Mao Zedong And The Revolutionary War

The cultural revolution is a strange period in Chinese history laced with intense struggle and anguish. The cultural revolution mobilized the all of society to compete for all opposing factions that they belonged to (Ong, 2016). Mao mobilized the young people of society during a background of political turmoil, which helped Mao to mobilize the students in order to enforce his political legitimacy and ideas (Ong, 2016). Mao’s charismatic authority created his personality cult and most defiantly leant a helping hand in mobilizing the red guard movement (Ong, 2016) (Weber, 1946) (Andreas, 2007). No matter which faction of the red guard they belonged to, they all mobilized against their common enemy; the better off, upper class. (Ong, 2016). Multiple ideologies within the youth led red guard movement explain why the movement gained momentum and became incredibly powerful (Walder, 2009).

“As one of the Red Guards in the middle school, I was given power through Mao to torture and humiliate our teachers, headmaster or anyone we didn’t like. I didn’t know it was wrong. I thought I was doing the right thing to continue the revolution, to fight and win the class struggle”- Zhao, Lin Qing. As a teenager Zhao was a Red Guard in Guangzhou during the Cultural Revolution. When asked what her impression was a member of the Red Guards, Zhao answered with two words: “naïve and senseless”. She refused answering anything more about her experience. She said, “The memories are still too painful to recall.”

The method applied by Zedong focused on uniting China under one belief in order to implement communist ideas in the country, widely changing the country’s structure. (Doc 7). At his defense trial, Cuban revolution leader Fidel Castro appealed to those struggling in his country. He spoke to those who hoped for a brighter future and who have been betrayed by their country. By addressing their battle, Castro urged them to fight for a better Cuba. His relentless and undying commitment ultimately granted Castro his wish for a revolution. (Doc 8). An additional document consisting of a diary entry from a Chinese citizen during the communist revolution would create a clearer vision as to how convincing Mao Zedong truly was.

In 1927 the rising leader of the Chinese Communist party was acknowledging that soon the upsurge of peasant rebellion was soon, and that will soon rise up and overpower the wealthy landowning class. (DOC 1). In 1941 a Japanese official report had noted that due to extreme similarities between the peasants and local communist guerrilla unit. These

The brutal and vicious strategies used during the second Indochina war eloquently were brought to light by James W. McCoy in “Secrets of the Viet Cong.” McCoy describe the stories and acts that occurred during the second Indochina war that had taken place on all sides of the field. The main focus of this book is the U.S pitted against the V.C as well as the many other obstacles faced in the country of Vietnam. War in general is a very interesting topic, especially the Vietnam war. The fact that the superpower America had failed to compete and to win against the small country of North Vietnam makes this specific war as interesting as it is. Not to mention the warfare tactics and strategies used by either side makes it an enthralling topic to

Perhaps it is in human nature to turn to violence in turbulent times. We often overlook the violence that goes hand in hand with great historical change. And, as the victors write history, often the violence that acts as the cornerstone of societies are toned down and forgotten. During the Cultural Revolution in China, violence forced its way into the everyday life of the people. Everyday people— peaceful farmers, city folk— became the vehicle for immense violence in both a severe and widespread scope. This violence, while operating within the bounds of human nature, is motivated by a social requirement to prove one’s dedication to the CCP, “soldiers” who become carried away with newfound power and government encouragement, forcing ideology by brute force, retaliation, personal pride or protection, and human instinct to resort to violence; and can occur in any society.

One of McNamara’s central claims in this book was towards how his exceptional group of coworkers and he managed to get it all wrong in Vietnam. The problems made by the administration were not a matter of intentions or calculation, but rather those of judgments and capabilities of the region (McNamara, XIX). They should not have started a war with traditional military strategy with an enemy prepared to take a significant number of casualties. Vietnam had no political stability to conduct a peaceful and stable operation; it was simply not possible (McNamara, 49). Kennedy and Johnson believed that the loss of South Vietnam to the Communists would lead to the spread of Communism across Asia. To stop Communism from spreading, the United States

One of the primary goals of “General Offensive/General Uprising” was to provoke a popular uprising but the exact opposite came about. Buoyed by the energetic response by the government of President Thieu and the respectable fighting of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam, popular support ended up increasing for the government in Saigon. This represented a clear strategic failure for the NVA.

The Vietnam War was one of the first wars to be broadcasted in one’s own living room. It is also one of the most misconstrued and misunderstood wars that have resulted in American defeat. Being one of the longest wars fought in history, it has left many questioning the motivation behind the conflict that spanned two decades before being resolved. Despite being a conflict between North and South Vietnam, the United States decided to enter the war in spite of being faced with opposition from its citizens. This was a war of choice, not necessity. The United States’ incentive was solely stimulated by self-interest and progressed by deception. It has generated controversial opinions when analyzing whether the war was justifiable in terms of origin, motivation and U.S. involvement. The U.S., to justify their interference in the war, used the domino theory, which exaggerated and instilled fear of communism in the public. Unfortunately, it is not enough to rationalize their decision and will further be scrutinized when applying the Just War theory.

Mao Zedong leader of the (CDC) advocated guerrilla fighting which he said is “a powerful special weapon with which we resist the Japanese and without which we cannot defeat them. And it can only succeed if employed by revolutionaries because it is a political and military style. guerrilla warfare is a way for the Chinese to expel an intruder that has more arms, equipment, and troops. Where the industrial nations stressed such tangible military factors such as arms, logistics and manpower; Mao focused on the intangibles which are time, space and will. Not being able to fight a well- equipped army in the field, Mao avoided battles by giving territory to the

He understood that China can not simply copy the ideas of Soviet Russia since China and Russia are in different conditions: “ China’s revolutionary war is waged in the specific environment of China and so it has its own specific circumstances and nature…. Some people say that it is enough merely to study the experience of revolutionary war in Russia…. [However] although we must value Soviet experience… we must value even more the experience of China’s revolutionary war because

It is clear that Mao’s initial goal was to gain power in China, which is demonstrated by his determination to overthrow Chiang Kai-shek and the Kuomintang (KMT) via his idiosyncratic version of communist revolution. In order to do so, Mao utilised methods he deemed most suitable for the communists and, more broadly, Chinese society. For example, unlike his Marxist predecessors, Mao believed that peasants, not urban workers, were the key to rebellion in China. Subsequently, in 1926, he organised peasant unions

“Now, you have to choose between two roads.” The man from the Revolutionary Committee looked straight into my eyes. “You can break with your family and follow Chairman Mao, or you can follow your father and become an enemy of the people.” His voice grew more severe. “In that case we would have many more study sessions, with your brother and sister too, and the Red Guard Committee and the school leaders.

Sun Tzu understood the nature of war as “the province of life or death,” and a “matter of vital importance to the state.”1 I agree. In my own experience, war awakens your primordial instincts and strips you of your self-rationalizations. Sun Tzu defined the character of war when he wrote, “water has no constant form, there are in war no constant conditions.”2 Accordingly, Sun Tzu’s principals of war offer a framework adequate to explain the nature and character of 21st century warfare, which I rationalize as a near-continuous battle of ideologies fought through asymmetric means to advance the values and interests of state and non-state actors.

War or conflict is a part of the mankind’s world. Although nobody likes war but it still exists as a certain fact with various appearances and characters. In the 21st century, the phantom of the war and terrorism become a truly threaten to international community. In Vietnam, there is no terrorism or religious war. Frankly, Vietnam does not have to deal with this complicated issues. However, Vietnam is facing to many unforeseen risks that directly threaten against the security and national defense as well stability and development of Vietnam. One of that unforeseen risks is potential war between Vietnam and China. The Sun Tzu