Mao Zedong: Not a Great Economist But a Great Military Leader Nonetheless

It's true that Mao Zedong wasn't so well-planned. It was through the great teacher of Komunistang Sosyal, Deng Xiaoping, that China saw improvements. Another great teacher of Komunistang Sosyal was Do Muoi of Vietnam. However, we can't deny the military genius of Mao. Without Mao, the corrupt regime of Chiang Kai Shek would've not been overthrown. Even the great democratic socialist, Lee Kuan Yew, acknowledged that Mao was a great military genius.

Mao made some mistakes during the Great Leap Forward. However, we can't dismiss that Mao himself learned well the methodological influences from Sun Tzu's Art of War. One of the most important quotes of Mao himself was this on Guerilla Warfare:

Guerrilla leaders spend a great deal more time in organization, instruction, agitation, and propaganda work than they do fighting, for their most important job is to win over the people. “We must patiently explain,” says Mao Tse-tung. “Explain,” “persuade,” “discuss,” “convince”—these words recur with monotonous regularity in many of the early Chinese essays on guerrilla war. Mao has aptly compared guerrillas to fish, and the people to the water in which they swim. If the political temperature is right, the fish, however few in number, will thrive and proliferate. It is therefore the principal concern of all guerrilla leaders to get the water to the right temperature and to keep it there.

It would be very ideal that propaganda work can be more effective than fighting. This is an application of Sun Tzu's Art of War. Sun Tzu also made it clear that one who can win the war without fighting is the most skilled. It would be to know your enemy before every single battle. These are the words that Mao took to heart before overthrowing Chiang Kai Shek.