Sunday, March 27, 2011

Seeking the Soul.

                                                              
Many years ago I picked up Pilgrim’s Way. I have returned to it since for perspective, and peace, for it is a peaceful, calming book. The soul of Lord Tweedsmuir—inquisitive, kind, wise, humble, witty, involved—is evident in Pilgrim’s Way. The sentence from which the previous post’s quote of Cromwell was taken is:

“We are condemned to fumble in these times, for the mist is too thick to see far down the road.  But in all our uncertainty we can have Cromwell’s hope. ‘To be a Seeker is to be of the best sect next to a Finder, and such an one shall every faithful, humble Seeker be at the end.’”

Lord Tweedsmuir was a walker, a wanderer as in the Friedrich painting, who wanted to attain a vantage point from which he could see into the distance. He sought the soul.

Seeking the Soul.

"To be a Seeker is to be of the best sect next to a Finder, and such an one shall every faithful, humble Seeker be at the end."
                 -Oliver Cromwell, quoted in "Pilgrim's Way," by Lord Tweedsmuir, nee John Buchan. 

Sunday, March 20, 2011

This is Public Occurrences.

                                                          
Google has deigned to give us a Top Ten posts. Ahh Google, you’re so fluffy I could die.

February was Arab Spring in Our World. And at Publocc.  If one had put “Egypt” in the toolbar search window on January 29, the most recent post would have been prior to 2006, I think.

But not after January 30.

That day’s post, “Protests in Egypt,” went the closest thing to “viral” that a post on a pipsqueak website like this can. It is now #3 in the post-July 2010 Top Ten and, at the time of this writing had had 801 “pageviews.”  Ohh, excuse me, Ariana Huffington, you get 801 pageviews per nanosecond. By next month it will probably have overtaken “Lebron James.”  “The Jasmine Revolution,” February 13, also cracked the T.T., and sits at numero five-o with 264 pageviews.  "Anthropology I" is still far-and-away number one. All-all-time, "China's Great Wall of Silence, The Murder of Bian Zhongyun, Current Photos of Song Binbin" (catchy title) appears to be the most read.

Fifty-nine countries were represented among pageviewers since Feb. 13. These little blogs do get around. Among exotic locales were Ethiopia, Bangladesh, Jordan, Khazakstan (Borat!), Uzbekistan, Malta, and Vietnam.

Egypt was seventh this month in countries of readers, India fifth. En passant, as we French say, sincere congratulations to the Egyptian people for holding a referendum on their constitution yesterday. Maybe they will pull this off (but I doubt it). A presidential election is scheduled in August and we'll see then.  The Top Ten countries since July, 2010 is (from memory) unchanged with the exception of Hong Kong, which is tenth. China is still seventh. Google separately categorizes readers from Hong Kong. Why, I don’t know.

Among exotic posts...viewed this month were, “Yves Klein Blue,” March 5, 2005,  “Michael Chow’s House,” a few of the “Murder Case Photos” series, and “Borat” (Khazakstan!).

Photo: a Benjamin Harris.

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Japan

The head of the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission said this afternoon that radiation levels outside the crippled Fukushima Daiichi plant are "extremely high," and much higher than the Japanese government has been saying.

More troubling, this situation has only gotten worse since last week's earthquake. It seems that once a nuclear power plant's internal safety mechanisms fail, there is very little that can be done from outside, which is why the Japanese government has been trying decidedly low-tech things like dousing the damaged reactors with sea water, fire hoses, and from helicopters. Additionally, workers can't get close enough because of the radiation. It's a recursive safety system and there's no way out--or in.

If the foregoing is accurate, it's a dangerously flawed--and dangerous--energy industry.

Header: M.C. Escher.
Quick: what nationality are the people in these sketches?
Even for the 42% of readers who are not American I doubt that there were many mis-calls. And for the 58% who are: if you mis-id'd, emigrate, or at least go to the optometrist.


These are from the Chinese-American artist Weimin Mo. This is the first time I have seen Mr. Mo's sketches. Take any straight line in his sketches: I can't do that. I cannot draw a straight line.

Mr.Mo is excellent at capturing the soul of his subjects. Where else would you see the gentleman in Mr. Mo's first sketch below?  Older, but typical of Americans, dressed casually, wearing the ubiquitous cap, drinking (coffee, I bet) out of a cup with a plastic lid. And the paunch!  I saw ONE, uno as we say in America, overweight Chinese in two trips to Beijing--and he was at the Bally's gym. This is what we Americans look like, for better and whatever.
                                                


                                                                      


                                                     Oh my God, oh my God, these two are hilarious.  Every American knows two women like this. We are forming an American template here: overweight, casually dressed, drinking from fast food cups.
                                                                        

                                                           Stylish, oui?  I think the Elvis look works well on middle-aged American women.
                                                                  


                                                     Me, on the verge of an asterisk attack, after reading Thomas L. Friedman.
                                                  

                                          
                                            This is the only one that I didn't think looked American. They look Russian.

