[uploadedimage:121007]

　　 ## 難道俄羅斯工人要因為俄羅斯資本家使用俄語辱罵自己，用正宗的俄羅斯牛皮鞭子抽打自己，用俄羅斯式的方式打嘴巴，而對本國的資本家更親近嗎？

　　 —布哈林《共產主義ABC》

　　 克里姆林宮14號樓

　　 “對，身份證與戶籍要取消民族與種族識別、全蘇聯各加盟國都要逮捕地方民族主義者與打擊黑幫組織。還有更換核反應堆與建立核電站安全殼，列寧格勒核電站與切爾諾貝利核電站最先更換。”特雷古波娃打著哈欠，羅曼諾夫盯著桌上一堆報告跟烏克蘭蘇維埃第一書記謝爾比茨基交談。“謝爾比茨基同志，這是關於烏克蘭蘇維埃5200萬人口的命運。”

　　 “這是我們第一次聽說它，但我想它涉及到大量的人員和資金。”

　　 “我知道內衛部隊與邊防軍會配合的，加利西亞地區的西烏克蘭民族主義者必須重點清理干淨。”羅曼諾夫撓了撓頭，他幾天都在熬夜。“主要問題是讓共和國相信新制度會更好。這將是我們最大的挑戰。”

　　 特雷古波娃走進房間說：“羅曼諾夫總書記，這是關於經濟預算與發展的審計報告。”

　　 “讓我看看。”羅曼諾夫瞥了一眼報告。“有什麼重要的事嗎？”

　　 “有一堆民眾寄給你的舉報信與來信，其中有一封薩哈羅夫教授的來信，他說你讓他妻子回到莫斯科他就放棄公開指責蘇聯。”

　　 “薩哈羅夫教授？”羅曼諾夫想起來他在原來的世界线不是支持美國與皮諾切特、還有全盤私有化蘇聯工業體系的民主斗士嗎？“把那封來信扔進垃圾桶。”

　　 “是的。”特雷古波娃翻閱了一大堆報告，突出了其中一份。“情報部已要求為竊聽和竊聽設備提供額外資金。我們正在提供，盡管這比去年的預算有所增加。”

　　 “好，還有什麼？”

　　 “我們與國防部發生了一些問題。國防部要求增加新戰斗機和其他戰爭裝備的支出。我們以新的預算限制予以反擊。”

　　 “嗯，從外交部與教育部那里削減20億盧布調給國防部，你怎麼看？”羅曼諾夫回到報告上，它審計蘇聯去年的經濟發展。

　　 “那是一大筆錢。你認為把錢花在軍事裝備上還是降低農民的價格更好？”

　　 羅曼諾夫嘆了口氣說：“蘇聯能失去農民的支持，但不能失去軍隊的支持。”

　　 特雷古波娃點點頭。

　　 “好的，還有別的事嗎？”

　　 “沒有。”

　　 “很好。我們應該很快做出最終決定。”

　　 “決定？什麼樣的決定？”

　　 “這是政府各政治部門討論的問題，我不會對它們進行評判。”

　　 “很好。”特雷古波娃走出房間。羅曼諾夫盯著她說：“我不知道她在想什麼。”

　　 ------

　　 好吧，在你之前的演講中，你描繪了一幅工人和管理層在合作和互利基礎上和平共處的畫面。現在擺在我們面前的問題是：你打算如何將其付諸實踐？

　　 共產主義社會最根本的特征表現為三點。一是物質極大豐富，消費資料按需分配；二是社會關系高度和諧，人們精神境界極大提高；三是生產資料不歸屬於私人所有。

　　 西方的共產主義還遠遠沒有完全發揮作用。私有財產制度的殘余仍有阻礙這些理想發展的傾向。

　　 在社會主義道路上，所有共產主義政黨怎麼建設社會主義來實現共產主義社會？列寧主義認為需要在共產主義政黨的領導下，因此，蘇聯共產黨建立了一黨專政與先鋒隊。但是，這需要面對一個問題。如果，共產黨是人民的先鋒隊…誰來監督共產黨？

　　 列寧、斯大林與毛澤東都沒有真正解決這個問題，最終，共產主義政黨墮落與官僚化。先鋒隊式共產主義政黨必然成為了全民黨，政治局最終變成了官僚集團的家。

　　 在共產主義理論中，有一種趨勢，就是要使黨去官僚化，但這完全沒有抓住要點。如果沒有某種監督和指導黨的機制，它肯定會墮落。

　　 問題是，你如何保持黨的專注，並對人民負責？

　　 世界資本主義國家繼續面對一個不斷擴張的共產主義威脅，它根本不追求利潤，它不停把勞動力人口從農業部門泵入到更高效的工業部門增加要素提高生產力。這種時候，資本主義開始學習社會主義，它只能增加貨幣和福利....構造一個更好的薪酬市場與社會環境，通過福利與開放試圖讓無產階級支持資本主義來對抗社會主義。因為，只有背叛階級的個人。沒有背叛個人的階級。真正的無產者與資本家都沒有祖國。

　　 這就是為什麼它自己的一個階級是由移民和難民組成的，他們在兩個社會都受到壓迫。在這種情況下，民族主義作為對共產主義的一種反應而誕生。

　　 一個人可以天生就理解必須為了自己的祖國與民族而生存與戰斗，但是他不能理解為什麼要為了其他國家的無產階級戰斗。這就是為什麼民族主義會逐漸戰勝國際共產主義。

　　 同時，在全球面對蘇聯的貿易與技術封鎖下蘇聯本身的經濟必然會落後於美國。蘇聯在經濟增長和科技研發全面落後於西方的情況下，無法給民眾提供更加先進的科技產品、生活環境、言論自由與經濟福利，難道要靠幾本共產主義書籍來讓普通民眾繼續認同共產主義嗎？

　　 於是，1985年蘇聯民眾每月平均工資只有200盧布而同一年的美國民眾有1000～1500美元；而蘇聯官僚看到美國政治家可以公開合法腐敗、擁有私人飛機與多家企業經營，他們會追捧美國還是反對美國？人類會追求對個人更美好的生活環境與自我需求，所以最終蘇聯解體了。正如無產者沒有足夠的教育與良好的社會環境就會墮落為流氓無產階級，官僚也轉變了擁有巨額財產的寡頭。但這還不夠。如果一個社會在富人和窮人之間分裂，它就無法生存。

　　 蘇聯如果要繼續存在下來只有堅持計劃經濟與實行OGAS來解決虛報指標與物資短缺、排隊問題（或者像蘇聯解體一樣，消滅生產力來解決短缺…毀滅工業體系生產與物價上漲幾千倍就沒有物資短缺了！），等到里根下台就與美國緩和關系，並解除針對蘇聯的貿易與技術、糧食封鎖才能希望引進第三次工業革命的技術進行產業革命。

　　 歷史上戈爾巴喬夫的一些措施從現實角度來看是正確的，戈爾巴喬夫與北約緩和、從阿富汗撤軍是符合國家利益與現實的。（很難說，戈爾巴喬夫為什麼在切爾諾貝利核電站事故發生後拒絕謝爾比茨基的撤離民眾要求，反而以開除黨籍處分來威脅謝爾比茨基封鎖消息與舉行五一節大游行）但是，他愚蠢的做出了分散權力又利用自由派與地方民族主義打擊反對者與官僚；又進行市場經濟改革與放棄蘇聯共產黨的領導地位，打壓與拋棄軍隊。本應該掌握權力的人放棄權力就會讓一些不該掌握權力的瘋狂野心家掌握。蘇聯本身的特殊性與歷史問題決定它與蘇聯共產黨、計劃經濟的高度一致，放棄這兩者尤其是在憲法沒有取消加盟國自由脫離聯盟的情況下是危險與錯誤的。（列寧與斯大林就蘇聯憲法關於加盟共和國自由脫離蘇維埃聯盟的法令發生過爭議，列寧希望建立一個各加盟共和國自主的邦聯制蘇聯，而斯大林則希望建立一個由羅斯人為主導的聯邦制蘇聯；列寧死後，斯大林通過建立一黨專政的集權政治體制來防止出現解體問題。這種方式決定了蘇聯共產黨分散權力與喪失領導地位時蘇聯有解體的風險。相反，其他社會主義國家由於是單一主體民族領導的民族國家則沒有這個風險。）

