Of course, that was the view the Soviets also had. Although they were an "evil empire" I don't think they actually had anyone in power actively campaigning to start a war, which did happen in the US. The Soviets were largely dangerous because they were so very afraid and (by the 80s) had senile leaders - look at the near disaster of Able Archer 83.
Yes, this.
At the Museum of communism in Prague, there is an exhibit that talks of how the people in the eastern bloc were kept in a state of terror of the imminent threat of the American Weapons of Mass Destruction. Which was quite plausible, since the Americans had already nuked one country. Of course, this threat served political ends of damping down domestic dissent and disloyalty. Draw your own parallels.
we had a determined adversity who was dedicated to destroying us by any means possible in every realm
-sigh- Someone hasn't learned yet.
They started effective war on the West in general and the US in particular no later than that. (A war doesn't have to be "hot" to be a war.)
Maybe they "were largely dangerous because they were so very afraid and (by the 80s) had senile leaders" ... but perhaps they should have thought of that before starting and sustaining a generations long war?
Moving out of the Lenin-Stalin eras, was Khrushchev, who actually ordered Soviet subs to use nuclear tipped torpedoes on the US Navy "so very afraid"?