                                                                        

                                           She's...attractive.
                                                                    


                                                    Oh lord, it's a good thing I can't draw.
                                                                  

                                                    Add shades to the American template. This guy looks like he is a retired CIA spook.
                                                                          
                              
                                                    Brash, confident, cowboy-like hatted, casual.
                                                                    


                                            Casual, with skully-cap.
                                                                      

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Japan

Officials have upgraded the severity of last week's earthquake to a 9.0 from an 8.9. A 9.0 'quake is ten times more powerful than an 8.0. At least 10,000 have been killed so far.

Since last weekend attention has been focused on the condition of Japan's nuclear reactors, specifically those in the stricken northeast.  Last night an explosion occurred at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant which ruptured the steel containment unit, causing radioactive waste to vent into the atmosphere. Although the headlines use terms such as "catastrophe" (Reuters) the details in the reporting do not indicate that anything like Chernobyl is in the offing. However, the situation is not under control and has gotten worse since Friday. 

Japan

In a story posted at 10:35 am today, Reuters reported that a Richter 6.0 aftershock has hit eastern Japan.

Saturday, March 12, 2011

To Yao Yingxia, a new member, welcome Yao, and thank you.  Please feel free to send an email to permit me to greet you personally. -Ben

Friday, March 11, 2011

Earthquake in Japan

                                                            
We are with you.

Earthquake in Japan

Near Sendai Airport

The caption provided to this photo was "Sendai Airport swept away."


Iwanuma


Sendai airport.


Yamada

                                                                               Natori City.


Photos: Reuters.

Earthquake in Japan

                                                                            
An enormous earthquake, Richter 8.9, struck our friends in Japan today, at 2:46 pm local time. That's the most severe earthquake in earthquake-prone Japan's history and the fifth strongest in the world's history. A tsunami has followed and has fanned out over the Pacific. Japan is one of the most densely populated nations on earth.

This is Public Occurrences.

Wednesday, March 09, 2011


Hey, Egyptians, Tunas: See those guys up there?


Those are rebels. They are Libyans, and they fight.






This, Egyptians and Tunas, is you.


A protester.

Mary Lou


So Tunas, why was the March 15 election canceled?  How's Lampedusa?  Egyptians, you "did it" according to Thomas The Elder Friedman. How's the presidential campaign for September coming along? When are the primaries? You like "brutally sexually assaulting" women like Lara Logan, huh?  Oh yeah, you're going to turn Egypt into a democracy.

Libya 2.0

                                                              
Look at this! These guys are unbelievable.

My Angel is a Centerfold

                                                                  
The beautiful young woman above is actress and model Diora Baird. She was also a beautiful, bright--A.P. honors student--talented, wonderful girl of 17 when she was my kids' babysitter. Lived right down the street from me. She modeled even then.

How often does this happen in life?  Once.

Tuesday, March 08, 2011

"The Chinese Cultural Revolution," by Mr. Zhang Mu. Chapter 1.2

Upon review, I, Benjamin "The Luddite" Harris, conclude that the preceding post is not an improvement.  

Monday, March 07, 2011

"The Chinese Cultural Revolution," by Mr. Zhang Mu. Chapter 1.2

I, Benjamin "Bill Gates" Harris, have made a slight improvement in posting Mr. Mu's book. :) At least I can reproduce the photos a little. This post consists of two images of the manuscript saved on Google documents. However, I forgot to correct the text before saving. :(


This is the beginning of chapter 2. 





Sunday, March 06, 2011

Red Art

                                                                  
The mournful violin solo dissolves into a lively street performance of Mozart played by three violinists and a bassist. Hu and Ai are at the University of Westminster.

A blonde English woman with bad English teeth drives into the countryside to the home of John Gittings, “former reporter for The Guardian,” according to the subtitles as Mr. Gittings speaks in Chinese:

“Xin Hua Bookstores sold artwork, like posters, paper cuts, everything. I thought these could be used as teaching materials.”

What would be taught with this violent propaganda?  The camera follows Bad Teeth and Bad Hair, Professor Harriet Evans, into “The Chinese Posters Collection Chamber” at the “Center for the Study of Democracy” (I did not make that up), which houses Mr. Gittings teaching material.  Professor Evans says (in Chinese) that she took over for Mr. Gittings and recruited Teeth, Katie Hill, to help her “look after” the collection (after getting funding). “These are all paintings” says Professor Evans, opening a drawer, and then points to another drawer, “Here is some other stuff” (“stuff” being a technical, academic term). In an unfortunate sequence Ms. Hill is shown bending over some stuff, causing her long-sleeved shirt to ride up in the back. Just say no to crack.