　　 總之，蘇聯還有很長的路要走，這是我們不應該忘記的歷史教訓。

　　 ---

　　 “我們現在該怎麼辦？”

　　 蘇聯模式的問題在於，它缺乏解決衝突、保持生產和消費同步的市場機制。這一點在第一屆戈爾巴喬夫政府期間消費品匱乏、黑市興起以緩解這一問題、私有財產的出現以及隨後官僚和政客的腐敗中表現得最為明顯。而現在，缺乏創新消費品來維持系統運行。

　　 像現實的俄羅斯聯邦一樣進口消費品來緩解消費品市場需求？那將是一個致命的錯誤。

　　 蘇聯模式是指令經濟。它是集中的和自上而下的。它是一個滿足整個社會需求的系統，而不是滿足少數人的私欲。這是一個國家擁有生產資料而不是個人的制度。這是一種生產資料由國家政治機構控制的制度，而不是由貪婪、目光短淺的資本家控制的制度。唯一的問題是它可能被同樣短視與貪婪的官僚們竊取，畢竟總有一些自大的人即使獲得了足夠生活的財富與地位也希望壟斷財富與壓迫他人。這個問題在歷史上一直困擾著各個社會。

　　 解決這個問題的辦法不是生產資料的私有化。解決辦法不是自由放任，由市場決定。解決辦法不是自由市場的粗獷個人主義。私有財產和自由市場不是萬靈藥。它們也可能是巨大的社會和經濟反常和痛苦的根源。必須限制與消滅官僚階層，這很危險，但羅曼諾夫必須做到。

　　 問題在於蘇聯模式已經被官僚和政客徹底政治化和腐化，很難恢復和保持其完整性。這不是一個政治問題。這是一個系統性問題。除非，進行一次大規模清洗運動推倒整個體系…而戈爾巴喬夫不太可能做到這一點。

　　 因此，系統中存在大量的不確定性和風險，需要加以解決。

　　 羅曼諾夫翻看了下簡要的財政與經濟審計報告：

　　 蘇聯1985年發電量15440億度, 人口2.7億. 人均約5700度

　　 蘇聯1985年千人均汽車保有量: 42

　　 蘇聯1985年人均肉類/奶及制品/魚消費:61公斤/323公斤/18公斤

　　 蘇聯1985年戶均住房面積: 約65平方米

　　 蘇聯社會總產值13,825億盧布

　　 人均國民總收入每年2,123盧布

　　 1985年通貨膨脹率：6.3%

　　 出生時預期壽命：69歲

　　 蘇聯失業率可以忽略不計，羅曼諾夫嘆了口氣拿起電話打給特雷古波娃說：“是我，拿國家經濟計劃委員會預測美國經濟的報告過來給我。”

　　 “什麼？”

　　 “國家經濟計劃委員會的報告，”羅曼諾夫說，

　　 特雷古波娃要電話。羅曼諾夫說：“現在不是時候，請掛斷電話，幾分鍾後給我回電話。”

　　 會議記錄簡潔、中肯、要點：

　　 美國經濟正在快速增長，但這種增長是不穩定的。這種情況可能在未來幾年發生變化。

　　 美國1985年發電量24700億度. 人口2.4億. 人均約10000度.

　　 美國1985年千人均汽車保有量: 約700

　　 美國1985年人均肉類/奶及制品/魚消費:134公斤/269公斤/15公斤

　　 美國1985年戶均住房面積: 約160平方米

　　 “該死的，美國經濟高速增長。”羅曼諾夫盯著報告撓了撓頭，他拿著筆把報告上的汽車與住房面積圈了起來。

　　 他草草記下了一些筆記。

　　 “這份報告對增長率非常樂觀，並基於一些非常可疑的假設。這讓我對他們的預測信心不足。”羅曼諾夫說：“蘇聯不能犯同樣的錯誤。我們必須建設社會主義經濟，而不是有社會主義傾向的混合經濟。”

　　 “那麼，計劃是什麼？”特雷古波娃問道。

　　 “取消在房屋方面的超額房租懲罰與給民眾提供換房申請，但必須堅持不會允許房屋買賣。汽車方面，我還沒想好。你有辦法解決汽車質量與產量問題嗎？”

　　 “問題是我們沒有必要的原材料來滿足市場的需求。如果我們生產一半的汽車，我們仍然會短缺。我們需要更多的進口。”特雷古波娃說。

　　 “不，我們不會。我們不能。整個計劃的前提是蘇聯能夠出口多於進口。如果我們不改變制度，恐怕我們就無法維持目前的生活水平。我們必須減少勞動量，增加機器的產量。”羅曼諾夫說。

　　 “但是——但是——”特雷古波娃開始說話，但羅曼諾夫打斷了她的話。

　　 “不，但是。這不是關於現在對國家有什麼好處，而是關於長期對國家有什麼好處。你只需要服從我的命令與提供建議？”

　　 “嗯……好吧，”特雷古波娃說。

　　 “很好，”羅曼諾夫看著手表說。“我待會兒再跟你談。”

　　 “你不應該和政治局討論這個問題嗎？”

　　 “我會的，但我也是總書記與最高領導者。過來，讓我看看你摘了牙套的牙齒整齊劃一嗎？”羅曼諾夫拍了拍自己的大腿。

　　 “哈哈。”

　　 “你做完了嗎？”特雷古波娃問。

　　 “差不多。”羅曼諾夫說。“你沒有在這里裝竊聽裝置吧？我的情報小女孩。”

　　 “不，為什麼我們需要一個？”特雷古波娃說。

　　 “我不知道。這只是我的一種感覺。在過去的六個月里你做過體檢嗎？”

　　 “是的，我一直感覺很好。為什麼？”

　　 “只是檢查一下，”羅曼諾夫說。“你是我的阿芙樂爾號，我擔心你的肚子懷上孩子。”

　　 “你……”特雷古波娃開始問，但停了下來。“嗯，是的，我也很擔心。我想我們已經有一兩個月沒有體檢了。”

　　 “你最好有空去檢查一下，我還想在床上像皮諾切特蹂躪智利一樣蹂躪你。如果你懷上我的孩子，這會讓我很困擾。”

　　 “你真惡心，”特雷古波娃翻著白眼說。

　　 “這很值得，”羅曼諾夫笑著說。“你是我的，等到必要的時候我會讓你成為我的妻子。不吻我的手嗎？”

　　 特雷古波娃什麼也沒說，但她彎下身來，把嘴唇貼在羅曼諾夫的手上，羅曼諾夫抓住他的手，一動不動。

　　 “很好，”羅曼諾夫說。“向我跪下來吻我的鞋子，喊我父親。”

　　 “不，”特雷古波娃說。

　　 “跪下，”羅曼諾夫說，抓住她的手臂。

　　 特雷古波娃站在椅子上，目不轉睛地看著羅曼諾夫。

　　 “這只是一個測試，我希望你能這樣做表達出你對我的愛與服從。向我跪下來吻我的鞋子，喊我父親。”

　　 “我也不會這麼做，”特雷古波娃說。“我愛你，但我不會崇拜你。”

　　 “你讓這件事變得非常困難，”羅曼諾夫說，他的耐心越來越弱。“但我明白了，那麼不要聊這個了。”

　　 “你不可能強迫我做違背我意願的事，”特雷古波娃低頭看著羅曼諾夫說。“你只是…你只是離開這里，別管我。”

　　 “我之後會的，我需要認真思考我們的關系。”羅曼諾夫拿起筆與審計報告問：“現在，不介意幫我分析一下經濟預算？我不希望自己一個人思考。”

　　 “很好，”特雷古波娃說。“我不敢相信你這麼固執。”

　　 “我知道，”羅曼諾夫笑著說。“現在，請幫助我分析今年的經濟預算。”

　　 “很好，”特雷古波娃說。“今年的GNP增長率是多少？”

　　 “美國預測我們經濟增長率是1%，統計委員會公布的是4%…你猜猜到底是多少？”羅曼諾夫笑著問道。

　　 “這是2.2%，我的案子到此為止，”特雷古波娃笑著說。

　　 他們兩人一起工作直到天黑，終於完成了報告。羅曼諾夫簽了名，並把它交給了他的助手。

　　 “我能復印一份嗎？”她問。

　　 “當然，”羅曼諾夫說，但又補充道，“如果你再見到我，那就是。”

　　 “當然，”特雷古波娃說。

　　 “現在就這些，親愛的。”羅曼諾夫擺擺手說：“之後你可以回家了，我還要處理其他事情。”

