Gorbachev has just died, what are your thoughts on this man, who has marked the world at the end of the 20th century?

Question

abc3643 · Accepted Answer

When the Soviet Union (aka USSR) came to an end in December 1991, the West had a choice.

PATH 1. They could have helped Russia and the other former Soviet republics become integrated with the west. To illustrate by example that the Russian people were not enemies but only that they had previously lived under an unacceptable social system incompatible with western values.

PATH 2. They could have done little and took a "wait-and-see" attitude. This was somewhat justified by the nature of the Communist Party that had previously ruled the USSR.

The Bush 41 administration and the GOP in power in the US at that time opted for PATH 2. Unfortunately, as is often the case with GOP policies, that was the wrong path to take.

Ironically, what they should have done was listen to former GOP President Richard Nixon who, despite Watergate, was masterful at foreign policy. Nixon would have chosen PATH 1. He predicted in 1992 that, unless the west followed that path, a new dictatorship would rise in Russia...

... and that's exactly what happened and anyone who understands human nature would have understood why: The same basic conditions that existed in post-WW I Germany were akin to what was going on in the former USSR after it ended. What happened in Germany? The rise of hypernationalist Adolph Hitler. What happened in Russia? The rise of hypernationalist Vladimir Putin.

Here is an excerpt of 1992 Larry King interview with Nixon discussing the end of the USSR.

transcripts.cnn.com/.../01

=====

KING: What do we do then? How do we seize that moment?

NIXON: Well, we have to seize the moment by providing the leadership for the whole world and not just the free world. And one way to seize that moment is to develop a good relationship with the new republics of the former Soviet Union. Yeltsin must not fail, because if he fails it means that not the communists will come back but an authoritarian old guard will come back.

KING: So we must help?

NIXON: We must help without question.

KING: Financially?

NIXON: We must help financially, but, Larry, this time as compared with after World War II -- and I was there. John F. Kennedy and I, we worked, voted together for the Greek-Turkish aid program in the 80th Congress. And that was the beginning of containing communism. But then we were the only player. The -- all our allies were devastated by the war, and the Germans and the Japanese were our defeated enemies, and they were devastated. And we had to put out the money. We put out $400 billion over the past 40 years in foreign aid.

Now it's a different game. Those that we helped, the Japanese and Germans, are the next two strongest economist in the free world. The rest of Europe, Japan and the rest, must assume the primary burden for providing the transitional funds, the humanitarian aid that Russia and the Soviet Union needs at this time. The U. S. cannot do it alone. We should simply provide, however, the leadership.

=====

Here is the whole interview:
www.cnn.com/.../lkl-nixon-superpower.cnn

Of course, Bush 41 instead said "It's not prudent at this juncture."
... 30 years later, we have "the authoritarian old guard" in charge with Putin and a hostile aggressive Russia as dysfunctional and honest with its people as Trump is with MAGAWorld.

Anonymous · Accepted Answer

He was naive and gullible. The United States never wanted peace and coexistence. The United States wants hegemony and world domination. What can be expected of a nation completely infected to it's very core with Jews, Zionism, Puritanism, Evangelical Christianity, moral decadence, corruption, hedonism, and immorality! I have wanted the US-led World Order to completely collapse and disintegrate! Victory to Russia! I honestly hope Putin uses a tactical nuke to "shock and awe" the West. I recently moved close to Ukraine but not in Ukraine, but whatever, if I die, I die. I hate the United States more than anyone because I was born into poverty, never had friends, never had a girlfriend, and never even got any job. High grades, high GPA, romantic, and stuff. But the United States has toxic Jewish values. I have millionaire relatives who won't ever do anything to help me while they enjoy the good life and earned millions on Wall Street. I fucking hate that Zionist immoral degenerate nation called the United States. I hope the BRICS create a multipolar world. I would take great joy in watching half of the population of the United States die like the immoral corrupt worms they are! But I could say similar about the entire West! Anglo-Germanic-Nordic is immoral rubbish! Russia is the superior White Civilization and the best ally to all other races! Victory to Russia!

