ABSTRACT
As the 1990s began, after ten long years of Reagan and Bush, the same old power elite was in the saddle as never before. The southern and nationalist segments of the capitalist class had melded into one, and the conflicts between the internationalists and nationalists were relatively minor. The Soviets had sued for peace in the Cold War, admitting that their bureaucratic economy was no match for Western capitalism, but the ever-expansionist American leadership decided to press its advantage by working for complete victory in Afghanistan, Angola, and Nicaragua. The end of the Cold War meant that the old bogeyman of the "red menace" no longer could be used to scare people into quiet acceptance because of their patriotism. The destruction of the union movement also created room for new thinking and organization, for there are no longer privileged workers who can look out for their own interests.
