Brilliant insight buried deep within the comments on the Sydney Morning Herald

[Spitfire of ATJ]

30. That's the thing I mentioned before. During the Cold War America,...

....showcased the quality of life here as an example to the world of the benefits of Capitalism. Lots of middle class people in nice clean homes raising families and having lots of leisure time for vacations and having weekends off. We used to brag about how much Americans had in savings. The message to the world was this utopia could be yours too if you chose Capitalism instead of Communism.

Meanwhile, the Soviet Union had shortages and a crumbling infrastructure due to sanctions. There were major bridges that dated back before the revolution and they were still running steam trains long after America was zipping along in streamliners and flying in jets. In addition, the Russian people lived in poverty,...the classic image of the doughy housewife with no makeup bundled up and trudging through the snow pushing a hand cart to buy the only bread available as opposed to our happy housewives driving the family car to supermarkets filled with a wide variety to chose from.

This middle class lifestyle served its purpose and after the fall of the Soviet Union the Powers That Be decided it wasn't needed anymore and since then they have been trying to return to a time before it existed. Back to the time of a single individual cornering the market and being known for a single product. The time of Tycoons in the Gilded Age. American Royalty where money equals power.