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U.S. should adopt Taiwan's higher standard
2007/08/27 This letter is in response to the article written by (AIT director) Stephen M. Young on Aug. 24. Young stated some points trying to convince the general public in Taiwan to accept the importation of American pork having Ractopamine. He used "science" vs. "superstition" as the title. ¡@ As a member of Taiwan society, I have some opinions on the issue he talked about. First, Young said that the U.S. FDA approved the use of Ractopamine in 1999 and commented that "FDA has a well-deserved reputation for its scientific expertise and has a rigorous approval process before any new veterinary drug is allowed for use in the U.S." This statement is absolutely American-centered. Our country ¡X the ROC ¡X has some standard, perhaps even stricter than that of the U.S. We prohibit the use of Ractopamine in the first place. If other countries would like to follow the U.S. and use Ractopamine, that¡¦s their choice. Nonetheless, we still stand firm on our standard. ¡@ From the aspect of "science," the agriculture agency of ROC is prudent enough not to use the chemical before its potential side-effects are detected. As it is believed that chemicals or additives contained in food or dairy products would do harm to human beings over time, it is best not to use them at the very start. ¡@ As a final point, Young said in his article that it is his "sincere hope that Taiwan will adopt a science-based approach to set standards for a permissible level of Ractopamine in U.S. meat exported to Taiwan." Instead, I will earnestly urge that the U.S. government take on our stricter standard ¡X not to use Ractopamine ¡X and take the health of Americans as a priority issue. Next generation of teachers should be specially trained
2007/08/26 I would like to respond to the editorial "TEFL scores in Taiwan: a humiliating failure" (Aug. 23, 2007). The abysmal TEFL scores are referred to, along with the ubiquitous reminder about the importance of English in today's world. The solutions offered were basically two-fold: stressing communication in English classes and hiring more foreign teachers of English. ¡@ Unfortunately, these are not practical solutions. As for changing the teaching approach to one that is more communicative-oriented, who will prepare the teachers? Are the teachers even capable? Will any teacher stop catering to the endless tests their students will face? What about class sizes? Will a communicative approach work in overcrowded classes and a few hours a week? What about teaching English from kindergarten on? None of these crucial questions are addressed. ¡@ As for hiring more foreign teachers, forget it! The MOE has no idea how to find or recruit them, and most would be totally uninterested in coming here for many reasons, including dealing with a foreign culture, language challenges, low salaries, little support, antagonistic local teachers, endless paperwork and legal hassles, etc. Even if we could find a large number of qualified and willing foreign teachers of English to come to Taiwan, they would still be caught in the "prepare students for exams" syndrome, and at best would be a temporary solution. ¡@ There is only one logical solution ¡X to train the next generation of teachers in special English language schools by both foreigners and truly competent Taiwanese teachers. By the time these students work their way through elementary and secondary school, they will be ready to enter university for teacher certification. Taiwan would finally have a homegrown cadre of competent teachers of English for future students who may finally be spared endless hours in useless and expensive Buxibans, to make up for incompetent teachers in the schools of Taiwan. ¡@ We have to start preparing the teachers before tackling the problems facing students countrywide, although many improvements can be made in the meantime, like encouraging reading, practical English usage, testing teachers, etc. Most future English teaching jobs should go to Taiwanese students, rather than foreigners. This solution will take years to realize, but so many years have already been wasted without improvement. ¡@ Beside the editorial, there was a letter to the editor: "Students must learn to take responsibility for themselves" in which Phillip Charlier, a researcher in Taipei, suggests that college level language "student self-evaluation should be instigated immediately" and should be given a higher priority than teacher and school evaluation." ¡@ I hope Charlier's area of research is not education, as his idea is ludicrous. I can just picture a future job candidate saying: "I gave myself 95 percent in English so I am very qualified." Would Charlier go to a doctor who had evaluated himself? If a student were truly qualified to evaluate himself, it would mean that he/she possessed knowledge and skills equivalent to his professors. ¡@ There is one benefit to his suggestion, if students could evaluate their own TEFL tests it would finally eradicate the low scores plaguing Taiwan. China's control over media shows its lack of confidence
2007/08/26 China imposing restriction on media freedom is nothing new. This time around, the fabricated story of cardboard-filled meat buns by a Beijing television reporter lends weight to the government's excuse of media control. ¡@ With the Chinese Communist Party Congress approaching, Beijing has recently set out to tighten its grip on media. The Central Committee's Propaganda Department, the organization to monitor content of the publications in consistency with the Communist Party's political dogma, kicks off a wide-ranging clampdown on "false news" and "illegal publications." ¡@ To build a progressive and cooperative national image, Beijing has long been scheming to blind the people to reality. The ban on reporting the real situation of the 172 trapped miners at the Huayuan mine in Shandong province and probing the details of the deadly collapse of the Fenghuang bridge in Zhejiang province, as was lately issued by the Propaganda Department, exemplifies the government's reluctance to face the music. However, the disguise fails to whitewash the blot on the Communist leadership, only to leave the unnerved public to speculate rumors and to cast doubts on the regime's credibility. ¡@ On the other side, the Chinese officials run short of confidence in its subjects. They underestimate the citizens' media literacy to detect bias, distinguish facts from opinions, and reconstruct media message. Under the pretext of protectionism, the people's right of knowledge is trampled on and, in the meantime, the opportunity to develop critical thinking is deprived. ¡@ China's media control reckons a bitter reminder, to the world and to itself, of a totalitarian regime seeking to suppress speech that they disapprove of, dislike or simply dread to let their subjects know. There are 'small' murders only in distorted rationale
2007/08/26 I wish to commend the Vatican, and more recently Catholic Bishop Michael Evans of East Anglia for condemning Amnesty International's new pro-abortion policy. Amnesty has fallen victim to a distorted rationale that tends to place a higher priority on human suffering than on life itself. Contrary to Amnesty's new position, human welfare depends upon a shared responsibility that involves moral limits. There are no "small" murders. The respect for every human life is an essential condition if a societal life worthy of the name is to be possible. When man's conscience loses respect for life as something sacred, he inevitably ends by losing his own identity. ¡@ While the term "choice" may sound democratic the person who opts for abortion is neglecting to consider the fundamental right to life of the mother's unborn fetus. We must help those who are suffering, but we may not use a good end to justify an evil means. Human beings are not raw materials to be exploited or commodities that can be bought and sold. To suggest otherwise is to endorse a macabre interpretation of progress. To claim the right to abortion and to recognize that right in law, means to attribute to human freedom a perverse and evil significance: that of an absolute power over others and against others. This is the death of true freedom. Give young Taiwanese credit, encouragement on English
2007/08/25 In your editorial titled "TEFL scores in Taiwan: a humiliating failure" (Aug. 23), you correctly point out some important aspects of English education in this country, and I hope the nation's educators are listening. ¡@ However, when the editorial states that "despite huge amounts of resources invested, the campaign to make Taiwanese students proficient in English has been an ignominious failure", I must disagree. When the editorial further states that "[sadly], Taiwanese citizens' ability to use English has made little, if any, progress over the years," I must also disagree. ¡@ It's been my experience, and it's my view, that Taiwanese young people have made giant strides in the last ten years or so in learning English. Rather than always criticize the current state of English learning, why not offer some positive words of encouragement for a change? ¡@ I see all around me on a daily basis high school students and college students and graduate students from all over Taiwan who speak English very well, and can comfortably communicate with foreigners in English. Let's give them some credit. Let's congratulate the younger generation for learning English and making it part of their daily lives. ¡@ Compared with Japan, where people speak the most atrocious English on the planet ¡X I'm kidding! ¡X Taiwan is doing a very good job of absorbing English into daily life, and things will only get better as time goes on. ¡@ I would like to give Taiwanese people high marks for their English skills, and while there is still much improvement that needs to be made, of course, I think they have been doing a very good job of learning English and incorporating it into their daily lives. Look at the bright side! Things are much better now than they were 25 years ago! English is more or less the unofficial second language of Taiwan right now. This is a huge accomplishment. Students must learn to take responsibility for themselves
