Talking Points
November 4 - 16, 2011
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Dear Zhenying,
On November 3, 1958, Chinese leader Mao Zedong tried to cast a big ballot in the American congressional election. He ordered “heavy all day shelling” of Taiwan-held Kinmen（Jinmen/Quemoy 金門）. Mao told Zhou Enlai to ensure that the People’s Liberation Army “Fire at least 10,000 shells and bomb all the military targets in order to affect America’s election, promoting the Democrats’ victory and the Republicans’ defeat.”
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| Map showing Kinmen islands（based on CIA 1998 map） |
Radio Beijing later said 12,000 shells were fired. The Taiwan Defense Ministry reported that some 36,431 shells hit the Kinmen islands that day. This was the heaviest assault in two months in a campaign that began on August 23, 1958.
Mao was determined to dislodge American forces from Taiwan and to raise questions in the U.S. about ongoing support for Taiwan. Among Chinese posters calling for the liberation of Taiwan was the one at left showing the island poorly defended by a U.S. soldier waving a torch while Taiwan leader Chiang Kai-shek hunkers down. By 1958, the U.S. was providing two-thirds of the Taiwan defense budget, had built an air base that could accommodate heavy bombers, and had put in place nuclear capable missiles. According to Andrei Gromyko, then Soviet foreign minister, Mao proposed luring American forces into China where they could be attacked with Soviet nuclear weapons. In his 1988 memoir, Gromyko wrote that he rejected Mao’s proposal.
Both the Soviets and the Americans took pains to keep the cross-strait battle from leading to full scale war. Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev did write to U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower to warn that an American attack on China would be seen as an attack on the Soviet Union. In October, however, Khrushchev visited Mao. Chinese records of the meeting show Khrushchev condemning the attacks on Kinmen as reckless and calling on the Chinese leadership to renounce the use of force against Taiwan and to recognize its independence. Mao rejected this assessment and these proposals. Differences with the Soviets were growing by the month and a full break was only a little more than a year away.
In the midst of the shelling, U.S. Secretary of State John Foster Dulles visited Taipei to meet with Chiang Kai-shek. Dulles pushed Chiang to reduce tensions by renouncing the use of force to retake the
mainland. Chiang resisted. In the joint communique released on October 24, 1958, the U.S. reaffirmed its commitment to Taiwan’s defense and Taiwan’s government pledged to restore freedom on the mainland through “the principal means” of “Dr. Sun Yat-sen’s Three People’s Principles … and not the use of force.” Dulles and American newspapers said Chiang had “renounced the use of force,” but Taiwan officials emphasized that they’d only renounced using force as the principal means of liberating the mainland.
An estimated 1,400 Taiwan civilians and soldiers were killed during the August – January campaign, along with an estimated 200 on the mainland when Taiwan forces returned fire.
Things are, of course, quite different on Kinmen and between Taiwan and China today. More than 6,600 people from Taiwan travel to China each day. More than 4,300 tourists from the mainland visit Taiwan every day. According to the Taiwan Tourism Bureau, the average visitor from the mainland contributes US$245 a day to the Taiwan economy. Cross-strait trade totaled US$121 billion in 2010,（with Taiwan selling the mainland $49 billion more in goods than it bought）. Taiwan firms have invested $97 billion on the mainland since 1991. Mainland investments in Taiwan have only recently begun and total about $150 million.
Tensions remain, however, and Taiwan is a perennial issue in U.S.-China relations. Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai complained in 1950 that Taiwan was “under the direct control of the American Navy and Air Force” and insisted the People’s Liberation Army would “liberate Taiwan from the grip of the American aggressors.” Scholars such as Tao Wenzhao complained ahead of the September $5.8 billion American arms sale to Taiwan, that such sales “hurts China’s core interests. And to keep on doing the wrong thing for 30 years just doesn’t make it right.” Beijing University’s Zhu Feng echoed this after the sale, writing, “This policy … has not changed for 32 years. During this period, China has changed tremendously and has become the most important business partner to the U.S.” He argued that these sales inflame Chinese nationalism and cause mainland Chinese to doubt the often-expressed American desire for improved U.S.-China ties.
Two useful resources on the U.S.-China-Taiwan triangle have been added to the USC U.S.-China Institute website. The first of these is the second half of The Thaw, our documentary on cross-strait relations. This 18 minute video focuses on security issues. Like the first, it includes interviews with officials, scholars, and policy analysts as well as news footage. Click here to watch it at the USCI website or here to watch at our YouTube channel.
