1989 - The fall of the Soviet Union

[@joposepef]

I was born in Budapest in 1953. In 1956, after two failed attempts, my parents successfully escaped on the third attempt, risking their lives. They settled in Chile, where I pursued a career as a fighter pilot for the Chilean Air Force between 1968 and 1992. Several times I tried to travel to my native country to meet the family I had left behind, without success. Hungary was behind the Iron Curtain and it was forbidden to visit my family, with whom it was very difficult to communicate, the letters went through state censorship. In 1990, with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel of the Chilean Air Force, I was commissioned to take a staff course at the Royal Air Force Staff College in Bracknell, UK. The course began in the first days of January, and one of my classmates was a Luftwaffe pilot whose name was Luky; I don't remember his last name. I asked him his opinion about an eventual reunification of Germany, to which he replied that it was a fact, but that it would take a few years. During the August holidays I was able to make a short visit to my native country for the first time, meet my uncles and cousins and visit the graves of my ancestors. In October, the course included a visit to UK forces in Berlin and Paderborn. The famous Checkpoint C in Berlin was unmanned and there was free transit between East and West. On October 3rd, while we were in Paderborn, reunification took place. The first one surprised was Luky. Years later I had the opportunity to visit my native country and my family for a longer time, in what was the most intense and marking experience of my life. I owe it to Németh Miklos.

[@oliverwortley3822]

thank you for your personal story and insight.

[@TheSteveRobinson]

You were 15 in 1968... how could you fly for the Chilean Air Force? You must mean 1978, correct?

[@blotski]

I must be honest. As somebody who worked a lot with Chilean refugees in the 1970s after the military coup the first thing I think of when somebody tells me they were in the Chilean airforce during that period is the bombing of La Moneda presidential palace, the killing of the president and the following years of Pinochet's military dictatorship during which 3,000 Chileans were left dead or missing, tens of thousands of prisoners were tortured, and an estimated 200,000 Chileans fled into exile. That a refugee from Hungary should have taken an active part in that is too ironic to stomach.

[@Hunter_Nebid]

@@joposepef Incredible story, Sir!

[@alogic75]

​@@blotski sad story, but a communist dictatorship is much worse than the Pinochet's. The communists take the life from the whole country.

[@oliverwortley3822]

what a fascinating hidden gem of a documentary. a documentary narrated and from the perspective of an actual leader and prime minister - that is very rare and unique. I thoroughly enjoyed this documentary and cannot believe I haven’t seen it before, or that it isn’t bigger.

[@vauxpedia]

Miklós Németh was a man way ahead of his time and was very underrated by history for his contribution to Hungary. Great man & a great documentary!

[@balazs8330]

Na ja, az utolsó komcsi illetve első szoclib lakáj volt, aki végigutazta a nyugatot újabb hitelekért. Vadprivatizáció stb stb

[@oeleveoleve.7562]

@@balazs8330 that's the way it is. freedom is a matter of responsability. as mr gorvached said "he is a good man". he did what has to do. better the wild privatization that you can avoid, or not, than living in constantly fear....

[@blackhornetf]

​​​@@oeleveoleve.7562Correct the Soviet Union was one giant prison . It literally had prison walls 🧱 and barbwire fences with with armed officers patrolling the perimeters to keep its prison workers from escaping to freedom. It was literally a prison...that people literally risked there lives to escape from and a lot of people died escaping or were put inside a prison inside a prison if caught. It was a prison in every sense of the word and was the worlds largest prison complex 🌎 Everyone was given a life sentence and there only crime ? Been born inside a prison. In Soviet Union you are born prisoner and you die prisoner. Miklos Nemeth was a very good man and Mikhail Gorbachev deserves his Nobel peace prize x 1000000000000

[@WielkaStopa-qh1rr]

@@blackhornetf Your Gorbachev was commie with mission saving commie's empire. He had to fight his internal opposition and gave some liberalization but still commie is a commie and he tried to save the empire, not to dismantle it! You are praising a commie!

