if communism didn't happen, could Russia have developed

>could a country with 900 years at that time of totalitariam rule develop like the country founded on freedom

lots of regions will also try to break off im sure

>>1561279
Only 2 places that matter today in America are NY and LA.

>>1561397
well I think they are all quite diverse. I really like america, from chicago, to boston, new york, LA, texas. I love them all and I get a different feel. drivng through america was awesome, and in Russia it's a bit depressing that outside of moscow it's just a huge nothing. We have good scenary and resources but the tyrants are swallowing all the money.
>>1561390
if we switched to an American style, would we develop similarly? would we have the resources to?

>>1561279
no, if you compare America and Russia from around 1890-1917 when communism came to take hold Russia was clearly already fucked
>starving peasants
>16 hour workdays for industrial workers
>shitty conditions
>if you protest, cossacks shoot at you
>political dissenters interrogated then sent to siberia/executed
>tsarist autocratic rule
>okhrana secret police

people act like communism fucked Russia over but really it was already on that path

>>1561279
It developed because of communism.

>>1561279
Firstly, their mentalities are way too different. Russians are collectivist and xenophobic, Americans are individualist and open-mined.

Secondly, the territories they hold are also completely different. Russians have held (and still hold some) many powerful indigenous cultures with the potential to kick them out and the lands of Siberia are too inhospitable by and large.

Their similarities are purely superficial.

>>1561279
>Right now the only 2 places that matter are Moscow and Saint Pete.

What about Sevastopol

>>1561527
sevastapol is pretty cool, but poverty just turns good things shit
can russia ever not be shit? in it's entire history, we always autocratic and not living in luxury

>>1561527
>Home of Black Sea "Four Times Back to Back Self-Destruct Champion" Fleet, captured every time it was attacked
>Relevant

File: Western Russia.jpg (145KB, 632x865px) Image search: [Google]

145KB, 632x865px

>>1561535
Just saying, it's the third and last federal city of Russia, behind Moscow and St. Petersburg

>>1561534
The russian tendency for authoritarianism coupled with the outright colonial eastern holdings makes Russia as it looks right now dysfunctional.

I'm sure something good will happen if it were to drop all of their holdings and became a more unified country as a repercussion of that.

>>1561397
Aha good 1 m8