The second resource is video of Prof. Shelley Rigger’s recent presentation at USCI on “Why Taiwan Matters.” She argues that Taiwan matters because a）it is a model of economic development and peaceful democratization, b）it is a test case for American commitments in East Asia, and c）it is vitally important for both China and Taiwan. Click here to watch her presentation at the USCI website or here to see it via our YouTube channel.
*****
So did the massive shelling of Kinmen affect the election?
Pres. Eisenhower’s Republicans suffered big losses. Democrats gained 48 seats in the House of Representatives and 16 seats in the Senate. They gained near veto-proof majorities in both houses. Post-election news reports, however, made no mention of nervousness over Taiwan. Analysts pinned the the drubbing on bad economic times. Unemployment in Detroit, for example, stood at 20%.
While Mao’s thousands of shells didn’t influence voters in 1958, it’s clear that candidates are paying increasing attention to China’s rise and U.S.-China relations. We’ll take this up in the next issue of Talking Points.
In the meantime, you may wish to read the U.S. government report on economic espionage that garnered headlines this morning. Like other reports from the U.S. and Chinese governments, you can find it in the documents section of our website.
*****
Next Wednesday, we hope you can join us at USC when distinguished Harvard scholar Ezra Vogel visits to discuss how Deng Xiaoping engineered the transformation of China. Vogel’s massive biography of Deng has already sold out its first printing. RSVP today if you’d like to attend his talk on Nov. 9.
Thank you for reading Talking Points and sharing it with friends. We welcome your comments at uschina@usc.edu.
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The USC US-China Institute
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Events
USC | California | North America | Exhibitions
USC
11/09/2011：Ezra Vogel on Deng Xiaoping and the Transformation of China
Davidson Conference Center, Boardroom
University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089
Cost：Free, please RSVP.
Time：4:00PM - 5:30PM
Please join the USC U.S.-China Institute for Ezra Vogel`s discussion and assessment of Deng Xiaoping’s leadership.
11/15/2011：Student Voices：Summer Programs in China
University Club, Pub Room
University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089
Cost：Free, please RSVP.
Time：12:00PM - 1:30PM
The USC U.S. China Institute invites students and faculty to attend an informational meeting that offers insight into the many overseas study opportunities that will be available in China this upcoming summer.
11/17/2011：“Harmonious Society” in Action：A Look at Two of the Tools the Chinese Communist Party is Using to Mitigate Socio-economic Tensions
Davidson Conference Center, Boardroom
University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089
Cost：Free
Time：4:00PM - 5:00PM
The USC U.S.-China Institute’s 2011-2012 postdoctoral fellows will present research focusing on how the CCP is working to mobilize labor unions and government officials to improve labor conditions and address social problems.
California
Through 11/10/2011 Chinese American Film Festival 2011
Various Locations across Southern California
For admission information, please call（626）856-3889.
The 2011 Chinese American Film Festival opens on October 27th and will feature a wide selection of Chinese films.
11/04/2011：“Why My Robot Wife Divorced Me”：Genre and Labor in Post-Mao Chinese Literature
University of California, Berkeley
IEAS Conference Room, 6th floor,2223 Fulton Street, Berkeley, CA 94720
Cost：Free
Time：4:00PM - 6:00PM
Join Paola Iovene for a talk on functions of science fiction in post-Mao China.
11/05/2011：Once Upon a Time in Tibet
Pacific Asia Museum
46 North Los Robles Avenue, Pasadena, CA 91101
Time：2:00PM - 4:00PM
Pacific Asia Museum is honored to host a series of screenings as part of the annual Chinese American Film Festival.
11/05/2011：Maritime Beijing：Oceans and Empire in the Monuments of the Capital
Fowler Museum at UCLA, Lenart Auditorium
308 Charles E. Young Drive North, Los Angeles, CA 90095
Time：2:00PM - 3:30PM
UCLA presents a lecture by Jonathan Hay on Chinese Archaeology and Art.
11/07/2011：Chinese Calligraphy：Unraveling the Mystery of Asian Art
Stanford University
Encina Hall West - Room 208, Stanford, CA 94305
Cost：Free
Time：5:00PM - 7:00PM
Stanford University Center for East Asian Studies presents a lecture by Zhenzhong Qiu on the art of Chinese calligraphy.
11/08/2011：Deng Xiaoping and the Transformation of China
Mechanics` Institute
4th Floor Meeting Room 57 Post Street, San Francisco, CA 94104
Cost：RSVP Required; Members of MI, AS,JPRI & CPR Free / Day-Pass Members $12
Time：6:00PM - 7:30PM
The Mechanics` Institute presents a talk by Professor Ezra Vogel on his new book on Deng Xiaoping.