That’s it for Little Women but not for Brits, unfortunately. Hu and Ai return to the pleasantly insipid voice that gave us “Chinese workers playtime” (“sort of”):

“In other respects the Chinese do take their pleasure seriously.”

This is a play on (English) words by Insipid. This is not “work hard/play hard;” Insipid means Chinese never take a break from the work of revolution. Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha:

“For a Cantonese a day off for the Chinese revolution:  doing everything he could to educate [ the] students.”

That is what Insipid says, I have added only “the” and a colon to what is in subtitles. “Chinese revolution” should be “Cultural Revolution.”  Eh, but maybe Insipid didn’t know that at the time. It is awkward usage of the language: “could” should be “can.” Okay fine, that’s picky. What about the “he” turning out to be a “she?”  The Chinese “doing everything…to educate the students” is a woman, okay? That’s pretty stupid. That’s why this guy is Insipid:

“Studying the problems of [the]Revolution in this very office.”

“In this ‘vet-ty’ office.” Pan to portrait of Mao-as-student in the classroom:

“Chairman Mao’s life was an example of working hard and living very simply.”

"Vet-ty simply." From context, this is Insipid translating what the he/she is saying, not Insipid’s own insipid commentary.

This begins a painful part of the film because what the teacher goes on to say is:

“Rightists intended to usurp the leading power of the Revolution…claims it a capitalist revolution.(sic) The Traitor (sic) Liu Shaoqi madly opposed the working class’s armed movement.”

To Chinese at the time, there was nothing mad about the Mao-led charge that Liu was a “traitor” and “capitalist roader.”  Suspension of disbelief failed only later in the Cultural Revolution when Lin Biao was similarly labeled. I have never been able to see the campaign against Liu through Chinese eyes. Liu was the president of the country for godssake. He literally wrote the book on how to be a good communist (“How to be a Good Communist”). He was Mao’s designated successor; he had become the de facto head of the country, in effect replacing Mao after standing up to Mao at the Seven Thousand Cadres Conference in 1962 and ending Mao’s crackpot Great Leap Forward-- and preventing the deaths of more than the 48,000,000 who had already died. He saved the country, for godssake. Now, in 1966, he’s a traitor?  A “capitalist roader?” The guy who wrote “How to be a Good Communist” was planning a capitalist counter-revolution? Really?

No. Chinese, you were insane.

On July 29, 1966 Liu and Deng Xiaoping addressed 10,000 students in the Great Hall of the People. The meeting had been called—by Mao—to address how to go forward in the nascent Cultural Revolution. Liu and Deng didn’t have the foggiest idea how to go forward because they didn’t know what the Cultural Revolution was about, only Mao knew. Red Art picks up at this point. This is what Liu said:

“How to do the Proletarian Cultural Revolution?  You said you were not sure and ask[ed] us for guidance: What to be done for the revolution?  [To] be honest about it, I have to say, I don’t know either.”

Mao was literally behind a curtain listening at the time. A short while later the curtain opened and out strode Mao, pointedly ignoring Liu and Deng, to rapturous applause from the Hitler Youth. It was the beginning of the end for Liu, who was soon to be purged, tortured, kept alive to be further tortured, and so he could be formally expelled from the Party in 1969. They let him die on November 12, 1969.

Unbelievable. But not unbelievable to the Chinese people. They really got into it. Liu was savaged.  Red Art picks up the story here with the painful scene of the schoolchildren mentioned in an earlier post.

They appear to be first-graders, second-graders, maybe even kindergarteners, they’re really little. They’re in a gymnasium-like building. A framed portrait of Mao is on the back wall, flanked by two Chinese flags. There are six kids performing on the floor of the gym for the other kids who are seated along the walls. Two of the six kids, little boys, hold a banner and chant:

“Long live Chairman Mao.”

The film fast-forwards a bit and the six are joined by another group of kids, it appears to be eight. A little girl from this second group steps forward:

“That bastard Liu Shaoqi…”

She stamps her foot and throws her right arm down, as if Liu is underfoot:

“…tried to teach us that learning is useless,…”

She raises her head and looks out on the audience, bringing her hand up to emphasize as she recites:

“…that learning is only for gaining office.”

She turns to the other kids to join in and then repeats the opening foot stomp and right arm gesture. All the kids in the second group now join her:

“Beat down the capitalist roaders in the Party. Long live Chairman Mao!

Nice.

Red Art


Hu and Ai now take appropriate aim at foreign enablers.  In period British footage of Chinese workers dancing with Aly Rose-like choreography and singing—to their own instrumental accompaniment—“Today is the day to fight the Japanese,” Hu and Ai cut to stills of the struggle sessions. As the workers sing, “Target the enemy,” Hu and Ai show the “enemy” that was actually targeted by Mao in the C.R., not the Japanese, but the Chinese people. “Go and annihilate them,” the workers sing as a still shows a Chinese man, ink splashed on his face, placard hanging from his neck, being paraded in front of a stadium of people.  Then to the strains of, “Chop off the heads of the imperialist devils,” Hu and Ai superimpose a still of the execution by firing squad of eight Chinese. “Kill! Kill! Kill!” the workers sing over a still of the executed bodies. Oh this is devastating stuff.

