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[Music]

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I

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welcome to Sputnik orbiting the world

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with me George Galloway and me gatri

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Spain and the southern rim of the EU was

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devastated by the 2008 economic crash

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and the EU dictated austerity response

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its political class suffered severe

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losses too and The Surge of anti-

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Orthodoxy political forces is a result

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of that Spain faces existential threats

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too particularly in Catalonia where the

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rise and Rise of the separatist cause

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challenges the very existence of Spain

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as we have known it for centuries but

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has the anti- Orthodoxy Force podemos

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run out of steam and if it has what will

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that mean for the politics of Spain Viva

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espa or adios joining us now to discuss

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this is Dr Daniel Briggs of the European

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University of Madrid Dr Briggs thanks

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for uh coming from Madrid for the

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show just sketch out for the viewer will

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you what the political Horizon looks

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like in Spain

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today uh well first of all I think we

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have to relate what's going on in Spain

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with wider problems with what is Western

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democracy across Europe most European

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countries uh and the United States are

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experiencing this crisis uh in what is

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um politics uh as a result of being

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totally subservient to

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um global capitalism um at the moment uh

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the landscape is pretty bleak given that

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um the left is incomplete tatters having

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gone from being something with which was

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fairly powerful in the early 80s and

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retaining 40% of the vote to the um now

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the Socialist Party I think is getting a

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bit over 20% of vote what's the

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Socialist Party now is that the labor

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equivalent and did it take the Tony

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Blair new labor cour and is that one of

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the reasons why it's sunk It's precisely

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taken very a very similar route um in

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the early 80s it was grounded in

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developing workers rights unions and as

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um Spain has gradually opened its doors

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to uh foreign investment and

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corporations that has disappeared very

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slowly and was um exaggerated by the

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2007 crisis which was botched by the

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Socialist Party and they've paid a big

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price for that totally just as a slight

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digression uh I I was a political

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activist I'm sorry to say when Franco

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was still in power when fascism still

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ruled in Spain and then the Communist

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party was a mighty organization it was

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the resistance to Fascism it had a mass

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Trade union base obbe an unofficial one

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workers committees commission or I think

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they were called uh have they

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disappeared also they molded into what

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became poos in

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2014 uh which came about as the kin

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movement or the 15m and the indignados

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movement which was the 2011 Uprising so

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that morphed into what became pmos who

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then assumed the uh communist what was

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the formist Communist party uh as as

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some sort of leftist alternative uh as a

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means of trying to Galvanize the energy

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created from the 2011 um Uprising so

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give us the anat

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of pemos who are they would we recognize

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them here to whom would we compare them

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here uh we would probably they would be

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the equivalent of what is the uh labor

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party led by uh by Corbin basically a

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Corbin pretends to it it is pretends to

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be that it tries to be that uh what they

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don't have in poos is the backstabbers

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that they do have in the labor party

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here generally there's a um a decent

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party support but that's um unhinged by

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the power internal power struggles that

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the party has which doesn't do the left

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any favors because a lot of the

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right-wing press and of course the

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conservative party just sit back and

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watch while they while they have their

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little internal squabbles um which again

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delegitimizes them as a a credible uh

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political party they had just a week or

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so ago a kind of leadership challenge

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the leader rode that out but is he

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fatally damaged by it uh no I mean that

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came about in the postmortem of the fact

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that after the first round of elections

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in 20 uh December

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2015 PA they must won substantial votes

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but then in the period between that and

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June 2016 lost votes having got together

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with un or the United left it was

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forecast that they would actually become

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uh bigger than the Socialist Party but

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they went down but they went down um and

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so did the Socialist Party as well

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people got they got um worried insecure

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about what the kind of politics pmos was

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uh was trying to um

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suggest and in the end it this led to

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this kind of leadership crisis where um

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ericon said well maybe I can do things

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better this is where we need to take it

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forward and uh again the media just

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pounced on this and the rightwing

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governments just uh just and was that a

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left right split then uh similar yeah

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yeah I think um ericon felt that there

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needed to be more passionate leadership

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um and that eaus had has kind of failed

