The Cultural Revolution ☭

 The Cultural Revolution.

    Last night, I watched an extremely moving interview. It was about a woman, who had moved to the United States, after living through the Chinese Revolution. The woman, whose name was Xi Van Fleet, talked about her experience in China, where their entire society changed, and how she saw tremendous parallels over here in the West.

    Xi was a woman who was born into China, before it had become a Communist State. The current leader, Mao, had power, yet like all other dictators- craved more. He then split from his party, and formed his own movement. This movement, which Mao had identified himself as the leader, aimed at attacking the rich, upper class of Chinese families around the country, in order to have them fall. This allowed him to also accumulate more power, with less individuals standing in his way of total domination of the country. 

    Honestly, as an individual who is interested in history, the interview was fun. Fun, in the sense, that I was able to expose myself to a part of the world which I can openly say I lack knowledge. I have studied the history of China briefly, and would say that I have a rough idea of its past. However, I did now know about the depth of the Cultural Revolution, and everything which came with it. The very act itself was eye-opening to say the least. 

    Living here in the West, it is often difficult to imagine and understand what goes on on the complete other side of the planet. Obviously, the more one travels, the more they are able to acquire new information and learn the history of the world. Still, something about China seems so far away. The distance of a nation, the complete other side of me, makes it difficult to truly dive into its heritage. Perhaps that is simply my own ignorance, a mistake which I cannot blame anybody but myself. Still, the Chinese Revolution was truly fascinating, understanding how one man, hungry for power, was able to conquer an entire nation. 

    The similarities between what happened in China, over 60 years ago, and what is happening here in the West, is alarming. The parallels are nearly identical, which makes it even harder to believe. For starters, the Chinese Cultural Revolution used the Red Coats to execute the will of their Supreme Leader, Mao. The Red Coats, which were a form of militia, were born from the highest ranking Universities in China. These individuals, who were being indoctrinated by their system, rose to power, and began to cause chaos. The Red Coats were given immunity, meaning that the police were no longer allowed to interfere with them. That allowed these individuals to run rampant, first with sticks and stones, and then eventually, with guns. Once the militia had received real weapons, things got out of hand, fast.

    The Chinese Cultural Revolution was based upon class. Their Supreme Leader, Mao, built a system where he set up the workers vs the bourgeoise. A classic Marxist scenario. The workers, students, and poor class, leaped at the opportunity to take down their successful counter partners. They rushed at the occasion, ready to stand up and finally execute justice, according to their own will. This allowed the Red Coats to begin killing all sorts of individuals in positions of power. One of the instances which stood out was the murder of a school principal, in a prestigious middle school. Any individual who was considered to be high class, was now at risk. This caused complete panic and chaos throughout the country.

    Once chaos had spread, and things were getting out of hand, right one cue- Supreme Leader Mao mobilized the army. The national guard showed up, in tanks and advanced weapons, to suppress the uprising. The very individuals, who thought they were doing the right thing for their leader, were cut off immediately. Mao told the leaders of the Red Coat, that they had disappointed him. Essentially, he had used and manipulated their anger to help dance his own goals. He then relocated all the individuals into the rural country side, and made them do forced labour, in an attempt to re-educate them into the new country which he was building.

    The parallels between China then, and the West now, are uncanny. They actually scare me, if I am being 100% honest. Here in the West, we are sleep walking into a disaster. There is simply no other way to put it. We are allowing the build up, and failure, of our society, which will only set us down a single path. We as a nation, are on the brink of collapse. I am scared. I will no longer hide it. I am willing to openly admit it, before you all. The path we have chosen leads to nothing other than violence, and starvation. Socialism, followed by Communism, has never worked out. Not even once. The concept on paper is one which is highly intriguing and attractive. However, once the human element is added into the mix- all bets are off. Once power and corruption take over those who are power-hungry, things begin to fall apart- fast.

    Overall, the interview with Xi was alarming. It opened my eyes to so many things about the history of China and Communism, that I did not know before. It allowed me to understand how things change so quickly, as if almost overnight. Something I had always struggled to understand, is how a country can completely flip and lose itself, with a snap of its fingers. After hearing a first-hand experience, I now understand. The feelings have been taught and been bubbling inside of the school systems for years. Generations of propaganda, pushed onto individuals who are hungry for change. People who believe that the life they are living, is no longer fair. The very concept that something greater awaits them, if they simply have the courage to stand up and claim it themselves. 

    Communism has always left individuals way worse off than they were before. Hence, why so many individuals from communism regimes, do their best to escape the country while still possible. Everywhere, from Venezuela, to Cuba, to even East Germany. The never-ending game of death and starvation. Yet here we are, half a century later, ready to play the game again. The never-ending cycle of capitalism, to socialism, to communism.

History repeats itself, over and over again. 

        May God Have Mercy,

                    Amen.