New Blogs Added to the roll of Taiwan blogs....

I suppose I should advise when I put new blogs on the roll....in the last week or so I've added:

Chu Chu Train

Cold Goat Eyes

Pat in Taiwan

Port of Call

Sounds Familiar

aemoncannon


[Taiwan]

Buddhist Nuns in Taiwan

Betcha didn't know...

One notable feature of Buddhism in contemporary Taiwan is the large number of nuns. It is estimated that between 70 and 75 percent of the Buddhist monastic members are nuns; many of them have a higher education background.(1) Many Buddhist nuns hold high esteem in the society, such as the artist and founder of Hua Fan University, bhiks.un.i- Hiu Wan, and the founder of one of the world's biggest Buddhist organizations, bhiks.un.i- Cheng-yen.(2) While bhiks.un.i- Hiu Wan and bhiks.un.i- Cheng-yen are known as highly-achieved individuals, the nuns of the Luminary nunnery are known collectively as a group. During my fieldwork in Taiwan in 2001, many informants mentioned Luminary nuns to me as group of nuns well-trained in Buddhist doctrines, practices, and precepts. The term Luminary nuns seems to be equivalent to the image of knowledgeable and disciplined Buddhist nuns. In this paper, I will talk about the significance and influence of Luminary nuns, and why I think theirs is a feminist movement. But first, I will give a short introduction of the social-historical background of Buddhism in Taiwan. [READ ON!]

This interesting paper not only discusses the history of Buddhism in Taiwan, but also looks at how being a nun can be a feminist act.

It is worthwhile to mention that the structure of zhaijao allows women an escape from the rigid and severely patriarchal Chinese family system. Marjorie Topley reports that women in the rural Kwangtung province of Southern China during the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century could choose a life without marriage by taking up zhaijao vows and entering a zhaijao residential place after retirement(12).

The same phenomena occurred in Taiwan, too. That 1919 survey by the Japanese colonial government noticed the presence of a large number of female zhaijao members.(13) They tended to observe a certain number of precepts, vegetarian diets, and celibacy.(14) The existence of the large number of female zhaijao members might be explained by the fact that Taiwan during the early periods did not have enough qualified monks and nuns to give formal Buddhist ordination. Also, the laws of the Qing dynasty forbad women under the age of forty to be ordained as Buddhist nuns.(15)

Nevertheless, the presence of the large number of female zhaijao members indicates that it is wrong to perceive women as passive actors. Whenever the situation allows, women might have grabbed the opportunity to seek a life outside the traditional and patriarchal social arrangements. For example, Marjorie Topley noted that the economic structure in the rural Kwangtung in the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century provided women the ability to make a living outside of family, and many women, indeed, sought the opportunity to choose a living arrangement independent of family or male supervision.(16)

[Taiwan]

Li Ao at Tsinghua

Richard at ESWN has been kind enough to supply a transcript of Li Ao's speech. Li is usually labeled a maverick, though he is more of a spleen venter than a serious intellectual. Sad, actually.

Li's rambling and disjointed remarks offered little meat to remark on, but I think there are a few points worth making. First, anyone who argues that Li's generation of mainlanders has any regard for Taiwan should be made to read his remarks. It's pretty clear where his loyalties lie, and those of thousands of others...and many of their descendents as well.

This question from a student I found interesting:

My question is this. You have defined yourself as a mainland style scholar, and you are famous for having a patriotic heart. But we are very concerned that the Taiwan authorities are pushing for de-Sinofication. That will have a huge impact on young people, who are the future citizens and political decision-makers in Taiwan. How do you think that cultural Taiwan independence can be opposed? A chasm in culture means a permanent separation.

The question is revealing on many levels. Advocacy of a separate Taiwan culture is "de-Sinofication" (But I thought Taiwanese culture was part of the great Chinese cultural stream?). Note that China's hegemony is viewed in specifically cultural terms here (but ask this student why then Tibet should be part of China and you'll get a completely different answer). Neither has anything in this student's background and training prepared him to understand that Taiwan is already culturally separate from China, and has been since at least the middle of the Japanese period, and probably earlier. "A chasm in culture means a permanent separation" -- quite true. Why do you think Taiwan wants to be independent? The cultural foundations are already there, however impaired by KMT policy.

I wish I had a clearer idea of exactly how Taiwan is understood by everyday people in China, by students, and by the governing elite.....

Li's answer to one question is unintentionally ironic:

Therefore, I think that the ability to quickly evaluate and to tell good information from dogshit is very important.

True! Which side of that divide did your presentation belong on, Mr. Li?

[Taiwan] [China]

A Few Snapshots From Life

Many years ago I lived in Kenya for 2 years as a US Peace Corps volunteer. I had a Canon camera (which I still have) and several lenses, whose capabilities I did not understand. I took probably 800 pictures during my two years there, back in the days before digital photography, when picture taking meant rationing precious film and financial resources. Most were terrible. And more importantly, few really reflected my life there. Only a smattering of pictures of local foods, for example. No pictures of the smoky atmosphere of a dingy eatery. No pictures of the old Iqbal hotel, where I spent many a wonderful evening snacking and chatting. Many pictures of my students, but somehow none really conveyed what they were like, and the lot that I had were not nearly enough. Nor did I manage to capture well the markets, houses, and buildings of Meru where I lived. I had some nice pictures of animals I took in national parks, but the lion that strolled past me in Meru National Park or the elephants that surrounded us or the baboon that ate all our food at the campsite were gaudy tourist images. They said nothing to me about my own experience.

The same thing happened in 1991 when I went to India with my wife-to-be. I took lots of pictures of forts and castles and temples and statues, and little of transportation, street life, food, clothing, or people. My picture taking skills had improved, but the problem of subjects remained. I hadn't captured my experience of India.

Heeding the lessons I learned, everywhere I go in Taiwan I carry a camera with me. Some ordinary pictures from an ordinary life...


