China marks 50 years since Cultural Revolution with silence

[Dungeness]

Arguable. What cannot be argued, however, is that all the events you cite pre-dated the Cultural Revolution.

It is nice to know there are still people who can distinguish the Cultural Revolution from the entire span of Mao's era.

Demonizing the Cultural Revolution has long become the universal "Political Correctness", in which Chinese authority finds its rare harmony with the main stream media of "international society".

Personally, I believe the Cultural Revolution was an attempt in earnest by Mao to rectify human selfish nature and to prevent the revisionism to his ideology, though failed miserably at the time, nevertheless, some of its meaningfulness are appreciated by many in China today. Its full impact might be felt and appreciated in future generations, who knows.

 

[Beast]

Exactly..Plus who says without Stalin Russia would lose in front of Hitler??Stalin did more harm than good for SU.His purge was worse thing that happen to any Russian military in the history,next thing might be Bolshevick massacring Russian Navy Officers.

W/o , nobody has the balls the start the painstaking industrialization that bring Russia to another level. Russia will surely lose the WWII.

 

[Solomon2]

Personally, I believe the Cultural Revolution was an attempt in earnest by Mao to rectify human selfish nature and to prevent the revisionism to his ideology, though failed miserably at the time, nevertheless, some of its meaningfulness are appreciated by many in China today. Its full impact might be felt and appreciated in future generations, who knows.

That's worth a kind of sad chuckle. I met a former Red Guard once. The job of his group, he said, was to seize grain from "bourgeois" farmers. When I pressed him what happened to the seized grain he admitted they then ate it themselves. He said he was in it for the career opportunities the Red Guards opened. So man's "selfish nature" was still present, just in a different and more wasteful guise.

Mao tried re-igniting the CR terror several times to stamp this out but to no avail. He felt his failure keenly. As he told Henry Kissinger, "I have not been able to change China, I have only been able to change a few things around Beijing." [HAK, The White House Years and Years of Upheaval.]

 

[cnleio]

the cultural revolution worse thing Mao ever did for PRC. it set China back at least 2 decades.

HAHA。。。 if China ever back at least 2 decades in Mao's cultural revolution, Chinese must be the supermen to reach today achievements. How many years we spent, 30 years or 50 years ? If the West believe the Mao's cultural revolution is the dark time in PRC history, how ur ppl feel the old time killing American Indians and selling Black slaves in America ?!

Who is the worse ?

 

[Nan Yang]

Without the land reform, liberation from religious oppression, the elimination of the feudal social structure and caste system, and the universal education and health care, all of which achieved in Mao's era, "the great transformation" could not have possibly taken place.

Not to mention fighting US to a standstill in Korea and defeating India.

Nobody is perfect. But Mao did reunited China. Sun Zhong Shan couldn't. Yuan Shikai couldn't. Jiang Jie shi couldn't.

Heck. Mao spirit lives on. Mao still provide inspiration and hope for all the world's poor and downtrodden people. From South America to india to the Philippines. He is more alive than the Maggi Thatcher or Winston Churchill or Abraham Lincoln.

 

[Dungeness]

That's worth a kind of sad chuckle. I met a former Red Guard once. The job of his group, he said, was to seize grain from "bourgeois" farmers. When I pressed him what happened to the seized grain he admitted they then ate it themselves. He said he was in it for the career opportunities the Red Guards opened. So man's "selfish nature" was still present, just in a different and more wasteful guise.

Mao tried re-igniting the CR terror several times to stamp this out but to no avail. He felt his failure keenly. As he told Henry Kissinger, "I have not been able to change China, I have only been able to change a few things around Beijing." [HAK, The White House Years and Years of Upheaval.]

The story could very well be true so as many more human tragedies during the CR, but they were not Mao's intention. CR is the only none-war event in recent past that has a profound impact in human history, and it will be studied in coming decades or even centuries. It is way too soon to label it one way or the other.

 

[EAsian]

The story could very well be true so as many more human tragedies during the CR, but they were not Mao's intention. CR is the only none-war event in recent past that has a profound impact in human history, and it will be studied in coming decades or even centuries. It is way too soon to label it one way or the other.

Isn't the ridiculous Great Leap forward which caused tens of millions of Chinese died has bigger profound impact in human history?

 

[Dungeness]

Isn't the ridiculous Great Leap forward which caused tens of millions of Chinese died has bigger profound impact in human history?

why don't you put it at hundreds of millions?

 

[EAsian]

why don't you put it at hundreds of millions?

Because China Statistics Bureau says so.Do you need a reference?So many people talk about Culture revolution and the great leap forward without really knowing what they are,clearly you are one of them.

 

[Echo_419]

Who cares about the opinion of the anti-China foreigners?

Mao is the greatest leader in the history of China for most Chinese, period.

What I really admire about Mao is that he crushed all opposition to the Commnuists with absolute ruthelessness
That really laid a solid foundation for you guys

Without the land reform, liberation from religious oppression, the elimination of the feudal social structure and caste system, and the universal education and health care, all of which achieved in Mao's era, "the great transformation" could not have possibly taken place.

This too, Mao's Iron fist rule managed to achive all of this & laid a solid foundation for future growth

 

[EAsian]

why don't you put it at hundreds of millions?

You can find it in 103th page of 1983年统计年鉴，Appearently population of China reduced by 14 millions in 59-61.You can have a wild guess about how many people were starved to death in those years.

What I really admire about Mao is that he crushed all opposition to the Commnuists with absolute ruthelessness
That really laid a solid foundation for you guys



This too, Mao's Iron fist rule managed to achive all of this & laid a solid foundation for future growth

I prefer Qing empire much more.After all,they conquered the largest landmass in the whole Chinese history.Compared to Qing dinasty,mao is nothing.

 

[xunzi]

Mao was the greatest modern China strategist as he is responsible for the unification of the Chinese people. Without Mao, there would be no Chinese today as we are probably under foreign influence like all of Asia today. Mao, like Stalin, were force to make great sacrifice to industrialize the country at the greatest rate because both realize the nation lack far behind as they didn't participate in robbing other country of their wealth and knowledge like the Western imperialist of the 19th and 20th century.

 

[EAsian]

Exatly like how manchus butchered millions of han people to unificate the great China，without them，there will be no China today.all these sacrafice are worth it.

Mao was the greatest modern China strategist as he is responsible for the unification of the Chinese people. Without Mao, there would be no Chinese today as we are probably under foreign influence like all of Asia today. Mao, like Stalin, were force to make great sacrifice to industrialize the country at the greatest rate because both realize the nation lack far behind as they didn't participate in robbing other country of their wealth and knowledge like the Western imperialist of the 19th and 20th century.

 

[xunzi]

Exatly like how manchus butchered millions of han people to unificate the great China，without them，there will be no China today.all these sacrafice are worth it.

go learn some history. The fall of Ming was entirely of Ming internal corruption or arrogance of the late Ming ruler who subject of abuse on the Manchu who were prepare and ready to be a tributary state. A fact I'm afraid I'm going to have to teach you a history lesson? Would you like to learn, my young blood?

 

[EAsian]

go learn some history. The fall of Ming was entirely of Ming internal corruption or arrogance of the late Ming ruler who subject of abuse on the Manchu who were prepare and ready to be a tributary state. A fact I'm afraid I'm going to have to teach you a history lesson? Would you like to learn, my young blood?

I don't know how ming falls has anything to do with what I have said.What I have said is ，from the aspect of history，you can say that it is right and worth it to sacrifice the lefe of low lecel peasants.After all，It's not you or your family have died in these events，who cares it，right？I think that is your point.
In fact I am a big fan of Qing dynasty.