Comment on 'The Lessons of History' by Zvi Gitelman, Airlie House,
Abstract
As Communist states are subject to two basic kinds of manifest instability, depending on the breadth of their local base, Communists have at their disposition two forms of what Zvi has called manifest stability, depending on the relationship they assume toward the populations which they govern. In the one case the regime is openly at war with the population and maintains control by the systematic application of political terror. This produces a universal and even frenetic conformity but turns out to be counterproductive once an advanced stage of industrialization is reached. The second form of manifest stability results from a Communist effort to secure the positive cooperation of the population through resort to material incentives, the security police meanwhile remaining patently visible in the background. The appeal to material incentives automatically involves the Communist governments in an effort to close somewhat the evident gap beween East and West European living standards.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Nov 13, 1975
- Accession Number
- ADA081023
Entities
People
- Richard Burks
Organizations
- Wayne State University