Ep 65 - The Stalin Eras, Part 1: Discussion (1917-1929)

Listen to this episode from Proles of the Roundtable on Spotify. Breht O’Shea, host of Revolutionary Left Radio, joins to guide a discussion based on the events covered in the narrative for Part One (which you should listen too first, if you haven’t already!).  In this discussion, the gang led by Rae and Jeremy answer wide ranging questions about the nature of Stalin’s rise to prominence in the party, Lenin’s death, the dreaded NEP Men, the first five year plan, and the trials, tribulations, and triumphs in everyday life of Soviet citizens. The Stalin Eras, inspired by the classic RevLeft Radio episode “Stalin: A Marxist-Leninist Perspective,  mixes both narrative history (ala Blowback) and discussion (like classic Prolespod) to provide the most comprehensive English overview of the life and impact of Soviet leader Joseph Stalin in podcast format. Whether you’re a socialist history enthusiast, someone who’s just curious to learn more than what you got in school about the Soviet Union, or even a total hater who just wants to rage, this series has something for everyone.  Support the show here: www.patreon.com/prolespod Thematic Introduction Source: "Forword" of Stalin: A New World Seen Through One Man by Henri Barbusse Episode Sources  I Change Worlds by Anna Louise Strong Stalin: A New World Seen Through One Man by Henri Barbusse The Great Conspiracy: The Secret War Against Soviet Russia  The Great Soviet Encyclopedia Stalin: From the Caucasus to the Kremlin by Christopher Read  Small Comrades: A Revolutionizing Childhood in Soviet Russia 1917-1932.    Recommended Additional Reading Stalin History & Critique of a Black Legend  by Domenico Losurdo Silencing the Past by Michel-Rolphe Trouillot   Recommended Additional Listening  The Indigenous Peoples of the Soviet Union w/ Alice and Dennis Bartels Foundations of Leninism  Soviet Cinema  Stalin: A Marxist-Leninist Perspective