2007/08/23 Two of Fr. Daniel J. Bauer's recent columns ¡X "Students should evaluate themselves" (June 10, 2007) and "Real education more than reputation" (Aug. 5, 2007) ¡X seem to touch on an issue I think is important in Taiwan's educational development. ¡@ My work involves use of a "learner-centered" framework of learning, teaching and assessment called the "Common European Framework of Reference for Language Learning, Teaching and Assessment" (CEFR). In May 2005, the MOE announced that the CEF/CEFR was to form the basis of all tests of English proficiency in Taiwan. While I think this is a positive step in English education here, the main challenge is implementing this policy in a "teacher-centered" educational system. ¡@ Students in Taiwan tend to give too much weight to the reputation of a school and the ability of a teacher in their formula for educational success. What seems to be missing in the equation is the most important factor of all ¡X the learner him/herself. A poor or lazy student who attends the most prestigious school and has the best teachers will remain a poor or lazy student. A student who applies him/herself to their subject with a diligent and responsible attitude will succeed regardless of the reputation of the school or the ability of their teacher. I believe this is especially true in language studies. There is no way a teacher can give the student the language on a plate. Language has to be learned more than "taught." The best we can do as teachers is give our students the tools they need to succeed and guide them how to use the resources available. ¡@ Taiwanese students and their parents are very critical of schools and teachers. When a student fails to make a passing grade or is felt to be underperforming, it is the school and the teacher who is criticized. While it is important for the schools and teachers to be accountable to their "customers," it is more crucial that the student takes responsibility for their learning. I'd like to ask "what steps has the learner taken to facilitate their learning inside and outside the classroom?" Has the learner actively spoken out in class and engaged in the discussions? Has the learner actively researched aspects of the learning program on their own, using the Internet and library resources? At college level, especially, these questions are of the highest relevance. ¡@ As teachers, we need to do whatever is possible to empower our students to become independent, rather than dependent on us or the school for their educational success. Ultimately, it is the learner who has to take responsibility for their learning. How can we allow them to graduate otherwise? I think Fr. Bauer's idea of student self-evaluation should be instigated immediately as a standard part of any college-level language program and should be given a higher priority than teacher and school evaluation. Such a policy would force a student to reflect on their own role in the learning process and empower them to take responsibility for their own success. Without this, even the best teacher can't help. Healing from abuse begins in the Church
2007/08/23 As a victim of childhood clergy sexual victimization who struggles every day for survival, I thank Father Daniel J. Bauer for his kind and understanding thoughts in "More healing thoughts on abuse" (Sunday, August 19th). ¡@ Yes, the rape of children is a difficult subject to talk, read, or even think about. That said, one can then understand how difficult it is for the clergy abuse victims who try to exist from one day to the next, one minute to the next. And some of victims (God keep them) could not exist with the memory of the perverted horrors that were perpetrated upon their innocent bodies, minds and spirits, and so took their own lives. ¡@ People, especially Roman Catholics, have to understand that the victims of clergy sexual victimization are living a nightmare from which they will never awaken. ¡@ Anointed priest brothers, deacons and nuns, with God on their lips, robbed us of our innocence, our childhoods, our futures; and for some, even their belief in a loving and merciful God. ¡@ In closing, I beg Catholics to discuss these crimes against children. Invite victims to your parishes and listen to their stories. ¡@ If something is brought out into the open, it is no longer taboo to address. Then (hopefully) what happened to us (the victims) will never happen to another child. ¡@ God bless you. Don't count on the illusion of goodwill created by China
2007/08/21 On Aug. 23, 1958 at 18:30, the Chinese Communist army intensively bombarded the islands of Kinmen and shocked the world. The incident later came to be known as the "Aug. 23 Taiwan Strait campaign." ¡@ China's original intent was to launch a surprise attack to topple Kinmen with intensive fire. However, our armed forces unitedly fought against the enemy and thoroughly crushed China's dream of "liberating Taiwan." ¡@ The heroic counterattack by our troops forced China to a cease-fire. China then changed its attack strategy by "fighting on single dates and cease firing on double dates" as a pretext for its military defeat. ¡@ In a few days, it will be the 49th anniversary of the "Aug. 23 Bombardment." The "Aug. 23 Bombardment" incident is not only an important historical event in the Taiwan Strait, but it also had a far-reaching impact on the entire Asia-Pacific region. With the current volatile situation in cross-strait relations, the clouds of war cannot be ruled out, as long as China doesn't give up its threat of using force against Taiwan. ¡@ To safeguard the nation's perpetual development, we should actively engage in combat training so as to strengthen our defense capabilities. ¡@ In the face of growing challenges and threats, people of our nation cannot be ignorant and count on the illusion of goodwill created by China. ¡@ Nor should we have the mentality of dependents, by looking forward to international backers. We can build up awareness about the challenges by understanding that "security lies in strength" and by actively working toward military buildup and war preparation. ¡@ This way we can build an "effective deterrence" and recreate the glorious history of the "Aug. 23" incident. HK's loss of democracy is a warning
2007/08/20 Recently, China celebrated the 10th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to Chinese rule with a large-scale concert and beautiful fireworks. ¡@ However, under the "one country, two systems" formula, people in Hong Kong have gradually lost their right to enjoy democracy and media freedom, which is what the majority of people want most. ¡@ Under China's governance, Hong Kong has seen problems arising from a bureaucratic system of corruption, the gap between the rich and poor, the exploitation of a brand new bureaucrat capitalist class and the reckless expansion of township enterprises. ¡@ Moreover, Hong Kong has also seen a steady decline in its media freedom under the rule of the Chinese Communist Party. Beijing's "muzzling" of Hong Kong media includes redirecting the scrutiny of the media from the Chinese government to that of Hong Kong, detaining Hong Kong reporters on the mainland, urging media barons to avoid controversial subjects, and even attacking newspaper presses. ¡@ Hong Kong's loss of democracy and media freedom is a warning for Taiwan to see through the lie of China's "one country, two systems," and to think twice before deciding to unify with Beijing. Olympics will show China's true colors
2007/08/16 When Beijing was awarded the right to host the Olympic Games, foreign supporters hoped that it would improve respect for human rights and press freedom. However, there's less than a year left before the start of the games, and fundamentally there has been little improvement. ¡@ Recently, foreign journalists were roughed up and detained for trying to report on a protest in Beijing. Then Chinese police detained six activists from Britain, America and Canada who managed to hang a huge banner on the Great Wall reading "One World, One Dream, Free Tibet 2008." ¡@ From these two incidents, it is clear that despite its claims, China never intended to loosen its grip on information and freedom of speech. Yet while it is relatively easy to whitewash the content of domestic media, it is a totally different matter with foreign reporters. ¡@ With the Olympics less than a year away, China will definitely be the focus of outside scrutiny. Human rights advocates, China's own dissidents and many others are sure to use the presence of foreign journalists to publicize their grievances. By suppressing the media, China will expose itself as the authoritarian regime that it really is. Venezuela's politics and sports mix is unacceptable
2007/08/14 Your newspaper recently reported that Venezuela refused to grant visas to 20 young Taiwanese baseball players under pressure from Beijing. So the Chinese-Taipei league team failed to leave for Venezuela and participate in the competition. Beijing's obstruction of Taiwan's participation in this athletic competition is uncivilized. In addition, Venezuela's approach is also unimaginable and totally unacceptable. ¡@ As the host country for the International Baseball Federation (IBAF) World Youth Championship, Venezuela refused to issue visas to the Taiwanese baseball team players because of China's meddling. As a result, the Chinese-Taipei Baseball Team will be absent from the match scheduled for today. Despite more than four months of efforts, the team members have not been issued visas. Venezuela's National Baseball Association secretary-general had even admitted to the IBAF that it is a political issue. ¡@ Venezuela's mixture of both politics and sports is inconceivable. This incident also clearly tells the world that China is doing everything it can to abuse the field of sports, in particular the pressure on Taiwan, which has never ceased. I believe that Beijing's blockade of Taiwan's participation in various sporting events will not help improve cross-strait relations, and it also hurts the feelings of people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait. Taiwan should capitalize on unique Austronesian heritage
