Russian Secret Police Pt. 10 The KGB’s Downfall

In this 10th edition of Russian secret police, we’ll dive into the KGB’s downfall, the unraveling of the Soviet Union, and the atypical leadership of Mikhail Gorbachev.

We’ll see how Gorbachev rose from life as a farm boy to the Kremlin’s Communist throne. We’ll discover how the KGB reacted to losing power and the final gasps of this security state in the face of Chernobyl, Glasnost, and Perestroika.

Who was Mikhail Gorbachev?

How did the KGB try to survive?

How did the Soviet Union dissolve?

 

Twitter: @hush_popo

IG: @secretpolicepodcast

 

Sources:

Taubman, William (2017). Gorbachev: His Life and Times. New York City: Simon and Schuster.

Alexander Gorbachev - PhosAgro

https://www.alexander-gorbachev.info/about-me-1

Robert V. Daniels, The End of Communist Revolution. 1993.

Comparing Economic Systems in the Twenty-First Century, 2003, by Gregory and Stuart. ISBN 0-618-26181-8. "Material Balance Planning", (P.127)

Carr, Edward Hallett; Davies, Robert William (1971). Foundations of a Planned Economy, 1926-1929. Macmillan. p. 199.

Mikhail Gorbachev, Perestroika (New York: Harper Collins, 1987), quoted in Mark Kishlansky, ed., Sources of the West: Readings in Western Civilization, 4th ed., vol. 2 (New York: Longman, 2001), p. 322.

Semenov, B.A. "Nuclear power in the Soviet Union." IAEA. Retrieved 17 September 2019.

RBMK Reactors - Design Overview | The Nuclear Reactor that was used in Chernobyl. Antares. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vDPh1JA72nk&ab_channel=Antares

MIT Nuclear Reactor Laboratory. https://nrl.mit.edu/about

Inside MIT's Nuclear Reactor. MITK12Videos. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5QcN3KDexcU&ab_channel=MITK12Videos

Nuclear 101: How Nuclear Bombs Work Part 1 of 2. Belfer Center. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zVhQOhxb1Mc&ab_channel=BelferCenter

World Nuclear Association. Nuclear Power Reactors. May 2023. https://www.world-nuclear.org/information-library/nuclear-fuel-cycle/nuclear-power-reactors/nuclear-power-reactors.aspx

Xenon Can Be a Problem. Illinois EnergyProf. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZQwL-2WTgA&ab_channel=IllinoisEnergyProf

CHERNOBYL AZ-5 why it exploded. Mike Bell. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pOzJQJ1yAaM&t=598s&ab_channel=MikeBell

What is radiation?. Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission - CNSC. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zw0pHT47AAU&ab_channel=CanadianNuclearSafetyCommission-CNSC

The Only Radiation Units You Need to Know. SciShow. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MpQzhZ0RRDM&ab_channel=SciShow

Radiation Exposure in Healthcare. https://www.health.harvard.edu/cancer/radiation-risk-from-medical-imaging

United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission. High Radiation Doses. https://www.nrc.gov/about-nrc/radiation/health-effects/high-rad-doses.html

Was Chernobyl a cunning KGB conspiracy? Rein F. Deer. https://www.politico.eu/article/was-chernobyl-a-cunning-kgb-conspiracy/

Knight, Amy. “The KGB, Perestroika, and the Collapse of the Soviet Union.” Journal of Cold War Studies, vol. 5, no. 1, 2003, pp. 67–93. *Contact me if you want a copy of the PDF*

The Breakup of the Soviet Union Explained. History Scope. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2GmtBCVHzY&ab_channel=HistoryScope

The Last Ditch Attempt to Save the USSR - August Coup of 1991 (Short Animated Documentary). History Matters. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXfvo