Why Does Joseph Stalin Matter?

Stalin was amazing. Free your mind and learn about him.

I like his book and I know he focuses on Stalin as a dictator, but I don't think what he says that other Communists didn't want terror is true. Remember, out of more than 700 000 executed in 18 months, 40 000 were members of nomenclature and cadres of the regime. Others were victims of Order 00447 aimed at "usual suspects" in the countryside. They were ex-kulaks who served their time in exile or escaped, some even getting a position in village they lived as kolkhoz director (basicly their old job as village elders), there were priests, small time thief, relatives of white guards and so on. There were also a lot of discussions, moderated by local party leaders, about should those "former people" be allowed to vote as was said in Stalin's constitution of 1936. There are also a lot of people, who do believe in Communism, who have suffered during collectivization, even in cities, saw those lower ranking Communists cutting more and more of their rights and freedoms, depressing wages and using repression as they saw fit in 1930-1933 period (something they couldn't really do in 1934-1936) and hated their guts. I think that Stalin used general population feeling betrayed to conduct his Terror, while those in Party also made a case that common people could and would cause a popular uprising and asked for power to arrest and execute anyone who might be a part of it if opportunity presents itself. I am not trying to defend Stalin, I am just saying that rest of Communist Party also escalated terror down the line for their own interests. Khrushchev secret speech was bull, since it's point was that terror was completely on Stalin and mad desire for power. In reality, it was Khrushchev who organized terror in Moscow and later in Ukraine, demanding quotas for arrests that even Stalin and Jezhov considered excessive and curbed them on more than one occasion.

America funded bolshveists. USSR was alter ego of bankers. They are one and the same

The terms of nuclear deterrent between East and West, the terms of a strike and now it's time that God would drown all the radiation under dust from a comet ☄️collision; we'd rise again from ashes to build the world anew. 😊😊

"Collectivism" is just "Feudalism" powered by the "People", both eradicate the individual.

With all respect, all these dictators got it from Lenin. Therefore Stalin was not the standard, but Lenin.
Read "A People's Tragedy " by Orlando Figes

Well, I am not sure millenials are interested in learning anything outside their own world -at least most of them.

Not possible, but inevitable

Masterful - Joe Pesci look alike/sound alike is the bomb!

I'm amazed that in this day and age, when long format theatrical documentaries are so popular, that no one has made a multi-part movie explaining what happened in Russia much in the same manner as Band of Brothers and From the Earth to the Moon.

Hind-side 20/20 !!!

Fabulous

Why Stalin matters? For who? For Prof. Kotkin, US Academy, US ruling class? It's very simple. It was under Stalin's tenure that Russia/the USSR became a socialist superpower and the only nation in the world capable of annihilating the West. And today this country, even in its truncated form, still remains the only force preventing the Empire of Lies from owning the world.

Kotkin's perfect delivery of his responses are disconcerting - not because of the content, but because of his lack of mistakes, ums, ahs, and inconsistent cadence. I think he self-corrected exactly one time. This dude is a machine. He's the academic Terminator. You know he's reading the back side of his retina.

It is sad that I am rewatching this and realizing that the same collectivism he said Stalin did with the term "kulak" is the same thing we have been doing recently here in the US with terms like "racist" and "transphobic". Turning the people against each other while drawing everyone to the obedience of the government, who pushed the agenda for that very reason.
It truly is a fact that those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it.

He sounds like Joe Pesci. Great video though, thank you.

Fascinating

Dear Mr. Robinson, estimated Sir, i have for you, besides the most emphatic praise for what you have already accomplished on your show, an extremely urgent and important proposal. Both Mr Victor Davis Hanson and Mr. Stephen Kotkin are members of the Hoover Institute. They are both exceptional men of proven quality and accomplishment. They are excellent debaters and expositors of complex ideas in very comprehensive schemes of thought. Yet, yet, as i am since some time now trying to get a hold on what is happening in the world and especially in the US, listening very carefully to these true luminaries (the best show in town, you said yourself about Mr. Kotkin) it so happens that i cannot help noticing an unmistakable and potentially very deep rift in their estimate of things national and international. This comes out abundantly clear when they discuss anything to do with what Trump stood and still stands for. This issue is the biggest issue on the table now, for the US itself but also for the world at large (see the 3rd Lecture on "Sphere of influence" held by Mr Kotkin in Vienna in 2017).
I beseech you, dearest Sir, to put them together as soon as possible with you at your table and have them talk about these issues, each one clarifying himself in debate. Both are civilized men, of good cheer, wellintentioned, and modest men. You must have them talk with you together, please, you cannot not do this. I think such a debate could be of the most extreme importance in sanitizing the republican party's grip on things. Because the Us and the world must get beyond what the Trump phenomenon means and has still in store it seems. Only those speakers, together with you monitoring, can vastly and in one go contribute to this as no other team of public intellectuals could. PLEASE, consider my proposal and most vehement request at lenght. Many thanks and loyal greetings from Belgium

He looks like joe Pesci a little

I almost had a heart attack when at a first glance I thought it was so called “doctor” Fauci in place of Dr. Cotkin

You think this is funny Robinson? Huh.. , So you think this is funny..