　　 “好吧，”特雷古波娃說。

　　 特雷古波娃離開了，走出了房間。然而，羅曼諾夫留下來清洗眼鏡。他深吸了一口氣，說：“這是一場考驗。一場重大考驗。我有一種感覺，在未來的歲月里，奧爾加和我將經受多次考驗。做好一切准備。”

　　 “這是合乎邏輯的。我們必須看看我們之間的反應，世界對我們的反應，以及我們能擁有什麼樣的生活。”

　　 ---

　　 放下印有蘇聯國徽圖案的一號電話系統名冊，羅曼諾夫擦了擦手。經過幾十年的發展，蘇聯內部早已形成自我運行的官僚系統，而一號電話系統名冊這本外表由紅色硬書皮包裹的電話本就是其中一個產物，它記錄了600多名蘇聯中央與地方行政機關領導者、部委領導干部、重要的媒體人士與報刊總編、蘇聯科學院主席團與高級將領們。當然，這些人也有自己的長途自動電話用戶名冊。只是，人數更多到3000人左右…地位與影響力也低一級。

　　 這些一級又一級的官僚體制維護著蘇聯的運行，同樣對應的一級又級的行政區劃層級構成了蘇聯一整套冗雜又低效的聯邦制行政結構。

　　 第一級行政區劃（加盟共和國）-第二級行政區劃（自治共和國/州/邊疆區）-第三級行政區劃（自治州/自治區）-下層行政區（地區/共和國/邊疆區/州轄市）-基層行政區(地轄市/市轄區/村/鎮)

　　 如果算上蘇聯部長會議那群分成全聯盟部門與各加盟共和國都擁有的聯盟—共和國部門的話，行政部門真是太冗雜了。

　　 部長會議的一個部門，即情報部，正在調查減少冗余官僚機構數量的可能性，提議將幾個部委合並為八個超級高效的機構。

　　 “蘇維埃聯盟現在的行政機構冗余了，應該合並與撤除冗余部委。同志們有什麼意見？”羅曼諾夫邊說邊寫下批注，克里姆林宮14號樓會議室最高蘇維埃主席團主席格里申、部長會議主席吉洪諾夫、蘇共中央委員會意識形態書記（第二書記）科索拉波夫、外交部長特羅揚諾夫斯基、國家安全委員會第一主席博布科夫、蘇聯內務部部長費多爾丘克幾個人參加了會議。

　　 “蘇聯應該致力於提高效率。”格里辛說：“我們需要精簡整個政府框架。”

　　 “是的，”吉洪諾夫同意。

　　 “那麼，之後在政治局會議討論接下來四年時間開始合並與精簡部門機構的任務。”羅曼諾夫寫完批注又說：“接下來是部門任命，財政部部長由誰擔任？維克多·弗拉基米羅維奇·德門佐夫同志已經代理好幾年了。”

　　 “德門佐夫是一個能干的人。”外交部長特羅揚諾夫斯基說：“他有很多經驗。”

　　 “我同意，”羅曼諾夫說。“但他年齡太大了，我們不懷疑他的信仰與能力，但他應該陪伴他的家人了。我們需要一個年輕人，但年輕人的能力與對共產主義的信仰是值得懷疑的。”

　　 他環顧四周問道：“還有其他建議嗎？”

　　 沒有人說話，所以他繼續說：“換句話說，我們最好的辦法是任命一支有能力的年輕人團隊並對他們進行培訓，但對他們的控制非常寬松。我們必須相信他們的能力是足夠的，但如果不行，我們可以隨時替換他們。同志們，你們怎麼看？任何人

　　 特羅揚諾夫斯基再次環顧四周說：“我認為我們應該相信德門佐夫和他的團隊。他們知道如何管理經濟。”

　　 “這是一個很好的觀點。”

　　 “當然，”羅曼諾夫說。“請注意，這是一項非常危險的工作，不僅僅是為了外交部的聲譽。整個蘇聯都依賴於健康的金融體系。”

　　 “我知道，”特羅揚諾夫斯基說。

　　 “因此，我們在進行調查時需要格外小心。”羅曼諾夫說：“這不僅關系到財政部的聲譽，而且關系到整個蘇聯的金融穩定。”

　　 “在沒有合適的人選，先繼續讓德門佐夫同志代理財政部長怎麼樣？”格里辛建議。

　　 “是的，你是對的，”羅曼諾夫說。“但年齡太大了，在第二十八次蘇聯代表大會時將領導干部退休年齡定為70歲以上並保留待遇。”

　　 特羅揚諾夫斯基問道：“因此，如果我們不罷免他，他將在未來4至5年內繼續掌管財政部。”。

　　 “是的，很有可能。”

　　 特羅揚諾夫斯基說：“我想這可能會被認為是他被任命的一個優點。”

　　 “德門佐夫同志？”羅曼諾夫點點頭又說：“接下來是住房問題與教育，我們應該取消在房屋方面超額面積的多倍房租懲罰與給民眾提供換房申請，同時允許修建以別墅或者兩居室為主要建築、縮短建築距離的集中住宅區。面積應該在100～120平方米，繼續由國家免費分配。”

　　 “我對此有所保留。”特羅揚諾夫斯基說：“雖然我同意這是一個落後的制度，但居住處罰對人們擴大住房是一個巨大的抑制因素。”

　　 “但平均主義不是社會主義，明斯克黨委書記與他的兒子一家、女兒一家住在同一棟別墅，這並不合理。我們應該限制一個家庭擁有一套住房，而不是限制住房面積。”

　　 “也許我們還可以對建築中的空間過大引入非住宅處罰。”特羅揚諾夫斯基建議：“建築面積越大，每年的業主稅就越高。”

　　 “是的，但我們正在失去效率，這對租戶不公平。”

　　 “我理解你的擔憂，”特羅揚諾夫斯基說。“我只是不認為這是一條路。”

　　 “你可能是對的，”羅曼諾夫說。“但讓民眾住上滿意與寬闊的國家免費房屋更重要。”

　　 格里申問：“但是建築距離縮小，就違反了我們最初的目的。建築距離之間沒有平坦寬闊的空地在核戰爭時候會阻礙軍事部隊與緊急救援部隊。”

　　 “我們是一個城市國家，”羅曼諾夫說，“不是一個需要在農村儲存大量糧食和必需品的農業國家。”

　　 特羅揚諾夫斯基建議：“也許我們可以在某些地區將建築距離縮短50%。”

　　 “是的，這將解決我們一半的問題，”羅曼諾夫說。“接下來是教育改革，我們應該停止給學生減少作業負擔而是增加作業。他們應該專注於學習，而不是搖滾樂隊與政治之類的。還有降低教育支出384億盧布到200億盧布。”

　　 蘇聯幼兒、小、中、大學生均享受免費醫療保健服務；普通中小學的學生除去需自費購買文具外，不需再交其他費用、大學生學費全免，教科書免費使用；所有五年級以下的學生免費供應早餐和午餐；參加有專職老師指導的各種課外興趣小組活動、在星期六舉辦的課外提高特長活動（其中不乏鋼琴、小提琴、聲樂、舞蹈等項目），學生均不需交費。二十世紀八十年代中期，蘇聯高等學校891所，學生528萬人，教師51.5萬人。

　　 科索拉波夫想了想問：“那麼，空余的184億盧布預算調配到經濟部門與科學院？”

　　 “是的，”羅曼諾夫說。“據我所知，科學和研究界需要大量資金注入。”

　　 他補充說：“我想你作為一個團隊的工作就是優先考慮並推薦這些資金的使用。那麼，我們應該給物理界額外的184億嗎？”

　　 “這將是一個良好的開端。”

　　 “那麼數學和計算機科學界呢？還是醫學界呢？”

　　 “我相信科學界是一個非常重要的群體，”羅曼諾夫說。“我們需要進一步增加這些科學部門的預算以加速科技發展。”

　　 “一個對科學友好的政府對蘇聯的未來非常重要。”

　　 “你說得對，”羅曼諾夫說。“如果沒有問題的話，我們應該討論國際局勢與對外援助。”

　　 “我們還打算借錢給它們嗎？”

　　 “它們是援助的淨受援國。我們應該增加對淨捐助國的貸款。”

　　 “比如說？”