[@valeriys01]

​​​I was born in Soviet Union, lived there for 30 years. Apparently you've never been there and your opinion is shaped by the media that was available to you at the time. There was no barbed wire. You could travel anywhere in the country, you had subsidized meals for children, after hours school care, childcare, education, including unis was free and merit based. Yes, everyone was required to work to contribute to the greater society. Yes, it was a single party state, which i can't see much different to the party duopoly of the UK of US. I'm not concerned about being called the names, but Gorbachev and eltsin were absolute traitors who sold their country for fictitious democracy. I left the country in 90's on economic grounds. I am very happy where i am now, but I'm an exemption among other immigrants. Please learn more before demonizing the subject you're not familiar with. Good luck

[@JimHopper]

This is a remarkable video - the title is misleading, but some of the footage in here is truly amazing! Thank you

[@markmaki4460]

Yes - the title can and should be changed. Were the documentary not as good as it is, i would give thumbs down for what is basically a lie or gross ignorance.

[@NGCS-ej4lz]

A lot of the footage looks as if it was extremely well done Artificial Intelligence. If true, that sets a dangerous precedent for the future of Historical Education.

[@T3DDY1997]

​@@NGCS-ej4lz I was thinking the same thing as i thought it strange for it to be voiced over - especially for someone that does not speak the language this can be very misleading.

[@lembitmoislane.]

@@NGCS-ej4lzit’s not AI. They mention specifically in the start that they used archived footage with dubbed over voices and sip synchronization.

[@64MDW]

On my block when I was growing up in the San Fernando Valley many years ago was a family that had escaped from Hungary during the 1956 Revolution. The father had bribed a border guard to let them across the border into Austria with their two young daughters. They all made it to the U.S. and became naturalized U.S. citizens. The Dad worked for Lockheed in Burbank as an aeronautical engineer for a number of years before he died, while his wife worked at the children's apparel shop my Mom managed. They detested the communists as they saw first hand the bitter truth about totalitarian socialism/communism. Very fine, decent people.

[@davidmcmartin6194]

Did they know the hungarian guy who ran Ottos convenient store down the road from Burroughs high school in burbank

[@Polit_Burro]

Probably just a couple of Arrow-Cross fascists

[@joposepef]

@@Polit_Burro Both Arrow-Cross fascists as well as COmmunist Bolsheviks were no different, they both did big harm to their compatriots. Fanatics are all the same.

[@Freyia935]

@@joposepef "Harm to their compatriots" Remind me again of the industrial war machine that profited off the middle east? Remind me again who ignored a EU and Russia agreement in Ukraine and decided to install its own government.... right... governments always cause harm, and the communists were the best at that.

[@UserName-q4i5d]

They escaped communism for another communist country. California is a commie stronghold now, we all can see how it's working out.

[@valicerr]

One of the best documentaries I ever saw. Greetings from Romania!

[@rehr2]

Absolutely moving. Greetings from America. Those leaders in Hungary in 1989 were extremely brave.

[@MClark-kf9wq]

@@rehr2 This feature's a lie. Relax.

[@TABreckenbauer]

So cool is way this documentary is made. Good job

[@Brandon-73109]

I really had no idea that the end of a short documentary would leave me teary eyed and happy for people I'd never met before, but in feeling that emotion is a clarity of seeing people experience the freedom to be truly human without consequence for the days after breaking away. God bless you.

[@dichebach]

Wow! This is such a FANTASTIC piece of work! Well done!

[@TA-dg6tf]

What a wonderful documentary! I learned so much about the events preceding the fall of the Soviet Union. Thanks for sharing

[@pacifichistory703]

A brilliant piece of truth telling. Bravo to the entire TV documentary team...and the courageous people of Hungary.

[@charliejdk]

What a marvelous dramatic documentary! I intend to use it in class. Thank you.

[@moviedofamily]

A remarkable video, so many thanks for uploading. It is an amazing slice in the history of the Cold War I strongly recommend. Echoing the comments below, the quality of video and audio involving the conversations between the actual Communist leaders surprised me and makes me feel it should be required viewing for anyone interest in the "inner workings" behind the collapse of the Eastern Bloc.

