Gorbachev officially came to power in 1985, he did not immediately carry out large-scale reforms after he came to power, but first "tested the waters" in some small areas, such as banning alcohol, introducing prohibition orders, and then implementing an "acceleration strategy" in the economic field, but the results were not great, and no one pushed forward at all, so he began to reform the political field, that is, the so-called "new thinking", step by step to lead the Soviet Union to the "deep water zone".
background
The Soviet Union collapsed after 6 years in power under Gorbachev, so what was the soviet union like in 1991? In other words, how effective were Gorbachev's reforms?
As we all know, the reason why the Soviet Union was able to become a superpower competing with the United States for hegemony was mainly the superiority of its system, and the Soviet public ownership economy was the basis for the existence of the Soviet regime and the wealth of the long-term struggle of the entire Soviet people. But in Gorbachev's hands, he implemented privatization reforms that dismantled the economic base of the Soviet regime. As the saying goes, "the economic base determines the superstructure", the economic foundation was disintegrated, not only making the economic achievements of the Eighty Years since the founding of the Soviet Union in vain, but also the national wealth became a tool for a small number of people to get rich, and the Soviet regime was bound to lose its husband.
So what were the consequences of Gorbachev's privatization and free-market economy for the Soviet economy? Let's look at a set of data:
From 1989 to 1991, the economic growth rate of the USSR was -9.6%, according to western standards, there was a decline rate of 7.7% in the same period, and in 1991 it reached -13%. This kind of negative growth has actually exhausted the foundation laid by the Soviet Union in the early stage.
Gorbachev's privatization reform led to negative economic growth, which made the economic situation before the collapse of the Soviet Union deteriorate sharply, and there was a currency crisis, a food crisis, and a rise in prices, and the basic necessities of the people were not guaranteed.
According to the data of the Soviet Union at that time, at the end of 1989, only 11% of the 989 kinds of consumer goods commonly used by the soviet people were not out of stock, and most of the goods could not be bought. The TVs, refrigerators, washing machines and other appliances that the Soviet Union once prided themselves on are gone, and even common items such as washing powder, daily chemicals, furniture, and cosmetics are no longer visible. Even study aids such as exercise books and pencils used by students have become a hot commodity.
Letter
After the crisis in the Soviet economy, did Gorbachev know? As the leader of the Soviet Union, Gorbachev certainly knew, but even if he knew, he would not face the people and would have to find some excuse to evade responsibility.
The shortage of goods in the major stores of the Soviet Union, some of which were even sold out as soon as they were on the shelves, and some of which lined up in long lines to buy food, became a common phenomenon in society. On February 12, 1991, a Soviet schoolboy wrote a letter to Gorbachev, expressing his true feelings about the existence of the Soviet Union.
Attached to the letter is part of the text: "Last week I stood in a terrible team to buy meat, do you know how long I have been standing? I was afraid to tell you, but I stood there for five and a half hours. We used to have queues here, you know, but those lines aren't as long as they were in recent times, and we don't have to queue up to buy everything, but now we have to queue up for everything, starting with meat and shoes, until we buy matches and salt. We lined up to buy rice, white noodles, oil... It's an endless list of goods... I used to never cry because I had a strong personality, but now I cry a lot and we've become like animals now. If you see us, the rough, crazy, hungry, and unbearable people standing in the midst of terrible barbarism, you will be in shock. Every country is helping us, and we have openly begged for help and willingly accepted it. We have forgotten a beautiful word – self-esteem. I am ashamed of our country! ”
The letter written by the schoolboy was published in The Demise of Empires by Heydar: Lessons from Contemporary Russia, presenting to the world the scene before the collapse of the Soviet Union. I wonder how Gorbachev felt when he saw this letter?
In-person visits
Gorbachev is also a man, as the head of state of a great power, in the face of a letter written by an ordinary school student, Gorbachev will certainly be touched, he will not be like the Soviet female teacher, to attack a child, because the child told the truth.
In response to Gorbachev's response to a letter from a student, Gorbachev's assistant Chernyaev recorded in his diary that he and Gorbachev went out to buy bread. It was March 31, and Gorbachev wouldn't say he had experienced it himself, but it was actually an experience.
Chernyaev and Gorbachev drove all over Moscow, starting from the Barina Grove, all the bakeries had no bread, some bakeries closed directly, and some even opened without bread.
Chernyaev said that such a sight had not been seen in Moscow's history, and even during the hungriest years of the Soviet Union, there was no such shortage.
Gorbachev can't buy bread, and he won't lack bread; after all, he is the Fuehrer, and he won't let the common people eat bread, but he will let Gorbachev eat it. I wonder how Gorbachev felt about this scene?
contrast
Gorbachev did not solve these problems, he thought that the West would help the Soviet Union in large quantities. In contrast to the lives of the Soviet people, Gorbachev lived a life of luxury, and he was always working for the benefit of himself and his family. Soon after Gorbachev took over as leader of the CPSU, he ordered him a luxurious villa and other vacation places by the sea. His wife, Raisa, was also replaced by a substandard pool in the villa.
Gorbachev's six-bedroom mansion on Lenin Hill is even more eye-catching, and many pedestrians walk here to see the scenery from a distance. According to Borgin, Gorbachev's former chief of staff, since January 1991, there have been frequent discussions about the difficulties facing the country, and even warnings that if the Soviet economy continues to decline, the Soviet system may collapse, Borgin said: "The president did not care, he was thinking of something else, he was crazy to try to increase his very low approval rating, and he was ready to publish his new book and help his wife publish books." Because some people promised that as long as Laisha published a book, she would give Laisha a large amount of dollars... Raisa also used to call me to ask which publisher was the best fit for her book. ”
Borgin said: "In the difficult times of the country, Gorbachev even received more than a million dollars in remuneration, and accepted all kinds of valuable gifts, as well as rewards for hard currency... I wonder if, as President, he ever cared about the fate of the country and whether he made time to deal with the affairs of the country and the plight of life faced by the people. ”
This is the difficult scene before the collapse of the Soviet Union, a letter from a Soviet schoolboy that reveals the discontent of the people. But the Soviet Union was about to disintegrate, and Gorbachev was no longer able to save it.