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the party but in the end elaia was voted

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uh leader again in the recent meeting

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and will take forward what uh seems to

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be the uh A reduced number of uh party

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membership I think the the party

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membership has dropped like 50% in the

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last yeah my

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goodness why haven't they broken through

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given the uh fractured nature of the

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right and the economic Devastation that

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austerity has brought to

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Spain uh I think that the aside from the

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victory which seemed to put them on

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course for becoming this sort of second

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largest party in Spain uh the electorate

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got got quite worried and bought into

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the affiliations with communism uh they

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did they got concerned about the radical

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changes that eaus was proposing because

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he challenged the troa he challenged

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Europe he was proposing quite radical

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changes to the structure of working life

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um of of of the working week to reduce

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it so that people were not abused by

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companies and uh people I think got

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skeptical about whether that was

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possible and that comes out in some of

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the interviews that we did in the book

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there riots and political protest where

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the activists couldn't really come up

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with an alternative to capitalism they

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angry people they didn't like the fact

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the country was immensely corrupt but at

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the end of the day when it came to an

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alternative it they didn't seem to have

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one you mentioned Europe um to what

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extent does the European Union play a

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role in this in Spanish politics and

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put Europe very much has Spain by the

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color really and that's um not only

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linked to being part of the Euro but

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also the debt in which Spain is in

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Europe because when the crisis came

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about uh Spain very quickly borrowed 100

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billion from the uh from Europe of which

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it is still repaying and this prompted

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the um raping of the public services and

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the pension schemes and all this sort of

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thing and that's another reason why

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people have lost faith in the Socialist

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Party because they were precisely the

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ones that instigated those very changes

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as well as quite radical and drastic

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shifts to

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to labor law is Spain therefore still

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divided on Civil War lines uh with half

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the country scared of Communism scared

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of radical change clinging to an old

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idea of Spain and the other half Furious

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about their disinheritance there

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certainly that Clash of identities which

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looks to be more generational than

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anything else but uh maybe it's the

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problem that uh it it still very young

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in its Democratic roots and it so much

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has happened to it in over the space of

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40 years that uh it really has a kind of

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identity crisis in terms of its politics

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well it has an existential crisis too

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because as someone who follows the

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course of separatist movements across

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the world it seems to me that the

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movement around Barcelona and Catalan

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nationalism is possibly Unstoppable and

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therefore the Spain that we're talking

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about might not actually exist in the

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next few years it's possible I think um

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that's another thing which undid poos in

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that respect because they tried to align

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with these nationalist factions to gain

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more support and a lot of people were

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worried that this it might trigger

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referendums or something like this from

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the bass country or the catalonians and

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a lot of people in certainly Madrid

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don't want that because Barcelona and

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the catalona area is a massive Financial

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Hub so if that was to separate well that

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would have dire Financial consequences

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for the rest of the country well I think

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that's a point that many viewers need to

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grasp the catalonian nationalism is

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about living in a much smaller country

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that's very much more rich and of course

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the necessary consequence of that is

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that the rest of Spain becomes very much

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more poor uh and that must be felt very

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keenly where you are in Madrid yeah I

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think um there's a lot of worry uh

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certainly among the electorate and

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people in Madrid that with the potential

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severing of Barcelona there could be

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major consequences for for the rest of

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the country so what happens next uh is

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the government secure enough to limp on

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or are we facing new elections I think

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we have to we have to look at uh what is

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probably on the horizon in the UK and

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the United States to to relate what is

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going to happen in Spain uh the Outlook

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looks very Bleak uh a quarter of young

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people are out of Education not in

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training uh and not working uh 30% of

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the population are at risk of falling

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into poverty um the rise in short-term

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contracts is uh ridiculous in August

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last year uh in Madrid 80,000 short-term

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contracts were signed of which 36,300 of

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those were for work for less than six

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days wow uh even in leganes which is a

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town just outside Madrid um when there

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was a advertisement for 500 jobs because

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a new commercial mall was opening 20,000

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applicants uh were were were queuing up

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to try and and this explains the anger

