I find it really quite galling how easily history gets re-written. I suppose the collapse of Communism was the first Global Event that I had any real insight into - 1987/88 was an extraordinary academic year in which to study Soviet and East European Politics, especially when one decided in December 87 to defer the exam until June 1989 (the ultimate political misjudgement, well, apart from buying an Atlas literally two days before the wall came down...).
I was appalled by the suggestions last summer that Ronnie Reagan caused it to happen, and I welcome Jonathan Steele's piece on how We are rewriting the history of communism's collapse; Slate's headline is The Pope Didn't End Communism
I suspect, sadly, we will have to wait until Mikhail Gorbachev dies, and then some, until we get a proper analysis of his legacy. I was always a big Gorby fan, sometimes beyond my better judgement, I have to say, and I feel that he is the forgotten marginalised man despite the fact that he, more than anyone else in my lifetime changed the world. Even his official website is three years out of date. He is 74 years old. China Daily states that he is now politically a Social Democrat.
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