　　 “我們不能繼續無償援助沒有價值與經濟的不發達國家，除了利比亞、敘利亞、伊拉克、朝鮮、越南、古巴、安哥拉、埃塞俄比亞之外的淨受援國應該減少有償援助，並且要求這些國家用硬通貨與礦產資源、企業來償還貸款。”

　　 科索拉波夫建議：“或者這些國家應該為我們的貸款支付一些利息。”

　　 “不，那將違反國際金融體系的原則。”羅曼諾夫想到2008年金融危機又說：“那些具有無法償還風險的次級貸款能不能通過對外貿易部與列寧格勒合資銀行把那些次級貸款出售給美國的資本財團？”

　　 “這是個好主意，”特羅揚諾夫斯基說。

　　 “我們還可以在私營部門尋找貿易伙伴，將貸款出售給他們，並獲得利潤。”

　　 “有趣。”

　　 “這也有助於我們實現經濟多元化，減少我們動蕩的金融部門的風險敞口。”

　　 “這是真的，”特羅揚諾夫斯基說。

　　 格里申詢問說：“我想知道美國資本財團真的會收購我們在不發達國家的這些次級貸款嗎？”

　　 “會的，資本家沒有祖國。他們為了利潤會把這些次級貸款出售給美國普通民眾來轉嫁債務風險，最終破產的人絕對不會是華爾街那些人。最好美國像艾茵·蘭德與密爾頓·弗里德曼一樣的人越多越好，美國金融經濟越發達與實體經濟越衰落就對我們越有利。”格里戈里·羅曼諾夫解釋說。

　　 “當然，現在的帝國主義國家人民的經濟自由越多，對每個人都越好。”

　　 “這是一個很好的看待它的方式，是的，”特羅揚諾夫斯基說。

　　 “那就這樣吧，還有新成立負責國際革命的國際關系部部長職位空缺，應該由誰擔任？”

　　 科索拉波夫舉手說：“我有一個毫無疑問可以信任的人選，只是他的政治立場比我們更激進。”

　　 “說吧。”

　　 “我的候選人是亞歷山大·塔拉索夫。”

　　 “哦？”羅曼諾夫問道。“為什麼是他？”

　　 “他是托洛茨基主義者，在精神病院里關押了很久才根據格里戈里總書記你去年的指示放出來。”

　　 “是的，我記得。繼續。”

　　 “亞歷山大多年來一直參與反法西斯和反種族主義活動。他精通反法西斯和種族平等的哲學。”

　　 “很好。我支持你。還有其他人有候選人嗎？”

　　 房間里一片寂靜，因為他們都在等他抽完煙。

　　 “如果沒有就之後考察塔拉索夫同志擔任國際關系部部長。現在我們面臨一項任務。我們需要討論全球形勢和我們金融體系的狀況。”羅曼諾夫說：“關於之前已經提出的提議，集體農莊應該逐步在之後四年內轉變為國營農場。”

　　 “嗯，應該發展小規模工業，”科索拉波夫說。“應該全面擴大農業。私營部門已經顯示出它不願意正確地發揮其作用。”

　　 “我建議我們加倍投入我們正在規劃和實施這場農業革命，其方式不僅僅是提高作物產量。”特羅揚諾夫斯基說。“我們需要以可持續的方式增加糧食產量，而不是依靠犧牲自然資源。”

　　 “這是一個雄心勃勃的計劃，”羅曼諾夫說。“我建議我們成立一個新的研究團隊，以解決我們在農業領域面臨的問題。我將親自資助這項工作。”

　　 特羅揚諾夫斯基說：“我支持這項建議。”

　　 “如果沒有問題的話，之後由各部委討論。現在，博布科夫同志與費多爾丘克同志留下。其他同志可以離開了。”

　　 那兩個人站了起來。

　　 科索拉波夫說：“如果可以的話，我願意留下來幫忙。”

　　 “當然可以。”

　　 會議接著討論了其他事項。

　　 國家安全委員會第一主席博布科夫匯報說：“目前，海地已經由解放神學的主教控制並向我們尋求援助。”蘇聯內務部部長費多爾丘克詢問說：“我們應該援助海地嗎？”

　　 “不，海地沒有價值。它只是消耗美國精力的籌碼，我們不能投入過多的資金援助而是重點有償低價援助軍火。”

　　 “另一方面，在一個陷入無政府狀態的國家里，某種干預是必要的，以維持國內秩序。”博布科夫說：“我們至少需要穩定局勢。”

　　 費多爾丘克回答說：“不，美國做得很好。我們可以介入，制造更大的問題。”

　　 “我同意費多爾丘克同志的看法，讓我們援助一些淘汰的過時軍火給海地社會主義政府，資金援助只給予一千萬美元。”

　　 “一個明智的決定，”博布科夫宣稱。“我建議我們用一些過時的武器來幫助海地政府。同意嗎？”

　　 各方都同意。

　　 “現在，我們需要弄清楚如何將這些武器運到海地。”博布科夫說：“我們有辦法做到這一點嗎？”

　　 “我們可以通過古巴與拉丁美洲的毒梟來做到，只是如果我們援助力量不夠的話，是不足以讓親近我們的政府存活更久一點。”

　　 “沒錯，但這是一個很好的起點。我們可以與他們建立關系。一旦我們控制了一個港口，我們就可以擴大我們的權力。我們還可以威脅摧毀他們的毒品交易，這將嚴重影響美國政府的利潤。”

　　 “是的，的確如此。盡管如此，我還是建議我們向海地政府提供這些武器，只要我們不與美國進行直接軍事接觸。我們將在那里制造足夠多的政治不穩定，嚴重威脅美國政府在該地區的生存。一旦我們表現出強硬的手段，我們也將能夠與海地政府更成功地進行談判。畢竟，我們談論的是一個完全依賴外國援助和武力威脅的政府。”

　　 “我同意，”費多爾丘克說：“我建議我們向海地政府提供兩架米格-29、一打M-16、500個榴彈發射器、200件反坦克武器和200件薩姆地對空導彈。”

　　 “武器的數量不足以產生影響。”博布科夫說：“我建議我們提供五十個薩姆地對空導彈，100個反坦克武器和兩架噴氣式戰斗機。”

　　 “我認為我們應該給他們米格-29和薩姆地對空導彈的，”費多爾丘克說。“這是一個相當大的代價，但這將證明我們的嚴肅性。我建議投票表決。”

　　 沉默了很長時間。

　　 “我贊成援助海地政府。”特羅揚諾夫斯基說：“在座的大多數人也是如此。我提議我們投票。贊成的舉手。反對這項動議的請起立。”

　　 一陣長時間的沉默。

　　 “同志們都同意援助海地政府，只是援助軍火數量上有分歧。我認為應該給予海地社會主義政府更多的反坦克武器與重武器還有薩姆地對空導彈，但不要給予米格-29戰機，他們沒有時間培養飛機員。”

　　 “贊成的人？”特羅揚諾夫斯基問道。

　　 大家齊聲表示贊成和反對。

　　 特羅揚諾夫斯基說：“贊成者占多數。”

　　 總書記羅曼諾夫點點頭說：“那麼有償援助海地政府500個榴彈發射器、1000件反坦克武器和500件薩姆地對空導彈以及其他輕武器裝備，以市場價的50%出售給海地。另外，讓負責海地局勢的伊萬諾維奇同志評估海地需要的糧食援助與幫助海地建立新的政府行政體系。”

　　 “我會把這些文件交給伊萬諾維奇同志審閱。你會負責其余的安排嗎？”特羅揚諾夫斯基問道。

　　 “當然，”羅曼諾夫說。“之後的一段時間我要訪問華約成員國，在出訪的時間由科索拉波夫同志與費多爾丘克同志負責日常工作，另外，特羅揚諾夫斯基同志能准備蘇聯與中國、越南三國之間的商談會解決三國之間的領土爭端嗎？”

　　 “我會盡我所能，”特羅揚諾夫斯基說。

　　 會議休會。

　　 第二天，第二批物資被空運到海地。

　　 一周後，第三批物資被空運到海地。

　　 [newpage]

　　 [uploadedimage:121007]

　　 Kremlin Building 14

　　 \"Yes, national and ethnic identification was to be eliminated from identity cards and civil registries, and local nationalists were to be arrested and gangsters were to be fought in all the Soviet Union. And the replacement of nuclear reactors and the creation of nuclear power plant containment, with the Leningrad and Chernobyl nuclear power plants being the first to be replaced.\" Tregubova yawned as Romanov stared at the pile of reports on his desk and talked to Serbitsky, the first secretary of the Ukrainian Soviet. \"Comrade Serbitsky, this is about the fate of the 52 million people of the Ukrainian Soviet.\"

