Why the USSR Collapsed: Balanced Assessments

This is a bit of a departure from our usual format. Rather than having a specific topic, our guest Andre will give brief summaries and reviews of a number of texts which they recommend as a foundation for anyone who is interested in Marxism or Marxism-Leninism. I would say that this is a great episode for you to share with left-n00bs who you don't want to go down any dark paths of tendency, but it's also great for those who are looking for things to read on the specific subtopics addressed. We're talking overcoming anti-AES propaganda, decolonial theory and history, as well as what Andre calls "the endless Cold War."

Reading and Viewing Recommendations:

Andre's Beginner Communist Resource Video

Quote Reading From The Russians Are Coming

Quote Reading From Socialism Betrayed

Main Books And Their Respective Follow-Ups:

• Anna Louise Strong, This Soviet World

• V.L Allen, The Russians Are Coming: The Politics of Anti-Sovietism

• Roger Keeran and Thomas Kenny, Socialism Betrayed: Behind the Collapse of the Soviet Union

• Aimé Césaire, Discourse On Colonialism

• Walter Rodney, How Europe Underdeveloped Africa

• Eduardo Galeano, Open Veins of Latin America: Five Centuries of the Pillage of a Continent

• A.B Abrams, Atrocity Fabrication And Its Consequences: How Fake News Shapes World Order

• Samir Amin, The Liberal Virus: Permanent War And The Americanization Of The World

• A.B Abrams, Power And Primacy: A History of Western Intervention in the Asia-Pacific (2023 Updated Edition)

Other Cited Texts:

• Stuart Hall, When We Are All Enemies of the State

• Karl Marx, Theses On Feuerbach

• Basic Curriculum of the Principles of Marxism Leninism (Translated by Luna Nyugun)

• Georges Politzer, Elementary Principles of Philosophy (ProleWiki Link) (Foreign Language Press version)

• Maurice Cornforth, Dialectical Materialism: An Introduction (Volumes 1-3) PDF Hosted On Prolewiki

• Vincent Bevins, If We Burn: The Mass Protest Decade And The Missing Revolution

• Domenico Losurdo, Flight from History? The Communist Movement between Self-Criticism and Self-Contempt

• Agustín Lage Dávila, The Knowledge Economy And Socialism: Science And Society In Cuba

• Kyle Ferrana, Why The World Needs China: Development, Environmentalism, Conflict Resolution & Common Prosperity

• Douglas Valentine, The CIA As Organized Crime: How Illegal Operations Corrupt America And The World

• Albert Szymanski, Human Rights In The Soviet Union: Including Comparisons With The U.S.A

Extra Recommended Readings:

• E.H Carr, The Soviet Impact On The Western World

• Anna Lousie Strong, In North Korea: First Eye-Witness Report

• Albert Szymanski,

  Is The Red Flag Flying? The Political Economy of the Soviet Union Today

  Support the show: Join us on Patreon for early-release episodes, study guides, bonus content, TheoryBeats, and more! You can even sign up for free to access study guides, merch updates, and surprise drops.

  Stay connected: Subscribe on your favorite podcast app, and don't forget to rate and review it helps the show reach more comrades.Follow us on:

  • Twitter/X: @prolespod

  • Instagram & Facebook: @prolespod

  • TikTok: @proles.pod

  Have questions or comments? Email us at prolespod@outlook.com.

  May the spectre haunt your streets and solidarity forever.

  Find Weeb Revolution on YouTube.