The head of the Donetsk People's Republic, Alexander Zakharchenko, in October last year ordered to place banners with the image of Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin in the center of Donetsk and made the following public statement on this occasion: “The Soviet Union was a great country and it is a huge mistake that we allowed it to be destroyed by the CIA and other special services of the West”.
What can you say about this? The Soviet Union was indeed a great state. In fact, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, a positive alternative to the global capitalist order of the world disappeared. Why did the Soviet Union die? Because it was destroyed by Western intelligence services? Not. This is a dangerous delusion. Western special services, of course, had a hand in dismantling the country of the Soviets, but their harmful effects were not the key factor in its disappearance from the geopolitical map of the world. They just did their job like they always did. It would be very strange if our enemies did not try to destroy us. They always carried out subversive work, but not always in the end they received such a monstrous result.
So what are the real reasons for the collapse of the USSR? Destructive external influences can be overcome. But only if there are no serious internal problems and contradictions. Let's take a look at the most important ones.
Mutation of the structure of government
The Soviet Union got its name for a reason. You've probably heard the slogan: "All power to the Soviets!" What does this mean? Even before the Revolution, regardless of the official tsarist power, at factories and factories in collectives, councils of workers' deputies were spontaneously formed, which defended the class interests of the proletariat. After the Great October Socialist Revolution, the proletariat became the ruling class. And it was the Soviets that became the main organs of power, which were built on the principle of workers' self-government. That is, it was a dictatorship of the proletariat, implemented not in words, but in deeds - the working collective completely controlled production, and also at any time could recall its representatives in power. But over time, already in the 30s, the situation began to change,The Soviets began to transform from the organs of the dictatorship of the proletariat into the elected parliamentary bodies. In 1936, this transformation was recorded in the Constitution at the Chrezvychain VIII All-Union Congress of Soviets, where the Supreme Soviet of the USSR was proclaimed the highest body of state power of the USSR (instead of the Congress of Soviets of the USSR, which was the highest body according to the 1924 constitution). Thus, this was the last congress of the Soviets. Elections of deputies have now begun to be held on a territorial basis. The working class lost control of the state apparatus. The party bureaucracy began to grow, and real power gradually began to pass to it. A systemic contradiction appeared - the conflict between labor and management. Over time, this contradiction only grew. And in 1961, at the XXII Congress, it was proclaimed and included in the party program,that as a result of the completion of the construction of socialism, the dictatorship of the proletariat in the USSR fulfilled its historical role and from the point of view of internal development ceased to be necessary. This very moment can be called a turning point, when the party finally dissociated itself from the proletariat, whose class interest it was supposed to represent. As a result, the party nomenklatura began to live its own life, becoming, in fact, a separate layer of professional managers. Further, this stratum began to degrade, being struck by all the vices of the elite, alienated from the people. In the end, the nomenklatura did not need the USSR and its individual circles staged a counter-revolution, destroying the country in the process. The nomenklatura was transformed into a new bourgeoisie, appropriating the national wealth obtained by the labor of entire generations. The rebirth is over.
Marxism as a dogma, not as a science
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The Great October Socialist Revolution was able to materialize only thanks to the fact that it was armed with a powerful theoretical apparatus developed by Marx, Engels and Lenin. The application of this knowledge in practice made it possible for the first time in human history to realize the Socialist Revolution. Marxism was taken as a basis for building the USSR. The communists, who were then building a new, more just world, well understood the value of a working theory, which was universally applied in practice and gave excellent results. But over time, the attitude towards Marxism-Leninism changed. It began to shift from a scientific approach towards perceiving it as a kind of sacred dogma, which was once given as a kind of revelation in sacred texts. You need to know them, memorize them, but understanding is not necessary. In the USSR, any attempts at the creative development of Marxism were rigidly suppressed. Although the social situation in the country differed from that described in the books of the classics, the theoretical apparatus for understanding the real situation by the proletariat was never developed. And as you know, that which does not develop is doomed to death. This is the law of life. Capitalist theory developed rapidly throughout the twentieth century. From her characteristic ideological point of view, she gave answers to the challenges of the time. In addition, many movements have sprung up in the West that pretend to be leftists, thereby leading the working class away from the real struggle. The Soviet nomenklatura, realizing its propaganda weakness, made a bet on information secrecy, trying in vain not to let information from the capitalist countries through. When communist theory became dogmathe enemies of the USSR were able, with the help of specially developed propaganda techniques, to essentially destroy the faith in communism. It is easy to undermine the foundation of an irrational faith; it is enough to show a person contradictions with the existing situation in reality, while ridiculing the object of faith. The truth is much more difficult to destroy. And since by that time the proletariat no longer had an understanding of the true power of communist theory, people simply believed, and did not know. This weak point was struck. And since by that time the proletariat no longer had an understanding of the true power of communist theory, people simply believed, and did not know. This weak point was struck. And since by that time the proletariat no longer had an understanding of the true power of communist theory, people simply believed, and did not know. This weak point was struck.
These two reasons served as time mines laid under the foundation of the Soviet state. But there were also less obvious reasons, more connected with the transformation of the consciousness of the Soviet citizens themselves. We will talk about them in the next part.