11/08/2011：A Jasmine Spring in Beijing? The Middle East and China
Stanford University
Philippines Conference Room, Encina Hall, 3rd Floor, Stanford, CA 94305
Cost：Free
Time：4:15PM - 5:30PM
Stanford University presents a talk with Professor Dru G. Gladney on the recent events in the Middle East and its relevance to China.
11/09/2011：Music in the Chinese Garden - Qichao Liu on dizi and sheng
The Huntington Library
1151 Oxford Road, San Marino, CA 91108
Time：1:00PM - 3:00PM
A different solo musician will perform each week inside the Love for the Lotus Pavilion, playing unamplified melodies on classical instruments including the dizi, sheng, pipa, erhu, and zheng.
11/09/2011：Cinematic Landscape in a Globalizing China
San Diego State University
AL-101 , San Diego, CA 92182
Cost：Free
Time：4:00PM - 5:30PM
UCSD`s Professor Yingjin Zhang will speak at SDSU on Globalization of China.
11/09/2011：China`s Raw Material Investment Overseas
Loyola Marymount University, Hilton 100
School 1 LMU Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90045
Time：6:00PM
Loyola Marymount University`s Center for Asian Business will present a lecture on overseas material investment.
11/09/2011：Yu Hua：The Making of China in Ten Words
Pomona College, Hahn 101
333 North College Way, Claremont, CA 91711-6312
Time：4:15PM - 5:30PM
Pomona College will co-sponsor an event featuring author Yu Hua.
11/12/2011：Reform or Revolution? Liang Qichao`s "The Future of a New China"
Stanford University
750 Escondido Road, Stanford, CA 94305
Cost：Free
Time：2:00PM - 3:30PM
The Stanford University presents a public talk on Liang Qichao`s "The Future of a New China".
11/13/2011：Authors on Asia：Mongolian Folktales
Pacific Asia Museum
46 North Los Robles Avenue, Pasadena, CA 91101
Cost：Free for members; $9 general, $7 students and seniors.
Time：2:00PM - 3:30PM
The Pacific Asia Museum presents Hilary Roe Metternich.
11/16/2011：Music in the Chinese Garden - Meiye Ma on pipa
The Huntington Library
1151 Oxford Road, San Marino, CA 91108
Time：1:00PM - 3:00PM
A different solo musician will perform each week inside the Love for the Lotus Pavilion, playing unamplified melodies on classical instruments including the dizi, sheng, pipa, erhu, and zheng.
11/16/2011：Book Discussion - Imagining Harmony：Poetry, Empathy, and Community in Mid-Tokugawa Confucianism and Nativism
Stanford University
Building 250 - Room 101, EALC Library, Stanford, CA 94305
Cost：Free, RSVP Required
Time：4:30PM - 6:30PM
Stanford University presents a book discussion with Professor Peter Flueckiger.
North America
11/04/2011 - 11/05/2011：China after Empire：1911 Remembered
Harvard University
CGIS South, Tsai Auditorium（S010）, 1730 Cambridge St., Cambridge, MA 02138
Cost：Free
Harvard University`s Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies hosts a conference on the 100th anniversary of the founding of China`s new republic.
11/04/2011：Contested Terrain：China`s Periphery and International Relations in Asia
Reserve Officers Association
One Constitution Avenue, NE, Washington, D.C. 20004
Cost：Free for Members of FPRI and ROA; $35 for everyone else.
Time：8:45AM - 4:30PM
The Foreign Policy Research Institute presents a talk on China and International Relations in Asia.
11/04/2011：Evolving Property Rights and Shifting Educational Forms：Evidence from Joint Venture Buyouts following China`s WTO Ascension
George Washington University
2201 G Street, NW, DC 20037
Cost：Free
Time：12:30PM - 1:45PM
The George Washington University holds a public talk on evolving property rights and shifts in educational reforms.
11/06/2011：Raised from Dust
The Fifth Estate
506 Fifth Avenue, Brooklyn, New York 11215
Cost：$10 at the door
Time：6:00PM - 8:00PM
A screening of Gan Xiao Er`s moving documentary, a film which sheds light on the unexplored lives of the approximately 40 million Christians in China.
11/07/2011：China’s Threatened Waters：Video Series Screening and Discussion on Wetland Destruction and Other Vulnerable Waterways in China
Woodrow Wilson Center, 6th Floor
One Woodrow Wilson Plaza - 1300 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, D.C. 20004
Time：3:00PM - 5:00PM
The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C. presents a video series discussion.
