Democracy in the USSR

Just how democratic was it? How much say in matters did workers have? And so forth. What periods of time saw restrictions, if any, on democracy? Particularly under Stalin but Lenin as well. I'm not doubting Stalin but I just would like to know more specifics. Been awhile since I've read Another View of Stalin as well.

Just how democratic was it? How much say in matters did workers have? And so forth. What periods of time saw restrictions, if any, on democracy? Particularly under Stalin but Lenin as well. I'm not doubting Stalin but I just would like to know more specifics. Been awhile since I've read Another View of Stalin as well.

I would say that it had more democratic then the United States could ever wish to have. Democratic centralism which was found by Lenin and enforced by Stalin. Democratic centralism forces all bodies to be elected, unlike the United States which has a few head elected. Democratic centralism also forces all bodies to be directly elected by the lower bodies. The United States normally has Representative democratic in which there is a medium which the peoples power has to go thought. This normallly results in less power for the people.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_centralism

The Sixth Party Congress of the Russian Social-Democratic Labour Party (Bolsheviks) held at Petrograd between July 26 and August 3 1917 defined democratic centralism as follows:

1. That all directing bodies of the Party, from top to bottom, shall be elected;
2. That Party bodies shall give periodical accounts of their activities to their respective Party organizations;
3. That there shall be strict Party discipline and the subordination of the minority to the majority;
4. That all decisions of higher bodies shall be absolutely binding on lower bodies and on all Party members.

This means that democratic centralism has more direct democracy then the United States system.