The British voice-over to the workers performance is, “A lunch-hour* entertainment at the Canton Sewing Machine Factory, a sort of Chinese workers’ playtime.”

“Sort of” not.

“Kill! Kill! Kill!”  This was very hard to watch when I first viewed the film some months ago. Some time later, a group of adorable little Chinese school children act out a performance denouncing Liu Shaoqi. I remember one little Chinese girl, in her high lilting voice, looking down at the ground as if at a prostrate Liu, stamping her foot, gesturing down with her right arm, angrily denouncing “the bastard Liu.”  Horrible.

For the next fifty seconds, from 13:47-14:36, Zhou Jineng shows Hu and Ai newspaper accounts from the time of the death and destruction, bodies covered with sheets, full-face photos of corpses, buildings damaged by cannon fire. This was due to factional fighting between competing Red Guard groups. Zhou sent me these photos some years ago and they were published here.

Hu and Ai take a break. As a mournful violin plays in the background, very similar in feeling to Ashokan Fairwell in Ken Burns’ “Civil War” film, a China Airways 747 ascends through the air. It will land in London.



*The film’s English subtitle has this as “A Luncha.” I don’t know Chinese but I do know English and the British commentator clearly says “lunch hour” which is also clear from context.

Photo: Hu Jie.

Saturday, March 05, 2011

Red Art

                                                                        
Chairman Mao Goes to Anyuan is perhaps the most reproduced painting in the world. Over 900,000,000 copies were made, Liu Chunhua tells Hu Jie and Ai Xiaoming.  The painting was also the illustrative theme of the April, 2010 Harvard conference “Red Legacy in China” (See posts here, March 8, 2010-April 3, 2010).
                                                                              
Chairman Mao Goes to Anyuan indeed glorifies.  Mao is depicted larger than life, dressed in scholar’s garb, walking above the mountain tops toward Anyuan.

The interviewees in Red Art are obviously relaxed. Only Zhou Jineng never smiles. This leads to the most poignant moment in the film much later, but the others are completely at ease; Li Tangtao maintains the plastic smile of the Joker throughout; Liu Chunhua never bothers to take off his insulating vest over his long-sleeved sweater; his body molds itself comfortably into the couch he’s sitting on and he smiles and laughs frequently. In the segment immediately following, Li Xianjing, Curator of Beijing Songzhuang Art Gallery leans forward on a couch as he speaks, dressed casually in an outer shell over a sweater and collared shirt, and smiles occasionally.

From 10:42-11:42 Hu and Ai play period revolutionary music over fast-changing imagery: Mao waving to Red Guards atop Tiananmen; said Red Guards, male and female, weeping in frisson, the lyrics “Great Teacher, Great Leader, Chairman Mao” in the background. In the middle of this segment a brief, bizarre sequence occurs, which I hope I accurately attribute to Hu and Ai’s sense of humor. At 11:23, the chorus sings,

“Clear the fog and the clouds,”

over footage of a clearly communist, clearly non-Chinese parade. At 11:24 a statue of Stalin, surrounded at base by children, appears on a float in the parade. Then, at 11:26, the imagery abruptly changes. As the chorus sings,

“The sunny blue sky reveals,”

a stage set appears in an empty auditorium. A man is at a podium on the stage and a few others are seated to his right and left.

At 11:27, the camera focuses on the man at the podium. He is holding a mask of Stalin on a stick in front of his face and comically jiggles it back and forth.

Red Art

                                                                  
China’s censors have this in common with Amazon and Google’s content-crawling robots: they take things too literally for their own purposes and can be thrown off by misdirection. So Amazon’s robots see “Benjamin Harris” and Amazon puts up an ad for a biography of “Benjamin Harris Brewster.”  Chinese censors will block anything that mentions “June 4” but entirely miss the same content if the reference is to “May 35.”

The great Chinese documentary film maker Hu Jie, is an artful dodger. His, and Ai Xiaoming’s, documentary Red Art is a devastating, sarcastic critique of current historical and artistic revisionism, of the murderous Red Guards who perpetrated outrages during the Cultural Revolution, and of their enablers, Chinese and Western. http://publicoccurrenc.blogspot.com/2010/09/chinas-great-firewall-of-silence.html
Hu could not have gotten away with this if his film were titled “Red Guard;” the censors would have noticed. But “Red Art?”  Chinese censors like Red Art. “Hu Jie, you may pass.” 

红色艺术 (Red Art) and 红卫 (Red Guard) rhyme in Chinese.

