Eh, I mean this is just overreaching the other way. Even Lenin’s contemporaries outside of hardcore Bolsheviks thought he was extreme. He had to be, I will grant that but he did take it too far at times like the Cheka.

Also, the whites never got much western support so to say anyone threw all the help they could’ve behind them it would’ve probably stopped the Revolution. The thing was that coming out of WW1 no one really wanted to get tangled into what looked like it could easily be a part 2. The Bolsheviks thought it would happen (which is why hindsight does admittedly look worse, since they truly believed the entire west would back and aid the whites).

I’m fairly socialist (I don’t think anyone can be really into learning early modern period history like I am and not end up that way) so I’m not attacking the ideas. It’s just that it’s naive to say it wasn’t carried out by a ruthless guy then overtaken by one of the most ruthless and paranoid dictators ever, resulting in something even more oppressive and worse than what came before. If for no other reason than the Cheka/KGB was WAY better at their job than the Okhrana which was often underfunded and undermotivated to truly shut down the left opposition the way the Soviets were able to shut down any dissenters.

Or just if Trotsky was able to be the heir like Lenin wanted instead of being pushed out by the other leaders until Stalin eventually worked his way into control.

Trotsky was the most level headed of them all, including Lenin. That’s why he was a Menshevik for so long, only moving over when it was clear that the Bolsheviks were the only side willing to actually win a revolution.

Yeah Lenin was incredible at his job as a revolutionary leader. He was however horribly ruthless in his methods (which is why he was effective) and after he was able to take power that ruthlessness didn’t tone down enough and he was a tyrant - tho not nearly as bad of one as Stalin.

Stalin was definitely worse than the Czar. There can be a hypothetical asked about if Stalin hadn’t gone to power how would it have been (but still Lenin and the others were pretty cut throat about holding power instead of letting Mensheviks or SRs gain influence). However, given how Stalins regime played out and how the inertia of it kept going with the next few guys, it can be objectively said that’s he czars weren’t nearly as bad. Out of touch conservatives who occasionally got too violent we’re the czars while Stalin was just a straight up mass murderer.