I'm in my fourth year as an advisor. For graduation it is traditional for our English language majors to do a class play, and my class is adapting a play called The Foreigner. Here Doreen flashes her beautiful smile as she waits to audition for a role.

Sharon and Tom try out for a part.

Phoenix, the director, displays her vivacity and energy.

Kiki and Jolly watch the proceedings

One ubiquitous sight in the parks of Taiwan: old men playing chess.

My daughter, the goof, models her new glasses in front of another river penned up and useless for urban parkland and scenic development.

Traffic stacks up in front of China Medical College as local junior high schools, the university, and the large teaching hospital all get out at the same time.

Here's the reason we don't have TV at home: so the kids would develop the habit of reading everywhere they go.

Here's something that's been in my life a lot lately: Axis and Allies. Our family made a Big Board so we could play in ease and comfort. Zeb and I usually get a couple of games in on the weekends.

Here's where we went to get our scooter registration renewed. Service, as usual, was friendly and quick. The service staffer even overlooked the fact that we owed a fine. "The policeman's not here yet, or else you'd have to pay $800," she told us conspiratorially.

One place we've been going to lately is the large market in Fengyuan near the foreign police station. Prices are lower than in the Taichung markets. Here we stopped for breakfast at a local diner, and the cook is busy making some potstickers for my kid. They were wonderful.

The second most crowded nation on Earth after Bangladesh.

A young girl makes change early on a Saturday morning. For many children, life is an unending round of school, homework, and the family business.

My kids are slowly learning to use a camera, in this case my wife's old one. We gave them both digital cameras when we went to Sri Lanka last year, but now I regret not splurging on something higher quality. They just can't learn much from using a cheap digital job with bad plastic lenses. Nevertheless, they love taking pictures.

Taiwan's variety of meatballs is endless. We saw some imaginative ones that were multicolored and made with fa tsai (hair moss)

Part of the market is covered, but the market has long since outgrown its original area.

I love the wonderful colors of vegetables.

Keeping the sun off the customers.

Here mom and Zeb plunge into a crowd. I enjoy traditional markets very much, except for the noise.

As in many places in Taiwan, vendors selling similar objects all crowd together. This is a very efficient arrangement for consumers and suppliers.

One thing people don't really think about when they see the words "traditional market" is the omnipresence of scooters beeping and honking, shoving fumes in your face, and threatening you with burns and bruises.

We always buy spring roll wrappers from this shop because....

.....they are made in modern, sanitary conditions.

Persimmons.

Shuang Bao Tai, deep fried dough with a very light sprinkling of sugar. Chewy and delicious.

Chess is everywhere.

[Taiwan]

International Crisis Group and Taiwan-China Situation

The International Crisis Group has a new paper out on the Taiwan Straits situation. Their sources are largely Washington-based, with the exception of a few academics. The paper notes:

Election politics, personal conviction, and the drive for a political legacy were key motives prompting President Chen and his government to break with earlier moderation on cross-strait issues and, between late 2003 and late 2004, pursue pro-independence initiatives that neither Beijing's warnings of war and diplomatic pressure nor positive trade and economic relations appeared able to halt. Chen's political opponents were put on the defensive, and business people hung back despite heavy investments in China. Concerned for cross-strait stability, however, the U.S. sought to rein in Chen, issuing repeated public statements and private official comments opposed to the pro-independence initiatives.

Washington's interventions were widely credited for moderating Taiwan government policy and influencing popular opinion in the lead-up to the December 2004 legislative elections that resulted in a significant setback for President Chen and his administration. Mutually encouraged, Taiwan political opposition leaders and the Chinese leadership held meetings in Beijing in April and May 2005. The improved atmospherics that resulted from those talks and anticipated benefits from proposed new trade and exchanges offset the negative fallout from passage in March of an anti-secession law that formalised China's promise to use force against any attempt by Taiwan to separate permanently.

I love the way these analyses always present the pro-democracy, pro-independence crowd as somehow crazed, while the corrupt old authoritarians in leagure with Beijing are "rational." Apparently it is irrational to prefer life in an autonomous democratic state, and rational to desire to live under a faraway authoritarian government. I look forward to the day when analyses of Taiwan policy mature out of this construction of DPP behavior.

The report is available in both .DOC and .PDF formats.

One thing I'd like to point out: the report repeatedly credits Washington with influencing local politics (recall the commentary from Nat Bellocchi I referenced earlier that says Washington has little understanding of such). For example:

KMT and other pan blue arguments that Chen's stance risked Chinese military attack were relatively ineffective in the presidential campaigns of 2000 and 2004, when the electorate apparently discounted the possibility given Beijing's internal and international priorities and strong U.S. military support for Taiwan. However, voters seemed to recalculate in December 2004, presumably in response to the repeated U.S. interventions against the pro-independence agenda.

The idea that voters in Taiwan noticed anything that Washington did reflects Inside-the-Beltway fantasies about its influence on the world. Many times prior to the election I talked with voters, and no one ever mentioned Washington and its plans. Rather, the focus was generally the economy, public order, like or dislike for particular candidates, and other issues of interest locally. All politics is local, and Taiwan is the poster boy for that dictum. The DPP lost because it lacks the well-developed networks of organized crime, local political bosses, local business, local government finance, and construction companies that the KMT has carefully fostered over the years. It will be at least a decade before the DPP begins to make real inroads into this structural advantage of the KMT.

One must also ask what Washington is thinking. The election of 2004 saw an increase in pro-independence politicking and other moves, and the DPP defeated a coalition that had won more than 60% of the votes previously and was supported by both Washington and Beijing. The people that run elections for the DPP are not idiots and know perfectly well where the line should be drawn. It was not Washington that put a stop to the mad DPP's irrational independence moves -- the DPP brain trust already knows just how far it can go. Rather, it was the DPP that used Washington as the an excuse for setting a limit on its movement toward independence, thus keeping the "independence now" crowd in check, as well as to assure China that Taiwan wasn't actually going to assert the democratic rights Washington pays lip service to. Essentially, the DPP used Washington to manage China. In other words, Chen got another four years, and Washington got to pat itself on the back. Who is manipulating whom? I submit that in this situation, Washington is the tail that thinks it's the dog.....