The film opens with former Red Guard Li Tingtao proudly conducting a tour for the film makers of an exhibition of his “art” at the Guangdong Art Museum. There’s a photograph of a mammoth (30 meters by 10 meters, Li tells us) poster he and other Red Guards created during the Cultural Revolution. “It was influential nationwide,” Li proudly recalls but, “It’s been demolished since” (thus only the photograph).  Li then points himself out among the group of Red Guards standing in front of the poster in the photograph:

“This one’s me. A bit blurry. It’s been a while.”

Either Hu or Ai responds,

“It’s grown mold.”

OMG, “It’s grown mold”! 

This goes right over Li’s head:

“This was the assistant secretary of the CCP, Li continues, pointing. We followed instructions from them. They were all done according to orders. We painted whatever the party said. The subjects were decided by the Department of Propaganda of the CCP.”

Li narrates with a permanent smile on his face, like the Joker played by Jack Nicholson in Batman.

The film then cuts to Wang Huangsheng, Curator of the Guangdong Museum of Art, who looks like an Amish farmer:

“Looking at these works, we find ourselves a bit more rational than before…As for the content of these pieces, it’s quite a complicated phenomenon.”

When somebody says something is “quite a complicated phenomenon,” it’s a good bet it isn’t complicated at all, and there’s nothing complicated about this “art.” As Li Tingtao said, it is blatant propaganda, “done according to orders” of the Chinese Communist Party.

Wang continues:

“When we see these works, we really admire these young artists…They’re still bursting with a kind of creativity and realized the value of their youth."

Hu and Ai then overlay with period footage of struggle sessions to illustrate the “kind of creativity” the youth actually engaged in, with the Joker narrating again:

“At that time many teachers and famous painters were stripped of their authority.  The lives of many teachers were threatened…Professional artists were not even allowed to touch a paint brush.  Only us, the students, had access.”

It is at this point in the film that my friend and former Red Guard, Zhou Jineng, first appears, http://publicoccurrenc.blogspot.com/2010/09/my-dear-friend-i-have-just-finished.html, briefly explaining that one purpose of the propaganda was “appreciative…meant to glorify, or even deify Mao-thought.”  Hu and Ai then cut to an interview with Liu Chunhua to reinforce Zhou’s point. Liu Chunhua was creator of the defining piece of propaganda art of the Cultural Revolution, “Chairman Mao Goes to Anyuan.”

Friday, March 04, 2011

Libya 2.0












Ahh, these brave people. These photographs remind me of those of the Spanish Civil War, a ragtag bunch of heroic rebels fighting dictatorship. 

"The Chinese Cultural Revolution," by Mr. Zhang Mu. Chapter 1.1-10


This is the next installment in Mr. Mu's book.  My apologies that this has been delayed over a month, and for my continuing inability to reproduce Mr. Mu's photographs.

