How the Russian Oligarchs Seized Power and Why it Matters

In this episode, Alex starts by looking at the current situation in Ukraine and giving some thoughts. Then goes into why the world has been unified in sanctioning the Russian elite, mainly the Oligarchs. Alex dives into why the failing economy of the USSR (in the late 1980s and early 1990s) led to pushes for privatization and the selling of state industries to the highest bidder. This led to opportunistic Russians who exploited this change and bought some of these industries for “pennies on the dollar.” Alex looks at literature that discusses how the post-Soviet leaders, such as Boris Yeltsin, looked to “…create maximum freedom first and rules later.” It is important to understand why this is important and why the world has been sanctioning people that have flourished off of this strange transition between the USSR and a privatized society. Alex argues that this can lead to destructive nationalism, inequality, and the exact situation the world is experiencing.