Aren't we talking counterfactuals here? 
In any case, the "Soviet people" frankly don't matter or are quantité négligeable in this equation.
The German people for one were strongly opposed to and highly anxious about any military action prior to WW2 yet were manipulated/cajoled into accepting the seemingly inevitable easily enough and would in the majority still fight on to the very destruction of their homeland despite obviously hopeless odds.
There are perks to living in a totalitarian dictatorship after all. Not to mention that in 1945 after the victory over Nazi Germany, internal control and legitimacy of the Soviet regime were far better consolidated than they had been in 1941.
I might add that the Soviet Union immediately prior to Barbarossa engaged in no less than three wars of an undoubtedly aggressive nature (Finland, the Baltics, Poland), which granted were far less traumatic but still.
First, sorry sorry, I don't want you to sit here and waste a day of good weather, I don't either.
Wait till its raining and answer if you wish to.
But aren't this quite the oversimplification? I mean you are correct that the Germans could be coerced to fight WW2 as an aggressive war, and Im sure the Soviet state would be able to do the same against germany in 1940.
And yes they did before in several places, but this is 1945. People have already been working +10h shifts for the last 4 years.
Manpower is running thin, everyone lost someone, and frankly war weariness has just been replaced by huge sigh of relief that its finally over. All I'm saying is that it is a huge difference between the situation in 1939 and 45.
I don't think we should just write off political moods in totalitarian states, "not even the Emperor can go against the mob" as it were.
Just looking at the time spent by party officials and the NKVD in order to try and check the mood of the people kinda gives a hint that the Soviet authorities were quite concerned with their political standing. I mean Stalin staying in the capital in '41 and the reversing of previous order to blow up all factories is very much a result of civilian political uproar. No?
My entire point is: For the USSR to get everyone onboard with fighting a new TOTAL war when the people have been 'running on fumes' for the better part of 2 years would require a great reason for them to do so. And frankly I cannot see a reason that might give it.
Sweden
im new to the forum.
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