Did Stalin 'Steal' Trotsky's Economic Program?

The idea that Trotsky and the Left Opposition were "Proto-Stalinist" is a persistent myth that seems to stick around on the left, as well as the idea that Stalin somehow was not smart enough to come up with his own economic program. This this bad history I have seen from Trotskyists, Marxist-Leninists, Anarchists, ect. When the modern left debates about what direction the USSR could have or should have gone it is often with this falsehood and they base their analysis off of it. I hope i can correct this and this argument can become more accurate and rooted in history.

Script here

Chapters:
0:00 Introduction
0:37 The Myth
2:06 Trotsky Originator of the NEP?
5:02 Trotsky, The Left Opposition and the NEP
7:00 Stalin’s economic position before collectivization
7:36 End of the NEP
8:10 Conclusion

[InDefenseOfToucans]

If you haven't already, you should follow me on Twitter.

Also am on Mastodon, but I don't use it much.

[lrgroene]

Excellent work as always. A necessary corrective to a long standing canard coming from both Stalinists and bourgeois historians that Trotsky was an opponent of NEP. I particularly appreciate bringing up the fact that Trotsky was one of the earliest advocates of NEP as early as 1920. While I don’t think Stalin stole the LO program for the first FYP, I do think that the first FYP in industry was actually crucial in Stalin winning over support from the mass proletarian base that had been the base of the LO and had long desired more earnest industrialization. The rise of the first socialist competition campaigns were organic movements of the working class, and probably had some indirect connection with worker LO sympathies. I think it’s something worth studying to understand how Stalin was able to achieve his position without much resistance. But forced collectivization, which was the most disastrous part of Stalins economic policy, was always something that was condemned by the Bolsheviks before that. Lenin explicitly warned against such a policy on multiple occasions, even saying that he didn’t trust even the few agricultural “communes” that has been established because he thought it was too hasty.

[motelmicrowave]

on the now defunct proles of the roundtable they insisted stalin was an adherent to trotskyism and trotsky to stalinism, didn't make sense then and now this paints a more coherent picture

[lfchips]

Really good work, comrade.

Could you do a video on Kromnstadt? It is always a source of heated debate between MLs, Trots and Anarchists

[AhmedOmar-ulwc]

Excellent work as usual, A lot of great information here

[DeliaCore]

I think the main reason the idea of Stalin "adopting Trotsky's positions" caught on is because it maps onto a simplified version of the economic debates. Bukharin wanted slow industrialization and Trotsky wanted quick industrialization. This obviously is an inaccurate oversimplification. But it *sorta* maps onto the debate back then.

[eadm]

Thank you a lot, afaik you are the only one on YT to use actually serious and most recent historian's works to speak about the history of the USSR (though it of course doesn't shut down historical debates), it is very much appreciated! Hope you the best

[ericstone]

This is an old video so I don't know if you will see this but I was wondering if you knew where I could acquire the full 14 volume set of E H Carr's History of Soviet Russia, I am very interested in reading it.

[janescarfield]

Really interesting and clarifying video. I realised when that I had been making some of the same mistakes you corrected here, specifically about the break-neck industrialisation. Have you considered doing a video on the Krondstadt uprising?

[vallraffs]

Just thought I'd mention the script link here goes to a 404. The url has the wrong date: 2020/07/01 instead of 2020/07/26

[guilhermevieira]

Excellent work, looking forward to The next video

[thegorb]

Great vid in my mind your in my top 3 for best leftist content creator and by far my favourite about soviet history. I especially like the 20s in soviet times they have so much depth and all the factions are really interesting I was thinking about getting that economic debate book and that massive pile but got put off by the like 13 volumes. So I picked up Robert Vincent Daniels 'the rise and fall of communism in Russia' who goes over quite extensively. I think the platform of the left opposition is a good source as well but yeah I do align with many trots and do see some anti-NEP questions come up. Great vid keep it up man your actually really good.

[SorceressWitch]

This is interesting. I am learning about Trotsky because I have only heard views on him from anarchists and mostly ML(M). MLs and Maoists claim he rejected the NEP and denied the role of the peasantry. So I wanted to see what Trotskyist views are. I am new to this channel. I saw the video about JMP.

[coryolsen]

Hm…there are a few things not entirely clear here. What was the NEP and how was it different from the 5yp? How and when was Lenin opposed to grain acquisition? He and the Bolsheviks adopted such a plan with the policy of War Communism during and for the civil war. So when & why did he then oppose it and change course? These ideas are simply unclear and not explained, though in many ways the position seems plausible enough. However, a couple other points: Lenin was pro-NEP; wasn’t he a key originator? However, the idea for him was always that it was a short term policy to solve issues that were worsened by the War Communism & collectivization. He recognized that the collectivization was simply not going to work & that there was a need to help the peasants enrich or build up their lives economically and in other ways from the devastations political, war-related, and environmental such as drought and shortages. He openly advocated for some capitalism - as a means to help let the peasants and people build themselves up from utter destitution. He also defended his position-though many would say it was hypocritical and antithetical to communism-against his opponents saying they were not adopting indefinite capitalism; land was “leased” to those who could then use the land to grow crops & then trade & gain money or etc. from that. The land being leased would then at a later date return to the state and the implication or perhaps even explicit intent would then be a return more fully and doctrinally communist or Marxist etc.

Finally, the description or explanation of Trotskys & Stalins positions in these economic debates is rather confusing. Trotsky opposed the industrialization & such? Stalin was FOR the NEP all along? Or rather, against it? Orwell portrays it that Trotsky was pro-industrialization and electrification with the intent that this could improve peoples lives, while Stalin was rather attacking, bull headed, and selfish, but concerned about not having the capacity to produce food for people. Your discussion here about it feels unclear - or perhaps this is because the other issue you imply - or perhaps do not imply clearly - was Trotsky was advocating anti-communist ideas while Stalin was attempting to adhere more to communist principles. Trotsky and Bukharin were more socialist than communist as it were. Alternatively, maybe the confusion comes from Orwells depiction of the situation, which is in chapter 5 and is clearly a misrepresentation at best. He portrays things very glibly and quite overtly inaccurately, but I do not see that the portrayal of Trotskys position on the industrialization is inaccurate; nor that Stalins position on feeding people is inaccurate. If it is, again, please share the evidence of that. Orwell does not clearly validate those claims, but from what I have found, they are one of merely a few things he seems to get right in that chapter. So many other things are quite clearly both wrong and also rather disingenuous depictions.

Thus, a great deal of clarity on this tricky history & debate would be much appreciated.

[serversurfer]

This is an interesting perspective, but I still don't get what's so great about toucans. 🤔

[Kuudere-Kun]

So are you also saying that Trotsky didn't actually disagree with Socialism in One Country?

[B_A-tr]

The full title of animal farn is literally : Animal farm
A fairy tale