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that you describe so well in your book

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this indignado is very powerful W uh

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recognizable even here by

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English-speaking uh people the IND

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Nation the anger of young people in

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those circumstances must be palpable

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totally I mean I mean you're talking

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about uh a country which is experiences

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an un unparallel level of corruption uh

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it cost the government I think a cost

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economy each year something like 40,000

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million Euros so it's immense it's it's

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it's RI throughout this the social and

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political structure and there is a lot

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of anger but again we come back to the

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same thing a lot of young people are

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there they're angry and upset about it

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uh can't see an alternative and that we

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have to partly place the blame of the

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left for trying to Galvanize this energy

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no point in blaming the electric Dr

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Daniel thanks for coming on board the

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Sputnik coming up next the Russian

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Revolution the days that shook the world

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stay

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tuned welcome back to Sputnik the

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February Revolution March in our

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calendar marked the beginning of the end

278
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of the old regime in Russia and set in

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motion the events of Red October

280
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described by the American journalist

281
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John Reed as 10 days that shook the

282
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world Warren BT's film rats may have

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been a box office disaster much more

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serious than the events at the Oscars

285
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last week but it will stand the test of

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time but has the Russian Revolution

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joining us to discuss just that is

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Professor Christopher Reed no relation

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from the history department at the

290
00:13:30,120 --> 00:13:35,800
University of War Professor Reed thanks

291
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for joining us you specialize in the

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revolutionary period so let me ask you

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about the February Revolution March in

294
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our calendar just describe if you would

295
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what were the characteristics of that

296
00:13:46,120 --> 00:13:50,920
Revolution what did it look like what

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were its demands and how did the regime

298
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react to it well the really interesting

299
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things about the February Revolution are

300
00:13:55,040 --> 00:13:58,680
that you have kind of two levels to it

301
00:13:57,120 --> 00:13:59,800
you have what you see and what you don't

302
00:13:58,680 --> 00:14:01,759
see

303
00:13:59,800 --> 00:14:04,040
and in that sense it's very like some of

304
00:14:01,759 --> 00:14:06,480
the revolutions we've had recently the

305
00:14:04,040 --> 00:14:09,160
Arab Spring the color revolutions

306
00:14:06,480 --> 00:14:11,040
there's a lot of action on the street uh

307
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in petrograd there's a kind of

308
00:14:11,040 --> 00:14:16,120
escalation of of Demands from workers

309
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from women uh complaining that there's

310
00:14:16,120 --> 00:14:21,360
no food in the shops there's no bread

311
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supplies uh workers are complaining

312
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about the conditions of work and

313
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mysteriously the biggest Factory in

314
00:14:25,759 --> 00:14:30,920
petrograd is actually shut down um just

315
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just a few days before the actual

316
00:14:30,920 --> 00:14:35,079
collapse of the

317
00:14:32,160 --> 00:14:37,399
autocracy and 20,000 workers are thrown

318
00:14:35,079 --> 00:14:40,639
out onto the streets and they begin to

319
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demonstrate um and that has led uh one

320
00:14:40,639 --> 00:14:44,800
school of thought to say the February

321
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Revolution was the most spontaneous of

322
00:14:44,800 --> 00:14:50,399
revolutions that uh it unfolded from

323
00:14:47,759 --> 00:14:52,720
below the people went onto the streets a

324
00:14:50,399 --> 00:14:55,480
group of soldiers join in they Mutiny

325
00:14:52,720 --> 00:14:58,040
they fire on the police uh more soldiers

326
00:14:55,480 --> 00:15:00,600
join them and the autocracy just

327
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collapses not quite so simple because

328
00:15:00,600 --> 00:15:05,040
after all it's only in one city that

329
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this is going on across a vast Empire

