My friend recently returned from Shanghai and brought over, as a joke, a little red book with quotes of chairman Mao. I'll post some of them here. Some of them are funny, and some not so...
THE COMMUNIST PARTY
if there is to be revolution, there must be a revolutionary party. Without a revolutionary part, without a party built on the Marxist-Leninist revolutionary theory and in the Marxist-Leninist revolutionary style, it is impossible to lead working class and the broad masses of the people in defeating imperialism and its running dogs. (1948)
No political part can possibly lead a great revolutionary movement to victory unless it possesses revolutionary theory and a knowledge of history and has a profound grasp of the practical movement. (1938)
CLASSES AND CLASS STRUGGLE
Classes struggle, some classes triumph, others are eliminated. Such is history, such is the history of civilization for thousands of years. To interpret history from this viewpoint is historical materialism; standing in opposition to this viewpoint is historical idealism. (1949)
SOCIALISM and COMMUNISM
The socialism system will eventually replace the capitalism system; that is an objective law independent of man's will. However much the reactionaries try to hold back the wheel of history, sooner or later revolution will take place and will inevitable triumph (1957)
THE CORRECT HANDLING OF CONTRADICTIONS AMONG THE PEOPLE
The only way to settle questions of an ideological nature or controversial issues among the people is by the democratic method, the method of discussion, of criticism, of persuasion and education, and not by the method of coercion or repression.
WAR AND PEACE
Every communist must grasp the truth, "Political power grows out of the barrel of a gun" (1938)
We are advocates of the abolition of war, we do not war; but war can only be abolished through war, and in order to get rid of the gun, it is necessary to take up the gun.
As for the imperialist countries, we should unite with their people and strive to coexist peacefully with those countries, do business with them and prevent any possible war, but under no circumstances should we harbour any unrealistic notion about them. (1957)
CRITICISM AND SELF-CRITICISM
We have Marxist-Leninist weapon of criticism and self-criticism. We can get rid of a bad style and keep the good. (1949)
WOMEN
In Order to build a great socialist society, it is of the utmost importance to arouse the broad masses of women to join in productive activity. Men and women must receive equal pay for equal work in production. Genuine equality between the sexes can only be realized in the process of the socialist transformation of society as a whole. (1955)