(4) The CCP enjoyed the peace and held on a large scale clique struggle in Yan’an
Japanese army attacked Kuomintang’s capital crazily, but Yenan did not have war. Famous “Nanjing (Kuomintang's capital) massacre” in the war was never mentioned in Mao’s time. Afterward Kuomintang moved the capital to Chongqing. Statistics indicated that the Japanese forces raid Chongqing altogether 218 times, set out airplane 9513 sorties, 21593 bombs, 11889 people were killed by explosion, 14100 injured, blew down 17608 houses, Chongqing had not submitted. Chongqing built up “The Sino-Japanese War Victory Monument” in 1945, but in 1950 the CCP changed it to be “The people Liberation Monument
New Fourth Army was defeated by Mao’s strategy, Mao won Xiang Ying. Xiang Ying became Mao’s enemy when in Jiangxi “Chinese Soviet areas”. In 1939 spring, Xiang Ying, New Fourth Army's head, sent a telegram to Yan’an central express that Mao married Jiang Qing is not suitably to CCP. The central returned telegram said that they already had married. Xiang Ying cursed: “Mao is shame, abandoned his wife He Zizhen, but joint a such wicked nasty woman, lacking virtue, how can lead the party ......” Mao was in Yenan central to nitpick and to create obstacles to Xiang Ying who was in front. In October, 1940. Liu Shaoqi and so on wanted Xiang Ying’s New Fourth Army which was in south of Yangtze River “to annihilate Han Deqin’s (Kuomintang) army rapidly in north of the river”. In November, Mao ordered New Fourth Army to leave for the north of the River to oppose Japanese. But Mao in Yenan central gave the order telegrams to Xiang Ying that were repugnant, Xiang Ying did not know what course to take. In December, the Eighth Route Army and New Fourth Army fiercely attacked the Kuomintang army in north Yangtze River, Kuomintang army lost seriously. The Kuomintang army assemble nine divisions to surround the New Fourth Army in southern Anhui, forced them before the end of December to cross the river to north to oppose Japanese. On December 23, Mao ordered Xiang Ying’s army to approach Kuomintang capital Nanjing in south of the river. On January 3, 1941, New Fourth Army met the Kuomintang army to retaliate; Xiang Ying’s army had been annihilated. On March 14, Xiang Ying was killed by Liu Houzong, a subordinate CCP. New Fourth Army withered away in Mao’s hand, and removed Xiang Ying, his powerful enemy. Only after Mao’s death then the CCP awards “the revolutionary martyr” title to Xiang Ying.
Yan'an Rectification Movement, the CCP inner conflict and the massacre, was Cultural Revolution's preview. In 1943, a lot of CCP cadres were charged as “spies” in Yan'an inner conflict. On June 24 the CCP’s “Instruction about the Policy of Struggle with the Kuomintang's Spy” said “in the rectification movement, nearly 1000 Kuomintang's and Japan’s spies are checked among the 10,000 cadres of Yan’an’s various organs, schools”, “it is estimated that certainly have hidden many Japan’s and Kuomintang’s spies, must be carefully cleaned.” Some data released in 1990s said that in “rescue” movement total 2,463 “spies” were “found” in various counties of Yan’an, and in West Gansu’s area almost 99% of the intellectuals were treated as “the person once had slipped” to be “rescued”. Only in Yan’an had 50-60 suicides. The rectification leadership, “The Central of the CCP General Study Committee”, the power even surpassed the CCP Political Bureau. This is just similar to afterward in Cultural Revolution that the power of the “Central Cultural Revolution Leading Group” surpassed CCP Political Bureau. Bo Yibo (CCP’s senior statesman) wrote in his memoirs: “My mother arrived at Yan’an at that time with me, I arranged her to live in a dwelling cave near a deep groove. One day, I looked at her, she said that “here is not good to live, every night persons shrieks and howls wildly, do not know what’s the matter”. I therefore walked to the groove, found that there were several hundreds persons imprisoning in six or seven caves, many neurological disordered, some laugh, some cry,Finally the safeguards told me: they were ‘rescued’ intellectuals, came to Yan’an to study but encountered the ‘rescue’”!
(1,2) Nanjing and Chongqing suffered attack by Japanese heavily, But Yan’an was peace and Mao played game called Ms. Ding Ling and so on 11 youth female as “imperial concubines”. In 1938 Mao left his wife He Zizhen and married with Jiang Qing in Yan’an. (3) In 1939, Zhou Enlai (middle) and Ye Ting, Xiang Ying (left). (4) Mao gave speech on the rectification movement in Yan’an. (5) Mao and Kang Shang, the expert of CCP’s counterrevolutionary suppression in Yenan.
6. Liu Shaoqi and so on created the “Mao Zedong Thought” in Yan’an, vigorously pursued d the personality cult1939-1946
Mao dared to launch CCP’s inner fight in Sino-Japanese War in Yan’an, because Moscow supported him. Liu Shaoqi et al. steered according to the wind and vigorously held Mao’s personality cult; Mao’s individual status was getting more and more consolidated and Liu Shaoqi et al. benefited from it. Mao Zedong more than once said to others: “after the Yan’an rectification, I has known several intimate friends, Liu Shaoqi, Chen Boda, Hu Qiaomu, Gao Gang, Lu Dingyi, Peng Zhen, also has Zhou Yang.” In 1945 Yan’an’s CCP 7th Congress, Liu gave a speech, he had 105 times mentioned Mao Zedong's name. The most disgusting was “our great leader Mao Zedong already used his thought to enhance our entire nationality's thought to an unprecedented altitude. This is the Mao Zedong Thought!” Liu Shaoqi’s action has won Mao’s favorable impression; simultaneously Liu had firmly done as the CCP’s second-hand in CCP 7th Congress. Several years later, when Gao Gang (CCP’s senior statesman) challenged to Liu Shaoqi, said that Liu was “the white area party”; Mao stood one Liu Shaoqi’s side and said that “we are the red area”. Gao Gang despaired to commit suicide. In a quite long time, Mao Zedong assured Liu Shaoqi and trusts him in what he did.
(1) From April 23 to June 11, 1945, the CCP convened the “7th CCP Congress” in Yan’an. (2) Mao gave the Political report in “7th CCP Congress”. (3)Liu Shaoqi in “7th CCP Congress” gave "About Revision Party Constitution Report", 105 times mentioned Mao’s name disgustingly.
7. The CCP said that Stalin is the big benefactor, is the Eighth Route Army defeated Japan, politely called Soviet Union the eldest, oneself the second child1945-1955
1The CCP said that Stalin is the big benefactor, is the Eighth Route Army defeated Japan
China's Sino-Japanese War is a main constituent of “the World War II” (Asian and Pacific battlefield, European, Soviet Union and North Africa battlefield). After the national government troop's frontal battlefield resistance and the communist army's rear area guerrilla warfare, U.S. military as the main force eliminated the Japanese overseas main force, Soviet troops seized the Northeast China (“Manzhouli”) and so on, under these conditions, and the Chinese people had suffered great hardships only then won the victory. The CCP's propaganda machines twists the history, propagandized wantonly that Stalin and Mao were Chinese people's great savior, the Eighth Route Army defeated Japan.
