USSR nostalgia

[Second Summer]

Speaking of Russian governments, and USSR governments in the extension of that, I always thought Gorbachev was sort of doing a decent job, or at least moving things in the right direction with glasnost, perestroika and the nuclear disarmament agreements. Though I was only 15 y.o. when the USSR was dissolved, so my understanding of world events was limited. I was also impressed with the USSR space program (did you know they had a small space shuttle?!) and the Mir space station, the USSR ice-hockey team as well as their other sports teams. There was also the fact that USSR and Soviet people were often the "bad guys" in US action movies of that era (Rocky, Karate Kid, Rambo ...), which made me suspicious. Though there was also Red Heat with Arnold Schwarzenegger which painted a somewhat less black-and-white picture.

I'm now reading that some argue the dissolution of the Soviet Union happened much as a result of Gorbachev's policies: His campaign against alcohol and drunkenness lead to diminished tax revenues, so was bad for the economy. And it was Gorbachev's idea, initially, to bring Yeltsin into the the higher echelons of power, though it looks like he later regretted it. (And Yeltsin of course played a leading role in bringing about the end of the USSR.) And Gorbachev's liberalization policies lead to nationalist movements and ethnic disputes, and indirectly lead to the 1989 revolutions in the Warsaw Pact countries.

Anyway, much of the turbulence we've seen in international relations over the past couple of decades stems from the dissolution of the USSR. There was a balance of power during the cold war which no longer exists.

 

[Amy SF]

Speaking as an American who grew up during the Cold War, I was under the impression that the Soviets were heavily into doping their athletes so they’d be major winners, but that could be anti-Soviet propaganda. I know the Russians have done SOME doping of their Olympic athletes.

 

[Andy_T]

Yes, some of their female shot put athletes likely did have to shave daily. But, just like China and Eastern Germany, I also attribute a lot of the success of their athletic programs to the fact they could keep those future athletes like slaves and control every aspect of their life. No coddling there. Treatment of kids that would not be accepted in the West.

On the other hand, what happened in the East with the privatization of public enterprises can only be called despicable (At the end of my business studies in the early 90's I worked as an intern/freelancer for one of the more reputable companies who, among other projects, also supported this process, and people there would agree that what had happened was really ugly, and they "tried to make the best of it").

Those in power (Putin's ilk) robbed the country, and "normal people" who had been working for a lifetime with the trust in a "compassionate" system that would look after them in their old age were left with nothing but a very small pension and costs of life that suddenly skyrocketed. You better believe that people who are now elderly in the former communist countries do have real nostalgia for the communist system.