[Taiwan] [China] [US] [US Foreign Policy]

Nat Bellochi scores again

One of the the themes of former AIT director Nat Bellochi's many pieces in the Taipei Times is the need for America to have better communication channels and a better understanding of Taiwan. Yesterday he offered us more insights on that topic in the Taipei Times.

In the US there is a lack of consensus on US-Taiwan policy. There are many variations but broadly one side -- both in and out of government -- which sees the US-China relationship as the most important under almost any circumstances, and therefore prefers pressing for accommodations that more often favor China than Taiwan. The other side has a mix of priorities, the strongest of which is security-based on both the legal requirement in the TRA and broader regional security interests. Beyond this -- but important especially outside of government -- are issues of human rights, transparency, and democracy. Under this administration this side has more often been strong enough to gain its way.

........

Washington, which seems to have little interest in Taiwan's complex domestic politics, will need all the information it can get to weigh and determine what is best for US interests under these circumstances. The self-made constraints of the rules governing communications with Taiwan that still exist are now even more in need of upgrading.

Bellochi does not add that one of the consequences of Washington's lack of interest in Taiwan's domestic politics is that the traditionally party with the cash, the KMT, has strongly influenced US attitudes and understanding of Taiwan.

[Taiwan] [China]

Australia can make its own choices in event of Taiwan Straits War

An Australian newspaper reports that the Taiwan conflict is up to Australia, according to US military leaders.

The commander of US forces in the Pacific says Australia can make up its own mind on whether to become involved in any conflict between the United States and China over Taiwan.

But Admiral William Fallon, whose responsibility stretches from California to Madagascar, indicated that the ANZUS treaty placed certain obligations on Australia to go to the defence of the US.

Earlier this year, the Australian government dodged questions on what role it would take if the US and China ever came to blows on the question of Taiwan.

Like Australia, the US supports a one-China policy but has made it clear it will not stand for any threat to Taiwanese sovereignty.

Under the ANZUS treaty, Australia is obliged to support the US in the event of a retaliatory attack.

[Taiwan] [China] [[Australia]

Friday, September 23, Blog Round-up

Friday, my day off. Friday, blog round-up day.


Students respond with enthusiasm to my lectures.

It's the second week of school for me. All this week I've been approached by students begging me to let them into this or that class. Like many universities, Chaoyang does not offer enough credits to its students, and not enough elective courses. The result is that students find themselves in courses that they have no interest in or use for, merely to garner enough credits to pass. I hate saying no, especially to students whom I have known and loved for four years, but unfortunately a translation class of 100 is too unwieldy too teach, as I like working with students one on one, and I already have a slew of writing classes...and I am overseeing the internship program.....so a busy week that didn't leave me much time to blog. Apologies to all.....

Lots of stuff happening in Taiwan this week, and lots of great posts, food for heart, mind, and soul....

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Scott Sommers offers a great series of posts, some new, some reposts, on the issue of English teachers as economic migrants....

If English teaching is part of an industry, then what does it mean to have a career in this industry?

Teachers in commercial language schools are often complaining that such jobs are dead end. In a sense, this is true. There is very little professional development provided. Raises are few and far between and there is a ceiling at some point. I know of no commercial school that offers a pension plan. This is true even in the schools operated by foreigners who believe that they offer a professional work place.

Scott frequently interacts with some of Taiwan education's most perceptive observers, including Kerim Friedman and Clyde Warden, a longterm expat who happens to be a full professor, and obtained his PHD at a local university. The result is often some very good exchanges....

In this repost, Clyde Warden asked a very good question concerning the connection between my idea of English teachers as economic migrants and culture workers and my belief that there is no overwhelming student preference for foreign teachers. This is a very important question if I intend to pursue these ideas. I have no good answer for Clyde's main problem, but I want to try and explore a point that is repeatedly raised; if students don't overwhelmingly prefer foreign teachers, why are there so many foreign teachers being paid so much money?

The problem is that Scott's explanation doesn't really explain the overwhelming preference for foreign teachers, it simply says that parents and administrators like them, while correctly noting that students have no say (true right through the college level). Why do parents and school administrators like foreign teachers so much? I suspect that the answer lies in the very human preference for authenticity -- foreigners are seen as authentic speakers of English by parents, and school admins know this. The key point is this perception, for school admins will cheerfully hire a non-native speaker of English from Europe, especially if he/she is blond-haired and blue-eyed -- they are quite cynical about the teaching skills of foreigners, and about the need for an actual native speaker English. Authenticity takes many forms -- in addition to being an authentic speaker, the foreigner also is an authentic representative of the globalized future that Taiwan is supposedly moving toward. In Taiwan internationalization is often coterminus with English; everyone here is familiar with the boss who tells them: "we need to internationalize, so.... let's translate the organization website into English!" It is not, however, to be confused with importing best practices from abroad, adopting international standards, strategies, or points of view, and similar. English in reality functions as a fetish doll into which locals stick internationalization pins. The foreigner thus permits the school to bring in that authentic experience of The Foreign, while at the same time carefully encysting it in local cultural sites and practices to ameliorate its impact and structure its meaning for the locals. In my view the role of cram school administrators and textbook authors as definers, interpreters, and gatekeepers of The Foreign in Taiwan is often underappreciated, safely situating the threatening Other in the comprehensible niche of Orientalized Other for local cultural consumption. In that sense the white foreign teacher who does non-threatening things like play games with flashcards and lead children's songs is really no different than the faux aboriginal lives tourists see at the Nine Tribes Cultural Village not far from my house, where locals go to get an authentic experience of the Primitive by watching non-threatening brown people singing and dancing.

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David on Formosa blogs on an article by local expat writer Bill Stimson:

This article by Bill Stimson, a writer living in Taiwan, is about discovering beauty in the mundane and valuing what we have. It offers many insights into Taiwanese attitudes to the environment.