[@007romryan]

Great documentary. I was 12 years old at the time. I lived in Romania in the early 2000's, so I got interested in the Eastern Bloc countries history. This is a real gem of a documentary!

[@1984isnotamanual]

It is great. I’m an American and was born in 94 so the world of communism is alien to me. I’m so fascinated, and horrified, by this history.

[@Tobi-ln9xr]

The title is misleading. The documentary isn’t about the fall of the USSR but about the political turmoil in Hungary at the end of the Cold War… And the reasons and origins why it "betrayed“ the East German government.

[@jojor9766]

Not really. The Hungarians through their actions set off the revolutions across Eastern Europe. This is what forced Russia to withdraw. The loss of Eastern Europe was a big part of the motivation for the plotters of the coup against Gorbachev. The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. This was the first step.

[@Tobi-ln9xr]

@@jojor9766 You see it a bit too centralized than it was. There was no "loss of Eastern Europe“ for the Soviets (The Soviet Union wasn’t Russia, Russia was also "just“ a republic in the Soviet Union) Many communist/socialist dictatorships in Eastern Europe had, apart from receiving economic support from the USSR, relative independence in terms of foreign policy and domestic policy. And Hungarys actions also didn’t set of the uprisings and revolutionary movements in the communist and socialist countries. The demonstrations and social unrests in East Germany were already ongoing (or why do you think were East German refugees in Hungary in the first place?) And the East German government was the only communist/socialist country which refused to implement political and social reforms. Gorbachev himself for example was really disappointed and almost angry at the East German government and their strict policies and political hardliners.

[@Tobi-ln9xr]

@@jojor9766 And what do you mean by "forced Russia to withdraw“ Withdrawing what?

[@willbass2869]

​​@@Tobi-ln9xrI can't speak for jorjor but I think the Soviets were "forced" to withdraw because they didn't want to be caught in the middle of possible violent actions by the people vs the govts of GDR & Poland. The days of Soviet/ Warsaw Pact intervention lije in '56 & '68 were over

[@jojor9766]

The Soviet Union was nothing but the Russian Empire under new management. Some of the lesser peoples of the Empire were given their own pretend republics but that was in hope of quieting them down and encouraging them to accept their dhimmi status better. The Soviets always put a local in the First Secretary position as the face of a local running the government. The Second Secretary was invariably Russian. That way the puppet had a ready handler and the local was always available if a fall guy was needed. Before you mention that Stahlin was a Georgian, remember Catherine was a German. Both proved that they embraced Russian culture with their ruthless climb to the top and were accept by and are still revered by the Russians. Maybe, when Putin collapses the country yet again, the Russians will jettison their ruthless imperialism. That is funny that the Soviet Union was giving aid to Eastern Europe. The only 'aid" was Russian tanks and Russian soldiers ready to give them the Russian boot if they misbehaved. At some point everyone got a reminder of who the masters were. Nagy and Dubcek both got a real feeling of the independence of the Warsaw Pact colonies. The social unrest was everywhere in Eastern Europe and not just East Germany. Nemeth himself was only chosen in hopes of stemming an uprising in Hungary. I am sure that the party hardliners desperately wanted to make good on their threats to him but knew that they would not survive the resulting revolution. You might want to look at Romania before saying that East Germany was alone in not reforming as if the reforms made any difference. Like the Soviet Union these dictatorships were way past their sale by date. Good riddance to bad rubbish all around.

[@Trzysetny]

I remember that time. Just turned 10 that year and it was like the biggest birthday present ever. A gift that still keeps on giving❤

[@1984isnotamanual]

God I was born in 1994. I can’t imagine the joy in seeing so much human liberation, in your country and else where. ❤from California

[@Akos0001]

I was born in 1953 in an industrial neighborhood in the city of São Paulo, Brazil. Our neighborhood was home to a large community of immigrants from Central and Eastern Europe, including Hungarian families. I heard their stories about how they fled the communist dictatorship after the 1956 uprising, and in 1989, with the fall of the Berlin Wall, I was able to witness the joy and happiness of some friends, with whom I still have contact. How wonderful it is to be able to visit our homeland free from oppression.