11/07/2011：Ancient Chinese Thought, Modern Chinese Power
John Hopkins University, Kenney Auditorium, The Nitze Building（main building）
1740 Massachusetts Ave., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036
Cost：All events are free and open to the public except where otherwise noted.
Time:5:00PM - 8:00PM
The Johns Hopkins University in Washington D.C. presents speaker and scholar Yan Xuetong.
11/07/2011：Ghost Town
Max Palevsky Cinema in Ida Noyes Hall
1212 East 59th Street, Chicago, IL 60637
Time：7:00PM - 9:00PM
A screening of a documentary on a remote village in southwest China that is haunted by traces of its cultural past while its residents piece together their existence.
11/07/2011：Business, the Environment & Human Rights：The State of Play in China
CUNY Graduate Center
365 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Cost：Free
Time：6:00PM - 7:45PM
Business & Human Rights Resource Center presents a public talk on business, environment and human rights in China.
11/08/2011：The Rise of China and India：Challenges for Japanese Foreign Policy
Harvard University
CGIS Knafel Building, Bowie-Vernon Conference Room（K262）, 1737 Cambridge St., Cambridge, MA 02138
Cost：Free
Time：12:30PM
Harvard University`s Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies hosts a co-sponsors a discussion panel who will speak on the impact of China and India`s rise on Japanese foreign policy.
11/08/2011：2 Million Minutes
Whitehall Classroom Bldg 118
University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40506
Time：5:00PM
The University of Kentucky will screen 2 Million Minutes.
11/08/2011："Megastructures：EcoARK” — Film Screening And Discussion
Cantor Film Center
36 East 8th Street, Theater 101, New York, NY 10003
Cost：Free and open to the public
Time：6:30PM - 8:00PM
The Asian Pacific American Institute at New York University presents a screening and discussion with EcoARK architect Arthur Huang and Joachim Mitchell from NYU.
11/08/2011：Chinese Views of China`s Role in Global Governance
George Washington University
1957 E Street, NW, Washington DC 20052
Cost：Free
Time：12:30PM - 1:45PM
The George Washington University presents a lecture by Yan Xuetong.
11/08/2011：Retouching in Guo Xi’s Early Spring, or How a Song Painting Comes to Look Ming
Harvard University
CGIS South, Room S153, 1730 Cambridge St., Cambridge, MA 02138
Cost：Free
Time：4:15PM
Harvard Yenching Institute and the Fairbanks Center presents a lecture by Professor Joan Stanley-Baker on the evolution of aesthetics in Chinese painting.
11/09/2011：Why Taiwan Matters：Small Island, Global Powerhouse
Woodrow Wilson Center, 6th Floor
One Woodrow Wilson Plaza - 1300 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, D.C. 20004
Time：4:00PM
The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C. presents a talk on Taiwan
11/09/2011：China`s International Identities：Coping with a Conflicted Rising Power
Harvard University
CGIS South, Belfer Case Study Room（S020）, 1730 Cambridge St., Cambridge, MA 02138
Cost：Free
Time：4:15PM
Harvard University`s Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies presents a lecture by David Shambaugh who will speak on challenges facing China`s rise.
11/09/2011：The Deep Structure of Song Dynasty Government; or, Did Southern Song Have a Military-Industrial Complex?
Princeton University, 202 Jones Hall
Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544
Time：4:30PM - 6:00PM
The East Asian Studies Program at Princeton University presents Charles Hartman.
11/09/2011：The Introduction of Hans Driesch’s Vitalist Biology and Philosophy to Post-WWI China
Harvard University
Yenching Common Room, 2 Divinity Ave., Cambridge, MA 02138
Cost：Free
Time：12:00PM
The Harvard Yenching Institute presents a discussion with Professor Kevin Chang and Professor William Kirby who will speak on the work of Hans Driesch and its impact on 20th century Chinese science thought.
11/09/2011：From Economic Success to Social Responsibility：New Philanthropic Roles for Entrepreneurs
Columbia University
Low Library, Faculty Room, New York , NY 10027
Cost：Free
Time：6:00PM - 7:30PM
A panel discussion on economic success and social responsibility in China will be hosted at Columbia University.
11/09/2011：The Taiwan Issue in American Politics and US-China Relations
George Washington University
800 21st Street, NW, Washington DC 20052
Cost：Free
Time：7:00PM - 9:00PM
The George Washington University holds a lecture on the Taiwan issue.
11/10/2011：Engendering Contempt for Collaborators：Anti-Hanjian Discourse Following the Sino-Japanese War
University of Washington
Thomson 317, Seattle, WA 98195
Time：3:30PM - 5:00PM
The East Asia Center at the University of Washington presents a talk by Yun Xia the interplay between gender and the crime of collaboration in the context of the Nationalist government`s post-war struggles, market forces（public voyeurism）and changing literary trends.
