"...Gorbachev’s legacy falls far short of the praise heaped on it."

"Although he foresaw and avoided the deadly consequences of both armed conflict in Soviet republics and the continuation of Cold War hostilities, Gorbachev’s legacy falls far short of the praise heaped on it. Instead, the final Soviet leader’s legacy should serve to illuminate the evils of communism and collectivism more broadly. As Ayn Rand said, 'Individual rights are the means of subordinating society to moral law.' Gorbachev’s reign demonstrated the terror and destruction that follow from subordinating individual rights to the state, a lesson that the Western leaders who praised him would do well to learn."

~ Nicholas Baum, from his obituary 'Does Gorbachev Deserve All the Praise'