Posted on 10/18/2001 10:02:07 PM PDT by super175
The most basic form of capital is what you mentioned in post #76
You are being ignorant to reality.
Sun's revolutionary ideas were not only about those things, but they were about not immediately having those things.
The feudal Chinese culture required a great deal of time and effort to change. The 'democratic' movement in China was not a popular revolution, as in everyone on the street being able to comprehend everything about democracy and fighting for that.
Sun wanted to revolutionize Chinese culture, away from feudalism, which would take time, and for a while a dictatorship.
This was reality. 'We have a lock on power until the new though (new Chinese thought) catches on...'.
He not only had a revolution against the feudal lords, but also against the negative aspects of feudal Chinese culture. (such as foot binding, etc)
He wanted to educate the entire masses because democracy without education does not work.
You are saying that 'they were all dictators' as in all dictators are the same. You are being ignorant.
Sun recognized (and so did Chiang) that there had to be a transition period specifically tailored for China in the move towards democracy. How else would you westernize (to some extent) the uneducated masses who would not understand the concept of voting...ever?
No. According to Marxism, the basic elements of production are capital and labor (physical and/or mental). Capital is the physical resources or materials that can be used to generate revenues. Things related to human brains are labor, such as knowledge, profession nad skill. Marx believed men should not buy or sell labor because it insults the dignity of human beings and deprives them of the right to fully contribute their labor to the society. There are many examples in which people have to give up their favorite professions to find jobs they don't like in order to put food on the table. Marx thought it was humiliation.
I am not talking about 'according to marxism'. I am talking about sheer Americanism. "Capital" does not have to be physical goods. It can consist of conceptual items or things such as professional skills or labor.
If I am a painter, the skill of painting is my capital, on which I can employ that capital to benefit myself and gain other forms of 'capital' such as a home, money, land, or whatever...
"Capital" in the American sense of the word can mean physical and non physical things. Capital is the physical resources or materials that can be used to generate revenues.
In the American sense of the word, capital does not have to be some tangible asset, like a factory, or tools. Marx believed men should not buy or sell labor because it insults the dignity of human beings and deprives them of the right to fully contribute their labor to the society.
Marx was an idiot.
There are many examples in which people have to give up their favorite professions to find jobs they don't like in order to put food on the table. Marx thought it was humiliation.
Marx was also an arrogant idiot.
The market demands what the market demands. If the market has 10,000 painters and no carpenters, where are you going to sleep?
There are such things as physical capital, and there are such things as human capital.
And on top of that, every man is responsible for himself, and his own freedom of "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."
Every man for himself.
In communist society, you had very little choice as to which professions you got into. Whatever the government felt you were good at is what you did. Like it or not...
You asked me to explain Marxism and I did so. I didn't make any comments.
So, that's not the communism Marx suggested. Marx wanted freedom. If you know anything about Paris Commune, you can find out what Marx's dream was.
Marx thought the individual resposibility should come from self-motivation, not from the fear of hunger or unemployment.
Marx didn't think free competition in capitalism was efficient. Instead the competition caused waste of resources and would end up with monopoly.
The only similarity in language between these so-called dialects is the common writing system.
The common writing system was imposed by Emperor Qin. Before him, there were many different writing systems. Some of those old writing systems still exist in small numbers today. I watched a TV program the other day about 'nu-shu'. It is a completely differenct writing system that exists (or existed) in China...
There are many forms of Chinese writing including different forms of calligraphy.
Jia Gu Wen (the writing on the turtle shells) is the oldest so far...
There is also Zhuan Shu--which refers to those characters that are of curved flowing lines.
The invention of paper made other forms of calligraphy come up too. There is 5 basic categories: 1. Zhuan Shu (see above). 2. Li Shu 3. Kai Shu 4. Xing Shu 5. Cao Shu.
Kai Shu is printed form of characters. Xing and Cao Shu are forms of Chinese cursive writing.
Since 1949 and educational reforms more Han are able to speak putonghua (the "common language" or Mandarin) than ever before.
This began long before 1949, maybe even 50 years before. I can't give a specific date though.
The old language is refered to as Wen Yan Wen, and the new language is refered to as Bai Hua Wen.
Those reforms began to take place around the turn of the century, give or take a few years... It was at least 30 or 40 years before 1949, and before the CCP was even formed. What the CCP called 'putong hua' is referred to as 'guo-yu' on Taiwan.
Wen Yan Wen is an old form of Chinese written grammar. In English terms it would be about like writing in old biblical English. Speaking grammar and written grammar were different before those reforms were undertaken.
Also Wen Yan Wen was largely written in columns going from the right of the page to the left, to be read up to down. It was that way because scrolls were the common writing material (then consider everyone writes with their right hand).
The reforms around the turn of the century westernized some of the Chinese language. It was written side to side, and read just like English. Also Bai Hua Wen was introduced. Basically Bai Hua Wen consolidated written Chinese grammar with spoken Chinese grammar. (of course they are not exactly the same, but much more than with the old way).
The CCP simplified characters from fanti to jianti. That was done for several reasons, part of them political and 'revolutionary' and part of them 'to promote literacy'.
In language circles the oversimplification of characters is widely critcized because it destroyed many of the culturally significant things attached to Chinese writing.
Add one more: Li Shu, which was used in legal documents by the court. Li means "slave".
It was based on the language Machus spoke in the empiral court and used to be called "Jing Qiang" (Beijing Tone).
Simplified characters are good for hand-writing and don't neccessarily lose the cultural meanings in them. The mainlanders who learn simplified characters have no difficulty in reading Fan Ti. However, Taiwanese who only learn Fan Ti will have hard time in reading Jian Ti.
Add Li Shu???
Read again... it is my #2...
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