[@jefflaitila9799]

I never knew Hungary was so instrumental in bringing about the downfall of the iron curtain. Thank you, the people of Hungary, for taking those first brave steps.

[@pascalcoole2725]

That's why this is a verry relevant documentary

[@ih8apple]

BRILLIANT documentary and story. Brought chills and tears to my eyes. What a wonderful man.

[@PatriciaPalmer-o3e]

❗My family cried when the wall went up, through all the years of gulags, escapes and defections. We cried when it came down. I was 42. Thank you 🍃

[@woollygoat8921]

Watching the Berlin Wall come down in 1989 is one of the core memories of my early childhood.

[@tombergins8215]

Absolutely Excellent Documentary. I remember those days Now I know more of how it happened Thank you.

[@AnonAnonAnon]

55:31 Erik worrying about his lifestyle being interrupted. Another communist conman. I was a British soldier in West Berlin in 1989. It was a very confusing time. We had 'trickles' of information coming through about Hungry and its border. We knew nothing about the leadership other than them being communists. I can still remember the news on the telly one evening that Hungry was dismantling its border with the West. This proved to be very interesting the next day in work. What will the Soviets do about this. The coming weeks we heard rumours of Warsaw Pact countries turning on each other, against Hungry and Poland. And again, I remember there wasn't much happening our side, no NATO alerts, no alerts in West Berlin, just a quietness about the whole thing, maybe because we were all worried in case Russia intervened, what would be the consequences of a Russian attack on Hungry and Poland? What would happen in East Germany? Then more news of Hungry allowing East Germans to leave for the West unhindered, then a change of leadership in East Germany. In my unit, we had on display an intelligence noticeboard. The reason was because there was a build up of East Germany and Russian military near checkpoints dotted around West Berlin. The intelligence briefs gave almost an hour by hour breakdown on what was happening at the border between West Berlin and East Berlin/Germany. Is this the start of an invasion into West Berlin? Then November the 9th came, and the fall of the Berlin Wall. The East German military started knocking through the Wall and fence to create more crossing points. New Years Eve 1989, proud to have climbed the Wall and dropped down into the Eastern side and partied under the Brandenburg Gate with East Germans! There is a lesson in all this. Brave men and women make decisions that can change the course of history. These men and women are badly needed today in 2024.

[@LtColwtf]

Well said.

[@misterwhipple2870]

What do you expect from Honyocker, a man who tongued Brezhnev, and who probably had his thumb up his ass when he did it?

[@EdMcF1]

Indeed. I remember at the time discussing this with a friend, we were puzzled by Hungary (who had had their first Formula 1 race as early as 1988) and I said 'What if they are doing this to let the tanks through more easily?'. Glad that I had simply over-thought the situation.

[@Polit_Burro]

LOL enjoy your own con-men back home, Lammy mammy

[@McRocket]

I greatly enjoyed and was fascinated by this film/documentary. Thank you. ☮

How was this filmed? The sound and picture quality and editing are excellent considering the technology of the time and place.

[@yasinsharb9453]

It's a reenactment in some parts and some are footage of different situations

[@AsYm-PtOtiC]

i was amazed at that too... best "real" doco I ever seen

[@jimmyflawless]

I suspect some of the footage of the real people involved (eg Gorbachev etc) have been dubbed.

[@ashleyupshall7641]

Excellent doc. Thanks for posting.

[@innerlight7018]

I'm a german, 58 years old. And I, and I will tell my son to do so as well, will never forget what the people in Hungary, Poland and in the former DDR had done for us. Thank you.

[@marcelbork92]

Er ist ein armes Würstchen. Armes Deutschland.

[@pascalcoole2725]

Dutch, same age. I remember the night of Schabowski verry well. Gruss aus Holland

[@markzsurka1643]

Köszönjük 🙏

[@marcelbork92]

@@markzsurka1643 Ai FAK

[@thewandererIRL]

Also USA

[@SC-re8qr]

Amazing documentary.

