The White Pill
The White Pill
The White Pill
Ratings1
Average rating5
15
The White Pill
The White Pill
Ratings1
Average rating5
The Russian Revolution was as red as blood. The Bolsheviks promised that they were building a new society, a workers' paradise that would change the nature of mankind itself. What they ended up constructing was the largest prison that the world had ever seen, a Union of Soviet Socialist Republics that spanned half the globe. It was a country where people's lives meant nothing, less than nothing--and they knew it. But no matter what atrocity that the Soviets committed--the secret police, the torture chambers, the show trials, the labor camps and the mass starvation--there was always someone in the West rushing to justify their bloodshed. For decades it seemed perfectly obvious that the USSR wasn't going anywhere--until it vanished from the face of the earth, gradually and then suddenly. This is the story of the rise and fall of that evil empire, and why it is so important for the good to never give up hope. This is the white pill.
Reviews with the most likes.
By far the best book by Michael Malice (and I enjoyed them all). Must read for anyone interested in the fall of Soviet Union and for people that are black pilled about the current events. As I'm writing this, farmers are protesting in Brussels and all over Europe against EU policies that would liquidate small and middle sized farming in most of Europe in span of few years. Déjà vu.
The White Pill covers the most important people and events in the 20th century's fight against communism. It's one of the darkest books I've ever read. History was much darker than what regular people think or even can imagine.
It's very easy to read, no dry academic text, but I had issues around the middle when the gulags and torture tactics were being described. There were several chapters where I couldn't continue reading because they emotionally drained me. I had to put the book down for a few days with tears in my eyes several times.
As I was reading I was wondering when will the white pill finally come as most of the book was filled with descriptions of the darkest deeds people ever done to their fellows. Well, it comes in the last third of the book where the narrative switches to describe Reagan's and Thatcher's rise to power and their subsequent negotiations with Gorbachev.
Gorbachev is actually the hero of this book if something like that can be said without a jest. Being a victim of Stalin's whims from his early age Gorbachev knew what the regime is capable of and wanted to avoid it, it seems, at any cost. Even if it would cost the regime to fall. When leaders of other socialist countries asked him for advice or support he always chose the peaceful solution and wanted to follow the will of the people which got more and more fed up by communist bullshit.
I wish Malice would make this white pilling part longer and included more events that led to the downfall - Afghanistan is not even mentioned, Chernobyl is but only briefly and almost nothing about its impact outside of one very angry speech by Gorbachev and Gorbachev's career was also skimmed through.
I also wish the chapters would have proper titles or some additional subtitle so that if I want to look up something I know which chapter contains it. As it is, chapter names are quotes from Ayn Rand's speech about free people not understanding what it's like to live in totalitarian country. While very effective, they say nothing about the content and there's also no index to look up key words. It's not an issue for e-book version but I own hardcover copy.
So, does the white pill work or is it placebo? I guess everyone will need to form their own answer. As someone who was already short term black pilled but mid and long term white pilled it didn't do anything to change my point of view towards what's ahead but it provided excellent context to what was and can't be allowed to repeat again. I now also understand Ayn Rand's extremist position much better.
