Taiwan strait gambits read Georgia carefully

The latest from the war in Georgia

For some background on the buildup to the conflict, click here, here, here, or here.

So lucky there is a strait between China and Taiwan.

Being proud of a Tradition

Just starting using Facebook. After hooking with a few friends, i was not surprised to see a friend of mine belonging to the “Face It – Taiwan IS NOT Part of China” group, as a political student, naturally i took a look. and,

look what i found, a thread with the title “可悲，可悲。。。“

The tread starts with this paragraph

作为在一个外国成长的中国人，看到这里的一些thread, 我真的觉得十分的悲哀。这么多人不想做中国人，不想做华夏子孙，不想继承我们华夏5000年优美的文化和传统。

read the rest

translation: Being a Chinese who grow up overseas, seeing all these threads here, really saddens me that there are so many people who do not want to be Chinese, do not want to inhere our 500o years of beautiful culture and tradition.

In my response to it i wrote

I understand what you are trying to say, and

I agree with you in that, Chinese speaking of people of PRC, ROC and else where in the world does in fact have a shared heritage, we use the same language, eat similar food and are fascinated by the romance of the three kingdom (三國演義).

should we be proud of this tradition?
sure, why not.

But i am more proud of being part of the global revolution that begun with enlightenment which eventually lead to the development of modernity, democracy, free market, globalization and liberal ideals.

These ideals are what shape my life and our society the most, and i am very thankful for it.

so, as a native son of Taiwan, i guess what i am saying is, i do recognize our share heritage with the mainland, but i think i would much rather for Taiwan to be rule by Taiwanese people. and i hope you guys over there can self rule one day instead of taking orders from the grand old communist party.

there is no need for unification, Taiwan do fine by its own as long as the communist party don’t meddle with our internal affairs and foreign policy.

i guess, its fair to say, hey, we are all Chinese, but lets have at least two state, one of it be Taiwan.

or, we are all human beings, but hey, lets have 200 states or more, and governments by and for the people.

NeoCon on Taiwan’s election

Written by John R. Bolton a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.

Bolton on Ma’s victory

Ma’s strong support for closer economic ties with China reflects the widely held expectation that such ties will improve Taiwan’s economic position. Moreover, in pursuit of those ties, he will downplay Taiwan’s political challenge to China, not because, as many Europeans and Americans mistakenly believe, he ultimately seeks to lay the basis for reunification, but because he believes that enhancing Taiwan’s economic strength will lead to increased political strength for whatever negotiations come later with China. That is entirely sensible. An economically weaker Taiwan is hardly well-positioned to stand up to the rapidly growing Chinese economy.

On recognizing Taiwan as a sovereign state,

Recognition would bring stability and certainty, thus actually lowering the risks that Beijing will misinterpret the U.S. position and threaten or actually commence military action to regain Taiwan. Extending diplomatic recognition would no more prejudice the U.S.’ “one China” policy (itself an exercise in confusion and ambiguity) or the ultimate issue of reunification than did U.S. recognition of the two Germanys during the Cold War.

Read the whole thing

umm… I am all for peaceful independence, but…
Wouldn’t America’s support for Taiwanese independence encourage Taiwan to amendment the constitution and declare de jure independence from China and subsequently trigger Anti-Secession Law of the People’s Republic of China. In such an event, at best, PRC leader would refuses to act non-peacefully against Taiwan and be removed from office causing a power vacuum and struggle, at worst military invasion against Taiwan follow by an American-Japanese military intervention leading to NUCLEAR WAR?!?!?!?!?!?!

NeoCons, haven’t they got the world in enough trouble?

Why is Taiwan so desperate to get into the United Nations?

I met a couple of politically opinionated people tonight and had intense political discussions. During our conversation about how Taiwanese culture were susceptible to patriarchialism, i made an interesting pitch. I asked, is Taiwanese desire to be recognized by the United Nations a manifestation of Taiwan’s patriarchal trait?

In Taiwan, family with father at its center is perhaps the strongest social institution. parents invest heavily in their children in return for obedience. Political, people respect authority (police, teachers and government) and looks to the government to solve their problems. Is Taiwan’s desperate desire to be accepted as a member of the United Nations an extension of that culture trait? Are the Taiwanese trying to be an accepted child to the international father figure?

It is somehow reveling that the pursuit for UN recognition is an agenda that is at the heart of the Taiwanese independent movement, which by there nature is contradictory. Why is it the that the triumph of independence rely on others to consent? That just defeats the purpose. The only way to reconcile independence and peer recognition is to see it as an international legal issue, but thats just silly its like saying international law worth something.