[@Krieky]

Reliving the momentous events of 1988-89 was truly fascinating! I must admit it, I choked up a few times watching this!

[@Everyman.0314]

The title of your channel says it all, 'Best documentary. ' This one in particular, woke me up from a 30 year slumber to remind me how much I loved European history. The fall of the Berlin Wall is the watershed event cited by most for the collapse of Communism. It may be from some historical perspective. But it was Hungary -the big, fat, first domino, and the relationship b/w Gorbachev and the H. PM, that set the whole thing in motion. The reenactments were so helpful. The transcripts of those conversations seemed authentic?

[@TheKmunjal]

This is one of the greatest documentaries ever made, amazing watch!

[@kchall5]

This was fascinating. It was almost like Gorbachev, Honecker, and Kohl were appearing in person in some political reality show.

[@AnonAnonAnon]

Miklós Németh's father was a very wise man. The world today needs people like him to show and tell us the error of Mankind's ways.

[@arthur-qm8qs]

Interesting. A well put documentary. Something I didn't know about the fall of the soviets

[@samipetkannen2226]

Doc was all about Hungary and not USSR

[@arthur-qm8qs]

@samipetkannen2226 yeah I saw it. Ultimately it was about Hungary triggering fall of soviets genius

[@tfa8]

​@@samipetkannen2226Gorbachev was more as once documented how he interacted with Hungary in 1989.

[@Kitsok]

This part of history was unknown to me. Thank you!!

[@dylantaljaard6886]

Excellent documentary. I always wondered what was going on in Hungary at that time. Thanks for the information.

[@jamesc.7990]

This is an excellent documentary. I am well-read in history, especially European history and some Russian history. I had no idea that the collapse of the Soviet Union started in Hungary, none whatsoever. However, I did know that it was rooted in money, which is the same thing that precipitated events in Hungary. Gorbachev was a hero. But this man Nemeth was most definitely a hero as well.

[@dogukanozkan4499]

Amazing documentary!! Very powerful

[@myriaddsystems]

How did they manage to make this documentary, it's just stunning in it's immersive sense of reality...

[@ShanM-vf7eo]

I learnt something new today - thankyou for posting . . ..

[@donnied9432]

Never could figure why if it's such a workers paradise, why are people always risking their lives to get out .

[@kchall5]

It was a workers' paradise for the party bosses, their loyal apparatchiks and chosen others such as athletes, musicians and academics, whose job it was to show off their considerable talents as a way of demonstrating to the decadent West the virtues of their socialist utopia. Everyone else, not so much.

[@tfa8]

And they even built a wall around this "workers paradise" - not to keep the bad imperialist out, no - to keep their own people locked in...

[@Rai-Bulgaria]

I wish more Bulgarians would watch this doc. There's way too much nostalgia for Communist Bulgaria and its failed economy.

[@sfchrisrom]

Same in the USA. The youths in California glamorize communism, while enjoying all the freedom and wealth capitalism provided for them. Can't fix stupid.

[@williamharris9525]

This documentary is very well done and packed with a lot of information I was not even aware of. I was stationed with the army up on the Czechoslovakian, West German border in 1989 when the fence came down. We were some of the first troops to see Czech civilians and east German civilians come across the fence line without getting shot. There is a lot of things going on behind the scenes in the eastern bloc that we only heard bits and pieces about and weren’t even made aware of until years after the fence came down.

[@jamesscott6917]

A man of courage. He’s telling his side, true, but it takes a steel spine to make change from the inside.

[@fredtorres1703]

Thank you. An important doc.

[@drew13191111]

this is such a great documentary!!!! So interesting and well done!

[@martinroyal1319]

This documentary is quite brilliant. Well-done. And, Miklos Nemeth, thank you for your vision, tenacity and integrity. I very much hope your father resumed speaking to you

[@brianmutcher9585]

Great documentary it was certainly worth watching

[@kennethocongerskin9460]

Fantastic documentary 👍👍

[@johnfortune9190]

Excellent documentary.

