> But, Russia is
> where Britain was in the 1940's!
But Russia in 1917 was where Britain was in, oh, 1585 or so. Seriously: in 1917 Russia was 90% rural peasants, illiterate, superstitious, etc. Then consider that Russia had to deal with two appallingly violent world wars and the ruinous expenditures of a Cold War.
A truly fair comparison isn't really with Britain, but with Britain's South Asian colonies, and in that light, Russia starts to look pretty good. One of the things about contemporary Russia which nobody but us, um, Cheburashka-niki know about is that Russia today has incredibly high educational levels given its per capita GDP, both in terms of scientists per capita and high school math scores.
-- DRR