Why did Communism fail in Soviet Russia?

The reason communism failed in Russia is a very complex issue.

There were a lot of outside forces that were pushing against Russia, mostly the United States and their allies, and there were even provocateurs within the government that pushed against the will of the leadership. Add to that the repercussions of the war with Germany and you have a big mess waiting to happen.

What I believe was the real downfall of this communist model is that Russia tried to nationalize and centralize everything they possibly could. Food production and distribution, manufacturing, etc. This worked great during the war and allowed Russia to defeat the Nazis, but it did not make for good economics.

Mao Zedong was correct when he said that communism works best when the people are broken down in to their own micro-economies of around 25,000-75,000 people, and these micro-economies made up the collective of the nation. Each individual economy would produce what they needed to survive and the national government would move around goods from those that were in surplus to those that were in need.

National teams of scientists would go to these collectives and work with farmers/tradesmen to help increase production, quality and yield. The information gathered by these scientists would be used to help other collectives.

Russia did not do that and I believe that is part of why it failed.

a reply to: paraphi

lol you too

tell me what sociaty didn't go through enslaved humans till they gained privileges

there are starving marvins in Africa and kids slavery and blood shed all around the world .. Epic fail on all levels .. no correlation to economic ideology

there is poverty and corruption all around you with communism long time fallen.. how come ?

it was the communists who loaded on African slaves (let's use that example for sake of the argument)

Boris, said the Party official, If you had two cows would you give one to your neighbor who had none? Of course said Boris, If you had two chickens would you also give one to your neighbor? certainly, said Boris. And if you had two goats would you also give one to your neighbor? No. Said Boris. No? Why not? Because said Boris, I have two goats.

a reply to: optimisitcplanet

Friedrich August von Hayek. He's someone you won't learn about in any liberal arts university, but his brilliant ideas and arguments are what brought communism to its end. He should be required reading, but rarely anyone has heard of him.

Soviet union fell because just like with Capitalism all the wealth ended up in the hands of a few...

Communism is awesome if your born into the right family.. otherwise you were stuck in soviet union waiting in a bread line hoping you got some before they were out.

a reply to: Layaly

Frankly, I don't know what you are blabbering on about.

Poverty, and slavery, and corruption are part of all social orders because all social orders are imperfect. However, some a far better than others.

However, communism never got close to solving any of it. The only winners in communism were the ruling elite. Everyone else was expendable - including free thought. I have a feeling the countless millions who were smudged out by communist regimes in the last century were not humming the Internationale as the trigger was squeezed, or the engineered famine came knocking, or the cattle truck came to collect your family for deportation so your land could be collectivised.

a reply to: optimisitcplanet

The truth, Communism in Russia failed because Stalin took over through threat's when Lennin died, why did the Soviet union collapse? though it was no longer truly any form of communism, take the elite status inferred upon Party members as well such as dacha and Cuban cigars.

The collapse was brought about by growing inequality and poverty in the nations under soviet rule, the vast expenditure on the military also reduced the amount of resources necessary for other applications but also international sanction's and tightening of control on import and export with the soviet union also brought about it's demise.

originally posted by: Astyanax
a reply to: luthier

Communism failed because it was supposed to happen naturally out of the most modern advanced capitalist state. Not a rural peasant culture.

If you are speaking of why Communism failed in Russia, this is plausible and has sometimes been cited by Marxist historians. Marxist ideology holds that the development of an urban bourgeoisie and an industrial working class are prerequisites for a people's revolution. Russia had little of either, so the Russian Revolution was largely a peasant revolution. This changed its character so that it wasn't 'really' Communist.

But this is just Marxist theory. I don't know if it was ever proven true. Remember, Communism did not fail in China, which was also a mainly peasant society.

I also disagree with the reason you give for the survival of capitalism. Capitalism survives because it is popular, and because it works well in combination with the rule of law and any political system that supports property rights. It doesn't need propaganda to sell it to people -- apart, that is, from advertising for all the goodies it produces.

China does not have communism. There is a fascist central gov. Again you don't have to be a historian just read his own work.

Second I agree about capitalism. I never said what I thought about capitalism. I said it is doomed because it will eventually find the most efficient way to produce goods. Which means we will have nearly everything automated which is currently beginning. Once that happens and emerging economies grow (end of cheap labour) we will have huge unemployment. Currently social leaders other than a handful of visionary CEO's are not talking about this. One possible way to defuse the time bomb is our expansion into space and the jobs that would create. However, we fell behind as scientific curiosity has been some what stifled by capitalism I'm the sense that science for science sake is harder to find.