2007/08/14 A few weeks ago I went to Taitung for the Rukai Harvest Festival and a Puyuma ceremony the next day. There happened to be an "Austronesian" concert at night in a park near the sea. With anticipation I attended but was sorely disappointed. Instead of Austronesian I found something more of a mishmash of Asian-Pacific, Mando-pop with only two authentic Austronesian selections. ¡@ I'm as big a fan of traditional Korean and Japanese culture as the next person but not in an "Austronesian" festival. And why was the picture of some Han girl on all the posters and free fans? The logical thing would have been to have had something spiffy with an Austronesian theme on it. But obviously politics trumped logic here or the whole thing would have really reflected the unique cultural heritage Taiwan can offer the world. ¡@ As the probable homeland of the Austronesian peoples, Taiwan is unique and should capitalize on this. It makes geopolitical as well as moral sense to help the indigenous peoples reclaim the languages and cultures that were stripped of them by the Japanese colonialists and the Han people. For them to reach out to other indigenous peoples helps them, but also helps Taiwan increase its rightful place in the world. Together the "yuan zhu ming" ("original people" in Chinese) and the Han people of Taiwan can do much to help each other while showing the rest of the world what Taiwan has to offer. Preserving the Air Force spirit by bulking up anti-air defense
2007/08/13 Aug. 14 is Air Force Day as well as the 70th anniversary this year of the Air Battle victory. We remember those Air Force martyrs who vowed to defend the country's airspace with blood by resisting the enemy's aggression, and thereby leaving countless epics and moving stories. ¡@ The Republic of China's Air Force has a long and glorious history and tradition ever since our Founding Father Dr. Sun Yat-sen founded the Military Aircraft School in Guangzhou in 1924. Through the 83 years, the Air Force took part in both the Jianqiao and Nanking Air Battles in August of 1937 and the Wuhan Air Battle in 1938. ¡@ In addition, back in 1958 during the "Aug. 23 Taiwan Strait campaign," the Air Force shocked the world and forged new initiatives with a 31-to-1 kill ratio in a brilliant performance of air battle skills, resulting in a total disheartening of the PLA troops. Since then, the PLA dared not overstep the authority of our territory and ensured the safety of the Taiwan Strait, which led Taiwan creating an economic miracle admired all over the world. ¡@ The evidence of history has proved that "without air defense, there is no national defense." Today, we face a China which is constantly expanding its air force with the introduction of the Russian SU-30, SU-27 (J-11) fighters. They have also made the J-10, Xiaolong, Shanying and Lieying fighters. ¡@ What's more, Beijing also researched and developed large early warning aircraft and aerial tanker planes by way of international cooperation. This adds to the air power of the PLA significantly both in quantity and quality and cause growing threats on the air defense of the Taiwan Strait. Therefore, in the face of mainland China's military threat and its refusal to renounce the use of force against Taiwan, we should always bear in mind the "Jianqiao spirit" and enhance our national defense to ensure national security. Prolonged political bickering hinders Taiwanese economy
2007/08/13 I was cautioned by a Taiwanese friend to refrain from making comments connected to local 'politically sensitive issues' before leaving on a week-long trip to Taiwan. ¡@ And I did. For the past few days, apart from making friendly conversation with the local people, I tried not to raise any issue to do with their political views or beliefs. The Taiwanese are deeply divided into two colors, the blue in the north and the green in the south. While the blue adores the former KMT chairman, Ma Ying-jeou, the green are the staunch supporters of the DPP despite corruption emerging as a great threat to the ruling party in the forthcoming elections. ¡@ Due to the political woes and with the local media having the tendency of reporting more scandalous stories in both political and entertainment scenes, people are trying hard to stay away from the local news segment. But for those who are not afraid of voicing their points of view on air, some political talk shows do provide a channel for them to vent out their frustrations and disapproval of the ruling party. ¡@ With policies swaying like the wind, economic programs are not getting off ground and are thus leaving both investors and consumers frustrated. While many hope to put a full stop to the constant bickering between the ruling party and the opposition, it is evident that all these endless squabbles shall continue for the time being bolstered by constantly rising prices and stagnant income. Beijing's grip on the PLA shows it's still a dictatorship
2007/08/11 On the 80th anniversary of the People's Liberation Army (PLA), Chinese President Hu Jintao promised to modernize the nation's defenses and the armed forces with a bigger military budget and greater use of technology. Hu also reiterated that the Chinese Communist Party must retain absolute leadership over the 2.3 million-strong PLA. ¡@ However, military modernization means more than an upgrade to advanced equipment and weaponry. ¡@ The Communist Party has taken the armed forces as an indispensable tool to keep its monopoly on the nation. The troops played a fundamental role in bringing down the Cultural Revolution and the arrest of the Gang of Four. The revolt of the pro-democracy movement in Tiananmen Square on June 4, 1989 was suppressed by the PLA under the party's order. ¡@ Hu's remark that the PLA is at the service of the Chinese people is nothing more than a ringing slogan. As a matter of fact, the troops are maneuvered as the Chinese Communist Party's house army, unduly following the party banner and resolutely fulfilling tasks assigned by leaders of the party. ¡@ The Chinese Communist Party's absolute command of the army creates a stark foil for the democratic practice in Taiwan. While the Chinese Communist Party brooks no shift of faithfulness to the government, Taiwan has captured the essence of military modernization by nationalizing the troops. The nationalized army of Taiwan, loyal to the government and neutral politically, makes itself a mandatory force to protect the security of all citizens, instead of serving a particular party. ¡@ The contrasting notions of military modernization not only pinpoint the lurid differences between China and Taiwan but also shed light on the PRC's entrenched and perpetuating dictatorship. ¡@ Church leaders should not mix religion with politics
2007/08/10 As a Christian myself, I cannot go along with leaders of our Presbyterian Church in Taiwan in their plan to stage a political rally this Sunday in Kaohsiung to mark the 30th anniversary of the Human Rights Declaration by the Taiwan Presbyterian Church 30 years ago on Aug. 16, 1977. ¡@ It is one thing for them to support human rights, but quite another when they support a certain political party in Taiwan and oppose, or even condemn another party. ¡@ The Gospel teaches us to love all mankind as brothers without discrimination. Jesus also taught us to render unto Caeser that which belong to Caeser, unto God which is God. It is a clear manifestation that church leaders should not mix religion with politics. ¡@ What future will Christianity have in Taiwan if society gets the impression that the church is but a political instrument of religious leaders? KMT policy on U.N. bid is wrong move at wrong time
2007/08/09 The uproar of U.N. representation staged by the DPP administration is a no-brainer at this election juncture. But the strange approval for a referendum from the KMT is definitely a policy of defeat, at best. ¡@ The repetitive applications for entrance to the U.N. is obviously a conveniently political grandstanding on the part of Chen's administration without any diplomatic preparation or consultation. Those officials know better that without the blessing of the U.S. and Latin-American dollar implications, this application is just a bad joke in this hot summer of 2007. ¡@ It is beyond me how the lone voice of the KMT's Lien Chan is the only dissent from the rank-and-file in the opposition party saying that it is actually a wrong move at the wrong time. While recovering Taiwan's economic competitiveness has remained the central topic on the campaign trail, Ma and his friends should have just ignored this piece of U.N. farce. Test-oriented learning suffocates creativity
2007/08/09 The education system in Taiwan is famous for its test-oriented policy, where students must go on an arduous journey of entrance exams to approach a higher level of schooling. Inevitably, this rationale has been imposed upon evaluating students' English proficiency level, and gradually suffocates their creative linguistic production. Many of the students become well-trained test-takers who don't really enjoy the process of learning English, let alone appreciate the beauty of language itself. Alas, that is indeed a tragedy to me, a lover of English. ¡@ The "testing" phenomenon becomes worse when the government officially promotes the GEPT ¡X General English Proficiency Test. The ideal purpose of the GEPT was to recognize the importance of English in Taiwan, and encourage folks to learn it well. However, the reality has put the cart before the horse. Most parents in Taiwan fear their children might not be competitive with others, so eagerly, they send their children to the test-training courses where numerous test examples are provided, answering skills are cleverly taught, and the students are effectively trained. ¡@ The test results might be satisfactory, but the competence to master and use the language would be limited. The weakness comes to the surface when learners encounter the moments that they need to use English in reality. Students who study abroad are evident examples. Many of them, with the help of test-training courses, are able to pass the required tests. Later, they find themselves grappling with their academic and social lives overseas because everything goes beyond the materials that they are familiar with in the tests. ¡@ Language creativity is much more important than the results shown in scores. Learning English actively with intrinsic motivation enhances language creativity. There are efficient ways to learn English well, other than taking proficiency tests as ultimate goals. Let the horse lead the cart, and it will be able to take us to the destination where we are able to freely express ourselves. Quality counts; courses, programs and professors matter!
