Linsanity

As everyone alive in Taiwan knows, Harvard grad and Asian-American of Taiwanese descent Jeremy Lin of the Knicks has become a monster, setting a new record in his first four games. He's been adopted by Taiwanese as a "Taiwanese." CNN argues that Lin has a shot at immortality. Former resident of our fair island Andrew Leonard comments on social media and Lin:

The mainstream media now seems to be adapting its coverage of events on the basis of whether something blows up in social media as much as it does from the perceived newsworthiness of the event itself. It’s startling, but also natural: When you see a fire start to blaze, you run to cover to it. And so Linsanity breeds more Linsanity.

You want highlights? Here’s a distilled package of nine minutes of Lin’s exploits from his 28-point explosion on Monday night. You want a tribute video with an original rap soundtrack on top of some T.I. beats?  Someone is recommending it to you on Facebook or Twitter right now. You want analysis, pro or con? Plug “Jeremy Lin” into Google News and say goodbye to the rest of your day.

Yup! My Facebook feed is overrun with Linsanity. The struggle over Lin is already beginning, he represents a whole box of political footballs. First there is the Taiwan-China thing -- yet Lin is American and his Mandarin is rudimentary (here's one discussion from the pro-Taiwan side). In what sense can he be considered Taiwanese, let alone Chinese? It just shows how "blood" continues to define who is Chinese for so many out here. Then there is the Asian-Americans in sports thing. Lin is also some kind of evangelical Christian, so we have the Tim Tebow thing going too. If Lin's hot hand continues, he might well become a phenomenon greater than Yankee pitcher Wang Chien-ming in Taiwan....

Yet as my man Andrew Kerslake (blog) pointed out on Facebook:

In Taiwan there is a lot of local pride in the success of Jeremy Lin and the realization of his hoop dreams. I can not help but consider that had Lin actually grown up in Taiwan, he may never have realized his dream or even dared to dream it. Under the current educational system he would likely have been discouraged by his teachers and peers. He would likely have been buried in the type of meaningless placement tests and endless cramming that extinguish intellectual curiosity and the passion for learning. He would likely have had 2 hours of PE a week and told that athletics are a waste of time. Taiwan has no reason to be glad handing over Lin. Only in America.

Well said, Drew.
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Daily Links:

• Budget cut for F-16 upgrades but don't worry, the upgrades will take place over several years so sooner or later we will have them all. 
• DPP searching for new chairperson.
• The stubborn US position on beef continues to be a problem. 
• Shu Flies on a collection of art books from the 1950s and 1960s in Taipei.
• History of the Koxinga Temple in Tainan.

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