I figured I’d ask here since you comrades know history and are on talking terms with reality, unlike a lot of stuff that is available to read online. I am really looking for a short answer, although I know there were many factors playing out over a long long time. Just the bullet points, if you please.

Edit: Thank you for these awesome answers, a lot of exactly what I was looking for and a lot of new directions to explore. Y’all really are the dope-ass bear B-)

  • Muad'Dibber@lemmygrad.mlEnglish
    71·
    23 days ago
    • Arms race, and in particular:
      • Not being able to allocate that brainpower and other resources to actually productive industries.
      • Acting as the anchor and banker to other countries, and letting the US drain their resources. The US had the larger poker chip stack, and got the USSR to pay the high ante on way too many pots.
    • Decoupling / isolating from the world market, and not being able to capture and advance technology.

    There are many other smaller ones but these two IMO had the most disastrous long term consequences. The PRC rectified both by refusing to get involved in international disputes, and by accepting “the bargain” of limited external capitalist exploitation in return for tech and expertise.