This is what I be doing.

Discussion Question for my Russian history class.

Why did the Bolsheviks win in 1917? You should discuss positive features about the Bolsheviks, as well as negative features about their opponents. Which of the many different positive and negative factors seem to you to be the most important?

My answer.

It seems to me that two major factors in the Bolshevik win were the peasant revolution and the unstoppable force that was Lenin.

Back in chapter one Suny said that ". . . this mass of people by its very size and importance in the economy of Russia was quite powerful" (p.8). Later on he says that the peasants were extremely unwilling to adopt new ways and were distrustful of capitalism (pp.12&13). Lenin's uncompromising stance against any negotiation with the government most peasants were coming to distrust and associate with the bourgeoisie meant that the peasantry supported the Bolsheviks. And as Suny had indicated that was a powerful force to be reckoned with.

Lenin's personality and drive also, I believe, helped the Bolsheviks win the day. The other parties seemed to have no one willing to take power, to do whatever was necessary to squash opposition. They seemed to be caught in the dangerous position of trying to please both sides; and of course no one was very happy. Lenin knew exactly what he wanted and refused to try and toe a middle ground.

Coming from a capitalist system I don't agree with the Bolshevik platform, but I do admire their tenacity, drive, and singlemindedness. It seems as though they truly believed in the rightness of their stance. And that carried the day.

This is my online course, which I'm a bit nervous about because I can't rapid-fire questions at the teacher as I think of them:) It is fun, though, to be able to see what everyone else is thinking about the subject matter. You just don't get that when you're in a big classroom.

And this discussion question was based off of our textbook-"The Soviet Experiment" by Ronald Grigor Suny. I was answering the question based on my readings so far in that textbook-I know my answer is not comprehensive and that the Bolshevik party and Lenin did some horrendous things. We haven't gotten that far yet so I couldn't include that.

Hopefully this is the kind of answer the professor wanted.

And obviously I can't post anyone else's take on the question. Privacy rights and so on:)

The Cat is Out of the Bag

I wonder where that expression comes from? There is this fabulous book that can tell you, only I forgot the name of it. Next time I come across it I think I'm going to have to buy it. Anyway. I was going to wait. A long time. Maybe forever. I don't like people coming up and hugging me, smiling and saying congratulations, or asking me questions. But Damm was talking to his recruiter about insurance. And he mentioned something that he should've told the recruiter was non-repeatable, because 5 minutes later the recruiter told Damm's mother (I have no earthly idea why he's talking to her-I keep forgetting to ask). After that I had to tell my mother. We haven't told any extended family members because there are quite a few here celebrating Damm's mother's graduation and that would be the worst form of torture I can imagine. So yeah, I'm knocked up again :P And this time I'm getting the t-shirt. "It" is due August 11. I have not been to a doc...

So I won't forget ..

"I'm a little hunter short and cute. Here is my bow, Here is my boot. When I get all worked up then I shoot!" And I can't come up with the last line. Needs to rhyme with the little teacup song.

A tanking guide.

Here is the situation: Your guild has been busy all day long while your at work. You finally get home and log in and are informed that the GM(and main tank) is about to leave and you are now assigned tanking duty. You start to panic. You don't know what to do. And agro is already spiralling out of control. Ever been in that situation? I have. So I decided I would write a guide for this very situation. Step 1) Are the appropraite debuffs up? Step 2) Do you have the tools? Step 3) Are you practicing the fundamentals? Step 4) Are you prepared for the long haul? And Step 5) How to finish with a resounding silence. Are the appropriate debuffs up? You absolutely MUST have these debuffs up to start and you need to keep them up. There are only two of them and here they are in the order of priority: a) Clean Diaper. If Orclette's Diaper isn't clean you won't be able to contain the agro. I don't care how good your other fundamentals are. This is a MUST HAVE and should be chec...

Comments

scott said…

Communism itself is inherently flawed, but a lot of Russians were better off under Communism than they were under the Czar. Under the Czar most Russians made a subsistence living, if they were lucky, and they were being slaughtered in droves in the trenches of WWI. The Communists took Russia from a primitive feudal society to a modern industrialized nation in a few years. There was a heavy price to pay for sure, especially when Stalin took over, but life under the Czar wasn't good either.

August 26, 2010 at 4:46:00 AM MDT

Wulfa said…

Right on-that's pretty much what I've gathered from my readings thus far. It's hard to see it that way from our point of view-we tend to look backwards-but Communism was a step up for many people in Russia.

August 26, 2010 at 6:21:00 AM MDT

Two, and three.

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