Jessica405 · Accepted Answer

A great politician. He should not have resigned when he did. He should have let all those eastern European countries go their own way and concentrate on making Russia a world class democracy that it could be, and should be. I am sad to see it now being a pariah state. If its current regime was any good, it would be able to stand the test of free and open elections.

purplepoppy · Accepted Answer

We have an old adverb, if you want to be a leader be a bridge. You have to admire a leader of a country that was feared and hated by the west who managed to build a relationship with us that ended the cold war despite people on both sides wanting it to continue

PJH359 · Answer

However we feel about his decisions during his rule, he was a brave man and a reasonable man. He was reasonable and open minded enough to engage with President Reagan and other world leaders that his predecessors would never have. He may very well have been the only Russian president who was a humanitarian. His decisions were mostly based on how they would affect the citizens of Russia. He knew he was facing an inevitable decline and made the tough decisions to best deal with it. Personally I thought he was a good man and great leader.

normalice · Answer

From what I know he was genuinely trying to steer the USSR onto the right path, but the benefits of the reforms he put in place were initially too far outpaced by the costs of dismantling the old communist system, plus the Chernobyl incident nearly bankrupted the country. If he had been the leader 10 years sooner I think the USSR would be a thriving equal to the US. But instead it has become a brain sewer, kept warm mostly by the overwhelming volume of bullshit. Anyone with a shred of intelligence in the country is prevented from engaging in real innovation and instead is steered toward figuring outnhow best to manipulate the population into being docile and compliant. It is sad they gave up on the man so soon, but he wasn't without his faults i guess.

Ill_made_Knight · Answer

Gorbachev was uniquely progressive and optimistic for a Russian leader. He and Reagan discussed eliminating all medium range nukes from Europe by 2000.
Gorbachev stated a willingness to "do it now" in 1987. Part of the deal he wanted was for Reagan to stop pursuit of SDI "Star Wars" which was a sticking point for Reagan even though most viewed SDI as unachievable even at that time.
They did eventually agree on removal of a number of nukes but many feel like a great opportunity was fumbled, and some wonder how things might have changed at that pivotal moment had someone less conservative than Reagan been POTUS at that time...

Makeushiver · Answer

I think he was remarkable. The Sovieta had some sitty leaders after Kruschev. Brezhnev was senile for most of his career and Andropov and Chernenko after him were all from the KGB. Gorbachev was the architect of democratic Russia which seemed so optimistic during his and Yeltsin's tenure. Putin didn't seem to be too bad art first and when he loosened up enough to allow a president that was filled by someone a bit more liberal. I think the west likely pushed too hard to get the new spun off republics into NATO. One of Putin's first promises was to ensure the freedom of Ukraine.

KostasKouvalis · Answer

Gorbachev? I had to google that because I genuinely thought you were Mark Dicein' me. I thought he passed away a long time ago. No one ever talks about him.

Honestly, I think he's responsible for a lot of the military conflicts that have taken place in recent history. Because he tore down the wall, but he didn't take into account ethnic enclaves when he drew up the new borders, and now almost all the former Soviet states are trying to take territory they claim belongs to them, just because their people live there. I think it's funny how Russia let itself fall apart, now it's trying to get that land back.

globetrotter22 · Answer

He was actually one of the better Soviet Union leaders. He was the one who introduced glasnost which was a better improved dissemination of information and communication.

He would of gotten more respect if it wasn’t for Chernobyl and the failure of the afghan invasion.

molonski2 · Answer

I didn't know , sorry to hear. Wonderful Innovator , great man , really improved Russia , got the place open , really helped people in general , sadly he always had detractors , and they were powerful , hence the idiot in charge now.

RIP Sir , you did the correct thing , and did best for your country.

Sixgunsound · Answer

I think that at great personal cost, he made the right decision for the Russian people to preside over the dismantling of the Soviet empire. Nobody’s perfect, but when he got on a plane with Reagan and flew over west Germany and saw what his people were lacking, he made the right choice by doing what he could to give them that.

Stoner710 · Answer

He’s one of the few people who’s death should be celebrated and people should be relieved that such an evil man is no longer walking free on earth, he is up there with Hitler Stalin Mao Lenin Idi Amin xing jing ping joe Biden pol pot Tito Vladimir Putin and Alexander Lukashenko

AviatorTom · Answer

He was a good leader that took his country to new places that it needed to be at. He was also a human being, not just a politician on his high horse. Here's a myTake

andreasderjuengere · Answer

As a (born) German, I feel thankful for the improvements that he had made possible.

91 is a proud age. And it's predictable that we all leave one day. But he left with some positive legacy.

I'm sorry how poorly he was treated by his own people.

RyanEC · Answer

This is the first I heard of this.
I think Gorbachev although being a former communist leader seemed to lead his country towards greater freedom and transparency to the Communist system in the Soviet Union.
A lot of Russian people hate him and blame him for the downfall of Russia in the 1990s but I think he was a pretty good leader considering the political system he was in.

May he find rest and peace in the next world.

crossdressingrihno · Answer

I wouldn’t call him a saint but he is exactly what Russia needs.
I’d argue that if he were alive he’d be exactly the man to bring peace and prosperity not just to Russia but almost all countries under Russias influence

RavVid · Answer

Difficult to assess him. He ended the cold war but could not control the consequences. The good thing was several countries became free. But it has led to the current situation.

