How did Cuba, China and North Korea survive...?

[Reznov]

Ok, a complex yet simple question. How have Cuba, China and North Korea, self proclaimed Communist/Revolutionary states, manage to survive while the Soviet Union and the eastern bloc collapsed?

[Admiral Swagmeister G-Funk]

They haven't really survived as revolutionary states, if there is such a thing, and they haven't exactly all survived too well anyway - they all have dire problems that have lead, on varying scales respectively, to the embrace of the free market, or in China's case, as a result largely of years of capitalism. China's success has been due to its adoption of free market economics, meaning it has become powerful and has obtained resources through imperialism, not to say that the people of China benefit from this. NK, hanging on by a thread, has managed largely due to foreign aid but has not been shy of famine and all the rest of it. As for Cuba, I am unsure, but I'd imagine it has been a combination of aid and free market tourism. NK and Cuba have large areas of state industry that are probably more adequate in providing things like healthcare etc than a capitalist state would, but capitalistic states aren't generally isolated in such a way as capitalism is a global system, just as socialism should be.

[Admiral Swagmeister G-Funk]

In short, isolated 'socialist' countries have been proven to fail to operate actual socialism - these states did not survive under socialist principles, and they further prove the need for socialism to be international.

[Kléber]

The chaos and difficulties faced by post-Soviet states after the abolition of one-party rule scared the other bureaucracies into restoring capitalism at a slower pace and maintaining their hold on power.

[Ocean Seal]

Ok, a complex yet simple question. How have Cuba, China and North Korea, self proclaimed Communist/Revolutionary states, manage to survive while the Soviet Union and the eastern bloc collapsed?
North Korea survived because of the shipments of food and oil that China gives it. China survived because it is capitalist. And Cuba survived, I don't even know how; it must be the luck of the Castro.

[Apoi_Viitor]

Ok, a complex yet simple question. How have Cuba, China and North Korea, self proclaimed Communist/Revolutionary states, manage to survive while the Soviet Union and the eastern bloc collapsed?

1. The proximity of the Eastern Bloc to capitalist Europe.
2. An absence of radical liberal reformers.
3. A lower degree of national/ethnic tensions.

[Geiseric]

What does he mean as how did they survive? How were they not invaded? How did they not have a revolution against the gov? In my opinion, NK, Vietnam, China, and to a much lessar degree cuba won't have the same governments for long, their state capitalist structures and mega free market structures aren't sustainable for long, the beuracracy is just trying to mooch out their last few loads before the west regroups from the depression, which will be another 20 years, and goes to more direct imperialism instead of economic imperialism.

[RichardAWilson]

Cuba survived because it has embraced a more decentralized version of Authoritarian Socialism. There remains a private economy in Cuba: Though State Owned Enterprises do bring in much needed foreign exchange from tourism and exported goods. Another reason is that Cuba has emphasized social welfare, education and health care over militarism (unlike North Korea which spends on arms while the masses starve). So-called defense spending is an expensive burden (both in terms of financial expenses and in terms of forgone economic growth).

[RED DAVE]

In short, isolated 'socialist' countries have been proven to fail to operate actual socialism - these states did not survive under socialist principles, and they further prove the need for socialism to be international.To which we might add that they were never socialist in the first place (unless you think that socialist is bureaucratic control of the economy).

RED DAVE

[RichardAWilson]

In a sense: Cuba is much closer to Socialism than even the U.S.S.R. However, for a number of reasons: Cuba hasn't transitioned to Absolute Socialism (in the Marxian and Social-Democratic Sense).

China survived by embracing Asian-style State Capitalism (I.e. Mixed economy that embraced foreign capital, state savings in the economy, Mercantilism). North Korea: Tyranny. In answering that question: How did Hussein's Iraq survive? Zimbabwe?

[RED DAVE]

In a sense: Cuba is much closer to Socialism than even the U.S.S.R.Wrong. There was no workers control in the USSR. There was never any workers control in Cuba.


However, for a number of reasons: Cuba hasn't transitioned to Absolute Socialism (in the Marxian and Social-Democratic Sense).So such thing as Absolute Socialism. If a country is socialist, the workers control the economy. If they do not control it, it's probably state capitalism or out-and-out capitalism.


China survivedSurvived what?


by embracing Asian-style State Capitalism (I.e. Mixed economy that embraced foreign capital, state savings in the economy, Mercantilism).In other words, state capitalism and now private capitalism.


North Korea: Tyranny.And state capitalism, which fairly soon, will become private capitalism.

RED DAVE

[El Louton]

More importantly how has Castro survived!? Luck. How has Cuba survived? Because it works it isn't as corrupt as the US or the UK.