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The US didn't force them into the arms race, russia itself was more than willing to invest that resources to project a sense of strength. They just couldn't compete economically and ruined themselves with it
The graph above "United States and Soviet Union/Russia nuclear weapon stockpiles", doesn't that look like a reaction of the USSR?
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_arms_race
And the fact, that the US had a huge headstart doesn't come to your mind? That, by the time the soviets had their first one the US had already understood the system and could develop it further faster? The soviets only gained the bomb through espionage, so even after they had it, they needed more time to reach a level of capability, comparable to the US before they could start ramping up their production.
That explains why the USSR couldn't react faster. It doesn't explain why the US built so many bombs.
The Soviets and their satellite states produced more tanks than cars. So, that shows where the actual priorities of the USSR were.
Hyperbole or fact?
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automotive_industry_in_the_Soviet_Union
I can't find the source on Britannica, but it did mention that. I admit it could have been a misinformation or misunderstanding on my part about more tanks produced than cars.
In the Wikipedia link you provided, it does mention that you have to wait for years to buy and own a car. That implies not many cars are actually available for many citizens despite the demand. There is a discussion about it on Quora https://www.quora.com/Why-did-the-Russians-during-Soviet-times-had-to-wait-10-years-for-a-car
Well, don't quote me on that, but I am pretty sure that the average soviet citizen couldn't get a tank neither. In fact, it still was propably easier for them to get their hands on a car than on a tank.
A country could be producing millions of tanks and zero cars, it still doesn't make tanks something the general public would buy. I don't know the truth of this cars vs tanks discussion, but this specific argument definitely doesn't hold up
The USSR was not a consumer paradise. But as long as public transport works, not having a car is acceptable. The important part is that we shouldn't remember the USSR as a military dystopia as the initial relations could have suggested.
I can see where Soviets are coming from, but not owning a car if you live in rural is impractical.
I don't know the reality but they had those big industrial farms. So public transport could have been possible.