　　 \"This is the first we\u0027re hearing about it, but I imagine it involves a massive amount of people and money.\"

　　 \"I know the internal guard forces and border guards will cooperate, and the Galicia region must be focused on cleaning up the Western Ukrainian nationalists.\" Romanov scratched his head; he\u0027d been up late for days. \"The main problem is convincing the republics that the new system will be better. That will be our greatest challenge.\"

　　 Tregubova walked into the room, and said, \"General Secretary Romanov, this is the audit report on the economic budget and development.\"

　　 \"Show me.\" Romanov glanced at the report. \"Anything significant?\"

　　 \"There are a bunch of whistleblowers and letters sent to you from the public, including one from Professor Sakharov, who says he\u0027ll give up publicly blaming the Soviet Union if you let his wife return to Moscow.\"

　　 \"Professor Sakharov?\" Romanov remembered that he hadn\u0027t been a pro-democracy crusader for the U.S. and Pinochet, and the wholesale privatization of the Soviet industrial system, in the original? \"Throw that letter in the trash.\"

　　 \"Yes.\" Tregubova shuffled through a bunch of reports and highlighted one. \"The Ministry of Intelligence has requested additional funding for wiretapping and bugging equipment. We are providing it, even though it is an increase from last year\u0027s budget.\"

　　 \"Good. What else?\"

　　 \"We\u0027ve had some problems with the Ministry of Defense. It has requested an increase in spending for new fighter jets and other war equipment. We\u0027ve countered with new budgetary restrictions.\"

　　 \"Well, what do you think about cutting 2 billion rubles from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Education to transfer to the Ministry of Defense?\" Romanov returned to the report, which audited the economic development of the Soviet Union last year.

　　 \"That\u0027s a lot of money. Do you think it would be better spent on military equipment or reducing prices to farmers?\"

　　 Romanov sighed and said, \"The Soviet Union can lose the support of the peasants, but not of the army.\"

　　 Tregubova nodded.

　　 \"All right. Is there anything else?\"

　　 \"No.\"

　　 \"Very well. We should have a final decision soon.\"

　　 \"Decision? What kind of decision?\"

　　 \"It is a matter for the political branches of the government to discuss, and I will not sit in judgment over them.\"

　　 \"Very well.\" Tregubova walked out of the room. Romanov stared after her, and said, \"I wonder what she has in mind.\"

　　 ------

　　 Well, in your speech, you painted a picture of a peaceful coexistence between workers and management that was based on cooperation and mutual benefits. The question before us now is: how do you intend to put that into practice?

　　 The most fundamental characteristics of communist society are expressed in three points. First, there is great material abundance and the means of consumption are distributed according to needs; second, social relations are highly harmonious and people\u0027s spirituality is greatly improved; third, the means of production do not belong to private ownership.

　　 We are far from having a fully-functioning communism in the West. There are still remnants of the private property system that have a tendency to block the progression of these ideals.

　　 The most fundamental characteristics of communist society are expressed in three points. The first is great material abundance and the distribution of the means of consumption according to needs; the second is a high degree of harmony in social relations and a great improvement in people\u0027s spirituality; and the third is that the means of production do not belong to private ownership.

　　 Communism in the West is still far from being fully functional. The remnants of the private property system still have the tendency to hinder the development of these ideals.

　　 How do all communist parties build socialism to achieve a communist society on the road to socialism? Leninism saw the need to be under the leadership of a communist party, hence the establishment of the one-party dictatorship and vanguard of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. However, this required facing a problem. If, for example, the Communist Party was the vanguard of the people...who would supervise the Communist Party?

　　 Lenin, Stalin and Mao failed to really address this question, and eventually, the communist party degenerated and bureaucratized. The vanguard communist party inevitably became the party of all people, and the Politburo eventually became the home of the bureaucratic clique.

　　 There has been a trend in communist theory to de-bureaucratize the party, but that misses the point entirely. Without some mechanism to oversee and direct the party, it will surely degenerate.

　　 The problem is how do you keep the party focused, and accountable to the people?

　　 The world capitalist countries continue to face an expanding communist threat, which does not seek profits at all, and which keeps pumping the labor population from the agricultural sector into the more efficient industrial sector increasing factors to increase productivity. At such times, capitalism begins to learn from socialism, which can only increase money and welfare .... Constructing a better pay market and social environment, through welfare and openness tries to get the proletariat to support capitalism against socialism. Because, there are only individuals who betray the class. There is no class that betrays the individual. The true proletarians and capitalists have no homeland.

　　 That\u0027s why a class of its own is made up of migrants and refugees who are oppressed in both societies. At such times, nationalism is born as a reaction to communism.

　　 A man can be born understanding that he must live and fight for his own country and nation, but he cannot understand why he should fight for the proletariat of other countries. This is why nationalism gradually overcame international communism.

　　 At the same time, the Soviet Union itself was bound to fall behind the U.S. economy under the global trade and technology blockade facing the Soviet Union. With the Soviet Union lagging behind the West in economic growth and technological development across the board, and unable to provide the population with more advanced technological products, living conditions, freedom of speech and economic welfare, was it necessary to rely on a few communist books to keep the general population identifying with communism?

　　 So, in 1985 the average Soviet citizen was paid 200 rubles a month while the American citizen in the same year was paid $1,000 to $1,500; and when Soviet bureaucrats saw that American politicians could openly and legally corrupt themselves, own private jets and operate multiple businesses, would they pursue America or oppose America? Human beings will pursue better living conditions and self-needs for the individual, so eventually the Soviet Union collapsed. Just as the proletarians without adequate education and a good social environment degenerated into a rogue proletariat, so the bureaucrats were transformed into oligarchs with vast wealth.

　　 (The Soviet Communist Party, at least in the USSR with only 50% of the U.S. GNP, was still willing to give its citizens a welfare policy of free distribution. This is much better than the Chinese Communist Party since Deng Xiaoping; after all, it would be hard to find another economy that is the second largest in the world but allows most of its citizens to work at the same level of wages and hours as underdeveloped countries. (Unless, of course, China\u0027s population starts to grow negatively or the struggle is so intense that a revolution is imminent; otherwise, the Leviathan of monopoly capital will never give up its exploitation.) But it is not enough. A society cannot survive if it is divided between the haves and have-nots.

　　 If the Soviet Union wants to continue to exist down only adhere to the planned economy and the implementation of OGAS to solve the problem of false indicators and material shortages, queuing (or like the collapse of the Soviet Union, the elimination of productivity to solve the shortage ... destroy the industrial system production and prices rise thousands of times there is no material shortage! The Soviet Union has to wait until Reagan steps down to ease relations with the United States and lift the trade and technology and food embargo against the Soviet Union before it can hope to introduce the technologies of the third industrial revolution for an industrial revolution.

　　 Historically, some of Gorbachev\u0027s measures were correct from a practical point of view, and Gorbachev\u0027s détente with NATO and withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan were in the national interest and reality. However, he foolishly decentralized power and used liberals and local nationalism to fight against opponents and bureaucrats; he carried out market economy reforms and abandoned the leadership of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, suppressed and abandoned the military. The abandonment of power by those who should have held it allowed some crazy ambitious people who should not have held it to do so. The Soviet Union\u0027s own peculiarities and historical problems determine its high degree of alignment with the Soviet Communist Party and the planned economy, and it would be dangerous and wrong to abandon both, especially if the constitution did not abolish the free secession of the constituent states from the Union (Lenin and Stalin disputed the Soviet Constitution\u0027s decree on the free secession of the constituent republics from the Soviet Union, Lenin wanting a confederate Soviet Union with autonomous constituent republics, while Stalin wanted a federal Soviet Union dominated by the Russians; after Lenin\u0027s death, Stalin prevented the problem of disintegration by establishing a centralized political system of one-party dictatorship. This approach determined the risk of disintegration of the Soviet Union in the event of decentralization and loss of leadership of the Soviet Communist Party. (In contrast, other socialist countries do not have this risk because they are nation-states led by a single subject nation)

　　 To conclude, the Soviet Union had a long road to travel, and it is a history lesson that we should not forget.