330
00:15:05,040 --> 00:15:10,560
there's 6 million troops at the front

331
00:15:07,240 --> 00:15:14,440
who could be involved and actually the

332
00:15:10,560 --> 00:15:17,399
element which I think is crucial is that

333
00:15:14,440 --> 00:15:19,560
behind the scenes the people who emerge

334
00:15:17,399 --> 00:15:21,199
out of this as the new government are

335
00:15:19,560 --> 00:15:24,199
actually trying to stop that Revolution

336
00:15:21,199 --> 00:15:27,120
From Below uh people don't expect the

337
00:15:24,199 --> 00:15:30,560
autocracy to collapse they don't expect

338
00:15:27,120 --> 00:15:33,519
Nicholas's um AB ation to come quite so

339
00:15:30,560 --> 00:15:36,079
suddenly after all it's only in 1905

340
00:15:33,519 --> 00:15:40,160
he'd survived over a year of Titanic

341
00:15:36,079 --> 00:15:42,800
struggle here in two weeks he's gone um

342
00:15:40,160 --> 00:15:45,279
and that's because he's deserted by the

343
00:15:42,800 --> 00:15:47,360
generals they've made a bit of a hash of

344
00:15:45,279 --> 00:15:49,920
the um certainly the first phase of the

345
00:15:47,360 --> 00:15:51,839
first world war easier to blame Nicholas

346
00:15:49,920 --> 00:15:55,920
than to blame themselves so they blame

347
00:15:51,839 --> 00:15:59,279
him and uh the elites turn uh are

348
00:15:55,920 --> 00:16:00,800
worried because if they see uh people on

349
00:15:59,279 --> 00:16:03,240
the streets demonstrating where will it

350
00:16:00,800 --> 00:16:05,120
stop they want the S they want the

351
00:16:03,240 --> 00:16:07,399
autocracy to maintain their privileges

352
00:16:05,120 --> 00:16:09,519
to maintain their situation it's

353
00:16:07,399 --> 00:16:11,360
threatening them so they move in and

354
00:16:09,519 --> 00:16:12,440
they oppose him too so Nicholas is left

355
00:16:11,360 --> 00:16:16,360
completely

356
00:16:12,440 --> 00:16:18,880
isolated so this uh uh kensky who

357
00:16:16,360 --> 00:16:21,040
becomes briefly then the leader yes tell

358
00:16:18,880 --> 00:16:23,199
us about him well kensky is an

359
00:16:21,040 --> 00:16:27,000
interesting character too he was a young

360
00:16:23,199 --> 00:16:29,959
man only 3637 through 1917 he made his

361
00:16:27,000 --> 00:16:31,759
name as a lawyer defend ending the

362
00:16:29,959 --> 00:16:34,319
victims of sism and he was a very

363
00:16:31,759 --> 00:16:36,120
popular figure he was a member of the

364
00:16:34,319 --> 00:16:38,040
Soviet which was the kind of

365
00:16:36,120 --> 00:16:40,319
workingclass organization that emerged

366
00:16:38,040 --> 00:16:42,040
in the revolution and he was the only

367
00:16:40,319 --> 00:16:43,399
one who got permission of the Soviet to

368
00:16:42,040 --> 00:16:45,800
join the new

369
00:16:43,399 --> 00:16:47,519
government um and he was a man of the

370
00:16:45,800 --> 00:16:49,680
left but of course the immediate problem

371
00:16:47,519 --> 00:16:51,920
they had was the German Army on the

372
00:16:49,680 --> 00:16:54,680
doorstep he didn't want to conduct a

373
00:16:51,920 --> 00:16:57,600
revolution while the German Army was

374
00:16:54,680 --> 00:16:59,480
there because the only outcome of such a

375
00:16:57,600 --> 00:17:02,319
such a series of events would be a

376
00:16:59,480 --> 00:17:04,799
German Victory um and he rises up he's

377
00:17:02,319 --> 00:17:07,520
initially U Minister of Justice in

378
00:17:04,799 --> 00:17:10,160
February saying You must have somebody

379
00:17:07,520 --> 00:17:13,079
reliable to try the S my my task is to

380
00:17:10,160 --> 00:17:15,120
try the S as a criminal uh he won't

381
00:17:13,079 --> 00:17:18,120
Escape if I'm there and the Soviet says

382
00:17:15,120 --> 00:17:21,240
okay we'll let you do that um he then

383
00:17:18,120 --> 00:17:25,360
becomes minister of war and then in July

384
00:17:21,240 --> 00:17:27,439
