The Reveloution of 1917 was bound to happen. There was already plenty of unrest and the lack of success in the war. Lenin was politicing "Land, Jobs, Bread" and the public was very responsive to it.
The Reveloution was in and of it self very Russian.
I think if they had it to do all over again, there were some things Stalin would have done different. Extremely harsh losses of liberties and harsh (if not seemed at times, almost random) punishments in the 1930's and then again in the early 1950's made many Soviet citizens blame "Uncle Joe" personally.
I think most of the "old school" ideals of Stalin/Khrushechev/Breschnev pretty much died with Andropov. Chernyenko wasn't around enough to make much of a mark.
Since then....it seems that each successive leader tried to undo the old mistakes of "Stalin vs The people". It wasn't until Gorbachov that it seemed more obvious that a leader wanted the people to know he cared about the citizens and wanted them to succeed....over what before was "you are just a little cog in the system/everything is for the benefit of the State."
I think Gorbachov really the first to imply (breaking with the Leninist ideal) that while the success of the State is very importaint, citizens, and their success (as....yikes!....an INDIVIDUAL) to have a decent life was ALSO importaint.
In a nutshell, he was implying that "if you want to leave, leave, knock yourself out, but things are changing here for the better, and you just might want to stay and be part of it."
In many ways, I see a lot of improvement in modern-day Russia, but there is still room to grow in respect with how the government treats it's people.
Elimination of gangs/mafia/etc. it not easy. It took 50 years to bust the American Mafia from a strong national threat to what is now an organization that has lost 90% of it's power, and most of it's leaders now serve lengthy prison terms. It might take Russia time to eliminate that dark spectre as well. Where there is money, there will always be a mafia element there to exploit it, unless they are tracked down and prosecuted.
I do not think Russia has much to worry about as far as defence, unless they fear China, or give Iran a nuclear potential. The American people have no interest with a war with Russia on any level.
Personally, I would love to see more Russian firms and American firms working together for a better trade between the two countries. The only Russian products I see on our store shelves is vodka. Can you make a better/less expensive toy? Chainsaw? Clothes? Competition and free trade is a good thing.
I very much remember a day of "Duck & Cover" movies and neighbors building bomb shelters in their back yards. Many times in my lifetime, our governments were on the verge of mutual total nuclear obliteration.
Who wants to go back to that?
68ROX
