Mao imagined eliminating division of labor in society, but the trend of social development is for division of labor to become ever finer; he imagined a society with no commodity exchange, but a society with a high degree of division of labor requires commodity exchange to supply everyone's needs; he imagined a society with equal distribution but without distribution incentives, society becomes stagnant and unproductive. Combining executive, legislative, and judicial functions eliminates the balance of powers, and the Cultural Revolution proved that replacing security forces with the dictatorship of the masses results in lawlessness and mass persecution. Mao envisaged being able to recall public servants at will, but that would require an ultrapowerful individual higher than the public organs. Clearly, what Mao imagined was a totalitarian society ruled by a super-powerful individual with no rule of law.
Yang Jisheng, The World Turned Upside Down