2007/08/07 Father Bauer's commentary entitled "Real education more than reputation" (Aug. 5) hit the nail on the head. I am the chair of a Foreign Languages and Literature Department (FLLD) at a private university in Taichung. Based on MOE "standards," private universities are unable to compete with national universities. What we are doing (providing quality education) and how we are being evaluated are not the same. We are playing basketball, but we are being evaluated by rules for baseball. ¡@ At the risk of breaking my arm by patting myself on the back, we have an outstanding program at Tunghai, but it will not appear that way on the MOE evaluation. The MOE review process is designed to rank universities, not measure the quality of programs. I have no problem with saying that Tunghai has one of the best Foreign Languages and Literature programs in Taiwan. But I am barking in the wind if students will not even consider a private university. ¡@ Last week I was told by a local high school that I could not promote our department there because their students could do better than
Tunghai. Parents and teachers would be disappointed if their students went to private university and not a national one. This is disheartening because students and parents should look for quality in a university program and not just a name.
¡X James Sims, Chair/Associate Professor, FLLD, Tunghai University ¡@ I would like to comment on Father Bauer's article "Real education more than reputation" (Aug. 5). He correctly points out that many students try to get into the few prestigious national universities in Taiwan and are often disappointed when they wind up instead in private universities like Fu Jen Catholic University. The reputation of many national universities is overblown and often quite undeserved. ¡@ A few years ago, I was invited to present a paper on 19th century English literature at a conference at a university which enjoys a fine reputation as an outstanding university in Taiwan. As this period includes the Romantic poets and some of the best poetry ever written in English, I was more than happy to oblige, and prepared a paper on Coleridge's "Kubla Khan", one of the finest Romantic poems of the period. I chose a mainstream poet, quite frankly, because I wasn't sure of the level of expertise among the teaching staff, and figured I couldn't go wrong with such an outstanding poet and critic as Coleridge. When I was introducing my topic, I was shocked to hear the professors' claim that they had in fact no expertise in poetry and they readily admitted that they only read poetry superficially. I wanted to respond: "Isn't that what students do?" but held my tongue. I didn't wish to embarrass anybody there. ¡@ However, I couldn't help thinking what a ridiculous situation it was, akin to a program on Chinese philosophy that made no mention of Confucius. A literature department without any poetry expertise would constitute a joke in the West, yet this university is a national one with an excellent (albeit undeserved) reputation. ¡@ One wonders what criteria the MOE uses in evaluating such programs. So Father Bauer is perfectly correct. Students should examine programs and individual professors when choosing a university, and not some university because it has a reputation as being prestigious. When I was a student, I chose a less prestigious university for my undergraduate degree because of the courses offered and the professors who taught there, and received an excellent foundation in literature, which has stood me in good stead for the last 25 years of teaching. I hope the students in Taiwan will do likewise instead of winding up in a university with a great reputation and little expertise in crucial areas of study. ¡X Dr. Chaim Melamed, Pingtung Military show means all-out defense 2007/08/04
Ho Ping-jung Taipei Officials at the Ministry of National Defense (MND) said on Tuesday that a military show will be held on Double Ten National Day this year, featuring a parade by the armed forces, demonstrations of advanced military equipment and paratroopers landing in front of the Presidential Office. ¡@ In the last few days, the media and opposition lawmakers have slammed the show as being a departing gift from President Chen Shui-bian in the form of a military review, albeit disguised as a military show. ¡@ Furthermore, the show has also been criticized for wasting taxpayer money, as well as treating the nation's troops as entertainers, merely to satisfy the vanity of a few politicians. ¡@ However, the military show doesn't have to be viewed so negatively; it can be seen in a more positive light. ¡@ First, Double Ten National Day is the nation's birthday, and it is natural that soldiers, as citizens, would want to participate in the celebration of the nation's birthday. ¡@ Next, the military show is not so much a performance as a joint forces military display aimed at informing the public about our country's current national defense capabilities. ¡@ Finally, as an attempt to enhance public understanding of national defense and thus encourage civilians to participate more fully in affairs concerning the nation's defense, the military show should not be viewed as a military review in disguise; instead, it should be seen as embodying all-out defense, which the MND has been actively promoting in recent years. ¡@ Top-down restructuring of English teaching needed 2007/08/03
Dr. Chaim Melamed, Pingtung I would like to respond to the letter ("English exam results reflect a larger problem in Taiwan," Aug. 1) from Liu Chu-chiang concerning the abysmal English language writing skills of Taiwan students. In the university entrance exams, about 10,000 students received a zero score or merely a few marks. She states that educational authorities should examine this intractable problem. This is delightfully naive, as these same authorities caused the problem in the first place, and secondly, have failed to ameliorate the situation for decades. ¡@ Sadly, there is no person who is responsible for handling English education in Taiwan, so there is no one to turn to or to blame. Therefore, the situation remains unchanged. She further lauds the countless enthusiastic and diligent teachers serving in secondary educational institutions who have been trying hard! While I agree that many are diligent, I believe that she has missed the point. Diligence is a valued quality when it is a supplement to competence, but competence must take precedence. Would you prefer a competent or a diligent doctor? ¡@ If we are ever going to change the situation, we need a top to bottom restructuring of the system, from the MOE down to the kindergarten teacher. One person at the MOE should be put in charge of English language teaching throughout Taiwan. Teachers should be tested in every area of English language skills, and should be certified to teach in the areas in which they are competent. ¡@ At present, we have teachers assigned willy-nilly to teach in any or all areas of English, regardless of their skills or interests. An outstanding teacher of English conversation may be a total dud in teaching grammar. We should also follow Japan¡¦s example in setting up a number of English-only or predominantly English, schools staffed with truly competent teachers, so that in future years Taiwan will produce excellent teachers of English, without having to rely on importing countless foreigners. China's 'peaceful rise' just a guise 2007/08/03
