recommend Yugopniks latest video. He did it in collaboration with someone and, while it’s topic is not straight up the USSR, it touches the dissolution and reasons to it, perhaps giving you more insight as to how a revolution can be prone to dismantling/attacks.
u/Due_Idea7590 - originally from r/GenZhouThank you for the educated response. I do prefer watching/listening when it comes to educational materials so yes I’ll go check out Yugopniks channel right now. So far I’ve been watching Hakim’s channel but I would like to expand my resources.
u/jeremyago - originally from r/GenZhouMatt Christman has a very good explanation of the paths the Soviet Union could have went and the reasons why it went the way it did. Highly recommend his material analysis for beginners and even more experienced folks.
u/t_g_spankin - originally from r/GenZhouDo you have a link? I always enjoy Matt’s analysis. He always seemed like the most based Chapo
u/jeremyago - originally from r/GenZhouHere you go: https://youtu.be/mPzEB-n4L5Q
I think Matt has kind of out grown chapo at this point. His podcast is much more material and a lot less “junk food” feeling than chapo.
u/meme_master533 - originally from r/GenZhouWhy does this read like a Lenin speech to me, even though it definitely isn’t
Edit: grammar correction
u/Aizer3115 - originally from r/GenZhouWhat do you mean?
u/meme_master533 - originally from r/GenZhouLike it’s just well spoken, I guess, I’m not quite sure how to explain it
u/Aizer3115 - originally from r/GenZhouAh, thank you
u/Ryan_Cynic - originally from r/GenZhou70 years, not 80. There’s no metric I can think of which would set the Russian socialist project at or above 8 decades.
u/I_Call_Cav_Mistress - originally from r/GenZhouBeautifully written