What does /his/ think of the gulags? Were the Soviet purges

>>902134

In terms of absolute no they were not necessary. They were on the contrary unethical (obvious, I know). That being said for the ''communist'' regime to stay in place, yes they were essential because the ''communist'' party never acheived through communism so they had to use other means to stay in place (shut up the opposition being one of those)

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Gulag Archipelago is a compelling, perhaps moderately exaggerated source on the subject.
As the other anon said the purges were entirely necessary, as Stalin's regime was propped up by silencing dissent and spreading fear of getting canned.

Good ideas don't require force. Bad ideas do. Really bad ideas require lots of it.