“The man who occupies the first place in an undemocratic state can give himself any award that takes his fancy, but it does not increase his authority - rather, the contrary. This was something Brezhnev and Chernenko did not understand. In all, Stalin had about as many decorations as, say, Mekhlis, and four or five times fewer than Brezhnev” MenGivingFirstsDoeStatesFiveFourHe ManAuthorityIncreaseContraryFancyAwardsFewerDecorationBrezhnev Author:Dmitri Volkogonov
