The Gulag Archipelago

By Aleksandr I. Solzhenitsyn

He’s dead. He outlived his enemies, which is more than you can say for many of his friends.

I met him May 24, 1994. He was flying back to Russia and I was on the plane. He was traveling with his wife and a camera crew aboard the United Airlines flight. He seemed a cranky, tall, tired old professor in sneakers.

I asked why he was going back. He said there was no difference now.

It sent chills up my spine.

The Gulag Archipelago is a classic rant of how totalitarian governments get out of control and how people put up with it. He thinks that you must recognize and remove yourself from the dysfunctional system so it can collapse. He was right. The Soviet Empire did collapse.

How do you disengage if there is no place to go? You stand up and speak until enough people listen and stand up too. It is better to resist and suffer than to endure in silence.

His later work was less inspiring and more troubling. He was better as a dissident than an exile.

Gulag: A History

By Anne Applebaum

If you want a more accessible book on the Soviet system, I recommend this one. It turns out that arresting people and throwing them in prison does not lead to a vibrant, productive or competitive society. Gulags were never efficient. They never stopped dissent. They destroyed the image and effectiveness of their government. Torturing people does not yield useful intelligence or encourage loyalty. Secrecy and terror get you nothing in the end.

Gee, maybe we could learn from this. Excuse me, there is a knock on my door…

Copyright 2008 DJ Cline All rights reserved.

Posted by dj in Books, Reviews [1,116 views]