This is something I almost never do, but I went back and re-read the article I cited in the Hu/Maoism post, and decided to delete the whole thing. The article offered only one quote from a 3rd party, and no other specifics, so I worried it was one-sided, reflecting a belief of the reporter’s and not necessarily the truth.
I want to like Hu, and I had strong hopes for him at first. I’ve tried to give him the benefit of the doubt wherever I could, but I admit I’ve been disappointed so far. But I don’t think he is a Maoist, and that article I cited could be misleading (and, by association, could mislead readers into thinking it echoes my own viewpoint).
I still feel a tremendous cynicism toward the CCP — why shouldn’t I, after watching them manipulate coverage of bird flu, step up Internet censorship, and tolerate acts of real badness by local cadres? Human rights and political reforms so eagerly expected last year, have failed to materialize. To the contrary. But if we don’t keep our charges against them grounded in reality, we can fall into the trap of propagandizing. And that’s something I want to leave to the CCP.
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By Nicholas Liu
Hats off to you, Richard. I don’t really think the article you cited was excessively onesided or unbalanced (far worse is cited on a daily basis in the blogosphere) but it’s admirable that you’d take it down because you think it was. I can’t remember the last time I saw anyone do something like that.
February 9, 2004 @ 1:42 pm | Comment