Clark: Unfortunately, Imperial China: Photographs 1850-1912 is out of print, as I am sure you know. I will keep an eye out for it.
I am surprised that you characterize China as a humorless society. It has been my experience that this is not so. In fact, Chinese humor has a long oral, and written, tradition. Due to the tonal nature of the language (4 tones for Mandarin; 9 tones for Cantonese & Taiwanese), puns are a well-known and well-developed means of expressing humor.
In your posts, you seem to make no distinction between the current leadership of China and the Chinese people. Are they, in fact, one and the same in your opinion?
Since 1978, the decline in importance of the state sector/command economy in China has been remarkable. It seems to me that some of your observations are stuck in a "time warp" with little credit for change since some point at which your views hardened (perhaps about June, 1989?)
Finally, Harrison Salisbury's comment isn't relevant today. I wonder how long he predicted the Soviet Union would last in, say, the 1970's. Take care, Randy |