　　 ---

　　 \"What should we do now?\"

　　 The problem with the Soviet model is that it lacks a market mechanism to resolve conflicts and keep production and consumption in sync. This was seen most keenly in the dearth of consumer goods during the first Gorbachev administration, as well as the rise of the Black Market to alleviate this problem, the emergence of private property and the subsequent corruption of bureaucrats and politicians. And now, a dearth of innovative capital goods to keep the system running.

　　 Importing consumer goods like the real Russian Federation to ease consumer goods market demand? That would be a fatal mistake.

　　 The Soviet model is a command economy. It is centralized and top-down. It is a system in which the needs of the society as a whole are met, not the private desires of a few. It is a system in which the state owns the means of production, not individuals. It is a system in which the means of production are controlled by the political institutions of the state, not by greedy, shortsighted capitalists. The only problem is that it can be stolen by equally short-sighted and greedy bureaucrats. After all, there will always be arrogant people who want to monopolize wealth and oppress others even when they have gained enough wealth and status to live. It\u0027s a problem that has plagued societies throughout history.

　　 The solution to this problem is not the privatization of the means of production. The solution is not laissez faire and letting the market decide. The solution is not the rugged individualism of the free market. Private property and free markets are not a panacea. They can also be the source of great social and economic anomalies and suffering. The bureaucratic class must be restricted & eliminated, which is dangerous, but Romanov must do it.

　　 The problem is that the Soviet model has been so thoroughly politicized and corrupted by bureaucrats and politicians that it is difficult to restore and maintain its integrity. This is not a political problem. It is a systemic problem. Unless, of course, there is a massive cleansing campaign to bring down the entire system... and that is not something Gorbachev is likely to undertake.

　　 Thus, there is a great deal of uncertainty and risk in the system that needs to be addressed.

　　 Romanov looked over the following brief financial and economic audit report.

　　 The Soviet Union generated 1,544 billion kWh of electricity in 1985, with a population of 270 million. The per capita capacity was about 5700 kWh.

　　 Soviet car ownership per capita in 1985: 42

　　 Meat / milk and products / fish consumption per capita in the USSR in 1985: 61 kg / 323 kg / 18 kg

　　 Average housing area in the USSR in 1985: about 65 square meters

　　 Soviet GDP: 1,382.5 billion roubles

　　 Gross national income per capita: 4,937 rubles per year

　　 Inflation rate, 1985: 6.3%

　　 Life expectancy at birth: 69

　　 Soviet unemployment was negligible, and Romanov sighed as he picked up the phone and called Tregubova and said, \"It\u0027s me, bring me the report of the State Economic Planning Committee forecasting the U.S. economy.\"

　　 \"The what?\"

　　 \"The report from the State Economic Planning Committee,\" Romanov said,

　　 Tregubova asked for the phone. Romanov said, \"It\u0027s not a good time, please hang up and call me back in a few minutes.\"

　　 The minutes of the meeting were concise, to the point, and to the point:

　　 The U.S. economy is growing fast, but this growth is unstable. This situation can change in the next few years.

　　 \"Damn, the U.S. economy is growing at a high rate.\" Romanov stared at the report and scratched his head as he took a pen and circled the area of cars and housing on the report. He scribbled down some notes.

　　 \"This report is very optimistic about the rate of growth and is based on a number of very questionable assumptions. This leaves me with very little confidence in their projections,\" Romanov said. \"The Soviet Union cannot make the same mistake. We must build a socialist economy, not a mixed economy with socialist tendencies.\"

　　 \"So, what\u0027s the plan?\" Tregubova asked.

　　 \"Removing the excess rent penalty in terms of housing versus giving people the application to exchange their homes, but must insist that they will not be allowed to buy or sell homes. On the car side, I haven\u0027t figured it out yet. Do you have a solution to the car quality and production issue?\"

　　 \"The problem is that we don\u0027t have the necessary raw materials to keep up with the demands of the market. If we produce half the cars, we will still be short. We will need to import more.\" Tregubova said.

　　 \"No, we won\u0027t. We can\u0027t. The entire plan is predicated on the Soviet Union being able to export more than it imports. I\u0027m afraid we won\u0027t be able to maintain our current standard of living if we don\u0027t change the system. We must reduce the amount of labor we use, and increase the output of the machines.\" Romanov said.

　　 \"But - but -\" Tregubova began to speak, but Romanov interrupted her.

　　 \"No buts. It\u0027s not about what\u0027s good for the country right now. It\u0027s about what\u0027s good for the country in the long term. You only need to obey my orders & offer advice?\"

　　 \"Well... okay,\" Tregubova said.

　　 \"Good,\" Romanov said, looking at his watch. \"I\u0027ll talk to you later.\"

　　 \"Shouldn\u0027t you discuss this with the Politburo?\"

　　 \"I would, but I\u0027m also the general secretary & supreme leader. Come here, let me see if your teeth are neat and tidy with your braces off?\" Romanov slapped his thigh.

　　 \"Ha ha.\"

　　 \"Are you finished?\" Tregubova asked.

　　 \"Almost.\" Romanov said. \"You don\u0027t have a bugging device in here, do you? My little girl of information.\"

　　 \"No. Why would we need one?\" Tregubova said.

　　 \"I dunno. It\u0027s just a feeling I got. Have you had a physical in the past six months?\"

　　 \"Yes, I\u0027ve been feeling really well. Why?\"

　　 \"Just checking,\" Romanov said. \"You\u0027re my Avril, and I\u0027m worried about carrying a baby in your belly.\"

　　 \"Do you...\" Tregubova began to ask, but stopped. \"Well yes, I\u0027m worried as well. I think it\u0027s been about a month or two since we\u0027ve had a physical.\"

　　 \"You better get checked out sometime, I still want to ravage you in bed like Pinochet ravaged Chile. If you\u0027re pregnant with my child, this will bother me.\"

　　 \"You\u0027re disgusting,\" Tregubova said, rolling her eyes.

　　 \"It\u0027ll be so worth it,\" Romanov said, grinning. \"You are mine, and I will make you my wife when the time comes. Won\u0027t you kiss my hand?\"

　　 Tregubova said nothing, but she leaned in and pressed her lips to Romanov\u0027s hand, which he grabbed and held still.

　　 \"Good,\" Romanov said. \"Kneel down to me and kiss my shoes and call me Father.\"

　　 \"No,\" Tregubova said.

　　 \"Kneel,\" Romanov said, grabbing her by the arm.

　　 Tregubova stood up from the chair, staring down at Romanov in defiance.

　　 \"This is just a test, and I want you to show your love and obedience to me by doing this. Kneel down to me and kiss my shoes and call me Father.\"

　　 \"I won\u0027t do either,\" Tregubova said. \"I love you, but I won\u0027t worship you.\"

　　 \"You\u0027re making this very difficult,\" Romanov said, his patience growing thin. \"But I get it, so don\u0027t talk about it.\"

　　 \"There\u0027s no way you\u0027ll ever forcing me to do anything against my will,\" Tregubova said, staring down at Romanov. \"You just... you just get out of here. Leave me alone.\"

　　 \"I will afterwards, I need to think seriously about our relationship.\" Romanov picked up the pen with the audit report and asked, \"Now, mind helping me analyze the economic budget? I don\u0027t want to think by myself.\"

　　 \"Fine,\" Tregubova said. \"I can\u0027t believe you\u0027re being so stubborn.\"

　　 \"I know,\" Romanov said, smiling. \"Now, help me analyze this year\u0027s economic budget.\"

　　 \"Fine,\" Tregubova said. \"What is the GNP growth rate for this year?\"

　　 \"The U.S. predicts our economy to grow at 1%, the Statistical Commission publishes it at 4%...guess what it really is?\" Romanov asked, grinning.

　　 \"It\u0027s 2.2%. I rest my case,\" Tregubova said, grinning.

　　 The two of them worked together until nightfall, when they finally finished the report. Romanov signed it, and handed it to his aide.

　　 \"Can I get a copy of that?\" She asked.

　　 \"Sure,\" Romanov said, but added, \"if you ever see me again, that is.\"

　　 \"Of course,\" Tregubova said.

　　 \"That\u0027s all for now, my dear.\" Romanov waved his hand and said, \"You can go home after that, I have other things to take care of.\"

　　 \"Okay,\" Tregubova said.

