Ma Ying Jieu has won what has been a tough and closely watched election in Taiwan. Emphasizing close relations with the mainland, Ma celebrated the victory as a victory for the people of Taiwan. The DPP, with charismatic (and "native Taiwanese") Tsai, gave stoic (and "外省人") Ma a much bigger challenge this time (characterization by my deep-green family-in-laws), losing to Ma … [Read more...] about Ma Ying Jiu Wins Taiwan Election
democracy
Happy Ten – Ten (Double Ten)
October 10th is the National Day of the Republic of China. It is celebrated in both Taiwan and the Mainland as an event that liberated China from the grip of feudal rule. Following up on Ma Ying-Jeou's 10-10 speech (Chinese version) as well as zack's recent comment in the open forum yesterday, I thought I'd put in some of my thoughts. … [Read more...] about Happy Ten – Ten (Double Ten)
Eric X. Li’s “Counterpoint” Op-Ed in the New York Times – Debunking Myths About China
Eric X. Li had a wonderful op-ed in the NY Times. I really don't know how he got a piece through, especially since all mine have been rejected. Anyways, hats off to him! Here is his op-ed, with some of my thoughts scribbled throughout. … [Read more...] about Eric X. Li’s “Counterpoint” Op-Ed in the New York Times – Debunking Myths About China
Yin, Yang and Political System
By Wahaha (cross posted from anti-cnn) If you check the definition of 阴阳 in Wikipedia, you will see the following : “In Chinese philosophy, the concept of yin yang (simplified Chinese: 阴阳; traditional Chinese: 陰陽; pinyin: yīnyáng) is normally referred to in the West as “yin and yang” and is used to describe how polar or seemingly contrary forces are interconnected and … [Read more...] about Yin, Yang and Political System
Dalai Lama Retires…
There is a lot going on in the world. A natural disaster in Japan. Ravages of war from Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, Palestinian territories, to now Libya. The world is still in a recession. There is global warming. And population is still set to reach 9 billion by 2045. Still I think there is still time for some comic relief. Obama made his NCAA picks last week. And the … [Read more...] about Dalai Lama Retires…