In The Russian Peasantry, Moon states that the peasants’ agricultural habits were based on an acute knowledge of their world. The peasants have continually been chided for resisting agricultural development whether in the form of tools, methods, or accepting new foodstuffs (like the potato) to grow. This decision, when better examined according to Moon, appears to have less to do with ignorant stubbornness and was actually based on what was reliable in Russia. The peasants simply could not afford to plant any untested crop or use new equipment for if it failed, it would force them to default on their obligations and more importantly cause famine. The old system, although archaic in other parts of the globe, was reliable in the eyes of the peasants.
