The Soviet Union (USSR): one of the most feared and powerful countries of the 20th century; a union known largely for its highly centralized government and, generally, for its totalitarian leaders like Joseph Stalin. The USSR remained a powerful republic throughout World War II and the Cold War; however, its prosperity began to suffer as the turn of the century approached. It is difficult to determine exactly when the USSR began its descent towards what eventually became the separation of the union and the independence of states like Russia, Moldova, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, among others. . Some researchers blame Stalin, who was known for his draconian governing tactics. Others accuse Leonid Brezhnev of destroying the proven control and command economy established by Stalin and his regime. Finally, Mikhail Gorbachev can be held responsible for the collapse due to his attempted reversal toward Stalinism by driving his eventual successors from power without attempting to repair the economy, as well as his policies encouraging public expression and freedom. When trying to determine under what power the USSR began to collapse, we must first determine on what principles the masses begin to seek revolution. Does revolution come from misfortune? If so, were the Soviets really unhappy when oppressed by Stalin and his reign of terror, or under Brezhnev and his constantly failing economy? From a moral perspective, one might assume that the masses would be most unhappy under a totalitarian, alarmist leader, as can be seen in the countries that participated in the Arab Spring and, on the other side of the spectrum of economic wealth, in China, humans are truly unhappy when they are forced to endure a truly failing economy....... middle of paper ....... It is indeed Gorbachev's political changes that He introduced a short time that triggered this solution. after taking office. There is no doubt that without perestroika, but perhaps more importantly, glasnost and demokratization, the revolution might not have happened. However, if this had happened, there would have been more struggle to maintain power and a possible return to Stalin's brutality. Works Cited Bacon, Edwin and Mark Sandle. Brezhnev reconsidered. Dog Mills, Basingstoke, Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan, 2002. Kesselman. POLS 2313 Comparative Politics of Developing Areas. Comp. Mikhail Molchanov. Toronto: Nelson Education, 2010. Print. Machiavelli, Niccolo. The Prince. New York: Knopf Group, 2006. Print.White, Gregory L. "Putin Aide Cites Brezhnev as 'Plus' to Russia." The Wall Street Journal, Europe October 6. 2011.