Mao's former secretary Li Rui published his memoir about the CCP 10th Plenary Session of the Eighth Central Committee, said: Mao wanted he and Japanese invaders converging attack Kuomintang, “some comrades thought that the Japan occupying fewer area the better, afterward only then unified understanding: Let Japanese occupy more areas only then it is patriotic”.
Mao Zedong’s quotation 1: “be calm, do not go to front to act as anti-Japanese hero, avoid confrontation with Japanese, engage in guerrilla warfare behind the Japanese’s rear area, try to expand the Eighth Route Army and establish anti-Japan guerilla bases, save and expand our party's armed forces by any means possible. To the government, by each kind of excuse we must evade its order which urges us to go to front, only then after the Japanese forces killed the Kuomintang’s troops greatly, we can obtain the achievement defeating Japan without labor, capture Kuomintang's power. Our Chinese Communists must take advantage of the opportunity that Kuomintang goes all out fight ageist Japanese, and take advantage opportunity of Japan occupation of China to expand and develop ourselves strength, certainly after anti-Japan War’s victory and Kuomintang was exhausted in the war, we must take the entire China.”--- Summary of Mao’s speech in Northern Shaaxi’s Luochuan Meeting in August, 1937. (In 1961 reprinted version’s “Selected Works of Mao Zedong” these words had been deleted).
Mao Zedong’s quotation 2: “I once have talked with the Japanese friends. They said sorry that the Japanese Imperial Army had invaded China. I said, no! Not your Imperial Army invaded most half of the China, the Chinese people can not unite to cope with Chiang Kai-shek, and the CCP can not seize the power. Therefore, the Japanese Imperial Army is a good teacher for CCP, also can be said it is great benefactor, the great savior. “-- July 10, 1964, Mao’s speech in Beijing in meeting with chairman of the Japan Socialist Party Sasaki and Kuroda Hisao ((Pick from "Long Live Mao Zedong Thought".533-534 pages)
Mao Zedong’s quotation 3: “The Japanese Imperial Army occupied most half of China in the past, so the Chinese people have accepted the education. If there is no Japanese invasion, we are still in the mountains; you and I can not watch the Beijing opera here. It is precisely because the Japanese Imperial Army occupied most half of China; let us establish many anti-Japanese base areas for the future victory of the liberation war created the conditions. Japanese monopoly capital and the warlords have done the `good deed’ to us, if needs to say thank, actually I want to thank the Japanese Imperial Army invading China.” -- On January 24, 1961, Mao talked with Japanese Socialist party congressmen Kuroda Hisao ands so on. (Pick from “Mao Zedong Diplomacy Literary selections”, edited by the People's Republic of China Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Central Committee of the CCP Literature Institute, Central Literature Publishing House, in 1994)
The Chinese language textbook in 1946 of Shandong Zhaoyuan County, where was the CCP occupied area at that time. The text: “Soviet Union's leader - Stalin, he is the Soviet Union people’s Savior, he also leads the world people to strive for liberation.” “Soviet Union has Red Army, They are really brave! They have defeated the German Fascist; they drove out Japanese devil from our Northeast.” “Red Army has made the Long March. The Eighth Route Army has attacked Japan for eight year. The People's Liberation Army regained cities, had established the new liberated area. The Eighth Route Army once is called the Red Army, has made the Long March, it has established the new liberated area, now is our People's Liberation Army.”
       "National Language Textbook" published by the CCP occupied area of Eastern Shandong District in 1947, text: "Mary Shek Wah letter to Comrade Stalin – Comrade Stalin: I'm a blacksmith's daughter, from 9 years of age, I had to rely on myself to earn money living. At first to the landlord looked care the child as a farmhand, every day was beaten and scolded, lived worse than those of beasts’ life. At that time I was only 13 years old! Afterward I was in a microcheiria factory, sweeping the floor and doing the arduous work every day, the life is painful. At that time, life is unbearable to imagine! I was rescued in the Great Revolution! Now I am a worker of the Textile factory, and this is my greatest glory. This kind of glory is a communist party member's glory; Comrade Stalin, it is also your glory.” “Because Chairman Mao loves the people, therefore the people also deeply love Chairman Mao. Once a village commemorated the July 1 CCP’s birthday, an old farmer saw that on the stage is hanging Chairman Mao's portrait, he knelt down and bowed, others urged him not to do this, the old man said that “I know this is an old way of thinking, but does not have Chairman Mao, how can my whole family live to present? I see Chairman Mao just like to see the rain in the long dry weather! Children, you see, Chairman Mao is in among the people, how is received respects!”
(1) In November-December, 1929, Soviet Union invaded China’s northeast. Photo shows the Soviet Red Army repairing the tank which spoiled in the fight in the Northeast. (2,3) On August 9, 1945, US had thrown the atomic bomb in Japan, the end of the Japanese army invading China  arrived, the Soviet Red Army entered China at this time.
(1, 2) Soviet Red Army entered China, did nothing without all the evil ones. (3) Soviet Red Army's picture poster said “Soviet Red Army completes the liberation mission and is highest honor”.
2The CCP politely called Soviet Union the eldest, oneself the second child
After it established government, the CCP everywhere politely calls Soviet Union as the “eldest brother”, itself was the second one, and everywhere posted Stalin and Mao Zedong's portraits.
On February 14, 1952 People's Daily published an article entitled "Soviet Union Is Our Chinese people's Genuine Friend", it said: “The world people, especially the Chinese people, should express thanks for Marshal Stalin and the Soviet government the Soviet people, simultaneously, also should express thanks for the Chinese people leader Chairman Mao and the CCP and the Central People's Government. In the Sino-Japanese War, only the Soviet Union is the most real friend to have given the most and earliest assistance to us. In Chinese people's liberation war, the Soviet Union is the same always sympathy with and support the Chinese people. "
 On November 7, 1952, People's Daily published the article entitled “Thank you, elder brother!” (Author: Xiao San), it said: “Millions and millions Chinese, from old to small, in this great holiday cheer to the Soviet people who are remote and intimate: Thank you, elder brother!”. On March 8, 1953, People's Daily published the article entitled “Beijing Suburban farmer Mourned Comrade Stalin”, it said: “The farmers hear the broadcast message that Comrade Stalin died of illness ......Zhu Sufang and her mother cries fiercely. They remember five years ago when the Japanese robbers and the Kuomintang reactionaries are ruling Beijing, her whole family can not even eat the roughest noodles. If not Stalin sent troops to help us defeat the Japanese devils, those crimes still do not know when to be ended ... ...”
 
