Medley of Madness

Lots of people enjoying this perfect depiction of Taiwanese politics. The Foreigner noted:

Best Taiwanese photo of the year, IMHO. And the kicker is that someone told me the shot was taken when KMT presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou was having a serious discussion with reporters about Sino-Taiwanese relations.

(Because nothing, but nothing says, "Gravitas," to voters more than a politician talking foreign policy...in his bright red Santa suit.)

Also served up this week was this tale of a local blogger awaiting a verdict in a lawsuit against him for satirizing a politician. Sued for $50 million NT. Could lose. Can anyone say "chilling effect?" Brrrr....

Finally, I must give some good blog love to this heart-warming story of the city of Changhua's quest to become our nation's capital, starting with this conference...

The Changhua County government began efforts Wednesday with an academic conference to promote the central Taiwan county becoming the capital city of the country.

The conference on issues concerning the Changhua bid and national development was attended by governmental, industrial and academic representatives, including Examination Yuan President Yao Chia-wen, National Changhua University of Education President Chang Huei-po and Mingdao University President Wang Ta-yung.

In his address, County Magistrate Cho Po-yuan introduced Changhua as enjoying a significant position in Taiwan's history, noting that its Lugang township was once the second largest city on the island, following Tainan in southern Taiwan.

I actually had my students do a paper as an exercise on the topic of where the capital should be moved to. Nobody picked Changhua....

[Taiwan]