I do think that the cold war was primarily an economic war of attrition. US bloc was ahead from the start because US was profiteering from WW2 and building out its industry while the rest of the world burned. USSR was forced into a defensive position from the very start. That said, USSR leadership lacked imagination and courage in post Stalin era. They basically tried to compete with the west using western metrics like GDP.
I do think that the cold war was primarily an economic war of attrition. US bloc was ahead from the start because US was profiteering from WW2 and building out its industry while the rest of the world burned. USSR was forced into a defensive position from the very start. That said, USSR leadership lacked imagination and courage in post Stalin era. They basically tried to compete with the west using western metrics like GDP.