One of the greatest problems facing the modern world today, not just Taiwan, is the environmental crisis. It is rooted in dualistic thinking where the environment is perceived as something external and removed from our everyday life. People will go to great efforts to try and preserve a rainforest on the other side of the world yet attach no value to the wild things that survive in their own backyard.

For those of you in the Taichung area, Bill and his lovely wife, who teaches at my university, run writing workshops.

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Over at jujuflop, David applies Monty Python to the Taiwan independence party experience:

In case you were wondering the 'World United Formosans for Independence' and the 'Taiwan Defence Alliance' should not be confused with pro-formal independence political parties like the Taiwan Solidarity Union (which regularly polls between 5-10% in national elections), the 'Taiwan Independence Party' (which gained 0.3% of the vote in the last election), the 'Peasant Party' (0.4%) or the 'Taiwan Number One Party' (didn't bother standing).

My own experiences working for an independence movement organization indicates that David's insight is not far off...

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ESWN, one of Asia's most stimulating blogs, offered two important pieces of Taiwan-related material this week. The first was an article from The Journalist which purports to analyze the DPP's attempts at participatory democracy, yet another example of the inability of local analysts to write in concrete and robust ways, which I discuss here. The second article is transcript of a long, rambling speech by New Party founder and mainlander maverick Li Ao at Beijing University this week, which veers between clinical insanity and bad comedy. An excerpt:

Let me tell you. There is no such thing. Nobody dares to do that, including Lian Chan. They won't dare do that. So although the term liberalism appeared in Lian Chan's speech here on the speaker's podium of Beijing University, let me tell you that there is no such thing. Many people say that Li Ao is a liberal. You wonder what such a liberal will have to say in a place ruled by the Communists. Will I promote liberalism? Let me tell you, I will promote liberalism but its content is different from what you understand. What is liberalism? From the scholastic point of view, you publish a book and someone else publishes something else, and the academic theories seemed very profound. For me, there is nothing complex about it. There are only two parts to liberalism. One is to week within oneself, and the other is within the constitutional.

Let me tell you a story. Before Taiwan was ruled by the Qing dynasty, it was ruled by Zeng Chenggong. He was a distinguished national hero. Zeng's father surrendered to the Manchurians, but he did not. Zeng's mother was gang-raped by Qing soldiers in Fujian. What did Zeng do when he found out that his mother was gang-raped? Let me tell you. He cut his mother's body open and then used water to cleanse the body. He believed that his mother was soiled after being raped. His mother was soiled. The rape was an action and the soiling was process which can be washed away in order to reduce the pressure and pain inside him.

In the May Fourth era, there was a problem that Hu Xi solved but nobody else could. A Beijing University student said that the sister of a friend was kidnapped and then the unfortunate thing (which I just described) occurred. The question was posed to the philosophers, "How do you explain this?" They could not explain it. Mr. Hu Xi explained, "If a man want to marry this female victim, we ought to respect that man. Actually, there is little difference physiologically for the woman, but there is mental anguish. If the man can break through such emotions, then the man is remarkable and we should respect him."

Just wait until you get to the part about stockings. What cultural reference am I missing?

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Jerome Keating, as always, offers a great piece on the way China's "One China" myth is constructed:

After they conquered the Ming, they continued their conquest of the neighboring countries including Tibet, Mongolia and that of the Uighurs. They also occupied the island of Taiwan to prevent any Ming loyalists safe harbor there. Interestingly enough all of these conquered lands of Tibet, Mongolia, Taiwan, and China etc. now became a part of China and not Manchuria. The Manchus like the Mongolians did not have good spin historians.

Like the Mongolians, the Manchus (not having the required manpower) kept the administrative structures of the countries they had conquered. Like the Mongolians of course, the top men were always Manchus. For the Han Chinese that they were under alien rule was not lost on them. They all had to shave their heads and wear the Manchu queue. Even now, many Chinese still smart at the 'indignity' of any mention of that fact; it was a disruption of the order of the universe as they perceived it. Ironically when they in turn Sinicized lands that they conquered it was different. The Manchu queue requirement was an indignity; but required Sinicization was not. Perhaps someone should ask the Tibetans or other dispossessed subjects about this.

In the same way there are many Chinese who still cannot forgive or forget the humiliation of the Opium wars with England, even though at that time the English were 'humiliating' the Manchu Empire and not China. But, of course in their historians' minds all the countries that the Manchus had conquered had now miraculously become China and not the Manchu Empire.

A point that is often made, but can't be made enough.....

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Big Ell blogs on porn in Taiwan:

I thought I had seen it all until I came to Taiwan. My first housemates in Taichung had bought a porn filter for our local cable package. The filter was an ingenious device that attached to the coaxial cable. It unscrambled two Porn channels. I only remember the Rainbow Channel. Raibow Channel makes the Playboy Channel look like Good TV. Good or God TV is an evangelical Christian Tv Channel in Taiwan. We had full 24/7 access to all the porn four 20 something males desired. Initially I thought it was Taiwanese Porn but my savvy and more worldly roommates clued me into the fact that most of the porn was in fact from Japan. At that point in my life I had trouble discerning a Japanese Porn star from a Taiwanese Porn star or a Korean Porn Star for that matter. I have evolved to the point where I swear the lumber guy at B&Q is my trailer trash cousin.s doppelganger. I never really go into the Japanese porn with all of the crying and subservience, but it was a much better time killer than most of the other programs on TV.

My wife reads this blog, so no comment.

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POTS offers David Frazier's translation of an article on the recent fad of references to Taike, a term that is many years old. Why did it suddenly surface in the media now?

