Cuba is a great example of where socialism shines. The government is small enough and the culture is contiguous enough that it’s a take good option there. Good call.

Thank you.

What one was the USSR led to what now is Russia - many States being away and associating to greater degrees with the west, and corruption spreading like a plague. Not that the US is doing well on that front right now, but it has lasted slightly longer than the USSR without becoming total shitshow. We’re getting there, though.

The USSR beat the current Russian Federation on nearly every quality of life metric until recently. The RF is not a consequence of the USSR, but of the killing of the USSR. The USSR, like Cuba, was good for the vast majority of citizens.

Capitalism can, with a discontiguous culture, ‘hold it together’ longer than socialism can in a similar situation before shitting the bed - particularly when there are options for some socialistic services present.

Actually ahistorical, the USSR was far more resiliant in times of crisis. The USSR didn’t collapse, so much as it was killed from within. It had issues, all states do, but it was not in a time of crisis.

PRC isn’t precisely a shining example of socialism, but is doing a great job of adopting a lot of ideas from capitalism. If any nation sorts out the balance of socialism and capitalism via praxis, it will be the PRC. Their human rights record isn’t great, though, and really doesn’t seem any better than western counterparts. I can accept that the PRC is a power, but I don’t think it truly fits socialism, regardless of its roots.

The PRC is a transitional Socialist economy. It has a very large public sector, and though it is no longer Maoist, it is still Socialist overall. You may wish to read China Has Billionaires.