Red Roulette: An Insider's Story of Wealth, Power, Corruption, and Vengeance in Today's China

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El producto est bueno, de calidad pero no traía plástico ni ningún tipo de envoltura se maltrató un poco

Read this book if you:· Are curious about life under the Chinese government since 1945· Want to understand how Chinese people build business relationships with each other· Like juicy Chinese political gossip· Want to know how people with power build wealth· Are curious how a nation with developing ethics decides what gets punished and what gets buried.The history of Communist ChinaDesmond’s childhood, like many at the time, was close to being normal. Times were hard but it was hard for everyone. Besides a few extra sports trophies, this was a man destined for a normal middle-class life. Then, Desmond got lucky, and his path changed (more on that later). As a child of the late 80s, and although 20 years apart, I resonated with his recollection (as my great grandfather was also punished for owning land, and then my grandfathers on both sides were tricked into moving to essentially Siberia). At this point, I enjoyed his brief recount of the history of Red China. I never quite understood why, for example, Westerners always seem to know more about Confucianism and Daoism than I would. Those were never taught in school. This book made me realize that it was all part of the design, and the government prevented us from taking ancient philosophies seriously. I value honesty and I believe we all need to delve into our past to fish out psychological blockages to heal and grow as a person. Trauma and psychological manipulations occurred when we were young especially tend to feel bigger than they are, and they affect our everyday decision-making as adults. Through this book, I was able to understand some of my own blockages. Therefore, I felt his level of candor and frankness like a breath of fresh air. Desmond wrote as he felt, and he wrote from the heart. I have learned a lot.Desmond the anti-heroDesmond’s keen observation yielded many insights into the lives of the Red Aristocrats (sons of daughters of the Chinese political elites) and the satellites that follow them around. As we read between the lines, we start to see Desmond’s own underlying psychology.You start to pick up, for example, that Desmon’s frank writing style didn’t come from a place of strength but rather a Naïve belief that what they were doing was good and they came from an honest desire to build a better China. Desmond called out many of the Red Aristocrats for their shady dealings and yet his own dealings were highly unethical (although legal at the time). In the case of Sun Zhengcai, Desmond added that “the party accused him of accepting bribes. I don’t think this was the case. It was more like barter.” Apparently, trading favors for favors is vastly different from, say, trading favors for money.In addition, Desmond himself was severely out of touch with the common society yet he called out many of the Red Aristocrats as being out of touch with the people. In many parts of the book, he mentioned that the red aristocrats succeeded through “rigged treasure hunts” and that Desmond and his wife themselves instead had to work hard to get their riches. Unlike those born with a silver spoon in their mouths, Desmond, and his wife broke their backs bowing to the aristocrats. I don’t think Desmond understands that they had been playing and winning in a rigged game all along. The irony of it all just tickles me sideways.But I felt the irony was necessary. This book showed the psychological aspects of the communist party and unintentionally the biases and flaws of the author. And that is what makes this book so good. We got an insight into two groups of people when you thought you came here for one. Desmond is a chaotic and flawed hero, and his biography is illuminating.I am not a political person and therefore I won’t get into whether the Communists are right or wrong, good or bad. It just is. However, I will point out that this book serves as a sobering reminder that you must conduct your life ethically, regardless of legal ramifications. Desmond noted, “when China passes a law it invariably makes it retroactive.” It makes sense, just because regulations haven’t caught up to the times that doesn’t mean you can and should get away with unethical acts.Secondly, Epictetus, the Greek philosopher warned us, “don’t envy the rich. They have their own problems.” I certainly don’t envy Desmond or Whitney after reading this book. If this is how you make money, I would rather not have any.Finally, this book further confirms my belief that one of man’s biggest folly is that we confuse luck for skill. This was perfectly captured in Desmond’s introduction as he wrote of his ex-wife, “She’d understood the real China until she didn’t.” When you confuse luck for skill, you tend to succeed, until you don’t.

this is a must read for anyone who wants to know how Chinese political system works. engaging throughout.

La descrizione chiara e realistica di una testimonianza dall’interno della realtà cinese ,vissuta in prima persona da Desmond Shum .La storia personale in fotogrammi di vita vissuta in povertà e poi come élite e purtroppo finita secondo le direttive della politica autoritaria cinese di Xi Jinping e del Partito .Peccato perché ammiravo ed amavo questo paese per il suo sviluppo dopo gli anni 70 fin tanto che era orientato solo allo sviluppo e la politica aveva un peso relativo e lasciava la gente libera di agire e pensare.

"Red Roulette" ist eine Abrechnung, das sollte man nicht vergessen. Wie der in Hongkong aufgewachsene Autor seine Ehe mit einer ambitionierten Chinesin erinnert, mag bei allem Bemühen um Fairness von subjektiven Unschärfen geprägt sein. Wie er das im Windschatten seiner Frau betriebene System des "Guanxi" schildert - die Anhäufung von Reichtum über das gezielten Kultvieren von Beziehungen zu Politikern, Managern und ihren Familien -, das ist vor allem hochgradig authentisch und relevant.Die Geschichte von Desmond Shum veranschaulicht, welches Roulette (sic!) ein von der Leine gelassener Kapitalismus in einem staatlichen System darstellt, in dem Willkür und Neffenwirtschaft dominieren. Irrwitzig die Reichtümer, die sich binnen weniger Jahre anhäufen lassen. Beklemmend die stete Ausgeliefertheit an Mächte, die stets im Haldbunkel bleiben. Grauenhaft der Absturz und die regelrechte Zerstörung der eigenen Existenz, wenn die Fädenzieher im Milliardentheater wechseln und ihre Ungnade zuschlägt.Ob der Autor sich da oder dort "wichtiger gemacht hat als er war", wie in einer Rezension hier unterstellt, halte ich nicht für entscheidend. Dass er mit seiner seit 2017 staatlich gekidnappten Frau Whitney Duan Hunderte Millionen an der Börse verdient und baulich einige Pekinger "Landmarks" entwickelt hat, ist nachweislich. Aktuell bis in Jahre Xi Jinpings liefert er einen Insider-Bericht. Er erzählt uns kantig konkret über das "System China" ebenso wie über die Stärken und Risken des Kapitalismus.