Chang Junxiong, Kaohsiung China is trying to curry favor with friendly neighboring countries, holding to an offensive strategy while making believe its own "peaceful rising theory" is not just a disguise to maintain peace in East Asia, and a cover-up for its forces to invade Taiwan. At the same time, in the international arena, the PRC actively extends its power in an attempt to block our international political status. ¡@ Beijing has never suspended its united front tactics against Taiwan. We should not neglect the importance of enhancing the capability of our national defense. The Chinese government is currently promoting a "harmonious society," which is the greatest irony, while the international community realizes that the Chinese Communist regime has no regard for human rights, or truth, and operates using a two-faced strategy, toying with the law. The government not only fails to bring corrupt officials to justice but indulges them in doing harm to people. The regime doesn¡¦t appease its people in essence, but repeatedly uses terrible means to maim innocent people with trumped-up charges and has become a heinous human rights abuse country in the international community. ¡@ China is actively expanding its military force to intimidate our compatriots. People in Taiwan must not overlook the importance of upgrading national defense capability. We should only fully support the government in promoting the building of national defense, and then our country can maintain long-term national stability. English exam results reflect a larger problem in Taiwan 2007/08/01
Liu Chu-chiang, Kaohsiung Results from this year's university entrance examination once again became a focus of the media and society last week, and the most shocking and alarming part are the results from the English section. ¡@ This result has shown the continuous polarization of the English language proficiency between urban and rural students, which could be seen on the chart of score distribution. More than 20,000 students, or almost a quarter out of all examinees, got almost zero in the translation section, while over 10,000 examinees scored almost nothing in English composition. What is really worrisome is that the percentage of these students took up a bigger ratio in the score distribution chart this year than the previous ones. What has caused this? ¡@ Our style of English education and the way we teach English should be thoroughly examined by educational authorities and society as a whole. It is certainly undeniable that countless enthusiastic and diligent English teachers serving in secondary educational institutions have been trying hard to do their jobs well; however, after at least six years of learning English (a lot of them started learning English even earlier), why do so many students end up with giving up on this subject in our university entrance exams? ¡@ The exam-led teaching style is probably the biggest factor, which has been neglecting the proficiency of writing skills in both middle schools and high schools. How can we expect our students to score well in writing if schools and teachers do not even offer proper teaching of writing skills? ¡@ Our students' poor performance in English proficiency did not occur after a short period, because this problem, for most of them, has been accumulating since the beginning of their learning. Lack of interest, incorrect teaching method, parental pressure and other factors constitute the gradual loss of interest and repellence toward learning English. ¡@ Learning a language should be a long-term and interest-led activity, so that the motivation could continuously push a learner to acquire more knowledge; thus, our educational authorities and society should pay serious attention to this problem and propose some relevant measures (including the gradual changing of some misperceptions and myths) to guide students to learn English based on their motivation and interest. By doing so, it will then be possible to save the English-learning situation in our secondary education. Seeking the whereabouts of inventor Hsieh Kuo-cheng 2007/08/01
Dan Bloom, Chiayi City An American magazine that combines science and humor into an entertaining mix has decided to honor a Taiwanese inventor with one of its 10 annual prizes for creative inventions and scientific papers. ¡@ The magazine editor has searched far and wide on the Internet ¡X- in vain, so far ¡X- for Hsieh Kuo-cheng, who invented "A Net Trapping System to Catch a Bank Robber" here in 1999 and obtained a U.S. patent for the device in 2001. ¡@ However, the magazine has not been able to locate Mr. Hsieh in order to inform him of his selection by the prize committee and to invite him to the U.S. for an award ceremony later in the year. Under the circumstances, the magazine has asked me to serve as a volunteer representative to try to locate Mr. Hsieh here in Taiwan, but so far two registered-mail letters to the address listed on his patent application have been returned unopened since he no longer lives or works at that address. ¡@ Mr. Hsieh will be the first Taiwanese to receive this kind of prize in the U.S, if he decides to accept it and if the magazine can locate him on time. ¡@ Therefore, the magazine is appealing to readers of The China Post to assist in the search for Hsieh Kuo-cheng, current address unknown. ¡@ Hsieh's invention has been cited for its uniqueness and creativity, and an explanation of how it works and what it looks like can be viewed on the Internet. ¡@ According to Hsieh's patent application online, a net that is suspended from a ceiling of a bank lobby can be lowered in an instant, in the event of bank robbery, with the entire system relying on an infrared camera that can detect bank robbers in action. ¡@ The U.S. prize selection committee looks for things, not necessarily limited to science, that first make people laugh and then make them think. In Hsieh's case, it's a one of a kind invention and deserves international recognition. ¡@ While many of the winners of this prize for creative inventions and scientific papers in the past have come from North America, Britain and Japan, Hsieh's win this year puts Taiwan on the international map in a novel way. ¡@ If anyone knows this man or has a contact address for him, please send an e-mail to the search committee at: sharpcool808@gmail.com Double Ten Day boosts morale, understanding 2007/08/01
Yu Tai, Taipei Double Ten Day is the nation's birthday. People of the whole country are all full of joy to greet the National Day. It is natural to arrange programs and activities for the whole day of festivities, creating an atmosphere of joy and excitement. ¡@ Recently, however, some media have reported that this "National Day performance" is not only a waste of resources but also only done out of a personal interest of the leader. On the contrary, I believe it helps promote people's understanding of our military strength, as well as recognize the importance of national security. In the face of the warmongering China, we do need to carry out activities to boost people's confidence and morale. ¡@ Last but not least, I think soldiers shoulder the mission of defending the country and its people. When Communist China spends lots of money on the arms race and takes Taiwan as a hypothetical enemy, it is a matter of certainty that we must demonstrate our military force and weaponry on our national birthday, so as to enhance people's confidence about national security.
