And that has had several effects. One is simply the growth of political movements, which in some cases have been very important. In Bulgaria, the first public demonstrations against the regime were called by Ecoglasnot, an ecological movement. A major realization of the movement is that not only does the ruling class not have the people's interests at heart, but central planning is to blame for a lot of their problems. When the order comes from the Central Planning Bureau to produce so much cotton, the head of a collective farm will do anything to meet the dictated quota for this year.
Next year can take care of itself.
If the way to meet the quota this year is to pour herbicide on the earth or exhaust the soil, that is what he does. In economic terms, there is no residual claimant, no one who profits if the capital value of the resource is maximized. Among intellectuals and academics there is a growing discussion of the value of property rights in solving environmental problems. The final cause of the revolutions was the virtual collapse of socialist ideology and of the legitimacy of the ruling class. In the Soviet Union, the rulers claimed to act on behalf of the proletariat.