Tuesday, January 7, 2020

Fall of Communism - 1772 Words

How can we explain the sudden collapse of Communism in Europe? Communism was a very popular ideology which was in great favor during the inter-war period but in the 1980s, there was an unanticipated demise of Communism. So how can we explain the sudden collapse of communism in Europe? I would argue that there were several forces converging to the breakdown of communism in Eastern Europe. Factors such as the high expenses of engaging in nuclear arms, the lost of their satellite states, the growing economic disparity in Europe and the changing attitudes and values of the younger people converged together that brought communism to the brink of collapse in Europe. The most important factor, however, was the role of Gorbachev and his†¦show more content†¦The disparity between the Soviet Union economy and that of the United States was what alerted Gorbachev that the Communist economy was not doing well. Soviet’s command economy was not concerned with matching supply and demand but with administering inputs and outputs. In other words, the economy was detached from the consumer and producers. The Communist countries were unable to catch up with globalization because of the inadequate resources. USSR did not have the capital to modernize their industries. On top of that, there was a big gap in the quantity production and the quality was evidently poor as well. Much of the money that was needed for its economy went to nuclear arms, space technology and to support its eastern bloc countries. ‘Economic problems, however, were not isolated to Russia alone, by 1989 the satellite states had accumulated a foreign debt of 49 billion,’ (Maier, 1997: 59). Economic and industrial progress degenerated further when the USSR withdrew its support from the satellite states that were heavily dependent on Russia. The Communist ideology began to decline so quickly that the socialist economic system no longer worked as the best system. Against the backdrop of such austere economic prospects, Gorbachev’s policies o f glasnost and perestroika indirectly implied that the soviet styled economy was obsolete and clearly failing. This brought aboutShow MoreRelatedEssay on The Fall of Communism1064 Words   |  5 PagesYugoslavia, Romania, Albania and Eastern Germany formed the Eastern Bloc that was controlled by the Soviet Union. As Stalin began to force his hand in all elements of government, economics and social life, Germans and others became disillusioned with Communism and began to flee westward to escape the oppression. Under communist rule, the necessities of daily living were scarce. 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In a society that followsRead MoreThe Fall of the Berlin Wall and Communism in Europe Essay1804 Words   |  8 Pagescame. They simply picked up and left. Fà ¼hrer said, â€Å"They were ready for everything except candles and prayers. That night, the GDR was a different place than it had been that morning.† (Curry) After the drama of the Monday Demonstrations, the fall of the wall was actually considered anticlimactic. On November 9, 1989, a routine press conference was gathered to announce the party’s decisions. 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In a communist economy, the government owns most of the firms, subsequently controlling production and allocation of resources. One of the most well-known and well-documented cases of a communist government took place in the Soviet Union, beginning in 1917 and eventually falling in 1992. Idealistically, communism eliminates social classism and provides e qual work for all in a

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