Mikhail Gorbachev

[Neto]

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-62732447

A great leader (in my opinion). The USSR was not ready for Glasnost, in much the same way that many plain people are not ready for freedom in Christ. (Sorry for "religionizing" politics.... )

[barnhart]

History would be different without him.

[mike]

What do you guys think of this take:

[Neto]

What do you guys think of this take:

Perhaps he could have acted on his new governing philosophy more slowly. But how do you slowly stop killing people who resist foreign control? I think that it was the party that put him into power that destroyed his chances of a smooth transition. However, no ethnic group enjoys being controlled by foreigners. I think that the ideal outcome (for the Soviet peoples) would have been a transition from rule by (mostly) Russians and their closest allies, to a sort of commonwealth of somewhat free states. But these other areas had not joined of their free will in the beginning, so it is no wonder that they opted out when the opportunity presented itself. (OK, now I'd better go back to my non-political "corner".)

[Ken]

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-62732447

A great leader (in my opinion). The USSR was not ready for Glasnost, in much the same way that many plain people are not ready for freedom in Christ. (Sorry for "religionizing" politics.... )

The USSR was unsustainable without military repression on an absolutely massive scale. Which itself was not sustainable.

Most of the non-Russian peoples of the USSR were very much ready for Glastnost and have made the best of it from the Baltic states in the north to the Caucasus states in the south like Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan.

The Ukraine war is essentially an effort to turn back the clock.

[steve-in-kville]

I didn't realize he was still alive

[Neto]

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-62732447

A great leader (in my opinion). The USSR was not ready for Glasnost, in much the same way that many plain people are not ready for freedom in Christ. (Sorry for "religionizing" politics.... )

The USSR was unsustainable without military repression on an absolutely massive scale. Which itself was not sustainable.

Most of the non-Russian peoples of the USSR were very much ready for Glastnost and have made the best of it from the Baltic states in the north to the Caucasus states in the south like Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan.

The Ukraine war is essentially an effort to turn back the clock.

Yes, "ready for it", but in a completely different way than I meant. They were ready to take advantage of it to break away from the Soviet state, but not ready to make use of it in the way Gorbachev intended, as a transition of the USSR to a less totalitarian (read repressive) state into something more democratic.

[Grace]

I remember some older conservative Mennonite men discussing the birthmark he had on his forehead. One of the men thought it was the mark of the beast.

[steve-in-kville]

I remember some older conservative Mennonite men discussing the birthmark he had on his forehead. One of the men thought it was the mark of the beast.

That doesn't shock me.

[Ken]

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-62732447

A great leader (in my opinion). The USSR was not ready for Glasnost, in much the same way that many plain people are not ready for freedom in Christ. (Sorry for "religionizing" politics.... )

The USSR was unsustainable without military repression on an absolutely massive scale. Which itself was not sustainable.

Most of the non-Russian peoples of the USSR were very much ready for Glastnost and have made the best of it from the Baltic states in the north to the Caucasus states in the south like Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan.

The Ukraine war is essentially an effort to turn back the clock.

Yes, "ready for it", but in a completely different way than I meant. They were ready to take advantage of it to break away from the Soviet state, but not ready to make use of it in the way Gorbachev intended, as a transition of the USSR to a less totalitarian (read repressive) state into something more democratic.

I guess it depends on whether you view the USSR as a democratic state that peoples and populations willingly joined. Or whether you view it as Russian imperialism in another guise. No different for example, from British imperialism in India or French imperialism in Indochina.