China's Web users expanding rapidly, driving social change 2007/07/28
Wei Shaozheng Beitou China looks set to become the world's largest online population by the end of 2008, according to a recent report. The Chinese Business News predicts that China, whose burgeoning economy generates greater access to computers and the Web, is expected to outnumber the U.S.'s 211 million Internet users next year. ¡@ Chances are that the growing population of Chinese Web users will turn out to be a driving force for prospective social transformation on the mainland. ¡@ Such an Internet boom builds a virtual platform for free expression and brings about a potent "citizen journalism." Getting rid of the bridles of censorship strictly imposed by the totalitarian Communist state, Chinese Web surfers touch on sensitive political issues and other topics officially considered taboo via online forums and blogs. Complaints from aggrieved citizens and cases of government corruption and urban unrest are beating their way through the state-controlled press. ¡@ Chinese President Hu Jintao, concerned that the cyberspace would cultivate a seedbed for liberalization and dissidence, coerces to "purify" Web use. The control-conscious Communist authorities employ an elaborate system of filters and deploys hundreds of thousands of human monitors to surgically clip "unhealthy content." However, the borderless virtual territory can hardly be sifted throughout. The brick kiln slavery scandal in Shanxi province and the "Stubborn Nails" protest in Chongqing City are recent striking examples of the superlative potential that the Internet can muster in terms of social reform. ¡@ China's attempt to nip the flourishing blossom in the bud is doomed to fail. ¡@ Mass sentence communtations incite fear and anger 2007/07/27
Eric W. Lier, Taichung Taiwan Afraid and outraged is how I felt when I realized the Republic of China government on the island of Taiwan had begun releasing some 25,600 convicted criminals from jails to mark the 20th anniversary of the lifting of the martial law. ¡@ Upon hearing this news, we are led to believe that all the wrongfully imprisoned would be released, but it seems that tens of thousands of the most guilty and dangerous people on the island are being set loose instead. ¡@ This is an insult to all who have suffered and continue to suffer under the martial law imposed by the Republic of China on Taiwan both past and present. ¡@ This amnesty is nothing more than a short-sighted, politically motivated effort to garner support of some of the most influential inhabitants of Taiwan. ¡@ The only contribution to Taiwan's freedom and democracy these people have made is to cheat, steal, sell drugs to our children and murder the innocent. The vast majority of us on the island of Taiwan who are trying to make an honest living and raise our families now have to live in fear because of an idiotic policy. ¡@ The governing authorities in Taipei are so out of touch with reality that the best they can do to get support from the Taiwanese people is to release criminals from jail. ¡@ My family here in Taiwan now has to put more bars on the windows, more locks on the doors and get yet another guard dog because the myopic leadership in Taipei has decided that getting votes from criminals is better than releasing the thousands of wrongfully imprisoned immigrants and migrants from Taiwan's prisons. ¡@ According to a report published by the Taiwan Government Information Office, detention centers run by the National Immigration Agency are overpacked with escaped slaves that have been apprehended by authorities on Taiwan. ¡@ I can't help but wonder why the thousands of people trying to escape abuse and impoverishment, currently being held in prisons throughout Taiwan with no charges or judicial review have not been released. Indeed it seems that President of the ROC, Chen Shui-bian has forgotten that for nearly a million immigrants on Taiwan, martial law has not yet been lifted. But, of course, we are not his kind of Taiwanese, so we don't count. ¡@ It is the ROC government that keeps the keys to Taiwanese prisons and it is that government which is responsible for the circumstances that have led to the prolonged incarceration without trial of tens thousands of people whose only crime is not being ROC citizens and wanting to be productive and honest members of Taiwan's society. ¡@ Taiwan's immigration policies are creating huge profits for a few select companies that have become, for the most part, redundant and uncompetitive through the use of cheap and disposable labor. ¡@ Discriminatory immigration policies are also causing unemployment and a decrease in the standard of living for the free people on Taiwan, particularly for the ROC citizens. ¡@ With Taiwan's decreasing birth rate and immigration policies that deport or incarcerate the vast majority of hard working immigrants after a few years, there will soon be no one left to buy the homes, real estate and small business that are the corner stone of Taiwan's economy. ¡@ Society, by definition, is based on people and their commitment to that society not the short term profits of a few uncompetitive corporations. Taiwan's immigration policy is not only undermining the short term economy of Taiwan, it will be detrimental to the long term economic outlook. ¡@ Contemporary slavery has been allowed to go unchecked all over Taiwan, even though it is illegal. Hundreds of thousands of people on Taiwan have become vulnerable to a resurgent form of slavery just to achieve the short-sighted plans of an increasingly inept administration. Men, not just women, can be victims of domestic disuptes 2007/07/27
Marc E. Angelucci, President, Los Angeles chapter, National Coalition of Free Men In your article about children's books tackling domestic violence ("Children's book tackles domestic violence"; The China Post, July 19), only one example from the book on domestic violence was mentioned, that of dad-on-mom violence. ¡@ However, mom-on-dad violence is very common as well, including in Taiwan, and I hope the book informs kids that both forms of violence are equally bad. ¡@ In fact, a recent study of domestic violence in Taiwan and 31 other nations found that females commit partner violence as often as males and that controlling behavior exists equally in perpetrators of both sexes. (http://www.unh.edu/news/cj_nr/2006/may/em_060519male.cfm?type=n
¡@ Although men underreport more than women in crime data, sociological data from around the globe shows that women initiate domestic violence as often as men, that women use weapons more often than men, and that 38 percent of injured victims are men. California State University Professor Martin Fiebert summarizes almost 200 of these studies online at http://www.csulb.edu/~mfiebert/assault.htm ¡@ When we ignore male victims, we ignore their children. We cannot break this intergenerational cycle by ignoring half of it. That's why a global coalition of experts has formed to support a research-based, inclusive approach, and their Web site (www.nfvlrc.org) has solid data showing women initiate the violence as often as men. Cross-strait common market is far-fetched and misleading 2007/07/26
'Borracho', Taipei City Kuomintang
(KMT) presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou and his running mate Vincent Siew have been proposing to create a "cross-strait common market" believing that it could be of enormous benefit for both Taiwan and China. The idea is modeled on the experience of the European Union. However, due to differences between the member states of the EU and Taiwan and China, the idea of a cross-strait common market is far-fetched and misleading. ¡@ Next, the European common market is made up of individual sovereignties which negotiate and cooperate with each other, whereas China does not even admit that Taiwan is a sovereign country. ¡@ Moreover, even if a cross-strait common market were established, it might not necessarily prove beneficial to Taiwan's long-term economic development. All we have to do is look at Hong Kong, with its higher unemployment, broadening income gap and stagnant per capita income. ¡@ Finally, the price to be paid for a cross-strait common market would be to give up democracy, freedom and human rights ¡X values which people in Taiwan treasure the most. Unless we are willing to pay such a huge price, a cross-strait common market is unlikely to work out. Taiwan's bid to enter U.N. is self-deceiving at best 2007/07/26
Steven Hsiao, Taipei City No sensible person would expect Taiwan to succeed in trying to enter the U.N. under the so-called new tactic of applying under the name Taiwan. It is a self-deceiving political gimmick whose real aim is to cheat Taiwan's voters and win the 2008 presidential election for the
DPP. ¡@ DPP presidential nominee Frank Hsieh proved himself nothing more than another political moron by claiming that Taiwan is already an independent country. He should tell us what is Taiwan's national anthem, national flag, and national currency and so forth if Taiwan is already independent. I believe the Muslims in southern Philippines and southern Thailand, as well as the separatists in Indonesia and elsewhere probably have more justifications to be independent from their central governments than Taiwan to break away from China. ¡@ Taiwan's bid to enter the U.N. will remain an impossible dream. So stop deceiving our people! Experiencing what frontline soldiers face 2007/07/24
Raymond Dai, Huwei Township, Yunlin County A couple of weeks ago after a final test at school, I was thinking about the arrangements for a long summer vacation. My friend 'KFD' invited me to participate in an interesting Summer Combat Camp in Kinmen where we could experience military life which is what money can't buy, including taking C-130 aircraft, the Navy's Landing Craft, Mechanized (LCM), a live-fire shooting, a gun drill, amphibious frogman combat exercise, and tank force demonstration. What's more, we could also go to Dadan Islet, a place that average tourists don't have access to. ¡@ When reporting in, we immediately changed our civilian clothes into Battle Dress Uniform (BDU). Our starting training ceremony was held at Cingtian Hall, which is located inside Mt. Taiwu and constructed after the Aug. 23 Artillery Bombardment. With a length of 50 meters, width of 18 meters and a height of 11 meters, the hall was blasted and sculpted out of solid rock by the army using only dynamite and light equipment. While witnessing this uncanny workmanship and architectural novelty, we took photographs of the whole process. ¡@ Then we entered the Mashan Broadcasting and Observation Post, which is the closest point between Kinmen and China. When the tide is at ebb, the distance between these two places is only 1,800 meters. And if the weather permits, Xiamen (around 4 km to 5 km away) can even be seen by a telescope. After that, we observed a gun drill of 105 mm howitzers and learned how to operate broadcasting equipment of the Armed Forces. ¡@ At the same time, we took part in simulations of exciting and tensional atmosphere of coastline defensive shootings as if we could sacrifice our lives to uphold the position. Experiencing unprecedented shocks, we realized the hardships that our frontline soldiers face to maintain national security, come wind or rain. ¡@ All in all, we were in a pleasant mood to experience the military life and learned some fighting skills. After undergoing rigorous tests, we finally figured out the responsibility we shouldered for the country and they aroused a strong patriotic will. By joining the meaningful activity, I believe that we young people can not only cultivate ourselves with a fine physique but also enhance our psychological quality. DPP's path absolutely deplorable and mistaken 2007/07/14
Peter Cheung Canada This is in response to your recent editorial titled "President Chen's bashing of Chiang Ching-kuo is unfair" posted on your Web site on July 15. Your newspaper is a good source of neutral and reliable information for me as a resident of Canada. ¡@
I find the current
discussion and strategic fight between the DPP and the
KMT for the 2008 presidential election interesting. From
my point of view, I can say that The China Post is
neutral and therefore is worth spending my time on to
keep abreast of the happenings in Taiwan. ¡@
The democracy movement
(regardless of any political affiliation) will have my
support if it benefits the general population and not
only the few individuals in power. ¡@ There are too many examples of political parties across various continents that go in the wrong direction in the name of nationalism and independence. ¡@ The Quebec independence movement here in Canada had a similar path currently undertaken by the DPP, and it failed. The Party Quebecoise was doing the same thing that the DPP is now strategically committing itself to and it did not work. They were in power and then they were tossed out. The previous party president (former Premier Jacques Parizeau) is nowhere to be seen now and is not accepted by the general members of Party Quebecoise. His support base may still be around 15 percent, comprising hardcore independence seekers with unwavering support and no conditions attached. ¡@
Taiwan may follow Canada's
example, which has welcomed both white French settlers as
well as the other non-white immigrants, by being
inclusive of all individuals. This is the new trend and
it might work for the Taiwan independence movement as
well.
