>One perk of joining the party is apparently that you are trusted to explore mildly "dissident" ideas for your own benefit, and even discuss them among party me

>One perk of joining the party is apparently that you are trusted to explore mildly "dissident" ideas for your own benefit, and even discuss them among party members in a quasi-democratic way, without this being considered "rocking the boat". Consistent with the perks the nomenklatura had in the Soviet Union, including being able to obtain Western and rationed goods at special stores. The intellectual permissiveness extended to the highest ranks. Stalin was probably the most powerful man on Earth during his lifetime, but even he didn't always get his way in the Politburo. Sometimes Stalin was on the losing side of a debate. But win or lose, the Soviet leadership emphasized speaking with a unified voice regardless of whether one had supported or opposed the outcome.