Why Does Joseph Stalin Matter?

Recorded on January 25, 2018.

“Why does Joseph Stalin matter?” is a key question for Kotkin, as he explains the history of the Soviet Union and Stalin's enduring impact on his country and the world. Kotkin argues that Stalin is the “gold standard for dictatorships” in regard to the amount of power he managed to obtain and wield throughout his lifetime. Stalin stands out because not only was he able to build a massive amount of military power, he managed to stay in power for three decades, much longer than any comparable dictator.

Kotkin and Robinson discuss collectivization and communism and how Stalin’s regime believed it had to eradicate capitalism within the USSR even in regions where capitalism was bringing economic success to the peasants, with the potential of destabilizing the regime. This led to the Great Purge, a campaign of political repression that resulted in the exile and execution of millions of people.

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[bastiatintheandes]

Greetings from Quito, Ecuador. I will never stop being amazed by the supreme interviewing gifts of Peter Robinson. Lean, well informed, and above all, lets us live the wealth of his fantastic guests.

[jlondon]

If I close my eyes, I can imagine that Joe Pesci is an Historical Genius.

[jayeye]

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.

[welderella]

“Political crimes for speaking the familiar.

[OSCOCAT]

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.

[chegadesuade]

His two books on Stalin are the most exhaustive yet engrossing biographies I've ever read, they're truly amazing.

[welderella]

We heard about Hitler all the time, but not so much about Stalin, in school.

[MoralistaDefinitivo]

This guy would need a 10 hour interview.

[bobjenkins]

Peter must be quite happy at how many young people these days are interested in this kind of content. Great stuff.

[calculatedmasochism]

When Stephen Kotkin speaks, a wise man shuts up

[Rasectos]

Joe Pesci is my favorite Stalin scholar.

[cybercab]

Very interesting stuff. Do they even teach this in school anymore? I suspect the answer is no.

[CoronaryArteryDisease.]

This is such a great explanation of a type of political thinking that is extremely dangerous and I wish more people knew about this history. It is so fascinating, I don’t know why people don’t study it more

[garyjohnston]

Beautiful talk. I also love the talking pace of the guest.

[chuckymcchuckface]

I once asked a man whom I knew was an intelligen fellow and a historian what would he most like in life... "To remember everything I read" he said. Wise man I thought!

[baxter]

This is amazing. Was he crying at some point? 20:30 Robinson appeared to pick something up. This guy speaks with emotion. I can listen to him for days

[papastalin]

Why do I matter? You're going to Siberia

[chickenwretch]

First time I've seen Kotkin sitting quite still. Used to watching him rove on stage and into the audience. Socialism in the cities and capitalism in the countryside. A little like Americas fly-over country and progressive cities?

[alekseysoldatenkov]

This is ABSOLUTELY fascinating. Thank you for uploading.

[b.terenceharwick]

Concise and to the point. Explores the raw notion of power. Accumulation of raw power, independent of anyone else's views. Personal loyalty above all else. Of perennial significance.