> It also was a powerful factor in forcing the early revolutionaries to adopt a militarized war-footing whose impetus never quite subsided.
I wouldn't agree with that - I think the Civil war, and the subsequent domestic uprisings were that impetus. Outside of the Second World War, most of the fighting the Red Army did was against its own people.
In any case, these things compound. Immediately after WW2, the USSR still felt threatened by the West, which was not an unfounded fear. Multigenerational paranoia about being invaded by more powerful nations is precisely the kind of thing that damages institutions to the point where they no longer serve any purpose but preserving themselves.
I wouldn't agree with that - I think the Civil war, and the subsequent domestic uprisings were that impetus. Outside of the Second World War, most of the fighting the Red Army did was against its own people.