I am not advocating for communism. I just have a pretty good background in philosophy and theology. I just was saying there have not been any of the things Marx wrote about in his manifesto in the gov. That call themselves communist.

a reply to: optimisitcplanet

They Finally Ran Out of Other Peoples Money .

Labtech767 hits the nail on the head again !!!!!!

a reply to: paraphi

I am from a former communistic country the revolution of ending former zssr happened in 1989 that was the last of it in my country

my grandparents have acres of land the goverment assigned to them the gov also gave the whole village cattle to take care of.. Anyone who wanted could go to the place they kept it in if you helped out with the cattle you were given live stock for it.. it was not compulsory.. after communism fell my dad was left with the land he never paid for he opened up an export company for fruit and veggies he made a lot of money.. my uncle somehow scored being the owner of thermal pools he never paid for he sold it and bought a hotel

my other grandparents were given an apartment that was build close to the new factory.. if they took the job they were given housing for free (3 bedroom appartment) they took the job.. my grandfather was an engineer my grandma worked in the office . when communism fell my grandparents were allowed to keep the apartment they never paid for my mum has sold it and we made actually a lot of money on it..

was it perfect? Definitely not..was it awefull?..definitely not

ALSO!!!

with all the jobs eg the factory it was compulsory for the factory to take the workers yearly on trips they never had to pay for.. so if you wanted to go you could.. my grandma went.. the trip was to Italy and she got to see Marylin Monroe

a reply to: LesMisanthrope

Communism didn't fail Russia in 1992. It failed in 1917.

a reply to: luthier

I just have a pretty good background in philosophy and theology.

Do you? In that case, perhaps you had better explain how you define Maoist China as 'Fascist'.

NO 1 Benefit of communism

FREE MEDICARE AND EDUCATION !!!

in my country it is still this way (the trend started to change only like 5 years ago)

all you had to do to get into university is have really good grades

to go to doctors you only needed your social security ID and pay a standard fee of 20 korunas (in my era) that is like $1 and it didn't matter if it was gp, dentist, emergency giving birth what ever it is that was wrong with you

originally posted by: Layaly
NO 1 Benefit of communism

FREE MEDICARE AND EDUCATION !!!

Yet in my country which was never occupied by the communists I have free healthcare and education.

a reply to: paraphi

that is a wonderful thing


but you false advertise how can you know how communism was if you never experienced it yet you act like you know better

where did you get the information you are blabbing here on about Internet ? lol you

my family and my friends and my people lived it you only can ask how it was not tell the stories you never lived

I will again use this example it's off topic to op I understand sorry OP

it's like me saying shame on the USA for making black people their slaves how many black people died or had to fight for their freedom.. how long???? till this day there is debilitating rasism in that country and because of it .. another example .. people still discussing the confederate flag bs .. Would I come here and bash USA for their past? NO! would I act like I understand it? NO! would I judge it? NO

Communism failed because Putin refused to go along with the Bankers plans of world domination... Their goal was to cause a global War with the US, but Putin put the breaks on it and ended the bankers control of the financial control of Russia.. Of course there were social chaos and jobs lost.. But what's better, freedom of bondage?.. Now the bankers plans are to cause a global meltdown between the Moslems and Christians... And their falling for it hook, line and sinker!.. Soon other countries will get involved and start WW3...just pray that intelligent leaders step up and put an end to the foolishness that has gripped humanity.. Terrorism can be stopped... Just stop the money flow!... ISIS is a private army recruited by corrupt banking institutions!...find out who they are and put them away for crimes against humanity!

It seems to me that communism didnt fail since it is still practiced. I do not believe that it is a failure just because the west doesn't do it, talks snip about it all the time and does whatever they can to undermine it. It sounds like a threat to the capitalism that west practices or we wouldnt be so antagonistic towards it.

I think both communism and capitalism are primative, though. Why not have the best of both worlds?

a reply to: MALBOSIA

It seems to me that communism didnt fail since it is still practiced.

Where is Communism still practised?

originally posted by: Astyanax
a reply to: LesMisanthrope

Communism didn't fail Russia in 1992. It failed in 1917.

Why did it fail Russia in 1917?