I ordered the book and will see what else is said about the collectivization. My recollection of the great killing that was part of it was based on two factors:
First, there was a famine due to drop failure,
and Second the communist party officials in the field were reporting greater crop yields than actually happened.

With these two factors Stalin ordered the confiscation of the crops to meet the central planning needs AND he also order the sealing off of the boarders to Ukraine to prevent word of the catastrophe he caused from getting out. By the following spring, something like 6,000,000 to 7,000,000 were dead in Ukraine. It was intentional.

Amazing how he mentions franco was called a fascist when he was a nationalist and traditionalist I say this as in today's world it is exactly the same I've witnessed people who are die hard nationalist simply be called fascist for zero reason at all so this intelligent mans insight shows that fascism is a made up bundle of crap to only try label and smear

funded by billionaires, of course they hate the man of the people

Ive read robert service stuff, and stalin by montefiore (amazing!!!), but heck this guy sounds like he may have a book too top them all. Very astute analysis, great interview

Non intellectuel contribution:
“We got an audience of millenials” im gen z mwahah
Time goes on...

Would love another video with Kotkin - he's brilliant

When Stephen Kotkin speaks, a wise man shuts up

All Stalins Matter

Robinson would make a great career in Pravda. Every interview he's so annoyingly partisan. Dude, we get it, the left is dumb, no need to act shocked, it's cringey.

This is the most braindead thing I have ever seen in my entire life. I am 10 minutes in.

Proof positive yet again that the Left destroys everything it touches!

Does anyone know what music plays during the intro?

Stephen Kotkin is one of the most interesting persons I've heard. I'm transfixed.

60 million + murdered people: "Yes, why does he matter?"

Socialism Sounds fabulous folks but it just doesn't work! Only thing that communism stemming socialism manages to do is forcibly take power, goods and property from those well off and give it to officials in power while the poor still starve, the only difference is that now everyone (besides the officials in power) is not allowed to disagree. No one is allowed to do or say anything that MIGHT go against the communist regime. Everything is rationed! Nothing is truly owned. There is a large shortage of goods to the point where you would have to build your home with your hands. There are no building codes so the wiring in homes can cause fires. You are basically on your own. Many folks have to rely on ways to find goods - which can mean stealing or bribing to survive. Your friendly next door neighbor may get jealous and get officials to take things if they feel you have too much! They can take your life earnings or a cow you need milk from too feed your kids - if they feel you do no deserve it! I lived it!

Thank You.

Calling Stalin a dictator means that one doesn't understand how the Soviet political system functioned in 20-50's.

"he had a lot of urban activists...people who were young in many cases...and wanted to build a new world and were impatient that that new world should happen as soon as possible..."

Sounds like the left in the US...

So the DEMS work to harness that momentum -- notably by throwing the "activists" a few bones (e.g., free college) -- to better support the party's struggle for power.

Here you finally discovered yourself. So its Trotsky who is a great person. This person who was obsessed with global revolution dreaming to put the whole world in fire... the world should kiss Stalin's hand for saving the world from that fascist. And USA now is trying to rebuilt the ideas of trotsky. You guys are doomed because you dont have you Stalin to save you from the disease called "trostky".

Yes, it's difficult to explain the 1937 because you keep missing out a group of trotsky followers (usa made a big deal about this trotsky giving him place to hide in usa) but the group was still working within the elites and continuing their horrid killings and trying to establish bloody communism they believed in. Stalin had turned against them, not against his loyal followers, you idiot.

My God! What a liar!!! You forgot to say that famine was all over the world and also should mention that wonderful capitalistic world demanded USSR to pay only in wheat for any purchases done from the west. He also forgot to mention that much was done to reduce the impact of famine. I cant believe these old rumors are still considered a scientific fact. Well, understandable, when the evil of western culture need to be covered up.

I wish every socialist and every Democrat in the USA would watch or listen to the clip.
It is very much applicable to today's USA.

I hope the Stalinist college-kids from twitter are listening. But I bet they would argue it was not real Stalinism.

Better dead than red.

Thank you guys who call stalin a mass murderer while unironically doing their interview in an institution named after Edgar Hoover! Thank you CIA and FBI !

Wasnt the purge mainly because of the old-guard communist plot against Stalin? Thats what Winston Churchill thought at least (at the time I might add).

thank you hoover institution... thank you sk...