he becomes prime minister briefly and um

385
00:17:25,360 --> 00:17:29,160
so very briefly I me very briefly for

386
00:17:27,439 --> 00:17:31,799
someone like me who that's right

387
00:17:29,160 --> 00:17:35,320
intimate uh of the Russian Revolution

388
00:17:31,799 --> 00:17:38,600
all of my life uh karinsky is a a big

389
00:17:35,320 --> 00:17:41,440
name and yet he was the leader only from

390
00:17:38,600 --> 00:17:43,720
July until October an extraordinary

391
00:17:41,440 --> 00:17:47,559
short period of time could he have done

392
00:17:43,720 --> 00:17:50,280
anything to solidify that provisional

393
00:17:47,559 --> 00:17:53,640
government and stop what happened in

394
00:17:50,280 --> 00:17:56,320
October uh the complication there of

395
00:17:53,640 --> 00:17:59,400
course is that um you have a attempted

396
00:17:56,320 --> 00:18:01,520
Rebellion by the right by the army uh or

397
00:17:59,400 --> 00:18:04,919
by a section of the army under General

398
00:18:01,520 --> 00:18:06,520
cornov whom kensky himself had appointed

399
00:18:04,919 --> 00:18:08,520
commander-in-chief and it's really

400
00:18:06,520 --> 00:18:11,280
cornos Rebellion that opens the way to

401
00:18:08,520 --> 00:18:14,880
the Bolsheviks the biks not a big force

402
00:18:11,280 --> 00:18:16,679
in July in July Lenin is saying um The

403
00:18:14,880 --> 00:18:18,280
Situation's so bad we must abandon

404
00:18:16,679 --> 00:18:21,360
Soviets we've lost control they've

405
00:18:18,280 --> 00:18:24,280
become counterrevolutionary under kensky

406
00:18:21,360 --> 00:18:27,280
um we must go back to pre-1914 we must

407
00:18:24,280 --> 00:18:29,840
go back underground and it looks very

408
00:18:27,280 --> 00:18:31,520
pessimistic uh and in any Case by at

409
00:18:29,840 --> 00:18:35,360
that stage they probably would only have

410
00:18:31,520 --> 00:18:37,600
got 5 to 10% of the vote um but things

411
00:18:35,360 --> 00:18:41,679
have radically changed around at the end

412
00:18:37,600 --> 00:18:45,440
of uh of August early September when

413
00:18:41,679 --> 00:18:47,760
cornov supposedly attempting to ordered

414
00:18:45,440 --> 00:18:49,360
to S shut down the petrograd Soviet

415
00:18:47,760 --> 00:18:52,760
whether kensky ordered that or not is a

416
00:18:49,360 --> 00:18:54,679
matter of of dispute now um but cornov

417
00:18:52,760 --> 00:18:57,360
certainly was heading for petrograd to

418
00:18:54,679 --> 00:18:59,039
try to shut down the Soviet and possibly

419
00:18:57,360 --> 00:19:01,240
the provisional government and to place

420
00:18:59,039 --> 00:19:03,200
kensky with himself and might he have

421
00:19:01,240 --> 00:19:04,880
reinstated the Zar he would not have

422
00:19:03,200 --> 00:19:07,679
reinstated thear that's one of the

423
00:19:04,880 --> 00:19:10,200
problems the autoc autocracy the

424
00:19:07,679 --> 00:19:12,559
monarchists in Russia had no candidate

425
00:19:10,200 --> 00:19:14,039
Nicholas II was too weak he they didn't

426
00:19:12,559 --> 00:19:17,760
want to bring him back nobody wanted to

427
00:19:14,039 --> 00:19:21,039
bring him back his successor well the S

428
00:19:17,760 --> 00:19:24,559
the the the the sarich was um ill with

429
00:19:21,039 --> 00:19:27,159
his hemophilia um his brother had turned

430
00:19:24,559 --> 00:19:28,360
it down the monarchist had nowhere to go

431
00:19:27,159 --> 00:19:30,360
but what he did want to do was to

432
00:19:28,360 --> 00:19:33,039
introduce use martial law in factories

433
00:19:30,360 --> 00:19:34,960
on the railways um in other words to try

434
00:19:33,039 --> 00:19:36,760
to shut down that social Revolution

435
00:19:34,960 --> 00:19:41,520
which was which was developing all the

436
00:19:36,760 --> 00:19:43,799
time and um by splitting I mean kensky

437
00:19:41,520 --> 00:19:46,120
and Cornela split over this kensky turns

438
00:19:43,799 --> 00:19:47,840