BLUE AND white plastic slippers, chews betel nut, drinks energy drinks, smokes Long Life yellows, anywhere anytime keeps the diao-ga-aa shirt (the Taiwanese wife-beater) rolled up to let the stomach breath. When du lan (pissed off), it's either "Kao bei ah!" ("For crying out loud!"), "Lim bei ah!" ("Your father!"), or "Lim bu ah!" ("Your mother!"). Every sentence begins with the word gan, fuck. At the KTV, he orders up some guang high, Cantonese hard house music, and blows a whistle like crazy. Or maybe the fashion is hip hop, bling-bling. Or maybe at the trance club TeXound - also known as tai ke shuang (台客爽) - he comes after the mei mei, the chicks, with shouts of yo-la! Yo-la! Shake it! Shake it! These are all elements of tai ke style, right? But if all that's true, then what is tai ke?

The article errs at one point:

In the 1960s, people in Taiwan began making comparisons between local Taiwanese and wai sheng ren, recent arrivals from mainland China. That was what first gave rise to a situation of chiang shia, forceful threats. Along with it came ethnic slurs: recent immigrants from China were called "mainlanders" or "Mainland pigs," and they in turn called the Taiwanese "tu tai ke" and "tai ke song," (terms that would compare in American English to "hicks" or "rednecks").

The use of "pigs" to describe mainlanders followed shortly on the first appearance of mainlanders in Taiwan in 1945. Comparisons were made immediately; in fact, it was used to interrogate people threatened by the locals during the 1947 revolt.

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Pinyin News, a very informative blog, points us to the Presbyterian Church and its contribution to Taiwan's language scene and democracy movement.

For many years, the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan has been an important voice for human rights in Taiwan, including the right of people to speak and worship in their native language.

Probably the best-established romanization system for writing Taiwanese (Hoklo, Hokkien, Minnan, etc.) is known as the "church system," having been developed by Presbyterian missionaries. Publications are still being issued in this, as I intend to discuss in a later edition of Pinyin News.

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There was a mini-flap over singer Vivian Hsu and a local Taiwan map, blogged on by Freedom Slopes and Wandering to Tamshui. Freedom Slopes observes:

Flipping through the Taiwan news I came across a story about the "Dirty White Slut" taipei map I had blogged about before. I guess someone finally complained to the proper authorities. It's about time.

Wandering to Tamshui takes a properly satirical tone:

So tell me again how Vivian Hsu wearing a shirt that says "SLUT" doesn't beat "Taiwan Touch Your Heart"?

READERS LIVING IN TAIPEI: You might still be able to find this map at any of the big 老外 hotels. Fetch!

I constantly run into this problem with my students: "Doris, do you know what that T-shirt of yours says?" [mute silence] "You mean you didn't look at before you bought it?" Just another case of It-has-English-so-it-must-be-cool.

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Taiwananonymous continues his run of book reviews with one on Sanmao, the revered Taiwanese writer who committed suicide several years ago.

When was the last time you saw an author's photo on a book's spine? If your answer was 'never,' then you have not seen the new editions of Sanmao's complete works. Each of the twenty-six books in the series has a picture of Sanmao, both on the cover and on the spine. This should give you a clue as to Sanmao's popularity. She was a celebrity writer, something than is becoming hard to imagine. Celebrities write books, but rarely does a writer become a celebrity. Sanmao wrote books, newspaper columns, song lyrics, even the screenplay for 'The Chess Master.' Her works have not been translated into English, but she is known to Chinese not only in Taiwan, but throughout the world. She talks about 'China' synonymously with 'Taiwan,' and just as she embraces China in her identity, she has a great number of readers from the Mainland who are attracted by her uniqueness and free-spirited mode of life.

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MeiZhongTai has been sparring with Sun Bin on the issue of Taiwan independence:

Sun Bin, one of the newest additions to my blogroll, has previously posted on why Taiwan should not take actions toward independence. (My reply is here.) Now, he offers a quote from Lao Zi to further explain his point....

Don't miss the article on Don't Belittle the ROC either.

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Rank, an active and witty Taiwan blogger, points out an article that puzzled me too...

After two US defense officials in two days warned Taiwan that it must stand up for its own defense if it wants US assistance with its defense [translation: Taiwan must buy expensive weaponry from US companies], a Taiwanese general has claimed that Taiwan has always planned to fight on its own, and has never included in its combat plans the idea of US military assistance.

General Hu Chen-pu is obviously lying -- and he'd damn well better be. Imagine if US forces arrived in Taiwan to help fend off a Chinese attack only to discover that the Taiwanese had never given a thought to the logistics of such an operation.

Why am I even taking pot shots at such an idiotic statement?

I agree; that's why I didn't blog on this when I might have. Who believes this general anyway, especially since Taiwan-US military contacts have been increasing in recent years? The real issue here, as Rank notes, is the fact that someone felt they could simply spout off at the mouth....

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Perry comments on my cry for quality commentary in the Taiwanese media:

"Is there no intelligent analysis in the Chinese-language media at all" asked Michael Turton in his blog The View from Taiwan today.

I tend to think the answer is in the negative. I've been translating opinion articles for Taipei Times for the past four years, and only on occasion will you find a thought-through article that offers some incisive analysis, or even makes sense.

Like I always say, the lack of quality models in their own everyday media culture explains so much of the way my students write.

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The Human Manifesto is back! And blogging on teacher contract woes...

This week my boss is now trying to renegotiate my contract. Altering my pay so that it is lower. In effect, I pay for the health insurance that they are supposed to pay for. Conversations began two days ago, and today it came to a head for me when they presented the new contract. This new contract would put me in the same salary range as a new teacher who has no teaching experience and who is fresh out of college. I initially refused to sign the new contract but as the day wore on, my boss came to me again, stating that she now 'knows' that she must give me health insurance. Something I told her over two months ago. I let her know that I have several years of experience, provide class supplements at my cost, as well as I have a teaching certification. I don't know what she thought about my response as I had to leave for class and I didn't stay around after work to discuss the matter again.

That's right! It is bigtime illegal not to pay for health insurance! I also love the way they snuck that little $5000 increment onto your contract. Are you sure that's even the contract you signed, or did you sign the second page, and they substituted a different first page?

