The Fall of the Soviet Union
The collapse of the Soviet Union from Brezhnev's stagnation to December 1991. Not Cold War triumphalism — the internal story: a command economy that couldn't feed Siberia, the nationalities question Lenin never solved, the Afghanistan disaster, Chernobyl breaking the spell, Gorbachev's reform gamble, Eastern Europe walking out in 1989, the Baltic chain, the August coup, and Yeltsin on a tank. The prequel to Putin's Russia. — a daily series with new episodes every day.
Episodes
The Stability Trap: How Brezhnev Froze the Soviet Economy
(00:00:00) The Stability Trap: How Brezhnev Froze the Soviet Economy
(00:00:53) The Stability Trap
(00:02:25) The Economy That Couldn't Feed Itself
(00:04:41) The Numbers Don't Lie
(00:06:17) The Nationalities Question
(00:07:30) The Afghan Wound
(00:09:04) The Reactor Explodes
(00:10:53) Gorbachev's Gamble
(00:12:45) The Empire Starts Walking Away
(00:14:09) The August Coup and the End
(00:16:15)
The Command Economy's Slow Suffocation: Grain, Guns, and Lies
(00:00:00) The Command Economy's Slow Suffocation: Grain, Guns, and Lies
(00:01:05) The Stability Trap
(00:02:18) What Central Planning Actually Meant
(00:03:50) The Grain Import Secret
(00:05:05) The Military Budget That Ate Everything
(00:06:51) Chernobyl and the Breaking Point
(00:08:19) Gorbachev's Gamble
(00:09:43) The Nationalities Question
(00:10:59) Eastern Europe Walks Out
(00:12:03) The
Afghanistan, Grain Queues, and a Military Bill Nobody Could Pay
(00:00:00) Afghanistan, Grain Queues, and a Military Bill Nobody Could Pay
(00:00:49) Brezhnev's Stability Trap
(00:02:35) The Command Economy's Daily Failure
(00:04:03) The Military Bill Nobody Could Afford
(00:06:15) Chernobyl and the Spell That Broke
(00:07:44) The Nationalities Question Lenin Never Solved
(00:09:50) Perestroika's Contradictions
(00:10:59) The Coup and the Tank
(00:12:33) The P
When the Lie Became the System: Brezhnev, Afghanistan, and Chernobyl
(00:00:00) When the Lie Became the System: Brezhnev, Afghanistan, and Chernobyl
(00:00:47) The Stability Trap
(00:02:10) The Economy That Couldn't Feed Itself
(00:03:56) Afghanistan and the Invincible Army
(00:05:41) Chernobyl and the End of Official Truth
(00:07:01) Gorbachev's Gamble
(00:08:31) The Nationalities Question Lenin Never Solved
(00:10:01) Eastern Europe Walks Out
(00:11:26) The Augus
The Red Army's Unwinnable War: How Afghanistan Broke the Soviet Myth
(00:00:00) The Red Army's Unwinnable War: How Afghanistan Broke the Soviet Myth
(00:00:49) The Decision No One Owned
(00:02:10) The Red Army Meets Its Limits
(00:03:45) The Cost That Didn't Appear in Official Figures
(00:05:27) The Myth That Died in the Mountains
(00:07:01) Gorbachev Inherits the Trap
(00:08:42) The Connection to Everything Else
(00:10:47) The Graveyard Does What It Always Does
W
The Soldiers Who Wouldn't Stay Silent: How the Afgantsy Cracked the System
(00:00:00) The Soldiers Who Wouldn't Stay Silent: How the Afgantsy Cracked the System
(00:01:10) The Architecture of Controlled Truth
(00:02:53) The War That Couldn't Be Explained
(00:04:24) The First Cracks in the Monopoly
(00:06:03) An Economy That Couldn't Feed Itself
(00:07:46) Gorbachev's Miscalculation
(00:09:15) The Republics Watching Carefully
(00:10:51) The System Begins to Come Apart
(00
Glasnost Meets the Reactor: How Chernobyl Broke the Soviet Information State
(00:00:00) Glasnost Meets the Reactor: How Chernobyl Broke the Soviet Information State
(00:01:13) What Happened at Reactor Number Four
(00:02:57) The Coverup and Its Collapse
(00:04:45) Glasnost Meets the Reactor
(00:06:29) The Credibility That Couldn't Be Rebuilt
(00:07:56) The Broader Context Chernobyl Accelerated
(00:09:44) Gorbachev's Impossible Position
(00:11:08) What Chernobyl Left Behind
