Matvei Bronstein: Theorical physicist. Pioneer of quantum gravity. Arrested, accused of fictional “terroristic” activity and shot in 1938
Lev Shubnikov: Experimental physicist. Accused on false charges. Executed
Adrian Piotrovsky: Russian dramaturge. Accused on false charges of treason. Executed.
Nikolai Bukharin: Leader of the Communist revolution. Member of the Politburo. Falsely accused of treason. Executed.
General Alexander Egorov: Marshal of the Soviet Union. Commander of the Red Army Southern Front. Member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party. Arrested, accused on false charges, executed.
General Mikhail Tukhachevsky Supreme Marshal of the Soviet Union. Nicknamed the Red Napoleon. Arrested, accused on fake charges. Executed.
Grigory Zinoviev: Chairman of the Communist International Movement. Member of the Soviet Politburo. Accused of treason and executed.
Even the secret police themselves were not safe:
Genrikh Yagoda : Right-hand of Joseph Stalin. Head of the NKD Secret Police. He spied on everyone in Russia and jailed thousands of innocents. Yagoda was arrested and executed.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genrikh_Yagoda
Nikolai Yezhov : Appointed head of the NKD Secret Police after the death of Yagoda. Arrested on fake charges, executed.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikolai_Yezhov
Everybody was absolutely terrified during this period. At least 600 000 people were killed and over one million people were deported to Gulags in Siberia.
I mean, it took capitalism about 200 years to be corrupted because the economic power starts off more decentralized than communism or socialism.
That’s not to say capitalism is a good option, because it clearly isn’t, but communism and socialism require a more centralized federal government by default which is a much smaller point of failure.
But the problem is people with cluster B personality disorders and those who follow them. Some systems are easier for them to infiltrate, but it happens to all of them eventually.
The people who should have power are rarely the ones who seek it, unfortunately. I like Heinlein’s (I think, might have been Asimov) take on it. Government officials should be dragged in kicking and screaming and only be allowed to leave when they do a good job.