What were the material differences such that the USSR was able to use central planning to develop their economy into a superpower, while the Chinese economy struggled to alleviate poverty without seeking foreign investment?
(I get that the question presupposes legitimacy of the Deng reforms and I am too much of an ignoramus to argue one or the other, so if you think the question is a fundamentally incorrect one I'm interested to know why too)
Thank you for the book recommendation - I found your comment quite confusing (due to my ignorance, not your communication), do you think I'd be able to read that book with a layperson's understanding of basic economics?
The book is interesting and easy to read. I think i still have some difficulties gasping the era started from the 80s where there are more technical terms used.