Brezhnev's Trap to Gorbachev's Gamble: Why Reform Became Revolution
(00:00:00) Brezhnev's Trap to Gorbachev's Gamble: Why Reform Became Revolution
(00:00:51) Brezhnev's Stability Trap
(00:02:33) The Weight of the Gun
(00:04:02) Chernobyl and the Breaking of the Spell
(00:05:29) Gorbachev's Gamble
(00:07:11) Eastern Europe Walks Out
(00:08:20) The Baltic Chain
(00:09:49) The August Coup and Its Backfire
(00:11:49) The Prequel to What Comes Next
The Soviet Union di
The Map That Lied: How Lenin's Federal Bargain Planted a Time Bomb
(00:00:00) The Map That Lied: How Lenin's Federal Bargain Planted a Time Bomb
(00:01:02) The Bargain Lenin Made
(00:02:46) The Force That Held It Together
(00:03:56) What the Republics Actually Felt
(00:05:53) The System's Blind Spot
(00:07:13) Afghanistan and the Signal It Sent
(00:08:27) Gorbachev Inherits the Time Bomb
(00:10:14) The Declaration Cascade
(00:11:23) Why Lenin's Framework Failed
(
Eastern Europe Walks Out: 1989 and the Empire's Point of No Return
(00:00:00) Eastern Europe Walks Out: 1989 and the Empire's Point of No Return
(00:00:36) The Stagnation That Set the Stage
(00:02:42) Afghanistan and the Mortal Army
(00:04:18) Chernobyl Breaks the Spell
(00:05:47) Gorbachev's Gamble
(00:07:08) The Nationalities Question Lenin Never Solved
(00:08:36) The Chain Itself
(00:10:00) Eastern Europe and the Edge of Empire
(00:11:03) August 1991 and a Man
The Domino the Soviets Couldn't Stop: 1989 and the End of Empire
(00:00:00) The Domino the Soviets Couldn't Stop: 1989 and the End of Empire
(00:00:48) The Satellite Empire and What Held It
(00:01:49) Gorbachev's Retreat from the Brezhnev Doctrine
(00:03:01) Poland First
(00:04:03) Hungary Opens the Door
(00:05:02) The Wall Comes Down
(00:06:09) Czechoslovakia, Romania, and the Pattern
(00:07:07) What Moscow Understood, and What It Didn't
(00:08:08) The Baltic
Russia Declares Sovereignty: The War of Laws That Broke the Union
(00:00:00) Russia Declares Sovereignty: The War of Laws That Broke the Union
(00:01:06) What 1989 Left Behind
(00:02:20) Lithuania Moves First
(00:03:17) Russia Declares Sovereignty
(00:04:46) The Economy Accelerates the Crisis
(00:06:47) The Nationalities Trap Opens Wide
(00:08:46) Gorbachev's Shrinking Room
(00:10:39) The Shape of the Collapse
By 1990, the Soviet Union wasn't just under pressur
Yeltsin on the Tank: What the August Coup Actually Decided
On the morning of 19 August 1991, Soviet citizens turned on their radios and heard classical music. No news. No statement. Just Tchaikovsky — and everyone who had lived through Soviet history knew immediately that something had ruptured.This episode is the story of those seventy-two hours. The State Emergency Committee — vice president, prime minister, defence minister, KGB chief — placed Gorbache
The Flag Comes Down: Inside the Soviet Collapse
(00:00:00) The Flag Comes Down: Inside the Soviet Collapse
(00:01:01) The Stagnation Trap
(00:02:54) Afghanistan and the Cracking of the Myth
(00:04:12) Chernobyl and the Collapse of Official Truth
(00:05:45) Gorbachev's Gamble
(00:07:28) The Nationalities Question
(00:09:11) The August Coup and Its Own Destruction
(00:11:06) The Prequel to What Came Next
On the evening of December 25, 1991, a re
Recommended
Harmonize Your Life: Conversation on Self-Care for Women of Color
Lighting the Legal Career Path
High Performance Mindset | Learn from World-Class Leaders, Consultants, Athletes & Coaches about Mindset
Pintastic® Pinterest Podcast
Learn 50 English Phrases While You Sleep | Everyday English Phrases & Vocabulary
The Daily
The Joe Rogan Experience
World News Tonight with David Muir
Talk About Talk - Executive & Leadership Communication Skills
This Past Weekend w/ Theo Von
Stand In The Circle
Conspiracy Files with Paige Carter