against him arrests cornil off and that

439
00:19:46,120 --> 00:19:50,039
leaves a power vacuum and that's the

440
00:19:47,840 --> 00:19:52,400
power vacuum which I mean I think the

441
00:19:50,039 --> 00:19:55,039
rise of the Bolsheviks really is a

442
00:19:52,400 --> 00:19:57,360
matter of those last 8 to 10 weeks it is

443
00:19:55,039 --> 00:19:59,400
an extraordinary thing there are decades

444
00:19:57,360 --> 00:20:01,640
when nothing happens and we

445
00:19:59,400 --> 00:20:04,240
when decades happen the biks very

446
00:20:01,640 --> 00:20:07,159
definitely did have a candidate and they

447
00:20:04,240 --> 00:20:10,240
had a program uh distilled in three

448
00:20:07,159 --> 00:20:13,240
simple words peace land bread yes and by

449
00:20:10,240 --> 00:20:15,480
then that's what the masses not just in

450
00:20:13,240 --> 00:20:18,440
petrograd but across the country were

451
00:20:15,480 --> 00:20:20,480
demanding well that's right uh the the

452
00:20:18,440 --> 00:20:22,159
problem arises that Lin's understanding

453
00:20:20,480 --> 00:20:24,520
of those terms was different from the

454
00:20:22,159 --> 00:20:27,760
terms that we that the people had

455
00:20:24,520 --> 00:20:29,880
themselves um Lin knew that if there was

456
00:20:27,760 --> 00:20:32,919
peace there would be a War so he knew

457
00:20:29,880 --> 00:20:35,679
that peace meant Civil War um to think

458
00:20:32,919 --> 00:20:37,679
that you could actually improve the

459
00:20:35,679 --> 00:20:39,880
supply situation by a further

460
00:20:37,679 --> 00:20:42,679
revolutionary disruption was was

461
00:20:39,880 --> 00:20:45,159
misleading or naive and in fact by

462
00:20:42,679 --> 00:20:46,320
Spring of 1918 Lenin is saying well who

463
00:20:45,159 --> 00:20:50,320
what idiot would have thought you could

464
00:20:46,320 --> 00:20:52,919
do that and basically he was um and the

465
00:20:50,320 --> 00:20:55,880
land issue they um wanted to nationalize

466
00:20:52,919 --> 00:20:57,679
the land and um that was bolic policy

467
00:20:55,880 --> 00:20:59,200
but what they did was actually

468
00:20:57,679 --> 00:21:00,840
effectively to

469
00:20:59,200 --> 00:21:03,919
acceed to the Takeover which The

470
00:21:00,840 --> 00:21:06,039
Peasants were themselves conducting so

471
00:21:03,919 --> 00:21:09,440
it was it was Lin has the credit of

472
00:21:06,039 --> 00:21:11,480
being the only uh leader I think in the

473
00:21:09,440 --> 00:21:13,159
uh political Spectrum on the left who

474
00:21:11,480 --> 00:21:16,039
was prepared to go along with what the

475
00:21:13,159 --> 00:21:18,039
people themselves were doing the idea of

476
00:21:16,039 --> 00:21:20,279
all power of the Soviets was something

477
00:21:18,039 --> 00:21:25,039
which came from deep in the popular

478
00:21:20,279 --> 00:21:26,880
movement as well the um the the second

479
00:21:25,039 --> 00:21:28,919
or Russian Congress of Soviets which was

480
00:21:26,880 --> 00:21:31,559
when the revolution took place place the

481
00:21:28,919 --> 00:21:33,159
body to which um Power was taken as it

482
00:21:31,559 --> 00:21:35,400
were when they overthrew the provisional

483
00:21:33,159 --> 00:21:37,679
government was already committed to all

484
00:21:35,400 --> 00:21:40,000
power to the Soviets even uh when they

485
00:21:37,679 --> 00:21:42,600
were elected um several weeks before so

486
00:21:40,000 --> 00:21:45,320
they' come to petrograd specifically to

487
00:21:42,600 --> 00:21:47,480
to to decree all power to the Soviets of

488
00:21:45,320 --> 00:21:49,279
course the irony of that is that um the

489
00:21:47,480 --> 00:21:53,200
sadness and the tragedy of the October

490
00:21:49,279 --> 00:21:55,279
revolution in my view that the first day

491
00:21:53,200 --> 00:21:57,080
of the seizure of Power by the Soviets

492
00:21:55,279 --> 00:22:00,120
