Russian Revolution 3/Mark Steel

[MrBillcale]

steel is well meaning but misguided

[stephengnelson]

no mention that Lenin had syphilis of the brain? or that he murdered thousands of the clergy? he really was not much better than Stalin actually.

[sewagedweller]

now some one please explain to me , why there are still retards who claim Stalin is the virtuous founder of socialism when there are so much evidence against it?

[weirdloopyloo]

2:55 is so moving, someone who thought that things were really going to change.

[kaneangel2012]

VERY GOOD THANKS FOR UPLOADING

[d1bx4pp]

There was a beautiful moment in Russia when the Tsarist regime was toppled. Even though I'm a hardened Adam Smith man I can see that.

Literacy flourished and the chains of oppression fell away. Unfortunately, the liberty didn't last.

Mark's lecture is good but I think misleading on the development of the Bolshevik totalitarianism. He claims the west and the White Russian's involvement forced Lenin to take absolute control to fight them.

That's not really fair on the White Russians.

[odentroll]

Thank you for your comments, debate is welcome on this channel. It makes people think.

[jacobvardy]

@d1bx4pp, fair enough mate. I'm an anarchist, so i'm pretty hostile to the Leninists. But the question remains, what would you have done? Failed revolutions in England and France in the 1800s had lead to 10,000s being executed. When the choice is tyranny or you and a few million of your mates getting murdered, what would you do?

[d1bx4pp]

@jacobvardy Difficult question. For the ordinary Russian that was not the choice they faced as they didn't know that the millions would be killed. So from that perspective the choice was obvious and the Tsar forced the hand of the ordinary Russians by being utterly intransigent.

My criticism is not of the ordinary Russian, but the Bolshivik leadership. Lenin always intended to crush dissenters be they on the left or right and I think Mark Steel's White Russian excuse for this is pretty feeble.

[jacobvardy]

@d1bx4pp, Ordinary Russians were aware of the choice. Russia has a long history of peasant revolts. Which when they failed, the leaders were all killed. And their families, and their friends, and anyone else the local lord did not like the look of.

There were also the Black Hundreds, pro-tsarist terrorists. Who rode through the night killing Jews, unionists, liberals, etc... So Russians knew that the price would be high.

Vive y salud

[jacobvardy]

@d1bx4pp, I don't think you can say that Lenin always intended to crush dissent. He worked with the SRs and the Men'ks. till their leadership sided with the invaders. He worked with the anarchists until they tried to overthrow the state, which Lenin felt necessary to protect the revolution. There was vigorous debate in newspapers, within the parameters set by the Party. The Left Opposition vetoed the Brest-Litovsk treaty until in was clear the guerrilla war would not work.

Vive y salud

[sweetpotos]

"Mine, all mine now. My Petrograd." Wow, so powerful, that's what it's all about really. That is the essence of the spirit of communism, all things for all people. I am on the verge of tears after listening to that.

[odentroll]

You are right it was a moving time indeed.

a momentary glimpse of utopia.

[Parrotsalive]

ace