　　 Tregubova left, walking out of the room. Romanov, however, stayed behind, cleaning his glasses. He took a deep breath, and said, \"This is a test. A big test. I have a feeling that Olga and I will be tested many times in the years to come. Be prepared for anything.\"

　　 \"It\u0027s only logical. We\u0027ll have to see how we react to each other, and how the world reacts to us, and what kind of life we can have.\"

　　 ---

　　 Putting down the No. 1 telephone system roster with the Soviet emblem on it, Romanov wiped his hands. After decades of development, the Soviet Union had already formed a self-running bureaucracy, and the No. 1 telephone system roster, a telephone book wrapped in red hard cover, was one of the products, recording more than 600 leaders of the Soviet central and local administrations, ministry leaders, important media personalities and newspaper editors-in-chief, the presidium of the Soviet Academy of Sciences and senior generals. Of course, these people also had their own roster of long-distance automatic telephone users. Only, there were more of them, about 3,000... and one level lower in status and influence.

　　 These levels of bureaucracy kept the Soviet Union running, and the same level of administrative divisions made up a whole set of redundant and inefficient federal administrative structures.

　　 First level of administrative divisions (republics) - second level of administrative divisions (autonomous republics/obstacles/krai) - third level of administrative divisions (autonomous oblasts/autonomous regions) - lower level of administrative divisions (regions/republics/krai/obstacles) - lower level of administrative divisions (cities/municipalities/villages/towns)

　　 If we include the group of the USSR Council of Ministers, which was divided into all-Union departments and all-Union-Republic departments owned by the Union Republics, the administrative departments were really redundant.

　　 One department of the Council of Ministers, the Department of Intelligence, was investigating the possibility of reducing the amount of redundant bureaucracy, proposing to merge several ministries and departments into eight super-efficient agencies.

　　 \"The Soviet Union now has redundant administrative bodies and should merge with the removal of redundant ministries. What do the comrades think?\" Romanov said as he wrote down the annotations, and several people attended the meeting, including Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet Grishin, Chairman of the Council of Ministers Tikhonov, Ideological Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (Second Secretary) Kosolapov, Foreign Minister Troyanovsky, First Chairman of the State Security Committee Bobkov, and Minister of Internal Affairs of the USSR Fedorchuk, in the conference room of Building 14 of the Kremlin.

　　 \"The Soviet Union should aim to become even more efficient,\" Grishin said. \"We need to streamline the entire governmental framework.\"

　　 \"Yes,\" Tikhonov agreed.

　　 \"Then, after that, at the Politburo meeting to discuss the next four years to start merging and streamlining departmental agencies.\" Romanov finished writing the endorsement and added: \"The next step is departmental appointments, who will be the Minister of Finance? Comrade Viktor Vladimirovich Dementsov has been acting for several years.\"

　　 \"Dementsov is a capable man,\" Foreign Minister Troyanovsky said. \"He has a lot of experience.\"

　　 \"I agree,\" Romanov said. \"But he is too old and we don\u0027t doubt his faith and ability, but it\u0027s time for him to be with his family. We need a young man, but the ability of a young man and his faith in communism is questionable.\"

　　 He looked around and asked, \"Any other suggestions?\"

　　 No one spoke, so he continued, \"In other words, our best bet is to appoint a team of capable young people and train them, but with a very loose reins on them. We\u0027ll have to trust that their abilities will be sufficient, but if not, then we can always replace them. What do you think comrades? Anyone? No?\"

　　 Troyanovsky looked around once again and said, \"I think we should trust Dementsov and his team. They know how to run an economy.\"

　　 \"That\u0027s a good point.\"

　　 \"Of course,\" Romanov said. \"Please be aware that this is a very dangerous line of work, and not just for the Ministry\u0027s reputation. The entire Soviet Union depends on a healthy financial system.\"

　　 \"I know,\" Troyanovsky said.

　　 \"Therefore, we will need to be extra careful in the investigations we conduct,\" Romanov said. \"It\u0027s not only the Ministry\u0027s reputation that\u0027s at stake, but the whole of the Soviet Union\u0027s financial stability.\"

　　 \"In the absence of a suitable candidate, how about continuing to let Comrade Demenzov act as Finance Minister for now?\" Grishin suggested.

　　 \"Yes, you\u0027re right,\" Romanov said. \"But the age was too great, and at the 28th Soviet Congress the retirement age for leading cadres was set at 70 or more and retained as an entitlement.\"

　　 \"So if we don\u0027t remove him, he\u0027ll continue to be in charge of the Ministry of Finance for the next 4 to 5 years?\" Troyanovsky asked.

　　 \"Yes, in all probability.\"

　　 \"I guess that could be considered a merit to his appointment,\" Troyanovsky said.

　　 \"Comrade Dementsov?\" Romanov nodded and added: \"The next issue is housing and education. We should abolish the penalty of multiplying the rent for excess area in housing and provide people with applications to exchange their houses, while allowing the construction of centralized residential areas with villas or two-bedroom houses as the main buildings and shortening the building distance. The area should be 100 to 120 square meters and continue to be allocated free of charge by the state.\"

　　 \"I have some reservations about this,\" Troyanovsky said. \"While I agree that this is a backward system, the residential penalties are a huge disincentive for people to expand their homes.\"

　　 \"But egalitarianism is not socialism, and it doesn\u0027t make sense for the Minsk party secretary to live in the same villa with his son\u0027s family and his daughter\u0027s family. We should limit a family to one house, not limit the size of the house.\"

　　 \"Maybe we could also introduce a non-residential penalty for too much space in buildings,\" Troyanovsky suggested. \"The more square meters a building has, the more the owner taxes per year.\"

　　 \"Yes, but we\u0027re losing efficiency, and it\u0027s unfair to the tenant.\"

　　 \"I understand your concerns,\" Troyanovsky said. \"I just don\u0027t think that this is the way to go.\"

　　 \"You\u0027re probably right,\" Romanov said. \"But it\u0027s more important for people to live in free state housing that is satisfactory and spacious.\"

　　 Grisham asked, \"But building distances are reduced, and it defeats our original purpose. The lack of flat and wide open spaces between building distances would hinder military and emergency relief forces in the event of nuclear war.\"

　　 \"We\u0027re a city-state,\" Romanov said, \"not a nation of farmers who need to stockpile large quantities of food and necessities in the countryside.\"

　　 \"Perhaps we could reduce building distances by 50% in some areas,\" Troyanovsky suggested.

　　 \"Yes, that would solve half of our problems,\" Romanov said. \"The next thing is education reform, we should stop giving students less homework load but more homework. They should focus on learning, not rock bands with politics and such. And also reduce education spending by 38.4 billion rubles to 20 billion rubles.\"

　　 Students in primary and secondary schools are not required to pay any additional fees, except for stationery, and university students are exempt from tuition fees and free textbooks; breakfast and lunch are free for all students up to the fifth grade; and students can participate in various extracurricular interest groups with full-time teachers and extracurricular activities on Saturdays (including There is no fee for students to participate in the various extracurricular interest groups and extracurricular activities on Saturdays (including piano, violin, voice, dance, etc.). In the mid-1980s, there were 891 schools of higher education in the USSR, with 5.28 million students and 515,000 teachers.

　　 Kosolapov thought about it and asked, \"So, the spare 18.4 billion ruble budget is deployed to the economic sector with the Academy of Sciences?\"

　　 \"Yes,\" Romanov said. \"As I understand, the science and research communities are in need of a large infusion of funds.\"

　　 He added, \"I imagine that your job as a group is to prioritize and recommend the use of those funds. So, should we give the physics community the extra 18.4 billion?\"

　　 \"That would be a good start.\"

　　 \"And what about the mathematics and computer science community? Or the medical community?\"

　　 \"I\u0027m sure the science community is a very important one,\" Romanov said. \"We need to further increase the budgets of these science departments to accelerate science and technology development.\"

　　 \"A science-friendly government is very important for the future of USSR.\"

　　 \"You\u0027re right,\" Romanov said. \"If there are no questions, we should discuss the international situation and foreign aid.\"

　　 \"Do we still plan to lend money to them?\"

　　 \"They is a net recipient of aid. We should increase our lending to those countries that are net contributors.\"

　　 \"Such as?\"

　　 \"We cannot continue to give free aid to worthless and economically undeveloped countries, and net recipients other than Libya, Syria, Iraq, North Korea, Vietnam, Cuba, Angola, and Ethiopia should reduce reimbursable aid and require these countries to repay their loans with hard currency and mineral resources and businesses.\"

　　 \"Or perhaps these countries should pay some interest on our loans,\" Kosolapov suggested.