[@majoinerful]

Thank you for uploading!!!

[@cinciala]

Excellent piece

[@robertbrouillette6767]

I remember the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 and all of this. People in the United States, unless they have come from Eastern Europe don’t appreciate the freedoms that we have. And these young people like Alejandra Casio Cortez have never been to a formally socialist country and have no idea of the poverty in them. I’ve been to two formerly communist countries: Russia and Ukraine.

[@samuelpo3378]

I really need to look more into this because i'm embarrassed I don't know much about such a huge event in world history which happened so recently

[@hyacinthusorientalis8546]

great documentary

[@neilcowmeadowguitartuition2230]

WOW! I was blown away by this film - it chimes with everything I heard whilst working in Eastern Europe in the early 90s, and the empty shops footage took me back to Warsaw in '91/2

[@bodyloverz30]

This was a "domino effect," for the rest of the Eastern Block & the Soviet Union itself.

[@mikelemire5708]

wow GREAT and informative documentary!

[@Brittjones]

This was fantastic….I remembered this PM’s voice from the CNN documentary on the cold war

[@TogetherForever-mg1mh]

CNN "documentary"... You live in your own little world, don't you?

[@Michael45007]

Thank God USSR fell. USSR regime was terrible for the people.

[@Comm-dn8nm]

99 процентов всего что сейчас есть в России - было построено при СССР. Школы, больницы, дороги, атомные станции, гидроэлектростанции, газовые и нефтяные месторождения - это все советское. Вы, либерасты, со своими ельциными и путиными за тридцать пять лет вашей поганой власти так ничего и не построили.

[@aeroAdvocate]

This was excellent!

[@johnallen7807]

An excellent documentary and a salutary reminder of what life under Communism means, Thank you.

[@davor9217]

Ignorant comment. You have never experienced life under communism. Why talk about it? Come to some of the former socialist countries. What you will find is that most od the people from the older generation that have actually experienced it MISS the system.

[@FreeMind...]

​@@davor9217Have you experienced life under communism? Your comment is ignorant too then. Have you ever thought why people from old generations didn't do anything to prevent the fall of communism in their countries in the late 1980's? Do you know what is going on in the world today? Have you heard anything about China? They have changed course. North Korea on the other continues in the same path with disastrous results. Would you like to live in North Korea? 😂😂😂 I' m sure you won't.

[@alexzhangdragonn3438]

​@@FreeMind...China and North Korea aren't communist

[@davor9217]

@@FreeMind... my parents and grandparents have and no, they could not do anything to prevent it because its much bigger than them. US imperialism led to the fall of communist states with massive funding in NGOs and propaganda machines like radio free europe

[@davor9217]

@@FreeMind... i would love to live in China and as a matter of fact i have visited it. You should too before making such stupid comments

[@MontyGumby]

so the scenes (like the conversation between Gorbachev and Nemeth) are mostly reconstructed from unrelated clips ?

[@joellamoureux7914]

This video needs audio translation of all of the interviews and commenters

[@maxsmodels]

I am amazed by much of this footage.

[@TheForbinExperiment]

The quality and COVERAGE of the documentary footage here is extraordinary. I had no idea so much “behind-the-scenes” material was captured.

[@NinoMaartenGuitar]

the ''behind the scenes'' material is AI

[@robertjahn8498]

This is so great. I love the cast of this series. Gorbachov and Honecker.. I wonder how they got them to work along hahaha

[@giacomowullen5172]

This is one of the best I have seen for a long time. We all know and remember the images of the fall of the Berlin Wall, Ceaușescu losing grip in front of his people, but this sheds a different light about the events to happen in 1989/1990. I am surprised that so much of the discussions were recorded?

[@benz500r]

Some of those facts ring a familiar bell. A great documentary indeed.

[@slavkobegic1418]

excellent....and moving

[@jingham9990]

Ja moving

[@howelltaylor6774]

incredible well done....