International law really don’t mean much, an UN membership does not provide better trade condition, nor will membership prevent foreign aggression (just ask Iraq, Serbia, and any states that has been victim of illegal military interventions). Whats the big deal? Why is Taiwan spending millions of taxpayers money in its doomed pursue of an UN membership that really yield no real benefit at all. Is Taiwan’s patriarchialism really manifested diplomatically?

Furthermore, is the pro-China radicalist’s desire to reunify/realign Taiwan with mainland China and a small advocate group’s push for Taiwan to become America’s 51st state also base on patriarchy mentality?

Is this experience unique to Taiwan? To Confucius society like Japan and Korea?

Base on my limited knowledge of those two society, Both Japan and Korea had in significant part of their history been satellite states, subordinate them self to the most powerful state in their sphere. Before the arrival of the European powers in 19 century, Japan and Korea were tireless in their effort to learn the latest trends and fashions in art, clothes, literature, religion, politics and philosophy from their Chinese parent state. And after the Europeans defeated the Chinese, Japan quickly switch its target of imitation and import anything that is Western (including colonialism) and tried very hard to be recognized by the new powers. Ian Buruma one of my favorite writer of culture wrote a very insightful report on Japan’s satellite mentality.

So, does this mean, this phenomenon is unique to cultures that had been expose to Confucianism? Or is this just a universal weak state strategy/mentality. When the Australians were given a chance to sever its symbolic subordinative relationship with the British Crown, more than 55% voted “no”to the 1999 Australian republic referendum.

I am not a train sociologist, but a quick google using relevant key words turn up with this:

From Gordon J. Schochet “Patriarchalism, Politics and Mass Attitudes in Stuart England” The Historical Journal

“It is increasingly becoming a commonplace to assert that non-political activities engaged in during childhood play determinative roles in shaping individuals’ attitudes toward and perceptions of the political order. A large part of the early “political socialization”, as it is now called, takes place within the family. which in the words of one commentator, “incubates the political man”, whether or not there is a conscious attempt to inculcate political beliefs. As T. D. Weldom remarked, “Basic political creeds may not be imbibed… with mother’s milk: but children are none the less indoctrinated in practically every other day.” This socialization plus later experiences (including reading, conversations, and direct encounters with government) will help to implant notions of political legitimacy; that is, the grounds on which a political authority is held to be entitled to rule.”

Does this mean, my hunch is good?

But, i also find a note of caution from Gary G. Hamilton “Patriarchalism in imperial China and Western Europe” Theory and Society

“…Weber’s typology of domination – the cluster of patriarchalism, charisma, and law – does not fit Chinese history as it does European history.”

Most accurate reporting on Taiwan’s election by a foreign media

I have scan the web for sound analysis of Taiwan’s recent election, but the Economist was the best i seen so far.

If only the Economist did not endorse George Bush in 2000 and advocate for the invasion of Iraq in 2003, I would have had more praises for the mostly excellent weekly.

Scion of a KMT family, Harvard-educated lawyer and a former mayor of Taipei, Mr Ma, 57, had always been marked for the highest office, and the KMT’s famously ruthless machine did everything to get him there. Yet more than anything, he was helped by the DPP. Mr Chen had won the presidency in 2000 by articulating the grievances of native Taiwanese whose voices had long been stifled by the KMT, a party historically dominated by mainlanders who had fought—and eventually lost—the civil war with the Chinese Communists. Mr Chen emphasised a new Taiwanese identity.

Yet Mr Chen soon appeared to insist on this identity at the expense of anything else. His agitation for formal Taiwanese independence riled not just China, but the United States, Taiwan’s protector. Under Mr Chen, economic initiatives always seemed to play second fiddle, and even then, DPP forces sounded discordant. Charges of corruption spread to Mr Chen’s family and close circle, which in the campaign did Mr Hsieh no favours.

The DPP’s mudslinging during the presidential election seemed to be final confirmation that the DPP, once a beacon of change and moral authority, had lost its way. Even in the DPP stronghold in the southern part of the island, Mr Ma made stunning headway, winning the city of Kaohsiung, Mr Hsieh’s political base. Perhaps Mr Chen, in one respect, had done too well in his fight for a Taiwanese identity. For while the DPP played up the politics of ethnic division between mainlanders and islanders—insinuating that Mr Ma would sell Taiwan out to China—the KMT’s candidate showed that it was possible to campaign as if the divisions had been healed: we are all Taiwanese now.

Read the rest.