& Stalin was never really about communism in a sense that Marx would recognise – just about control, power and expansion, like his Tsarist predecessors.

…so in short, if we’re going to blame the gulags on clever London-based 19th century European expats, Marconi is just as good a candidate as Marx.

Although now we look back and it’s as if people like Ustinov were playing with Monopoly money, in fact at the time their views really counted, and the issues were live ones.

The problem you’re having is with what I’ve just done: lumped Ustinov together with notorious appeasers. I agree it’s easy to exaggerate, but that’s been induced by hearing uncritical praise from many corners. It’s not just the criticisms that have been unbalanced, it’s the praise too.

Oh but I do strongly disgree with the last point you make (in comments). To say that would imply that the Tsars in, say, any given twenty-five year period, might have been responsible directly for the deaths of millions (as Stalin was); that’s just not true. Life was miserable for the peasants, but generally they lived.