　　 \"No, that would be against the principles of the international financial system.\" Thinking of the 2008 financial crisis, Romanov added: \"Could those subprime loans with the risk of non-repayment be sold to the U.S. capital consortium through the Ministry of Foreign Trade\u0027s joint venture with the Leningrad Bank?\"

　　 \"That\u0027s a good idea,\" Troyanovsky said.

　　 \"We could also seek trade partners in the private sector, sell the loans on to them, and gain a profit.\"

　　 \"Interesting.\"

　　 \"This could also help us diversify our economy and reduce our exposure to the volatile financial sector.\"

　　 \"That\u0027s true,\" Troyanovsky said.

　　 Grishin inquired, \"I wonder if the American capital consortium will really buy up these subprime loans we have in underdeveloped countries?\"

　　 \"Yes, the capitalists have no homeland. They will sell these subprime loans to the average American for profit to pass on the debt risk, and the people who will end up bankrupt will never be those on Wall Street. The more people like Ayn Rand and Milton Friedman in the US, the better, the more developed the US financial economy and the more the real economy declines, the better for us.\" Grigory Romanov explained.

　　 \"And, of course, the more economic freedom of the people in the current imperialist countries, the better for everyone.\"

　　 \"That\u0027s a good way of looking at it, yes,\" Troyanovsky said.

　　 \"So be it, and who should fill the vacant position of the newly established Minister of International Relations in charge of the international revolution?\"

　　 Kosolapov raised his hand and said, \"I have a candidate I can undoubtedly trust, except that his political positions are more radical than ours.\"

　　 \"Go.\"

　　 \"My candidate is a man named Alexander Tarasov.\"

　　 \"Oh?\" Romanov asked. \"Why him?\"

　　 \"He was a Trotskyist and was held in a mental hospital for a long time before being released on your instructions last year, General Secretary Grigori.\"

　　 \"Yes, I remember. Continue.\"

　　 \"Alexander has been involved in anti-fascist and anti-racist activism for years. He\u0027s well-versued in the philosophies of anti-fascism and racial equality.\"

　　 \"Very well. You have my support. Does anyone else have any candidates?\"

　　 \"No.\"

　　 \"Then Alexander is my choice,\" Romanov declared.

　　 \"Congratulations,\" Kosolapov said with a clap. \"You\u0027ve made a very wise choice.\"

　　 \"Thank you.\"

　　 The room became silent as they all waited for to finish his cigarette.

　　 \"If not then comrade Tarasov will be examined as the head of the International Relations Department afterwards. Now we are faced with a task. We need to discuss the global situation and the state of our financial system.\" Romanov said, \"Regarding the proposals already made before, collective farms should be gradually transformed into state farms in the following four years.\"

　　 \"Mmm, small-scale industry should be developed,\" Kosolapov said. \"Agriculture should be expanded across the board. The private sector has shown itself unwilling to play its role correctly.\"

　　 \"I propose that we double down on the agricultural revolution we have been planning and executing in a way that goes beyond simply increasing crop yields,\" Troyanovsky said. \"We need to increase food production in a sustainable way that doesn\u0027t rely on sacrificing natural resources.\"

　　 \"That\u0027s quite an ambitious plan,\" Romanov said. \"I propose that we form a new research team to tackle the problems we face in the agricultural sector. I will personally fund this effort.\"

　　 \"I support this proposal,\" Troyanovsky said.

　　 \"If there are no questions, they will be discussed by the ministries and commissions afterwards. For now, Comrade Bobkov and Comrade Fedorchuk stay. The other comrades may leave.\"

　　 The two men stood up.

　　 \"I would like to stay and help, if I may,\" Kosolapov said.

　　 \"Of course you may.\"

　　 The meeting went on to discuss other matters.

　　 First Chairman of the National Security Council Bobkov reported, \"At present, Haiti is under the control of the bishops of liberation theology and seeks our assistance.\" Soviet Minister of Internal Affairs Fedorchuk inquired, \"Should we assist Haiti?\"

　　 \"No. Haiti has no value. It is only a bargaining chip to drain U.S. energy, and we cannot invest too much in financial aid but rather focus on paid, low-cost arms assistance.\"

　　 \"On the other hand, some kind of intervention is necessary to keep the internal order in a country that\u0027s slipping into anarchy,\" Bobkov said. \"We need to at least stabilize the situation.\"

　　 \"No, the U.S. is doing a fine job. We could step in and create a bigger problem,\" Fedorchuk answered.

　　 \"I agree with Comrade Fedorchuk, let us aid some obsolete arms that have been phased out to the Haitian socialist government, and give only $10 million in financial aid.\"

　　 \"A wise decision,\" Bobkov declared. \"I propose that we aid the Haitian government with some obsolete weapons. Agree?\"

　　 All parties concurred.

　　 \"Now, we need to figure out how to get these weapons to Haiti,\" Bobkov said. \"Do we have the means to do that?\"

　　 \"We can do it through the drug lords in Cuba and Latin America, it\u0027s just not enough to keep the governments close to us alive for a little longer if we don\u0027t have enough aid power.\"

　　 \"True, but it\u0027s a good place to start. We can build a relationship with them. Once we have control of a port, we can expand our power. We can also threaten to destroy their narcotics trade, which would put a serious crimp in the U.S. government\u0027s profits.\"

　　 \"Yes, that\u0027s true. Nonetheless, I recommend that we aid these arms to the Haitian government so long as we don\u0027t have a direct military engagement with the United States. We\u0027ll create enough political instability there to seriously threaten the very existence of the U.S. government in the region. We\u0027ll also be able to negotiate much more successfully with the Haitian government once we have demonstrated a strong hand. After all, we\u0027re talking about a government that is completely dependent on foreign aid and the threat of military force.\"

　　 \"I agree,\" Fedorchuk said. \"I propose that we give the Haitian government two MiG-29\u0027s, a dozen M-16\u0027s, 500 grenade launchers, 200 anti-tank weapons, and 200 SAM\u0027s.\"

　　 \"That\u0027s not a substantial enough amount of arms to make a difference,\" Bobkov said. \"I propose that we provide 50 SAM\u0027s, 100 anti-tank weapons, and two jet fighters.\"

　　 \"I think we should give them MiG-29\u0027s and SAM\u0027s,\" Fedorchuk said. \"It\u0027s a sizeable price to pay, but that will demonstrate our seriousness. I suggest a vote.\"

　　 There was a lengthy silence.

　　 \"I\u0027m in favor of aiding the Haitian government,\" Troyanovsky said. \"So, too, are the majority of the others in the room. I propose that we vote. Those in favor raise their hands. Will the opponents of this motion please stand?\"

　　 There was a prolonged silence.

　　 \"The comrades all agree to aid the Haitian government, they just disagree on the amount of arms to be given. I think the Haitian socialist government should be given more anti-tank weapons with heavy weapons and SAM surface-to-air missiles, but not MiG-29s, they don\u0027t have time to train aircraft crews.\"

　　 \"Those in favor?\" Troyanovsky asked.

　　 There was a chorus of aye\u0027s and nays.

　　 \"The ayes have it,\" Troyanovsky said.

　　 General Secretary Romanov nodded and said, \"Then provide the Haitian government with 500 grenade launchers, 1,000 anti-tank weapons and 500 SAM surface-to-air missiles, as well as other light weapons equipment, for sale to Haiti at 50 percent of the market price, for a fee. Also, have Comrade Ivanovich, who is in charge of the situation in Haiti, assess Haiti\u0027s need for food aid with help in setting up a new government administration system in Haiti.\"

　　 \"I\u0027ll take the documents to Comrade Ivanovich for review. Will you see to the rest of the arrangements?\" Troyanovsky asked.

　　 \"Of course,\" Romanov said. \"Some time after that I\u0027m going to visit the Warsaw Pact member states, at the time of the visit Comrade Kosolapov and Comrade Fedorchuk will be in charge of the daily work, in addition, Comrade Troyanovsky can prepare the negotiation meeting between the Soviet Union and China and Vietnam to solve the territorial disputes between the three countries?\"

　　 \"I\u0027ll do what I can,\" Troyanovsky said.

　　 The meeting adjourned.

　　 The next day, the second shipment of supplies was airlifted to Haiti.

　　 A week later, the third shipment of supplies was airlifted to Haiti.