The Generalissimo: Chiang Kai-shek and the Struggle for Modern China, by Jay Taylor

Cambridge, Ma.: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2009. Pp. xiv, 722. Illus., maps, notes, biblio., index . $35.00. ISBN: 0674033388.

A prominent figure in Chinese affairs for over a half-century, Chiang (1887-1975) has not fared well among scholars, usually seen as an inept, corrupt opportunist who mismanaged his country, bungled the war with Japan, and lost the civil war with the Communists.

Taylor, sometime Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Intelligence and Research, and East Asian specialist with a number of books to his credit, notably The Generalissimo's Son: Chiang Ching-kuo and the Revolutions in China and TaiwanandThe Rise and Fall of Totalitarianism in the Twentieth Century, opens this work by admitting that he too once shared these views. But, he goes on, while writing his biography of Chiang Ching-kuo (1910-1988), who succeeded his father as president of the Republic of China and helped turn Taiwan into one of the Asian Tigers, he came to see that Chiangs reputation had been much maligned by his many enemies. The result is a biography that actually is in keeping with current trends in the Peoples Republic where Chiang has begun to be referred to with some favor as the leader of the national resistance to Japan. The Generalissimo not only delves deeply into Chiangs life and work, but in the process gives the reader a crash course in the complexities of Chinese history and politics in peace and war from the mid-nineteenth century through the late twentieth.

Although its heft may seem a bit discouraging, this is an important read for those interested in modern China or World War II.

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Reviewer: A. A. Nofi

http://www.strategypage.com/bookreviews/678.asp

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"The chief aim of all government is to preserve the freedom of the citizen. His control over his person, his property, his movements, his business, his desires should be restrained only so far as the public welfare imperatively demands. The world is in more danger of being governed too much than too little. It is the teaching of all history that liberty can only be preserved in small areas. Local self-government is, therefore, indispensable to liberty. A centralized and distant bureaucracy is the worst of all tyranny. Taxation can justly be levied for no purpose other than to provide revenue for the support of the government. To tax one person, class or section to provide revenue for the benefit of another is none the less robbery because done under the form of law and called taxation." John W. Davis, Democratic Presidential Candidate, 1924. Davis was one of the greatest trial and appellate lawyers in US history. He also served as the US Ambassador to the UK.

a good read. jonathon fenby's the generalissimo and the china he lost, offers greater insight to the earlier part of his life especially his personal relationships during the warlord, japanese invasion and early civil. ear periods.

jay taylor's earlier work, the generalissimo's son, about chiang's capable sun, chiang ching kuo is a great piece of work. happy reading.

Compare to Mao he has low intelligence and inflexible. He is the reason why the communist has control of mainland China.

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THE KUOMINTANG HAS SENT SEVEN SHIPLOADS OF CHINESE GOLD TO US IN 1938
There were many shipments, but in 1938, seven battleships evacuated Chinese gold from China to the United States to avoid it being taken by the Japanese.

They gave the Chinese all these Federal Reserve Board bonds, promising to give the gold back in 60 years. The point is that in 1998, the Chinese owners of the gold sued the Federal Reserve Board, and said Give us back our gold.

THE FEDERAL RESERVE SAID 200,000 TONS GIVEN IN THE 70s HAD BEEN ENOUGH

The Federal Reserve Board people argued that they didnt have to give back the gold. [They said they had paid in full] because they gave a bunch of gold to Chairman Mao in the 1970s when the United States renewed relations with communist China. DW: Could you be more technical than what you said a bunch? What are we talking, here? But two hundred thousand tons is not going to fill seven battleships. Thats the point. Federal Reserve Board had lost the case.

THE FIRST GOLD SHIPMENT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE SEPTEMBER 12, 2001
The International Court of Justice said You guys have to give back the gold you took - KUOMINTANG. They said Okay. The first shipment of gold they were supposed to give back was due to be sent back on September 12th, 2001. The World Trade Center got blown up on September 11th.
The gold that was in the basement went missing.

ALL THE PAPERS AND THE EMPLOYEES HANDLING THEM WERE DESTROYED
Cantor Fitzgerald Securities, the company that was handling the paperwork, was blown up and all 600 of their employees were killed. Was that in Building 7? Building 7, where the Treasury police and all these people were, was blown up and all the paperwork there was blown up. Basically, they were saying, Were not giving back the gold!

WAS THIS PLANNED FROM THE BEGINNING OF THE WTC?
It leads one to reason that if charges were placed in the World Trade Center when it was constructed I believe it was constructed in the 1970s, right? President Bushs brother was in charge of security at the World Trade Center. There was all sorts of construction going on there.

FINALLY - THE KUOMINTANG KNEW THEY HAD BEEN CHEATED
So China must have known they got rolled. When they saw the World Trade Center come down, they must have suspected something immediately!

What a load of crap. I'd certainly be interested in your historical sources.

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"The chief aim of all government is to preserve the freedom of the citizen. His control over his person, his property, his movements, his business, his desires should be restrained only so far as the public welfare imperatively demands. The world is in more danger of being governed too much than too little. It is the teaching of all history that liberty can only be preserved in small areas. Local self-government is, therefore, indispensable to liberty. A centralized and distant bureaucracy is the worst of all tyranny. Taxation can justly be levied for no purpose other than to provide revenue for the support of the government. To tax one person, class or section to provide revenue for the benefit of another is none the less robbery because done under the form of law and called taxation." John W. Davis, Democratic Presidential Candidate, 1924. Davis was one of the greatest trial and appellate lawyers in US history. He also served as the US Ambassador to the UK.

^^ Well, I'm sure there's a Cantonese-language Youtube video as evidence some place out there.

In any event, "200,000 tons of gold" is a hell of a lot of gold. It makes sense to split that kind of load up in different ships. Geez, I'd love to see a description of those "battleships."

Holy Crap I've actually started to acknowledge this theory exists by talking about it. For the record, however, it seems that the theory here is that the WTC was constructed from the outset with charges to blow it up at some point in the future when the Federal Reserve short-changed (as opposed to "loose changed") Red China by sending it back only "200,000 tons of gold" around the same time the WTC was being constructed.



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