(1) In September, 1948, the opening ceremony of a Songhua River bridge in Jilin, it erected huge Stalin and Mao’s portraits. (2) In 1952 picture poster “Learn from the Soviet Elder brothers". (3) In 1950s, Mao Zedong inscribed: “The good teacher and helpful friend is Soviet Union”. (4) “Long long live Stalin”, the Chinese People's Liberation Army set up the podium for the birthday of Stalin.
(1) In October, 1949, Liaoning province celebrated the Central People's Government inauguration meeting; Overhang Marx, Engels, Lenin, Stalin, Mao Zedong's portraits. Photo by Zhan Hongge. (2) In 1950s, CCP organized populace assembles in Beijing, Stalin’s portraits were like the sea. (s) In 1950s, Tianjin celebrated the National Day, populace carried Stalin and Mao’s portraits to parade.

Seeking the Soul of Presbyterianism

                                                                
A Presbyterian minister's wife--without hosiery--next to the family car, a Rolls-Royce Phantom.

Seeking the Soul of Presbyterianism

Presbyterians love blue hosiery. Apparently.

Seeking the Soul of Presbyterianism

Presbyterians pay full list price for Rolls-Royce's.

Presbyterian Singles

This is the site for Presbyterian singles to meet, swap stories about their Rolls-Royce's and swap bodily fluids.

The Presbyterian University Blue Hose

                                                              

Presbyterianism In Its Own Words

Presbyterians love Rolls-Royce automobiles.

Thursday, March 03, 2011

Islam In Its Own Words: The Koran


"On that day we shall assemble all the sinners. Their eyes will turn blue with terror..." 20:97 

Blue? Blue eyes=terror? Wrong again, Mo.

Islam In Its Own Words: The Koran


"We shall gather them all on the day of resurrection, prostrate upon their faces, blind, dumb, and deaf. Hell shall be their home: whenever its flames die down we will rekindle them into a greater fire." 17:97

Islam In Its Own Words: The Koran

"The day will surely come when those who disbelieve will wish
that they were Muslims." 14:3


                                                                        
Ohh sheesh, who decides what ads get placed here? Google puts up Muslim singles ads and now Amazon is being..."challenged."  Who is Benjamin Harris Brewster? Richard Harris, Benjamin Harris C-something, Ed Harris. Some first generation computer is evidently doing a "content" crawl and all it's seeing is Muslims and "Benjamin Harris" so it's doing, "looks like." It's stereotyping!  What a waste of money and space. Fine, you want to be dumb, I'm changing my name to Benjamin Rolls-Royce.

Photo: Benjamin Harris, the only psychiatrist in Liberia.