Life punishes those who come too late

Life punishes those who come too late

Mikhail Gorbachev, the last leader of the Soviet Union, is a prime example of how life can punish those who come too late. Gorbachev came to power in 1985, at a time when the Soviet Union was facing numerous challenges both domestically and internationally. However, by the time he took office, it was already too late to save the crumbling empire.

Gorbachev's policies of glasnost (openness) and perestroika (restructuring) were aimed at reforming the Soviet system and revitalizing the economy. However, these reforms came too late to address the deep-seated problems that had been festering for decades. The Soviet Union was already on the brink of collapse due to years of economic mismanagement, political repression, and social unrest.

Gorbachev's attempts to reform the Soviet system were met with resistance from hardliners within the Communist Party and the military. His policies of openness and restructuring were seen as a threat to their power and privilege, leading to internal divisions and power struggles within the Soviet leadership.

Externally, Gorbachev's attempts to improve relations with the West and reduce tensions in the Cold War were also too little, too late. By the time he came to power, the Soviet Union was already losing the ideological and economic battle with the United States and its allies. The arms race and military interventions in Afghanistan and Eastern Europe had drained the Soviet economy and undermined its international standing.