If You Go Carrying Pictures Of Chairman Chiang

One thing I've learned in my time in Asia is that sometimes the countries and the leaders we consider "good guys" haven't been angels. Park Chung-hee may have revolutionized South Korea's economy, but he was an authoritarian dictator who suppressed dissent by any means necessary. Chiang Kai-shek was considered to be an ally due to his anti-communist stance, but he ruled Taiwan via martial law for 26 years and was more concerned about his Quixotic dream of invading the mainland than about the fate of the native Taiwanese.

Similarly, propaganda was not limited to the Soviet Bloc. Some of my friends who grew up in Korea in the 1980's have told me that Kim Il-sung's legitimate anti-Japanese guerrilla credentials were downplayed in South Korean schools.

But if you're looking for propaganda, look no further than Taiwan Democracy Memorial Hall, dedicated to Chiang, a man who frequently circumvented term limits through a never-ending "state of emergency." This enormous monument to irony features a gargantuan bronze statue that portrays Chiang as a cross between Chairman Mao and Lord Buddha.



In the exhibit itself, there is very little mention of things that Chiang actually did. Instead there's a large collection of his possessions and pictures with other famous leaders. One interesting piece of propaganda was this map, contained in the mock-up of his office:



You'll notice one key word missing: "People's." "Republic of China" is, as mentioned yesterday, the official name for Taiwan and the name of Chiang's government-in-exile. This confused me until I noticed the below disclaimer:



No kidding.

Not all the exhibits were so serious. Check out this t-shirt, portraying Generalissimo Chiang as a cross between Superman and John Steed from The Avengers:



This, however, pales in comparison to what is quite possibly the most hilarious thing I have ever seen. I laughed for a solid minute in the gift shop. Ladies and gentlemen, the greatest postcard of all time:



If you want me to send this to you, you had better make me a damn good offer!

Pictures to be posted later.