The Vatican should get real about China
¡@ The Vatican recently made unprecedented overtures to China. In an open letter, Pope Benedict XVI expressed his wishes to exert his right of ordaining bishops and to oversee the unity of the church in China. The pope asserts that the moment the elemental premise of religious freedom is met, the diplomatic ties between Beijing and Rome, severed shortly after the Communist takeover in 1951, would be resumed. ¡@ The Vatican's urge for religious freedom can hardly be quenched, however. The Communist regime, by the Marxist dogma, dismisses religion as "the opium of the people." Afraid of voluntary gatherings of mass civilians in any given name, the atheist state has been striving to repress the people's desire to practice personal belief and has been mounting a wide range of clampdowns on religious groups throughout. The pontiff's call for the unity of the church under his jurisdiction nevertheless deviates from the deep-rooted assumption and employment of the government in China. From Beijing's terse response, it is manifest that China, concerned that this move was politically motivated, makes it a point that the Vatican shall not meddle in China's domestic matters on the pretext of religion. ¡@ China's grave rebuff hints that the Chinese officials' suffocation of religion is not likely to change in a short time. The Vatican had better get real in the worldly affairs.
'Captivity' posters deserve removal
¡@ I am truly relieved that the awful poster, "Captivity", was removed from MRT stations ("Movie poster removed for ¡¥disparaging women'", The China Post, July 10). I fully agree that the poster promotes sexual discrimination. Imagine if the poster was the picture of an aboriginal person and the tagline was, "Torture, kidnap and harass aboriginal people" ¡X would the aboriginal people in Taiwan put up with this public degradation and encouragement of hatred against them? Similarly, imagine if in the USA or Japan, it was a picture of a Taiwanese man and it read, "Torture, kidnap and harass Taiwanese men". ¡@ Perhaps bus companies too now should get this disgusting, degrading and misogynist poster removed from the sides of their buses. ¡@ Or perhaps people should consider running public movies of torturing, kidnapping and harassing the executives at Twentieth Century Fox for entertainment. ¡@
Pope's new directive will encourage Latin Mass spread
¡@ I welcome Pope Benedict XVI's decision to loosen restrictions on the use of the Latin Mass. Vatican II, in fact, never called for the elimination of Latin. The pope's decision, therefore, is meant to foster a more comprehensive and profound understanding of the church's liturgy. ¡@ The universality of Latin makes it conducive to all believers experiencing more fully the mystery of the Mass. It imbues a heightened reverence and sense of the sacred. It compliments well the Latin rites' traditional Gregorian Chant, with its moving meditative cadence that touches the depths of the soul. ¡@ The Tridentine Mass is also more uniform and consistently Catholic in its theological and Christian-cultural aspects. The pope has previously mentioned, for example, how in the new Mass the "turning of the priest toward the people no longer opens out on what lies ahead and above [but] has turned the community into a self-enclosed circle." Both the priest and people should be facing the east. ¡@ The Eucharist is the all-encompassing source and summit of Christian life. A wider implementation of the Latin Mass will no doubt be an effective means of both preserving the Church's faith and identity while at the same time allowing her to carry out her mission of evangelization. ¡@ I hope the pope's new directive will encourage bishops to actively and aggressively promote the Latin Mass throughout their dioceses and beyond. ¡@
Revealing the true identity of Democratic Progressive Party
¡@ Responding to your report dated July 11 on "Taiwan's Defiance frustrates U.S.," I would like to express my personal observation of Taiwan's politics. As the ruling DPP proposed the so-called ¡¥Resolution on a normalized nation,' most of my colleagues and friends took it for a joke, and said since the people are becoming abnormal, that is why the government needs to be normalized. ¡@ Unless you are a native-born citizen here, a foreign journalist may not fully understand how the DPP is good at playing tribal politics. There is an old Chinese saying, "Anyone who is none of my partisan, must bear a betrayal mind," which could best describe Taiwan politics. The reason why Chen is defying the U.S. and pushing the controversial referendum, to which even Ma does not dare say no, is because of the coming presidential election. ¡@ The DPP does not care what the result of the referendum will be, the party knows quite well how to mobilize the momentum of its supporters for the election. Hidden but easy-to-understand tribe-specific manipulated languages appear always whenever an election comes. That is also why Ma will be crowned with "Wai-Seng Zeng (non-Taiwanese)" whenever the election comes. DPP also defines itself as "Taiwanese" to meet the criteria of "Anyone who is none of my partisans must bear a betrayal mind." ¡@ I am taking a pessimistic view of Taiwan's politics since many public and the government officials have long lost the basic respect for normal values of good virtues. The status reflects the downhill trend of Taiwan's moral future. ¡@
A foreigner's concern for Taiwan's traffic
¡@ Having been to many developed countries in the past few years, in my view, the existence of poor driving behaviors in today's Taiwanese society is shockingly alarming. ¡@ I devote my entire career to the development of Asian societies. I have been to many surrounding countries and areas, like Macau, Hong Kong and Japan. The traffic condition in Taiwan concerns me a lot. What puzzles me most is some dangerous and alarming driving manners. For example, the sense of right-of-way varies; running red lights, especially by scooter riders, is common. Another example, taxi drivers frequently use road shoulders to cut into the congested traffic flows. Some drivers waywardly cut in or pass others. I noticed that most people don't do this, but why would a few dare to do so? This is not a good sign of civilization. ¡@ How can a developed society be rather ignorant of these violations? Even though these traffic law violators are in the minority, they still pose considerable threats to other drivers. Shouldn't law enforcement work harder to ensure the safety of the masses? Even if red-light running doesn't affect green-light traffic, it's still a violation of the law. Worst of all, it intimidates and somewhat humiliates other scooter riders who stop for red like fools. ¡@ However, I must point out that there is much less red-light running in Taipei. Could this due to a stricter law enforcement? ¡@ As an engineer in a Chinese traffic device manufacturer, I've studied numerous traffic safety issues. In a meeting last week, we identified five reasons for strict traffic enforcement. All of them are crucial to the economy and social development. ¡@ Law enforcement is the only effective and efficient way to rectify road behaviors. Former President of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) Brian O'Neill wrote in TR news journal: "Many studies have shown that education by itself rarely change road user behavior, but that well-publicized enforcement of traffic law does. Nonetheless, many decision makers ignore this science and insist that more education is all that is needed!" The overwhelming bulk of serious crashes in the United States involve a driver breaking a traffic law or not paying attention." ¡@ Traffic safety expert Leonard Evans stated in his 2004 book "Traffic Safety" proclaimed that "By 2002, the U.S. safety record fell behind the record of many other countries." "This occurred because the United States focused on vehicle safety issues and not on road user behavior." ¡@ From the Chinese public's perspective, Taiwan is on par with other developed countries in terms of living quality. But the poor traffic behavior that I witnessed seems to contradict to that perspective.
