23 Comments

Thanks, I started watching this but had a hard time getting past the awful dubbing. To me, it's less distracting to read subtitles. I'll give it another try.

The Tet Offensive is the direct opposite of the heroic defenses you mentioned. An overwhelming American victory spun into a war-changing defeat. Made possible by a cynical government lying to its citizens about the enemy's capabilities, plus, of course, the media.

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Much better to watch in original Chinese with English subtitles. Vietnam was non stop propaganda and subversion. I’m sure the same government “experts” who lied about that, Iraq, and Afghanistan are telling the truth about Ukraine.

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Have you ever seen "City of Life and Death" about the Rape of Nanking?

It was a great film, I thought. No dubbing, too!

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I thought it was badass.

Pleasant surprise for sure

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Yeah, it was genuinely a great movie. Great story, great acting, grateful production values.

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Can we find that version somewhere to rent?

Really want to watch it.

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Interesting history lesson. Too bad war and murder are the main events. No government survives by ever telling the truth because then people would plainly see there is no use for government at all.

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It really is that straightforward

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Timely. I watched "Midway" last night.

The Chinese helped a pilot who crashed landed there after he deliberately (and bravely) flew his bomber to drop bombs on Tokyo, despite knowing 100% he didn't have enough fuel to make it back to the base at midway.

As retaliation the Japanese killed 250,000 Chinese just for helping one man.

Unreal.

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Your wires got a bit crossed. The Doolittle Raid launched from the aircraft carrier Hornet two months before the Battle of Midway. The plan always was to land in Nationalist China, since you can't land a B-25 on a carrier, much less sixteen of them, with 80 men in them. Part of the planning involved the Chinese being informed of the raid, and one of the objections some Chinese raised was that the Japanese would inevitably retaliate against them, but they were overruled because the propaganda effect of the raid was more important to both the Americans and the Chinese.

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Oh thanks. My 2nd gin and tonic probably didn't do my memory any good!...;)

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Drunk history nerding is awesome. The Chinese Communists have always had a huge problem with the stone cold fact that the KMT armies were the ones who fought the Japanese, sometimes well, often poorly, while Mao and his People's Army was limited to ineffective guerrilla war in the mountains for a long time.

The Chinese soldier at the level of the rank and file are the heroes of the film, so that avoids any politicization.

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Today I learned, thanks man

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"In a strange twist of history, the elite 88th Division was trained and equipped by the Germans."

How this came about and much more information surrounding the alliances and diplomacy that led to the Asian theater of WWII can be found in this excellent book - https://www.amazon.com/dp/0582493498?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title

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Heroic last stands are definitely a common theme for military legend. Add in Bataan. Stalingrad has the distinction of being one for both sides. The important ones are the ones that buy time for the overall defender so strategically meaningless ones like Little Big Horn or Cameron don't count. Sometimes the defenders actually win against all the odds, like the Russians at Stalingrad, the Battle of Britain, Bastogne or Marathon. Dunkirk, though, belongs to the other category of military legends-epic retreats to escape certain destruction. This category begins with the Anabasis. Other examples are The Long March, Washington's escape from NYC, and Frozen Chosin. Both categories are more remembered than great victories.

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The Republic of China stiil exsists today on the island of Formosa. Interesting how many people want to shed Americans blood to defend a country we don’t even recognize but call them Taiwan.

The one China policy is maddness as the China we recognize we consider a adversary and we will defend the one we don’t recognize.

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Young man are you suggesting our history is full of lies and propaganda? How dare you! 🤭

Great read, thanks 👍🏼

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I did not conceive of soldiers condemned to die largely, if not wholly, for appearance's sake, to be little more than Hollywood "extras."

Grim! But comrades, we all now know well: believe nothing and do your own research.

Example: The writer Anthony Marra has published a stack about an adventure to Moscow to read his works at a place where Caligula level bashes, featuring cameos by Satan, were held during the last century.

Marra opines, somewhat obliquely, mind you, that these memories remind him of the current administration.

Marra is an excellent writer, absolutely worth reading. His strong suit is fiction, as evidenced by his recent observations in Moscow.

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Thanks. Looking forward to watching.

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[NITPICK] While the USA seems to claim the Battle of the Alamo, the battle was actually part of Texas' history, not the USA's. It was a key battle in Texas' war for independence from Mexico.

Two months later, General Sam Houston would decisively defeat Santa Anna's Mexican forces at San Jacinto.

Battle of Alamo: 1936

Texas joins USA: 1945

[/NITPICK]

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Isn't the number eight supposedly lucky and enlightening? The trader who bankrupted Barings called his decoy futures account 88888. Ironic on both counts.

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What is with the comrade? Why use the enemies language and terminology?

Communism is the most deadly and disastrous form of govt to ever exist.

Why glorify it by using its version of friends, gentleman, patriots or brother in arms.

Its a heartbreaking stain on world history.

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A"lthough the Chinese prevailed in 1945, they are still not free"??

96% of Chinese disagree with you on that, Yuri. They're so free they can speak honestly and openly about the Jews.

We can only dream..

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