is the first day of the rapid decline of

493
00:21:57,080 --> 00:22:02,279
the Soviets in in 12 months 12 months

494
00:22:00,120 --> 00:22:04,440
down the line the Soviets are so totally

495
00:22:02,279 --> 00:22:06,440
under the thumb of the Bolsheviks that

496
00:22:04,440 --> 00:22:08,159
they've lost popular representation

497
00:22:06,440 --> 00:22:11,600
don't have time to debate that point

498
00:22:08,159 --> 00:22:14,080
because i' like to debate it but the uh

499
00:22:11,600 --> 00:22:15,559
the the key question and I think if with

500
00:22:14,080 --> 00:22:18,880
your permission we'll bring you back in

501
00:22:15,559 --> 00:22:20,720
October to discuss the events of October

502
00:22:18,880 --> 00:22:25,240
but the last question I've got time for

503
00:22:20,720 --> 00:22:29,120
now is need the Bolsheviks have taken

504
00:22:25,240 --> 00:22:34,480
power could the provisional power have

505
00:22:29,120 --> 00:22:37,120
stabilized itself and uh kept uh

506
00:22:34,480 --> 00:22:39,080
basically a non-communist uh but

507
00:22:37,120 --> 00:22:41,760
revolutionary power going I gave you a

508
00:22:39,080 --> 00:22:44,080
very simple unacademic answer

509
00:22:41,760 --> 00:22:45,600
no I don't think they could I I they

510
00:22:44,080 --> 00:22:47,679
were doomed do you think I think I think

511
00:22:45,600 --> 00:22:49,799
they were doomed and that uh what people

512
00:22:47,679 --> 00:22:53,520
wanted was an all all party government

513
00:22:49,799 --> 00:22:54,799
of the left including menx SRS um a

514
00:22:53,520 --> 00:22:58,200
number of those were already in the

515
00:22:54,799 --> 00:23:02,120
provisional government um a a government

516
00:22:58,200 --> 00:23:04,520
of consilia National popular

517
00:23:02,120 --> 00:23:07,400
consiliul in classes particularly at

518
00:23:04,520 --> 00:23:11,559
this stage they wanted they wanted the

519
00:23:07,400 --> 00:23:13,279
the workers peasants soldiers and um if

520
00:23:11,559 --> 00:23:15,919
I was in charge of celebrations in

521
00:23:13,279 --> 00:23:17,120
Russia today uh which uh it's going to

522
00:23:15,919 --> 00:23:19,279
be very interesting to see how they

523
00:23:17,120 --> 00:23:21,799
celebrate it would be that massive

524
00:23:19,279 --> 00:23:24,080
popular energy which comes out in 1917

525
00:23:21,799 --> 00:23:25,520
that doesn't need parties it throws up

526
00:23:24,080 --> 00:23:27,120
the leadership they have their own

527
00:23:25,520 --> 00:23:29,200
agendas they have their own

528
00:23:27,120 --> 00:23:30,799
organizations they have fat committees

529
00:23:29,200 --> 00:23:34,360
they have Battleship committees they

530
00:23:30,799 --> 00:23:36,279
have um um uh Village committees uh

531
00:23:34,360 --> 00:23:38,720
tremendous amount of self-government and

532
00:23:36,279 --> 00:23:40,880
self organization which is going on and

533
00:23:38,720 --> 00:23:41,679
to me that's that's what's so great

534
00:23:40,880 --> 00:23:43,960
about

535
00:23:41,679 --> 00:23:46,840
1917 and it throws up a leadership in

536
00:23:43,960 --> 00:23:49,440
Lenin which is partly sympathetic but of

537
00:23:46,840 --> 00:23:50,880
course Lenin and the Bolsheviks have

538
00:23:49,440 --> 00:23:52,640
their own views as to where they should

539
00:23:50,880 --> 00:23:54,679
take the revolution they're very much

540
00:23:52,640 --> 00:23:56,720
bolic they're very much utopians they're

541
00:23:54,679 --> 00:23:58,640
idealists they want to produce a sort of

542
00:23:56,720 --> 00:24:00,520
socialist caliphate they want to produce

543
00:23:58,640 --> 00:24:03,679
this socialist Utopia which they know

544
00:24:00,520 --> 00:24:05,440
about and try to persuade people whereas

545
00:24:03,679 --> 00:24:07,559
the the the ordinary workers and

546
00:24:05,440 --> 00:24:10,000
peasants The Peasants want the land the

