Was Stalin really that evil?

[Az]

I would use the phrase "equal, morally".

Why so?

[DuncanK]

Good post Che. I've never it said that way, that Stalin "engineered" a famine, but I think that's a good way to put it.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Che:

Stalin wasn't stupid, but he was dumb . I would have loved to see the USSR continue under the NEP, and have an open economy. They could have participated in the capitalist world with socialist means. It would have been a society maybe even Ramo would be happy about .

[Az]

OH NO!

Then he'd add it as well, besides his constant "Northen Spain during the civil war" babble.

[Imran Siddiqui]

[Sarxis]

I'd vote Stalin in 2004.

[Az]

Seriously, Imran, I doubt that the world powers would've allowed the continued existance of the SU. so, it would not have been able to live in peace with it's neighbours.

Besides, how would we be able to sponsor a worldwide revolution, then?

[Imran Siddiqui]

And people also doubted that the world powers would have allowed the continued existance of the USA (being a freed colony and all).

[Six Thousand Year Old Man]

Originally posted by chegitz guevara
I disagree entirely. Most objectivists believe their morals are worth more than a single human life. A single human life is precious. The more you can spare, the better.

"A single death is a tragedy, a million deaths..."

[DuncanK]

Imran,

The West was fighting against Russia since the revolution. Hitler would have attacked him regardless.

[chequita guevara]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui
I would have loved to see the USSR continue under the NEP, and have an open economy.

That was Bukharin's proposal, expand the NEP. If the USSR had the industry, it might not have been a bad plan, since the peasants would be able to trade with the state for things that they wanted and needed. Without that, however, the state was an obstacle.

Trotsky's plan for collectivisation of the peasantry was much more gradual and based on voluntary methods, such as making scarce goods and services available to peasant collectives before private farmers. Bascially, using the carrot instead of the stick.

On the other hand, I'm not sure that without Stalin's crash industrial program, that the USSR would have been able to fight off the Nazi invasion. Granted, we could reasonably argue that if Stalin hadn't pursued extremely sectarian policies re: the German Communists and Socialists, that Hitler may never have come to power. We might also argue the possibilities that the British and French General Strikes might have led to revolution if Stalin hadn't yanked their chains or what might have been if he hadn't strangled the revolution in Spain. But that's just conjecture. . . . I wonder if I can play a Trotskyist USSR in Hearts of Iron?

[DuncanK]

Che,

What is Hearts of Iron?

[chequita guevara]

http://www.paradoxplaza.com/hearts.asp

It's like Europa Universalis for WWII.

[The Mad Monk]

I believe that Stalin killed more people than Hitler.

I also believe that this is true only because he lived much longer.

[monkspider]

Hey Che, I suggested an event for HoI that essentially was a coup replacing Stalin with Trotsky. I think someone actually wrote the event up and a lot of interesting events where the Soviet Union helps out revolutions throughout Europe.
I think there is also an event were Tukachevsky (sp?) overthrows Stalin and takes over the government.
There is actually an event that requires no modding where a leftist revolution takes place in the USA! I think it is called "The revolution has come!" or something along those lines.