Lien's bait and switch
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan (
First, in his debate with President Chen Shui-bian (
However, in my opinion, Lien is sending a message that `"If I am elected as president, I will proceed with unification with communist China," which is the only enemy Taiwan currently has. So after unification,Taiwan will no longer have any imminent enemy -- hence compulsory military service will no longer be needed.
I hope the media and the voters will carefully analyze the hidden motives of a head of state who thinks that Taiwan would not need military power to protect the country's sovereignty.
Second, in an interview with Eastern Television, Lien pledged to donate his salary to charity if he is elected. Lien's gesture is truly laughable. If he is truly concerned about poor people, especially students who could not afford college tuition, he would surely long ago have returned the KMT's vast assets to Taiwan's government and people, to whom they legally belong.
Lien instead hid his party's assets by investing in a trust fund operated by a Swiss bank ("KMT says it'll move its funds to Switzerland", Jan. 23, 2003, page 3). No wonder foreigners have second thoughts about investing in Taiwan because Lien himself has no confidence in his own country.
Third, the KMT announced that it would hold a 313 rally to drum up support and to promote anti-"black gold" and anti-corruption.
This is hypocrisy. The KMT's corruption has been known around the world for decades, and black-gold politics is the party's specialty -- all documented in the history books.
So if Lien or his party is hoping to regain the trust of the people, he should be bold enough to return the party assets, not his future salary, to the people to whom they are long overdue.
Finally, I wish there were a third referendum on the ballot to ask the voters the following: "Should persons who own property outside of Taiwan be allowed to run for president?"
Kris Liao
California
A nation has several pillars of national defense, among them are military strength, energy and food security, and national unity. Military strength is very much on the forefront of the debate, while several recent editorials have dealt with energy security. National unity and a sense of shared purpose — especially while a powerful, hostile state is becoming increasingly menacing — are problematic, and would continue to be until the nation’s schizophrenia is properly managed. The controversy over the past few days over former navy lieutenant commander Lu Li-shih’s (呂禮詩) usage of the term “our China” during an interview about his attendance
Following the BRICS summit held in Kazan, Russia, last month, media outlets circulated familiar narratives about Russia and China’s plans to dethrone the US dollar and build a BRICS-led global order. Each summit brings renewed buzz about a BRICS cross-border payment system designed to replace the SWIFT payment system, allowing members to trade without using US dollars. Articles often highlight the appeal of this concept to BRICS members — bypassing sanctions, reducing US dollar dependence and escaping US influence. They say that, if widely adopted, the US dollar could lose its global currency status. However, none of these articles provide
Bo Guagua (薄瓜瓜), the son of former Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Central Committee Politburo member and former Chongqing Municipal Communist Party secretary Bo Xilai (薄熙來), used his British passport to make a low-key entry into Taiwan on a flight originating in Canada. He is set to marry the granddaughter of former political heavyweight Hsu Wen-cheng (許文政), the founder of Luodong Poh-Ai Hospital in Yilan County’s Luodong Township (羅東). Bo Xilai is a former high-ranking CCP official who was once a challenger to Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) for the chairmanship of the CCP. That makes Bo Guagua a bona fide “third-generation red”
US president-elect Donald Trump earlier this year accused Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) of “stealing” the US chip business. He did so to have a favorable bargaining chip in negotiations with Taiwan. During his first term from 2017 to 2021, Trump demanded that European allies increase their military budgets — especially Germany, where US troops are stationed — and that Japan and South Korea share more of the costs for stationing US troops in their countries. He demanded that rich countries not simply enjoy the “protection” the US has provided since the end of World War II, while being stingy with
RSS