Established and self-reliant populations are bad for elites looking to expand their power They have the nasty habit of possessing specific traditions and expectations that resist government social engineering along with the independent wealth that allows them to ignore the lure of handouts which can be used to control them The classic political strategy to get around this is high/low vs middle where the elite use a dependent underclass to strip the kulaks of their wealth The wealth transfer isn't an accident, the sheep are being shorn a little closer every year until they die