Today, when we look back at the process of the collapse of the Soviet Union, the performance of both military personnel and officials truly reflects one sentence: starting from their own interests.
In the eyes of these vested interests in the collapse of the Soviet Union, it seems that the division of the country is only a matter of necessity. And when we look at the Soviet people in the midst of upheaval, how do these ordinary Soviet people see the collapse of the Soviet Union? What is the impact of this upheaval on them?
In fact, the Soviet people were not cold-blooded, on the contrary, they maintained a deep affection for the country.
As early as the war, the Soviet people could tighten their belts for the sake of the country and save food to donate to the front. Why was the Soviet Union victorious in the Great Patriotic War? It depends on the firm conviction of the Soviet people to unite and unite.
But in times of peace, it is not possible. As the reform of the state system became more and more chaotic, Soviet society seemed to be a crumbling lonely boat, with only a few winds and waves to fall to the bottom of the sea. In my opinion, in the face of the rampant corruption and economic stagnation of soviet society, it is not surprising that the Soviet people did not react at all.
The will of the people is an important factor. In 1990, the Soviet Union declared a presidential system, and Gorbachev was elected as the first president of the Soviet Union. With the rise to power of a large number of elected officials, many Soviet citizens remained optimistic about the future of the country, feeling that the country had finally broken the dull political ecology and moved towards a bright road.
At least on the surface, the state was moving in the right direction, and there was no fluctuation within the Soviet system.
However, as the country's economy continued to deteriorate, the perception of the Soviet people also changed. They believe that at the end of the Soviet union,000, the bureaucratic tendencies of the Soviet Union did not change in any way, and that in order to achieve the goal of controlling public opinion, the state allowed the privileged classes to monitor the people, which was completely contrary to Lenin's original intention of establishing the Soviet Union. For such a terminally ill country, the Soviet people were already disappointed.
According to the records, on one occasion, the Soviet Knowledge Association held a report meeting in Moscow, during which there was a fierce protest.
In the course of the meeting, a worker-like audience could not help but scold when he heard about the glorious achievements of Soviet literature. He angrily rebuked the reporter on the stage: "The state has carried out economic reforms for so many years, shouting long live the whole day, and it is actually worse than before the October Revolution." ”
After the meeting, the KGB did not bother with this audience, which was simply strange.
In the early morning of August 19, 1991, news came from within the Soviet Union that Gorbachev had "stepped aside" and that the Emergency Committee began exercising state power.
It is reasonable to say that the Soviet people should have a say about this change in the country, but according to the reports sent back by reporters from various countries, the Soviet people have no emotions in this political movement that determines the survival of the country, and all they are left with is indifference.
It is reported that in the vehicles to the center of Moscow, the reporter not only did not see any military vehicles, but also rarely even pedestrians. By the time the reporter arrived at Red Square, the atmosphere was as calm as ever, as if it had been disconnected from the situation.
The coup d'état of the military was even more unexpected. When Yeltsin's convoy leisurely entered the White House (the government building of the Russian Republic), the army responsible for the repression did not care, and some of them even chatted with the people, as if they had seen no surprise about it.
I would like to ask, in the face of the unsurpassed mood of the people of the country, can the August 19 coup in the Soviet Union still be successful?
The soviet populace had lost interest in the government and had no hope of who would lead the country. Therefore, it does not matter who steps down and who comes to power, the Soviet people are only concerned about their own survival, only their own three meals a day, it is as simple as that.
On the evening of November 25, 1991, Gorbachev, under pressure from the opposition, was forced to announce the cessation of the soviet presidency, which in effect announced the disintegration of the Soviet Union.
Wen Yi, a Chinese scholar who happened to be in Moscow at the time, witnessed this situation. In his later book, The Years of Disintegration, he described Gorbachev's televised speeches this way: "I think there should always be something after Gorbachev's emaciated figure disappears. Shouting or cursing, there should always be something, but after all, there is nothing. ”
It is often said that the opposite of love is not hatred, but indifference. When the Soviet people are really dead-hearted, they don't care. Whether he was Gorbachev or Yeltsin, as long as he gave food, their desire was simple, so that ordinary citizens would no longer suffer the crisis of food shortages, which was the greatest desire in the hearts of the Soviet people.
However, even this small demand could not be met by the newly elected Yeltsin government.
After the Soviet Union, some of the privileged classes were transformed into Russia's "new nobility." According to sources, by 1996, 75 per cent of former Soviet officials were around the Russian president. This is a terrible proportion, that is to say, with the power in their hands, these "new dignitaries" can expropriate state assets in a dignified manner and grab the basic interests of ordinary people.
As Frankie Chiford put it: "The Soviet Union is the only country that has made a fortune at its own funeral." How can we blame the soviet people for being indifferent to the country's disintegration?