Gorbachev Dies

[Archery1969]

Poisoned or old age ?

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

He did have rather allot to say about Puitin.

[greenmark]

Poisoned or old age ?

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

He did have rather allot to say about Puitin.

I know a lot of Russians don't like his legacy. But I believe he brought the west and russia closer together and thats only a good thing. I shall resist the temptation to compare him with any other Russian leader. I think he was a good person.

[Archery1969]

Poisoned or old age ?

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

He did have rather allot to say about Puitin.

I know a lot of Russians don't like his legacy. But I believe he brought the west and russia closer together and thats only a good thing. I shall resist the temptation to compare him with any other Russian leader. I think he was a good person.

Agreed.

[Euler]

The world was a better place for the thawing in the cold war. It's a shame we are back at it's doorstep again.

[greenmark]

This epitomises the difference between Gorbachev and Putin.
"Condemning newly enacted laws cracking down on government criticism, Gorbachev's message to Putin was: "For goodness sake, you should not be afraid of your own people."

[Archery1969]

I wonder what Gorbachev would have thought and said after watching that young girl singing “Let it go” in the Ukraine bunker when the missiles and bombs were dropping.

The world is once again standing by while death and destruction is happening.

Has mankind learnt nothing ?

[Derek27]

I wonder what Gorbachev would have thought and said after watching that young girl singing “Let it go” in the Ukraine bunker when the missiles and bombs were dropping.

The world is once again standing by while death and destruction is happening.

Has mankind learnt nothing ?

The world's certainly not standing by, unless you mean the world's too lazy to fire nukes.

He is the first Soviet leader I knew, I think his predecessor was in the Frankie Goes To Hollywood video. He was the only true peace-loving leader who could work with western leaders and he's survived by a very beautiful granddaughter.

[Galilee66]

In my view, Gorbachev was one of the most courageous leaders of the 20rth Century. The entrenched hard liners within the Soviet system in the 1980's were deeply suspicious of his liberalisation plans. The problem with any totalitarian or extremist based ideolgy is that it too often contains those people who believe that they - and only they - are the true conscience of the party/movement/ governrment/etc. Those of us old enough will remember Nikita Kruschev and his attempts to de-Stalinise the USSR. I vivdly recall Hungary in 1956. I was only 13 years old but had already developed an interest in world poliitics. I was appalled at what happened when the Soviet tanks went into Budapest. I was equally appalled as the western world made heroic speeches and pumped out propaganda - but did absolutely nothing to support the freedom fighters in Hungary. That pattern was repeated in 1968 in Prague - and although, there has been more support for Ukraine this year - there often appears to be too much emphasis on visiting dignitaries and more heroic speeches. I have a theory (which has nothing to support it) that Kruschev was on the brink of further liberalisttion when the protests erupted in Budapest. Such is the nature of reform and liberalisation ttroughout history. That is, that some form of liberalisation encourages the oppressed to take the opportunity to push for further reform. See various revolutions throughout history. - the American, the French and the Russian. Kruschev's problem was that he could not be seen by the hard liners (who are notoriously unforgiving of those who deviate from the "party line") to allow the Hungarians to gain further refoms as it woyld be portayed as betraying the Soviet ideology.

Anywy, I think that there have only been two Soviet leaders of any value - Kruschev and, of course, Gorbachev. Let us hope that history remembers Gorbachev more kindly than the Russian people do.

Galilee66

[Derek27]

Until now, I always thought Perestroika was a town or district in Russia. You learn something new every day.