[@spartacusronas]

I am embarrassed to say I had quite forgotten the key role Hungary played in the freedom movement. Great documentary

[@alexcarter8807]

The channel *Ushanka Show* is a great one about how life was in the USSR. Basically the period before the fall of the USSR.

[@AsYm-PtOtiC]

ushanka 😆.. my man.. still has the ethnic accent

[@ryan-pf9ud]

Wonderful documentary

[@julesworld2696]

Wow that is very interesting documentary what a great feeling really for me to see this now.

[@sailendrayalamanchili]

Gorbachev consciously decided to dismantle the Iron curtain and encouraged the Hungarians to initiate the process. He knew that this would be unpopular with the communist leadership, but never the less went ahead . The USA, treated this concilliatory gesture as weakness, and started trumpetting about there great , "victory". Gorbachev was assured by the American president at that time that with the reunification of Germany, there would be no further expansion of NATO, east wards. In any case with the dissolution of the Warsaw pact, there was no further need for NATO. For the American Military Industrial complex, peace in Europe, would be a disastrous reduction in weapon sales, and therefore they started an agressive programme of NATO expansion, right up till the borders of Russia. The present wars in Ukraine and the middle east are great for business and the share prices of the armaments suppliers are rising smartly. Never mind, the death and destruction inflicted world wide. Its business as usual. Hungary took the lead in asserting their national independence in 1989, and are now again taking the initiative to throw off the hegemony of the US led EU tyranny.

[@NietzscheanMan]

Indeed.

[@wtxrailfan]

OK, Russian bot. 🤡🤡🤡

[@TheBookofTruth-fn1bh]

"The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money." - Margaret Thatcher

[@Michael45007]

She wouldn't be saying that if she saw what China is today. Or Norway which has huge surplus. Or seeing that USA is drowning in 30 trillion dollar debt.

[@nikhilannur]

The same happened to England?

[@wilsoncipriano]

@@Michael45007 Ainda sim com ''dividas INTERNAS'', grande divisão interna, problemas na indústria e comercio assim como a diplomacia mundo afora, os EUA ainda são a maior economia do mundo, enquanto a China, precisa manter um ritmo insano ano após ano, para se manter ligeiramente próxima aos americanos e mesmo assim tudo precisa ficar exatamente assim, para que em uns 20 ou 30 anos os chineses se estabeleçam acima dos americanos.

[@shashibhushan815]

She cited from UK's own and rich experience of running out of India's wealth during colonial times.

[@tfa8]

The Soviets lied all the time, secretly deploying nuclear war heads in Hungary.

[@dipeshlall]

An impressive documentary. Nemeth should win a Noble peace prize.

[@chrisannear9579]

Very cleverly done and a fascinating documentary.

[@vartanbayrakhtaryan6329]

Very realistic documentary

[@mikethespike7579]

I've seen loads of documentaries about those times, about how the Berlin Wall came to fall. But this is something I didn't know much about. The precision is amazing. I speak German and can therefore appreciate just how precise the documentary got Erich Honecker's and Helmut Kohl's voices right. I could have had my eyes closed and still would have recognised their voices. Of course, the title here is misleading. It isn't about the fall of the Soviet Union, it's about the first beginnings that finally led to its fall.

[@shashibhushan815]

I was one of the Mauerspechte and remember it for ever.

[@mikethespike7579]

@@shashibhushan815 Thank for sharing. I was also there, even stood for a couple hours on the wall drinking Sekt until the East German guards sprayed us away with water hoses.

[@shashibhushan815]

I hung around to collect some Gestein for my very senior german friends at home town, they could never make it. I belted out Schiller's Ode an die Freude for them. Those were romantic times.

[@donna_NC]

Thank you…I was there when the wall came down.

[@malthus101]

Very good, very wlll done! A very interesting chapter in history. Gave depth to Hungary.

[@jayjones7891]

Truly amazing history!

[@markmaki4460]

I like how the documentary opens with The Old Castle from Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition (orchestrated by Ravel); the title of the piece as well as the music fit the subject.

[@milybanily]

Actual Hungarian Government has forgotten all of this.

