President Chen Shui-bian's (
Shortly afterward, Minister of National Defense Tang Yao-ming (
A pro-blue camp evening newspaper and an English-language paper published comments on how Japanese General Maresuke Nogi sent his two sons to the front line during the Russo-Japanese War, where they died in action. The comments were meant to ridicule the first family for purportedly being so fearful of death. The evening paper even eulogized Mao Zedong (
History textbooks tell us that the Russo-Japanese War was an inevitable result of Japanese expansionism following the Meiji reforms. The immediate cause of the war was a dispute between Russia and Japan over how to divide the booty of China's Liaodong Peninsula between them. It was a battle that should be condemned by any peace-loving person.
What happened to Nogi's sons was a tragedy. For the sake of his ambitions and Japanese military expansionism, Nogi sent his sons to die on the battlefield. This only reflects an individual's ignorance caused by nationalist and militaristic brainwashing. As for Mao's merits and demerits, there is no need to say more.
The opposition camp opposes Japan and Chen because they are pro-China. Their opposition to Japan is based on historical Chinese hatred toward that nation. They oppose Chen because they don't think he is loyal to China. Ironically, to browbeat the first family, the pro-unification media has not hesitated to use a war between two countries that invaded China. This only reflects the confused values of the opposition camp in their haste to attack Chen.
SARS has killed six health-care workers in this country. These deaths are an unfortunate loss both for the families of the departed and the nation. The deaths also appear to be the result of negligence on the part of hospitals and policy-making authorities. No one wants to see a single health-care worker sacrificed, much less any health-care worker staking their lives to prove their loyalty to the country. In light of the severe strain brought by SARS on health-care personnel, we hope the hospitals can properly plan their manpower allocation so as to ensure the safety of all health-care workers and patients.
And don't forget, among the three presidential candidates who ran in 2000, Chen is the only one whose son (or sons) has ever completed full military service. KMT Chairman Lien Chan's (
If the anti-Chen media really wants to eulogize war, they should use Nogi and Mao to teach the children of Lien and Soong a lesson.
The gutting of Voice of America (VOA) and Radio Free Asia (RFA) by US President Donald Trump’s administration poses a serious threat to the global voice of freedom, particularly for those living under authoritarian regimes such as China. The US — hailed as the model of liberal democracy — has the moral responsibility to uphold the values it champions. In undermining these institutions, the US risks diminishing its “soft power,” a pivotal pillar of its global influence. VOA Tibetan and RFA Tibetan played an enormous role in promoting the strong image of the US in and outside Tibet. On VOA Tibetan,
Sung Chien-liang (宋建樑), the leader of the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) efforts to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lee Kun-cheng (李坤城), caused a national outrage and drew diplomatic condemnation on Tuesday after he arrived at the New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office dressed in a Nazi uniform. Sung performed a Nazi salute and carried a copy of Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf as he arrived to be questioned over allegations of signature forgery in the recall petition. The KMT’s response to the incident has shown a striking lack of contrition and decency. Rather than apologizing and distancing itself from Sung’s actions,
US President Trump weighed into the state of America’s semiconductor manufacturing when he declared, “They [Taiwan] stole it from us. They took it from us, and I don’t blame them. I give them credit.” At a prior White House event President Trump hosted TSMC chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家), head of the world’s largest and most advanced chip manufacturer, to announce a commitment to invest US$100 billion in America. The president then shifted his previously critical rhetoric on Taiwan and put off tariffs on its chips. Now we learn that the Trump Administration is conducting a “trade investigation” on semiconductors which
By now, most of Taiwan has heard Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an’s (蔣萬安) threats to initiate a vote of no confidence against the Cabinet. His rationale is that the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)-led government’s investigation into alleged signature forgery in the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) recall campaign constitutes “political persecution.” I sincerely hope he goes through with it. The opposition currently holds a majority in the Legislative Yuan, so the initiation of a no-confidence motion and its passage should be entirely within reach. If Chiang truly believes that the government is overreaching, abusing its power and targeting political opponents — then
RSS