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In 1939, discussions within the 4th International on the nature of the régime in the USSR take a new turn. Trotsky's slogans and analyses are attacked from several sides. Trotsky maintains his earlier position. The USSR is a degenerated workers' state, the Stalinist bureaucracy a despotic caste and not a class, the régime an unstable political form, etc.; and, of course, the "Support the USSR" political line, which still involves state control over the means of production, the overthrow of the ruling caste, the soviets' return to power, and international preparation for a new stage of world revolution. However, Trotsky does hear his critics out. He reworks their analyses into hypotheses which lead him to envision radical alternatives, one of which will later become famous: if the working class and its leaders are unable to bring about revolutionary change, the way will be paved for barbarity.