[@stewartmackay]

It seems so.

[@vivecald-vehk6978]

It was a mistake to admit Hungary into NATO. My hot take, take it or leave it.

[@milybanily]

@@vivecald-vehk6978 Sure but could be worst mistake let then out.....

[@Ypsheim-Gindelbach]

Oh no. They remember history very well, thats why they do what they do.

[@milybanily]

@@Ypsheim-Gindelbach ...And what they do ?

[@HistoryOfRevolutions]

Time and time again a "superpower" is humbled by God. But people do not learn from history

[@pedenmk]

No they sure don't.

[@xxxxxxxxxx02]

So true

[@colintechnics]

God has nothing to do with it, ordinary people made this possible

[@ronin3782]

What does this nonsense even mean 😆

[@goatdongs]

No, it wasn’t god you religious wackjob. Thou shalt keep thy religion to thyself.

[@WellHellooooThere]

My late grandpa was a Superintendent at the Nevada Test Site when the USSR fell. He was the designated "point man" for an entire entourage of Soviet officials who arrived on a Antonov An-225 Mriya to conduct inspections and make sure the US was adhering to the Limited Test Ban Treaty (LTBT). Each Russian had a plain clothes Air Force OSI agent assigned to him that did not leave his side. Apparently the day the USSR fell, the Russians found out via a local newspaper. They ditched their handlers and went to get blackout drunk. The next day they boarded their Antonov and one of the officials turned to my grandpa and said, "We return to a country that no longer exists." Pretty crazy first-hand account!

[@Armadauzbekistan]

I really liked this documentary, from the perspective of Hungarians, very strong people

[@MilitarySummaryChannel2024]

*I find it interesting that before its dissolution, Kazakhstan was the entirety of the USSR, even for a few days*

[@JohnWilson-wg4gk]

I think Kazakhstan wanted to keep a warmer relationship with Mikhail Gorbachev than Boris Yeltsin. I could be wrong. You really needed a score card back then to keep track of where everyone stood.

[@kevintate768]

A fine piece of work here! So many people just do not know what was really going on in the eastern bloc countries in these harsh times that only ended at little more than 30 years ago. Once again that word socialism comes out throughout the world especially in the U.S. without the understanding of how dangerous of a game it is!

[@sebmez923]

I am speechless, and upset at myself for not knowing this part of history.. he seems to have written a book about it, but I have difficulties finding it… if anybody knows, please share.

[@Howie900]

I remember this so vividly ........ After growing up with the constant threat of war. We were all so full of hope for the future ......... 2024 and look at us now !!!

[@philipmcdonagh1094]

That shop was hilarious. I'm closed I'm stocktaking my imaginary stock.

[@scottrobinson3281]

The late 1980's was an amazing time in world history, where the relationship between Mikhail Gorbachev, Ronald Reagan and Maggie Thatcher led to the end of the Cold War. The world is sadly lacking in great leaders like them today.

[@blushpoblete2712]

the last time i was this early for an upload, the soviet union was still..united

[@stevenwiederholt7000]

What A Thrilling Time That Was! I'm 76, the thing is The World I grew up in was OVER.

[@liberty_and_justice67]

Fascinating and inspiring🎉

[@makkahramadhan800]

At the first glance seeing the title i think it’s going to be a boring story (yea you know the documentary with the third person POV) with common footage that we’ve seen before but Not gonna lie that i’m enjoying this entire documentary A LOT because it was like mr nementh PRIVATELY telling his story to me and the footage of the leaders that look like they talked to each other to discuss a private matter ((even we know that it was dubbed)) it was like I DUNNO HOW TO DESCRIBE BUT IT’S GENIUS ‼️‼️‼️

[@alberthofmann420]

are these real video tapings or ai generated? nearly all of the "old" clips have their audio subed...

[@jonossell121]

I remember sitting in a bar after work and at the end of one of the national newscasts they showed people running through a field and the crawl underneath said Hungarians running to freedom in Austria and there were two Hungarian guards with rifles standing and watching. I couldn't believe it. Brand new world. From the USA