547
00:24:07,559 --> 00:24:11,640
workers want a better life uh they want

548
00:24:10,000 --> 00:24:13,640
more representation they want to work

549
00:24:11,640 --> 00:24:15,400
through the Soviets it's just it's a bit

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of a tragedy the way those two come

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together but let me book you now for

552
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October in our commemoration of Red

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00:24:21,200 --> 00:24:26,279
October Professor Reed thanks for

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00:24:23,360 --> 00:24:26,279
joining us on the

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00:24:26,960 --> 00:24:31,240
Sputnik and now it's short turn to tell

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00:24:29,080 --> 00:24:33,840
us what you think through the portals of

557
00:24:31,240 --> 00:24:36,399
social media what's rling gri so the

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00:24:33,840 --> 00:24:39,120
centinary of the Russian Revolution

559
00:24:36,399 --> 00:24:41,720
euroman and activist says without the

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00:24:39,120 --> 00:24:44,600
Russian Revolution in 1917 we would

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never get even this little democracy it

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00:24:44,600 --> 00:24:50,000
was important and Roger the Dodger says

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00:24:47,679 --> 00:24:52,000
1917 was the beginning of the end of

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Communism well the first point is

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00:24:52,000 --> 00:24:59,760
definitely true uh it is now accepted by

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00:24:56,600 --> 00:25:03,799
social Democrats that social democracy

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00:24:59,760 --> 00:25:06,880
only came into being in order to stop

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00:25:03,799 --> 00:25:09,120
the so-called spread of Communism

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whether communism died with the Russian

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00:25:09,120 --> 00:25:14,760
Revolution that would be a much more

571
00:25:11,120 --> 00:25:16,520
tricky uh intellectual uh proposition

572
00:25:14,760 --> 00:25:19,360
though I understand uh what's meant and

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00:25:16,520 --> 00:25:21,360
the professor in a way was making a

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00:25:19,360 --> 00:25:23,320
similar was hting that yeah well let's

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00:25:21,360 --> 00:25:25,080
all tweet that we have time for today

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00:25:23,320 --> 00:25:27,000
which alas means that's the end of the

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00:25:25,080 --> 00:25:29,600
show but you can stay in touch with us

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00:25:27,000 --> 00:25:32,360
on social media Twitter and Instagram

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00:25:29,600 --> 00:25:35,000
rtor Sputnik or Facebook Sputnik on

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00:25:32,360 --> 00:25:37,039
Russia today it's goodbye from me and

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00:25:35,000 --> 00:25:40,039
from me George Galloway it's been

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00:25:37,039 --> 00:25:40,039
marvelous

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[Music]

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[Music]