Headlines from the Cultural Revolution
“…a civilization whose abundant roots reach back into antiquity miraculously all but vanished: people turned on each other in a barbarous performance of blood-letting; goodness and beauty went underground; ugliness and evil were given wanton release…”
“Strengths were turned into weaknesses, honesty became deceit, tranquility gave way to frenzy, brightness turned to gloom.”
“Everything that contributes to the nobility of man – character, humanity, human rights, dignity and self-worth – was exposed to public abuse.”
Are these quotes from today’s headlines and current events perhaps, where looting, ransacking, mayhem, rioting, public shaming, killing, lawlessness, tattle-tailing and everything normal in a respectful society has broken down? Where this “woke” group or that one garners attention under the umbrella of being offended or being a victim? Where many jump on the bandwagon of virtue signaling without fully understanding exactly what that bandwagon is all about?
No, in fact, these quotes are taken from the preface of a book I’m currently reading called “Ten Years of Madness, Oral Histories of China’s Cultural Revolution”, by author Fens Jicai. The book is a compilation of first-hand accounts of the Chinese “Cultural Revolution”, ten years and one of the darkest and tragic periods of Mao Zedong’s rule. What is frightening is that some of the same tactics being used by the radical left in our country now, mirror to some extent those used by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) then. The “Red Guard”, kids from middle school through college were made “useful idiots” (a term attributed to Vladimir Lenin) by the millions and used to ransack, loot and destroy apartments and homes of those not in line with current “Mao Zedong Thought”, better stated, those not perceived to be in agreement. Beatings, torture, suicides, public humiliation (have you seen the videos from NY City where BLM members harass diners and demand they raise their fist in support?) and executions (have you seen the video of a radical leftist executing a man in Portland Oregon, followed by cheers from the supporters?) were the “new normal” during the ten-year period of the Cultural Revolution in China. Previously respected engineers, teachers and artists (the bourgeoise) were suddenly the persecuted by the “true revolutionaries”, the Proletariat. Taken from their jobs and homes, and sent to prisons or the countryside to work as peasants for re-education, many never returned as millions died in the wake of the horror.
Most sane Americans do not support the rioting and destruction being permitted (and in some cases silently or publicly endorsed) to occur by far-left radical city officials. As you head to the polls this November, be sure to know just which candidates you are supporting. Avoid those on the far-left, for the sake of our town, state and country. I ask all Republicans, Independents, and Democrats who do NOT reside in the radical left, to please support me, a candidate who will not support and tolerate another “10 years of madness”.