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Mesheel reminisces about her experiences in the 9/21 quake, with pics.

On the night of 921 I happened to be in Taiwan. I was living in Taiwan during the month of September taking Chinese classes at TLI. This was my second visit to Taipei. I'd visited first in 1990 with my parents, but honestly do not remember much of it as it was rather an exhausting trip. Dad, please correct me, if I’m wrong, but we did Hong Kong, Beijing, Taipei, Tokyo, Seoul in less then 2 weeks, yes? Anyhow, after having lived in Mainland in 1997/1998, a year which killed most of my passion for Chinese culture and language, I though it is time to search for it in Taiwan again.

We were living in Taliao down by Kaohsiung at the time. I woke up, terrified, and attempted to wake up my wife. Her response to being awakened in the wee hours of the morning cannot be printed in a public blog.

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The Taiwan Chronicles writes about those strange stalkers of Taipei:

There are hundreds of stalkers in Taipei. They stalk foreigners, chasing them down with their cars and honking at them repeatedly. Who are these stalkers? They are cabbies!

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The venting at Three Spleens always makes me laugh. This week it's the train ride to anorexia:

here i am on the taipei mrt. it's notoriously clean, yet my train smells like bulimia. must be all the 50-pound high school girls across from me.

one of them whips out her piece of shit hello kitty cell phone. she proceeds to listen to every fucking ringtone stored on it. all her teeny bopper friends think it's the coolest fucking thing in the whole world.

ROFL.

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SHORTS: Karl at Chewin on the Chung blogs on Jeff Gannon, the hapless male prostitute who became a "victim" of the horrible Left. Betel Nut Blogger seems to have disappeared. Taiwan's Other Side offers some rich comedy on Chiang Kai Shek, who is admired by "millions" in Taiwan. Speaking of comedy, don't miss the Wilds of Taiwan's further discoveries in their children's dictionary. Faith's Taiwan has a great set of pics of her light aircraft experience. Great photos at 35togo, a better tomorrow (that wasp kicks ass!), andres, amateur commune, Leftmind, Photoblogging Taiwan, Roger in Taiwan, unplugged, .... and the pics at This Life also seem to be on their way up.....Kelake is back, speaking of 35togo. Me from T@iawan blogs on the visit of a martial arts novelist. And don't miss this blog from a Taiwanese in China dedicated to toilets in China (thanks, asiapundit). TaiwanFashionista has all your fashion in Taiwan news...

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[Taiwan] [China] [Taipei]

Using One Myth to Interpret Another

asiapundit rounded up this post on looting in New Orleans by an American Expat in SE Asia. You know, of course, that when a piece of writing uses the phrase "moral compass" it will combine those special qualities of looking backward to a mythic but non-existent past, a poorly-thought out analysis that invokes one myth to explain another, and an assurance that the ethical nihilism of Christianity is the answer to all problems. Sure enough, we got the trifecta there. I can't understand why asiapundit felt this post was worth rounding up.

The post began with this image:



and noted:

One of the most powerful images from the aftermath of the Southeast Asian earthquake and tsunamis, was this one from Banda Aceh just days after the terrible tragedy. The photo above is that of a young man, a looter, who was beaten into submission and then paraded through the village square with a placard around his neck that says in Indonesian "Saya Maling" (I'm a thief).

Without the aid of the police or militia the photo shows the determination and the will of a altruistic, righteous and self-disciplined group of people desirous for the return of law and order to their society. A people who did not require the "whip of tyranny" a people who knew right from wrong.

Essentially, we have the myth...of the people in an altruistic state of righteousness and self-discipline who wanted law and order to return to their society. The juxposition of the Primitive unspoiled by the "relativism" of modern civilization, still in touch with primitive wisdom. This is the stuff of Hollywood, not serious thinking.

Alas, reality is too complex for analyses of this nature. American Expat did not trouble himself to find out whether the person with the picture was actually a looter or just someone in the wrong place at the wrong time, or some local crowd tricked into carrying out a vendetta for someone else. Having been both a victim and a witness of mob violence overseas, I can assure American Expat that mobs are not any better at finding the real culprit than the courts are, and are usually much worse. And further, the punishments they mete out rarely fit the crime (read here too). One might well ask who brought this man in? What was he stealing? Who were the witnesses and evidence? What was his fate? Such questions have fallen out of American Expat's analysis, because he is simply interested in exploiting one myth to interpret another, using the myth of the Righteous Primitive to interpret the myth that relativism leading to a 'moral decline' in the US.

Another striking thing about this is that it seems to make all the looting that did take place just disappear. Here Sri Lankan churches warn on looting. Wiki reports that the Sri Lanka government had to enforce curfews. ABC reports on looting in tourist areas in Thailand -- probably the innocent locals were corrupted by the hordes of American tourists that descend on Thailand. 400 looting incidents in Sri Lanka. Looting in Indonesia excused on the grounds that the people were desperate.

There's plenty more, but I won't go on. Suffice to say that people in both areas looted, not because they were liberals or conservatives or Americans or SE Asians, but because they were humans in dire straits. Remove that context, and you make thoughts like those contained in American Expat's post possible. What we are really looking at is the Myth of the Other Who Is Not Like Us -- the SE Asians denying that they looted with the best of them, attributing that behavior to the Americans, the white upper class Americans blaming the Other, blacks, for the looting, and so on. Just more myths interpreting myths....

Also fascinating is Expat's construction of law and order. Two points: where I grew up, mob justice was the opposite of rule of law. And second: the image he posted and asked no questions of was taken on Banda Aceh. The interesting thing is that the government of Indonesia had suspended the rule of law and order in that province in a brutal struggle against local rebels, with the usual extrajudicial killings, detentions without warrant, harrassment, and torture that both sides carry out in such circumstances. I won't even bother to ask what kind of civic society existed in the idyllic days prior to the tsunami, and what sort of law and order ruled it.

