Often we conclude our programs by inviting you to send along your comments and questions. Occasionally a particular program will generate so much mail that we recall the words of Chairman Mao Tse-Tung: "Let a hundred flowers bloom, and a hundred schools of thought contend." Today we look at the story behind the phrase born as an invitation to an outpouring of diverse opinion.
When Mao first spoke those words in 1957, his speech was interpreted as a signal that views outside the party line would be acceptable to the powers governing the People's Republic of China. In fact, that is just what happened . . . but only for a brief period, before the crushing repression of the Cultural Revolution descended. During that 1960s reign of terror, anyone perceived to be a dissident was subject to exile, imprisonment, public humiliation, or mob action.
The dissonance between the invitation and the reality survives in the modern, non-political application of Let a hundred flowers bloom. These days, the phrase is used to put the best face on embarrassing public disagreements among members of a group, or simply to suggest that a multitude of views is being expressed on a certain topic.