11/10/2011：Chinese Religions Seminar
Harvard University, CGIS Knafel, Room K262
Address：1730 Cambridge Street, Cambridge, MA 02138
Time：4:15PM
A Chinese Religion Seminar made available by the Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies at Harvard University.
11/11/2011：A Case Study on Jade Imitation：Jade Vessels from the Xuzhou Shizishan Western Han Tomb
University of Chicago
CWAC 152 5540 South Greenwood Ave, Chicago, IL 60637
Cost：Free
Time：4:00PM - 6:00PM
The University of Chicago holds a workshop on jade imitation.
11/12/2011 - 11/16/2011：UK-China Connection, Video Display
The Hub at W.T. Young Library
University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40506
The University of Kentucky will screen multiple films on China.
11/14/2011：Recent Development and Next Focus in China’s Democratic Governance
Columbia University
International Affairs Building, Room 918, New York, New York 10027
Cost：Free
Time：12:00PM - 1:30PM
Columbia University`s Weatherhead East Asian Institute presents a lecture by Professor Yu Keping from China`s Peking University.
11/14/2011：Winter Vacation
Max Palevsky Cinema in Ida Noyes Hall
1212 East 59th Street, Chicago, IL 6063
Time：7:00PM - 9:00PM
A screening of Winter Vacation by Li Hongqi.
11/15/2011：China’s Road toward Democratic Governance
University of Pennsylvania
3451 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104
Cost：Free
Time：12:00PM - 2:00PM
The University of Pennsylvania presents a public talk on "China’s Road toward Democratic Governance".
11/15/2011：Becoming a National Goddess：Debates on the ‘Nationalization’ of Mazu Practice in Taiwan
University of Chicago, Pick Lounge
5828 S University Avenue, Chicago, IL
Time：4:30PM - 6:00PM
The Center for East Asian Studies Center at the University of Chicago presents a talk by Eileen Lam.
11/15/2011：Beijing or Bust
Whitehall Classroom Bldg 118
University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40506
Time：5:00PM
The University of Kentucky will screen Beijing or Bust.
11/16/2011：CHINA Town Hall：Local Connections, National Reflections
Kansas University
Jayhawk Room, Kansas Union, Lawrence, KS 66044
Cost：Free
The Center for East Asian Studies at the University of Kansas presents a webcast session with Dr. Zbigniew Brzezinski, followed by a discussion with David Lampton.
11/16/2011：Chinese and Japanese Investments in South and Southeast Asia：Case Studies from the Automobile and Electronics Industries
George Washington University
The Elliott School of International Affairs Lindner Commons 1957 E Street, NW, 6th Floor, Washington, DC 20052
Cost：Free, RSVP Required by November 16, 2011
Time：3:00PM - 4:15PM
George Washington University presents a talk by Professor Eric Harwit, who will speak on his research on Japanese and Chinese investment trends in Southeast Asia.
11/16/2011：Who is Zhihuilun（?-875/876）? An Assessment of Late Tang Esoteric Buddhism
Princeton University, 202 Jones Hall
Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544
Time：4:30PM - 6:00PM
The East Asian Studies Program at Princeton University presents Jinhua Chen.
11/16/2011：Political Progress and Change in Taiwan：A DPP Perspective
Columbia University
International Affairs Building, Room 1501, New York, NY 10027
Cost：Registration Required
Time：6:00PM - 7:30PM
Columbia University`s Weatherhead East Asian Institute presents a special lecture by Bi-khim Hsiao, the spokesperson for the Tsai Ing-wen Taiwan Presidential Campaign 2012.
11/16/2011：Chinese and Japanese Investments in South and Southeast Asia：Case Studies from the Automobile and Electronics Industries
George Washington University
The Elliott School of International Affairs Lindner Commons 1957 E Street, NW, 6th Floor, Washington, DC 20052
Cost：Free, RSVP required
Time：3:00PM - 4:15PM
George Washington University presents a talk by Professor Eric Harwit, who will speak on his research on Japanese and Chinese investment trends in Southeast Asia.
Exhibitions
ends 11/13/2011：The Art of War in East Asia
Norton Museum of Art
1451 S. Olive Avenue, West Palm Beach, Florida 33401
The Norton Museum of Art presents an exhibition on the art of war.
ends 11/15/2011：Tibetan Contemporary Art：Tantric Vision in Modern Self-Expression
Tibet House
22 West 15th Street, New York, New York 10011
The Tibet House in New York City presents an exhibition of Tibetan contemporary art.
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