Rating: Summary: Journalistic View Of Recent US-China History Review: The United States relationship with Communist China has been an exceedingly curious thing over the years. From the time of the Chinese Communist revolution when the Nationalist Chinese were driven from the mainland to modern day Taiwan until Richard Nixon's visit in the early 70's we refused to recognize them as a country. We ignored the vast bulk of the country and recognized only the Nationalists in Taiwan as the legitimate Chinese government because although the Nationalists were not democratic they at least were not communist.Not only did we not recognize them we fought them in Korea and it is thought that we killed over 1,000,000 of their soldiers. The fighting there was so bitter that it appeared at times our own troops might be completely wiped out and killing of the wounded and prisoners was taking place on both sides at times. Then in Vietnam the Chinese backed the Vietnamese and Khmer Rouge elements as well as the Laotian communist insurgents. In short they were on the other side in conflicts that killed over 80,000 of our soldiers and in which we killed millions of communist soldiers, civilians, etc. They were one of the great powers involved in causing the conflicts because it was the communists who invaded in both conflicts not the other way around. In the 1960's the Chinese hordes were seen as a great threat to western civilization it was they after all who drove McArther back to the demarcation line in Korea (suffering staggering losses including the son of chairman Mao). They were second only to the Soviet Union on the list of threats to the U.S. and this was only exacerbated when they exploded their first nuclear weapon. Isn't it strange that although the government today is the same government that existed back then only with different faces and that we are now such good allies when in some respects little has changed? Why this sudden about face with a country that had been our enemy prior to the Nixon mission and who has failed to change significantly from what they were before. For all the economic reforms taking place in today's China the government more closely resembles Fascism than Communism and neither of them are particularly compatible with western democracy. Why do we cut them so much slack and why he change? That's what the book is about. Consecutive administrations since the Nixon mission reestablished relations with the mainland have consistently sought to curry favor with the communist administration in Beijing. Initially it made sense in the respect that it drove a wedge of sorts between the "communist giants" and weakened their united front. With the decline of the Soviets and the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and the subsequent disintegration of the USSR that followed that rationale no longer held up. Yet to this very day we continue to treat our relationship with Communist China as a "special friend" situation politically. We do this despite the fact that they have been directly implicated in practicing espionage against our military industrial complex, computer industry, and nuclear development agencies (in the 1990's). We do this despite the fact that they are thought to be spending $80 billion annually on armaments when they claim $20 billion and the major expressed military objective is to counter the hegemony of the US. We do this despite a steady track record of doing and saying very unfriendly things most recently the incident with the ramming of our spy plane and then holding our personnel for a period of time. We do this despite the fact that our concepts of human rights are directly opposed to one another and incompatible (we believe in the rights of human beings to choose their own destiny, political and religious freedoms etc. Their definition of human rights and freedom is quite literally free housing, medical, etc all provided and controlled by the government). China is one of the countries systematically undermining the western concept of the value of human life because they consider human being expendable and always have (hence the human waves sent against our overwhelming firepower in Korea that still knocked us back at a terrible price). The book looks at these questions and is somewhat critical of U.S. policy to some extent because we have helped a potentially hostile country survive with a repressive military regime in place that is not reluctant about slaughtering it's own citizenry in their hundreds if not thousands (Tianamen Square). Saving face in Asia is more important element than it is in west but are we being disingenuous in taking the insults and transgressions of the Chinese Communist government lightly and will it come back to haunt us later in the century? In short there are disturbing aspects to the relationship and to some extent it appears we are in bed with the devil on this one at this time.
Rating: Summary: a wake-up call to the threat Review: This book is a great reminder to all of us Americans who are forgetful, fad-loving and generally too generous.
What we forget:
-"Great leap forward" by Mao and CCP artificially-created famine killed millions of Chinese people
-"Cultural revolution" imprisoned, tortured and killed thousands of political opponents of Mao and their families.
-PRC crushed masses of students calling for democracy and massacred them in Tiannanmen Square in 1989. Detailed in a great book "Red China Blues" by a Canadian-Chinese reporter.
-Despite all these, Clinton administration gave MFN and millions of American jobs to China.
(...)
Rating: Summary: Want to know China, read this book Review: This book is a must for one who wants to learn more about China. My professor at Fletcher, Tuft assigned this book and I love it.
Rating: Summary: half the equation Review: this worthy book, all the more fetching to me as a sinologist and former resident of beijing, reflects the very problem it identifies: that china has managed to exempt itself from consistent scrutiny by the united states in the promise of delivering a profitable and strategic relationship. although much of the world was apparently ignorant of the cultural revolution's carnage as it went on (1966-76), henry kissinger's comments about its irrelevance to the 'realpolitik' of diplomacy are chilling. in a world that is still sorting out who knew what and when about hitler's death camps and still shudders at his photographs with prominent personalities, the real shock for me is simply accepting america's historic breakthrough with china without being shocked by the image of president nixon in the company of chairman mao. it was not until the international media found itself deep in the wound of the tian-an men massacre that the doubting thomases were convinced of china's dark capabilities. in this book and through no fault of its own, china is a scrim, lacking the same depth of narrative which is offered on the american stage. i would hope that either mr. mann, a keen observer, indeed, or another, undertakes an exercise which relates diplomatic masque to the folks on the ground in china. i hate to dwell on the past; but, that's what history is all about.
Rating: Summary: lin11@smart.net Review: Very good and interesting book. A excellent book for people who is eager to know the China-USA relationship from the begining to the present. I highly recommand. It is amazing that China policy was decided by the small group of people (one or two). Kinssinger is absolute controverstial. His China policy was based on his personal interest. What a shame! He served as an advisor in many business companies involved business in China. He would like to trade Taiwan for Vietnam with China in 1970s. I wonder if he would like to trade Isaeral for peace of the Middle East.
Rating: Summary: lin11@smart.net Review: Very good and interesting book. A excellent book for people who is eager to know the China-USA relationship from the begining to the present. I highly recommand. It is amazing that China policy was decided by the small group of people (one or two). Kinssinger is absolute controverstial. His China policy was based on his personal interest. What a shame! He served as an advisor in many business companies involved business in China. He would like to trade Taiwan for Vietnam with China in 1970s. I wonder if he would like to trade Isaeral for peace of the Middle East.
Rating: Summary: The truth is unsettling Review: Very informative. Makes you wish it was a novel, and not the way our government has handled the relations with China all these years. This is a must read for anyone interested in geo-political events. Easy to read, scary to think about. Gives insight into the mess we find ourselves in now, Aug 99, with China.
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