#248 – Norman Naimark: Genocide, Stalin, Hitler, Mao, and Absolute Power
Lex Fridman Podcast
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Desperation Breeds Cruelty
The drastic measures against Ukrainian peasants reveal a calculated strategy to suppress dissent and loyalty to the Soviet Union. Expropriation of resources and harsh penalties for theft illustrate the regime's brutality. The enforcement of restrictions on movement for peasants, including a ban on leaving their villages, exacerbates the humanitarian crisis, leading to suffering and death in cities. Despite offers of relief from various parties, the regime denies the existence of famine in Ukraine, contributing to a dire situation described as a 'vast belsen,' with images of widespread death and hunger.
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