Books.org participates in affiliate programs including Bookshop.org and the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. We may earn a commission from qualifying purchases made through links on this page, at no additional cost to you.
Synopsis
The events in the former Soviet Union from 1985 to 1991 were nothing short of spellbinding. Academics, pundits and the man on the street were all transfixed by the "Gorbachev phenomena." Why Perestroika Failed argues that Gorbachev's reforms ultimately failed because they were not based on a sound understanding of market and political processes.
Why Perestroika Failed is the first book to apply an Austrian market process approach to analyze the economic dimensions of the Soviet system, and a public choice approach to address the political aspects. Peter Boettke presents a critical assessment of the reform movement, examining the various proposals and paradoxes of the Soviet reform efforts.
Boettke argues that perestroika failed partly because it was never implemented. He goes on to demonstrate that even if the perestroika program had been carried out fully, it would not have produced the structural changes necessary to revive the former Soviet economy. A knowledge of why perestroika failed is of crucial importance as the former Soviet republics and East and Central Europe chart a new course.