ABSTRACT
The Bolsheviks developed the fundamentals of the Soviet economic system almost immediately after the revolution. In spite of the evident economic changes over the life span of the regime, these fundamentals stayed largely intact after the period of "War Communism". The Soviet authorities tolerated much of the shadow economy, with the exception of underground businesses. If such a business did not have the support of a bribed official, it could be harshly persecuted. The informal economy should not be confused with the "shadow economy", even though the border between these two economies was quite vague. Another attempt at improving the planning system was initiated during the Brezhnev period, when the Kremlin advanced the use of mathematical methods for optimizing productivity and moved toward the computerization of management. In the mid-1970s, Russia could claim to be a military power equal to the most powerful country in the world.