The crowning irony of this opening paragraph is that it links to a post on WorldNetDaily starts with a common myth about Christianity and American education....

What were those values that so upset them that they dedicated themselves to erasing them from the public square and people's consciousness? Well, they were such principles as "Thou shalt not steal," "Thou shalt not murder," and "Thou shalt not covet" – principles that had meaning in light of the biblical principle that the "fear of the Lord is the beginning of all wisdom" and its wonderful corollary that the knowledge of Jesus Christ is the culmination of wisdom.

Since far too many people no longer adhere to those principles, there has been horrific stealing and looting in New Orleans after the tragedy that Katrina wrought. The response by the media is a call for government intervention. Without the principle of self-discipline, therefore, we are now at the mercy of the whip of tyranny.

I don't see much point in any observations on how stupid this myth of the modern American Fall is, but I would like to note this to Expat: the whole idea of Heaven and Hell is the very "whip of tyranny" you claim to abhor. There's a very great irony in someone arguing that Christianity supports some kind of primitive self-organizing social discipline. it doesn't. Christianity is about the absolute authority of its god, the kind that would make Stalin green with envy. When Christianity says "love" it means "power'", just as when Communism says "worker" it means "slave" and Fascism says "citizen" it means "subject." You all speak the same language of power and control to me, Expat, language that I reject utterly. The basis of self-discipline is not authority but autonomy. It is emerging from the nightmare of eternal authoritarian power to swear that never again shall one submit the autonomy of one's own mind to the judgment of another. Discipline of self begins with freedom of Self.

Expat also writes:

The damage to our country's image and reputation is severe. To many in Southeast Asia now the tragedy in New Orleans has shown that while America might be a rich country, it exists only one step above complete anarchy, barbarism and savagery. The disrespect for the rights of others and the lack of moral clarity have led many here to believe that America is nothing more than an amoral hedonistic society, a society now lost, completely devoid of any moral compass and set adrift on an endless sea of moral relativism.

I quite agree. A great disaster, the Bush Administration, has damaged our country's image and reputation. Our barbarism and savagery in Iraq, the lack of moral clarity that led us to illegally and immorally invade a prostrate nation based on the lies of our leaders, the hedonistic way the Republicans have treated our budget with the biggest deficits in history, and the hedonistic way our economy, our national environment, parks, and resources have been pillaged and looted, the the lack of moral compass displayed in the rampant cronyism that puts contracts into the hands of Bush's pals and gets incompetent political hacks appointed to important positions -- and the amorality inherent in the Administration's utter disregard of the problem of global warming. The callous disrepect we display for the rights of other nations and international norms and standards, and to our own people, exemplified by the sick, anti-American Patriot Act and the even more revolting recent court decision that permits the President to detain anyone, any time, for any reason, are exactly the kind of things I presume American Expat is talking about. I agree: the leaders of our nation definitely have lost their moral compass. Something needs to be done at the next election.

BTW, Expat, it's almost too obvious to mention, but that horrible American liberal Celine Dion is from Canada, a Roman Catholic from Quebec. Bet she's just a harbinger of creeping north of the border hedonistic liberal socialism, eh?

[Tsunami] [looting]

Some good letters.....

I get a lot of letters from former expat residents of the island. Here's one I got yesterday:

I am sorry, but I do not know your name. My name is _____ and I just wanted to let you know how much I enjoy your pictures of Taiwan on the internet. I lived in Taoyuan county for a couple of years and had a great time. My wife is from Taiwan and we return each year for Chinese New Year. Sometimes at work I think about Taiwan and I am thankful that you are willing to share your family pictures. It brings back good memories when I look at your pictures. Also, you have a nice looking family and must be a very blessed man. May God continue to bless you and your family.

And one from the day before. I especially love letters that talk about the life on the island many years ago. Nowadays it is a formidable challenge to find a place to park by the train station.....

I really appreciate your pictures and running commentary on so many subjects relating to current times in Taiwan.

I was reminded of an incident that happened in 1966 or 1967. I was stationed at Taipei Air Station. I had a moonlight job at the Officer's Club Annex as a Night Manager. The job kept me out of trouble and helped time pass. I was single at the time. (I later married a Chinese girl.) Anyway, rather than sleep in the Chinese Army Military Hostel which was located next door to the Navy Exchange, I and my room mate, another guy who also worked part time as a Night Manager at the club, decided to rent an apartment. We were fortunate to get into a brand new building a few blocks from the Navy Exchange. Within 6 weeks, someone broke into the apartment and cleaned out everything that they could carry! Only a couch remained in the living room and kitchen and bathroom. My roommate's bedroom was emptied, only the bed remained, they even took the linen. My bedroom was locked and the thief tried for sometime to dig out around the lock, but didn't get inside. My poor buddy lost everything! You can imagine how he felt. He was in shock! At the time of the burglary, we had no bars on our windows. I don't think anyone in our apartment building had bars at the time either. Life went on for me. My roommate moved back into the barracks at Taipei Air Station to recover his losses and save up some cash. I invited my girl friend to move into the apartment and later married her. A couple of weeks after the burglary we were awoken on a Saturday or Sunday morning by the police knocking on our apartment door. They had captured the thief. He was disheveled; from his looks I guessed the police had worked him over. He was tied with large rope which was also strung around his neck and he was bare foot. The police told us the thief was taking them to the residences he had burglarized. The police had us come by the station and identify items taken. My buddy was able to recover some of his stuff from a pawn shop across town, but had to pay the shop for each item he recovered. I believe Uncle Sam reimbursed him for his loss. Interesting that the police did catch some of these guys in the 60's......

