[baybal2]

> had many, many more peaceful transfers of power

Only because 3 general secretaries kicked the bucket within 12 months of each others — it was a complete black swan event for the system. And the 4th one was the anomalous ascend of Gorbaczev, and the Elczin.

The later two were described as in one book I read as: "the constituent parts of factions in power were so preoccupied with fighting for the throne, that they never noticed how two grey suit career bureaucrats seized it just by following the formal procedure"

KGB, MVD, the army were self-convinced that Gorbaczev will never have enough power to act independently, and that at most he will be "a talking head on TV," while they do the real business from behind, and remove him in a few years time.

And Elczin was assumed to be "a complete nobody," and thus ignored altogether.

These people never believed in power of an individual ability, and brilliance. Their concept of power was the one which only comes with a lifelong pursuit of favours, connections, and coercive influence.

[sudosysgen]

There is more to the USSR than the 80s.

Beyond that, it's outright false that the KGB expected to take down Gorbachev. Gorbachev was more radical than expected, and Yeltsin had a lot of support throughout the party and military, including in the KGB outside the highest level.

If the military and KGB had both really fully turned against Gorbachev and Yeltsin there would be simply no way for them to resist. It's with support from the military and multiple KGB officiers that Yeltsin remained free.

And that's exactly how Yeltsin was able to do his own coup and subvert control of much of the military including nuclear weapons away from Gorbachev and then banned the CPSU.

I'm sure that the hundred of millions of dollars many of those anti-coup military members made under Yeltsin and the farce of Russian democracy was completely coincidental, though. Banning the only party that opposed you so they fragment into three and then appointing people loyal to you to all the media I'm sure was a legitimate mistake. It certainly would have nothing to do with a love of favours, coercive influence, and power.

[baybal2]

If there were no threat from USSR's 3 letter agency, Yelczin wouldn't have to arrest his own bodyguards with aid from the army, break down the KGB, and Puga (the MVD head) wouldn't have shot himself for nothing, and Kruczkov wouldn't have tried to flee the USSR in tears, with soiled underpants, few tons of gold ingots, and pleading for mercy when he was caught.

I think it's all very simple, and clear how it came to CPSU collapse, and who was who at that time.

[sudosysgen]

Come on. You don't have to strawman such a simple argument. Yeltsin had parts of the KGB against him and parts of the KGB that followed him. Your argument is orthogonal to that.

You know just as well as me that if the KGB was united and wanted him down and if the military did too he would have been imprisoned immediately.

It's also very clear to anyone that Yeltsin illegally took control of the Soviet military and was massively corrupt, just like anyone else. Your borderline heroic description of him is ahistorical, in reality he was just as much of a corrupt opportunist hungry for power and scheming as anyone else.