got conned into letting the military planners take the lion's share of the then 5-year planning cycle budget. This occured at a time when industry infrastructure was absolutely desperate for investment and renewal.

The result of the military block getting the money was rapidly declining industrial output and rapidly declining morale but on a 'good' note, vodka sales throughout USSR went through the roof & even got a cult following in the west :-)

Gorby had no real alternatives but to curb the military spending (which pissed off the old die-hards & right wingers) & to try to refocus on industry (when it was already too late).

Do you remember the visit Gorby did to East Germany where he told Eric Honecker,in public & to his face, that the USSR could no longer afford to prop him up.

Same to Castro

Same to all the other then soviet coat-tail leeches & proxies.

Gorby inherited a bankrupted USSR - it was not of his direct doing.
Guess who pushed the USSR into make such a planning blunder ? (Mr Teflon & 'his' "impossible" Star Wars charade (admittedly - combined with the Catholic church electing with impeccable timing, a Polish Pope to replace the assasinated left-influenced simpleton who preceeded him)).

Cheers

Doug
#2 (said Ulbricht but meant Honecker - corrected)