I loved my time in Taiwan, visited all over the island, drove up and down the old Highway 1 many times. I have some stories about that road. I wanted to stay in Taiwan, but my wife wanted to come to the US, I understood and we returned to Texas. I later returned to the military and retired in 1980. Have not been in Taiwan since 1972 or 73. Plan to make a trip back later this fall. Your pages provided me with a lot of current info, not much has changed really. Still hauling water to drink in Taipei - 40 years later! Unbelievable huh. The traffic situation appears much worse. Hardly any automobiles were on Taiwan in the mid 60's. Easy to get all over town in a few minutes. I remember parking at the Main Railway Station waiting for my girl friend to arrive and I would be the only private car parked there during the evening hours. I bet you can't get close to the station today. I'm anxious to visit again and see the physical changes, doubt I'll recognize much though.

Thanks again, loved your pages. Much aloha to you and your family.

[Taiwan]

Asia Times Article on Chinese Tourists in Taiwan

The Asia Times reports on the Taiwan government's decision to open tourism in Taiwan to (wealthier) Chinese:

Currently, 61 Taiwan travel agents are entitled to conduct this business. Chinese tourists have to prove that they have full-time employment or own at least NT$200,000 in assets. Such tourists will also only be allowed to enter and leave Taiwan in tour groups of between 15 and 40 people, which must include a tour guide. Permission to visit Taiwan will not be granted to Chinese civil servants, military or political officials, or Chinese citizens who have broken the law within five years before their applications. Chinese tourists attending a seven-day tour are entitled to have one day of free time, while those attending eight to ten-day tours are entitled to one-and-a-half days of free time. But on such days, the tourists are required to be back at their hotels by 11pm.

The restrictions do not end there. Travel agents managing Chinese tourists are required to check and report on the status of the tourists to the Tourism Bureau within two hours of their arrival and departure in Taiwan. In the event of overstays by their clients, travel agents can be banned from bringing more groups to Taiwan. The bans can last from between one month to a year, depending on the number of clients who overstay their visas.

Travel agents will have their quotas for Chinese tourists reduced if too many overstay their visas or disappear. Eric Chang, chairman of Taiwan's China International Youth Travel Service, noted that the mechanism is actually not fair to travel agents, since it places responsibility on local travel agents to verify Chinese tourists' identifications. "If the government cannot do so, how can we?" he noted, adding that it is unlikely that many Chinese tourists would "escape", since due to the net worth requirements, these tourists are nominally far wealthier than the average Taiwanese.

[Taiwan] [China]

China's Rise, Japan, and Taiwan

A commentary on China's rise appeared today in the International Herald Tribune:

China's real issue with Japan, disguised by historical complaints, lies in the
fact that Japan under Koizumi has become a stauncher ally of the United States.
Most notably, the U.S.-Japanese joint statement on common goals in the Taiwan
dispute, implying that Japan might not simply stand by in case of a Chinese
invasion of Taiwan, angered China last February.

And from the correspondent of the Apple Daily in Washington, too....

Japan's shift toward more active support of Taiwan is a move of seismic proportion whose effects are going to ripple across Asia for years to come. A decade from now, when a militarily resurgent Japan, an increasingly irrelevant and weakening, but still hugely nationalistic US, and a rising China confront each other over Taiwan, oil shipments, and regional hegemony....that is not a mix for peace. That is recipe for a nasty cold war that may blow hot at any moment.

Perhaps what East and South Asia needs is a new regional body or regional framework where the major powers sit as equals to solve any of the numerous problems that confront the region -- claims over Taiwan, the Senkakus, the Spratlys, the Himalayan border regions (a flashpoint not well understood or publicized in the West), divided Korea, fishing and mineral rights.... There are too many nations from Indonesia to Japan whose economies are growing and whose demand for finite resources will only increase. Just today the Indonesian navy fired on Chinese fishing boats...(CNN, BBC)

[Taiwan] [China]

Fighting Legislatures Now At the City Council Level

God forbid that Taiwan's image abroad be given time to heal, as Taipei City council members went 15 rounds in the meeting yesterday.

Of interest to me personally, and indicative of some of the real issues driving the legislature, was this blurb:

Prior to reporting on "how to build Taipei into a healthy city," Ma responded to councilors' questions, in which DPP and KMT councilors were split on whether the issue of Feitsui Reservoir (翡翠水庫) should be of concern to the city government.

"Opening up access to the section between Pinglin (坪林) and Shiding (石碇) on the Taipei-Ilan highway will influence the water quality of Feitsui Reservoir," Ma said. "This concerns the rights and interests of the 8 million people in Taipei city and county. Of course it is the responsibility of the city government. I don't agree that it is only an issue for the Legislative Yuan."

The Feitsui Reservoir is one of the reasons Taipei city water is nearly drinkable straight from the tap. The government tightly monitors the watershed and prevents development in it. The area also benefits from a lack of polluting industries. Mayor Ma is absolutely right. The reservoir should be of the deepest concern to the city government, and it should do everything possible to prevent development in that region.

Of course, in addition to fistfights, no legislative session would be complete without its sex comedy:

During the question-and-answer session, an allegation that Bureau of Civil Affairs Ho Hung-jung's (何鴻榮) was having an affair with his secretary became another topic of controversy, as KMT Councilors Lai Su-ru (賴素如) and Wang Hao (王浩) both mentioned the issue.

What! Bundling with the secretary? That just never happens in Taiwan..... it's a good thing that the City Council has its priorities straight.....
.

[Taiwan]

Taiwan Dollar Slides

The Taiwan dollar has begun to fall again, posting a 10 month low on monday of 33.096. to the US dollar. Economic indicators are not good for the Beautiful Island, and with the Fed hiking interest rates, with more hikes inevitable, and falling foreign trade....

Taiwan registered a combined trade surplus of US$1.17 billion for the first eight months of this year, an astounding plunge of 79.1 percent from the year-earlier level - another major driving force that Yeh said has sent the new Taiwan dollar plummeting. In comparison, South Korea posted a trade deficit of US$15.98 billion for the same eight-month period.

[Taiwan]

Resources: TaiwanMilitary.org

MeiZhongTai, always full of useful info, pointed me to this forum on Taiwan Military affairs, TaiwanMilitary.Org.

In related news, the fourth US-Taiwan defense conference opens today.


[Taiwan]