Overall the world is probably better.

WhiteBoyChill · Answer

I think he was a stupid man. I mean he literally orchestrated the collapse of his own country and was effectively a Western Puppet.

Not that I support communism or anything, but he should’ve at least transitioned the Soviet Union into Russia’s current form

John_Doesnt · Answer

Very few people understand who he was or what he did. The majority of people assume "he's a communist so he's bad". But there is a lot more to his legacy.

jamesNtoleorion · Answer

With his arrival, there was hope for a better just life, but he could not, or maybe even deliberately began the collapse of the country. I hope the majority understood what his activities led to. With his death, I hope people will come to realize and the Russians will embark on the path of rebirth!

PeteBy · Answer

It took some serious guts to steer the USSR away from the path it was on. Under him and Yeltsin we managed to have a better world, a safer one. Then Putin undid all their hard work.

DryGermanGuy · Answer

One of modern Germany's truest friends! Now they are together again.

slatyb · Answer

He was a visionary who loved about his country. It's very sad that Russia has reverted to a dictatorship by a megalomaniac.

lightbulb27 · Answer

Very brave man…. Positive opinion. Don’t know details but he showed more courage and smarts than most.

Light909090 · Answer

Never met the man I don’t care when people die. I’m sort of jealous of people that die but hey I guess that says more about me than the people that die.

Guy13 · Answer

Wish he was in office now as I understand he was not as angry snd aggressive as Putin.

lorenzomichael · Answer

He was Good. I remember president Ragan gave him a pair of Tony Lama cowboy boots and a stetson cowboy hat. He had a look on his face like WTF am I supposed to do with that shit.

VikingWarLord · Answer

Watch this to know all about Mikhail

JaxiCats · Answer

Sad that he died but he made an impact on the country he was a part of

ManOnFire · Answer

And I heard that Putin snubbed him by not coming to his funeral.

Sour-rose · Answer

Welp... bet now he knows the answer to the end.

MCheetah · Answer

I honestly didn't even know he was still alive. I figured he died in the late 90s or something.

Iron_Man · Answer

Him and Ronald Reagan did well Working on the two countries together

Andres77 · Answer

God blessed the world with a man such as him in exactly the right time in history that we really needed him.

Dargil · Answer

Reagan asked him to take down the Berlin wall. He did. That's all I need to know.

SlightlyEccentric · Answer

Not gonna lie, I had no idea he was still alive. I thought he died like 20 years ago.

maximumpower · Answer

Other than Stalin, Gorbachev is the one leader of whom history will state changed his country more than any other. His actions at Ron Reagan's funeral are the best testament to the man he was.

Xoirwinkan · Answer

Remarkable he survived so long, must've been his Pizza Hut bulletproof vest.

Jenny-Marie · Answer

He was a leader who tried to reduce tensions with the west and was considerably better than any contemporary European or North American politicians.

888theGreat · Answer

not a bad person, but not a hero either. He was pressured to change by Russians. Reagan really spanked him. He ran circles around him

Cubus · Answer

Well, I am thankful that he destroyed this communist shithole.

JohnK123 · Answer

Amazing leader who tore the iron curtain down and ended the Cold War

TonightYouu · Answer

Im not a fan of commies but he was one of my go to responses for when women say “Men cause wars” because that maybe true but men also end them

OfDeath · Answer

How did he always managed to still get shat on by birds even indoors?

msc545 · Answer

If only our politicians had his brains and integrity

jongreat46 · Answer

For me personally, I am not sad and I am not happy; may he rest in peace, Viva fidel.

MoonCrest · Answer

Definitely a more open-minded Soviet leader than the norm had been

fireforeffect · Answer

He was very worried about Putin. He saw Putin as evil.  Putin may have had him killed.

Anonymous · Answer

He was a decent human being for being a commy.

Anonymous · Answer

Mr Garbachev was a good leader of the communist party.

Anonymous · Answer

He is a great leader who is selfless and humble. He won the Nobel prize and he donated all the reward money. He is amazing

katiesmuff · Answer

I think we are all lucky that man existed!

exitseven · Answer

I was surprised he was still alive.

Agent_Elflord · Answer

Honestly I thought he had already died a while ago

Likes2drive · Answer

Was surprised he was still alive and made it to 91

pizzalovershouse · Answer

Can't say I dont live in Russia

boobliker · Answer

he was the one who tried to make it better!

Anonymous · Answer

Terrible man. Communist to socialist.

Lastdoctorwho · Answer

I hate him

Anonymous · Answer

never heard of him.

SiberFox · Answer

Indifférence

Anonymous · Answer

sorry who?

Gorbachev has just died, what are your thoughts on this man, who has marked the world at the end of the 20th century?

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