Quotation for Today, Tuesday 8 July 2008
“When the enemy advances, withdraw; when he stops, harass; when he tires, strike; when he retreats, pursue.”
Mao Zedong December 26, 1893–September 9, 1976 was a Chinese military and political leader who led the Communist Party of China (CPC) to victory against the Kuomintang (KMT) in the Chinese Civil War, and was the leader of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) from its establishment in 1949 until his death in 1976.
Regarded as one of the most important figures in modern world history,[1] and named by Time Magazine as one of the 100 most influential people of the 20th century, Mao is still a controversial figure today, over thirty years after his death. He is generally held in high regard in China where he is often portrayed as a great revolutionary and strategist who eventually defeated Chiang Kai-shek in the Chinese Civil War, and transformed the country into a major power through his policies. However, many of Mao’s socio-political programs such as the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution are blamed by critics from both within and outside China for causing severe damage to the culture, society, economy and foreign relations of China, as well as the deaths of 44.5 to 72 million people