Time to see the Chinese threat for what it really is
¡@ After the passage of "Anti-secession Law," China also conducted united front tactics in terms of media warfare, legal warfare and psychological warfare from political, economic and social aspects with the attempt to collapse our psychological defense and create a false impression of peace across the Taiwan Strait. ¡@ The fact that China continues to expand its military forces has made the international community worry about the stability of the Asian-Pacific region. Although claiming to work on diplomatic peace, internal harmony and cross-strait reconciliation, Beijing, without the threat of foreign countries, has increased huge military expenditures in consecutive years, rather than military transparency. ¡@ This brings about our concerns for the possibility of China's so-called "peaceful rising" and worries about the Communist China's impact on regional security. ¡@ Therefore, we should elevate our defense spending to the rate of 3 percent of our GDP in 2008, in the face of Chinese military threat. By so doing, our armed forces can purchase cutting-edge defensive weaponry to strengthen the capability of self-defense.
In memory of director Edward Yang
¡@ The last time I saw Edward he was handsome and passionate. ¡@ Despite everything that had happened to him and to Taiwan cinema, he was critically optimistic. He told me that some of the young new Taiwan directors had a lot of uncontrolled talent and could save the film industry, if they decided to communicate with audiences about life, rather than only to their friends about personal pain. ¡@ "No one has enough friends to pay for a movie!" ¡@ Yang Teh-chang (Edward Yang) was 1/3 of the great, internationally acclaimed Taiwan New Wave, along with Ho Hsiao-hsien and Tan Han-chung. When they were young, they rebelled, as all young creators must, against the equally great traditional Taiwan directors, who used ritualistic storytelling with openly displayed deep emotion, idealized warm hearts, uncomplicated pure evil, and clarity of dramatic points and goals. ¡@ Later, they learned from time, frustration, and wisdom to respect many of the same older directors they once scorned. ¡@ Most real film artists suffer the same fate, no matter what styles they use or what era they make films in: invisibility, "discovery," awards, media coverage, fame, being ignored by local audiences, lacking money to make films, scorn by hungry younger directors, public disappearance, death, a short burst of media interest, warm and cynical tributes, archival fossilizing, rediscovery, life. ¡@ Edward made brilliant, coolly moving, searing movies. If art was powerful or those in power were just, wise, and not so incredibly shortsighted, he would have made twice as many films. We are just fortunate he was able to make some. It is his life-affirming gift of love to Taiwan, whether we know it, want it, or not.
Beijing still turns deaf ear to democracy in Hong Kong
I remembered that ten years ago when Hong Kong marked its handover to China on July 1 in 1997, most people were filled with fear and anxiety. To eliminate the worries, China has shouted the slogan of both guaranteeing "one country, two systems" and "no change in 50 years" at that time. ¡@ Although democracy lovers from all walks of life in Hong Kong have campaigned for universal suffrage on administrative officers and lawmakers, Beijing still turned its deaf ears. This has cast a dark shadow on Hong Kong's democratic development. Looking at ourselves, Taiwan is also the "one country, two systems" object proposed by Beijing. With the lesson ahead, how can we make a clever choice? Having being targeted by Beijing and after witnessing a decade of sorrow, should people in Taiwan trust China's lip service and indulge ourselves in its frequently released benefits? ¡@ Therefore, we should learn a lesson from this experience of Hong Kong. At the same time, we should recognize China's carefully designed plots and understand its tricks. Most important of all, we must strengthen our psychological defense, restore public confidence, and establish an impregnable fortress on all-out defense.
'Hsichi Trio' case failed to allow DNA evidence
Over the years, I have followed the various trials of the "Hsichih Trio" in the courts of Taiwan with a great deal of interest. As a long-time supporter of the abolition of the death penalty not on the grounds of conscience but based on the fact that all court systems are highly fallible, it is clear that this is a case where this problem comes into play. However, it was a small point that I had not previously noticed that has prompted me to write. It would seem that in 1991, Yeh Ying-lan was possibly gang-raped. If that is the case, then vaginal samples must/ought to have been taken. ¡@ Although good DNA fingerprint techniques for such samples were available in 1993, discrimination of multiple contributors was not good. This is not the case now. This leaves three possibilities, namely no sample was collected, a sample was collected and has been lost/destroyed or a sample is still available. ¡@ In the first two cases, this means that the defendants should be given the benefit of the doubt as the prosecution for some reason has failed to collect evidence that may show that they are innocent. If the third is true, has testing failed and why or has testing not been done. It is quite clear that if there was a gang rape and the DNA does not fit one or more of the "Hsichih Trio," then they should be found not guilty. A match opens up the death penalty again. ¡@ Unlike the UK, USA, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and even South Africa, the court system in Taiwan seems to not use DNA evidence as a prosecution or defense tool to any great extent. This cannot be due to lack of scientific technical expertise but maybe due to a lack of training in this area of forensics among particularly defense lawyers. ¡@ In my experience, most lawyers throughout the world have only a limited scientific background and this is even more true of judges. They may be the best lawyer in the world, but trying to understand DNA profiling and statistics for a single case is a lose/lose situation. ¡@
Practices such as posting flyers everywhere hurt our image
This morning, while my friend and I were waiting for the bus, we saw a worker from the Ministry of Environment. He was riding on a motorbike, and his job was to tear off posters from lamp posts. The worker was smoking while doing his job. While he was crossing the road, he threw the cigarette butt on the road. We were shocked. Wasn't he supposed to maintain the cleanliness of the city? Did he not knowing that throwing the cigarette butt on the road is also a way to make the city dirtier? Or maybe he was too busy with his job ¡X tearing off the posters, and "forgot" that the cleanliness of the road was also one of his jobs? ¡@ When that worker left, we saw a man riding on a motorbike, carrying a bag full of [real estate] print-outs. It is clear that he was going to post all those print-outs on lamp posts for advertisement. My friend asked me, what's the point of removing the advertisements while there is no one to stop those people from posting them? ¡@ In my opinion, this is a major problem in Taiwan. Although Taiwan looks like a modern society in its technological development, the civic education system is still similar to a third world country. Individualism is a common practice in this place. The worker from the Ministry of Environment cares only for his work. Throwing the cigarette butt on the street is a common practice to him. Likewise, posting print-outs to advertise is also a common practice. The people who post the print-outs want to advertise their business. As long as they can save the expense, they do not care how and where they put their advertisements. They don't even realize ¡X or they simply ignore ¡X that those print-outs will damage the city's image. ¡@ Actually, it is easy to trace down those unscrupulous businessman, because they all left their number on the print-out. All the government needs to do is to trace down those businessmen, and issue fines. This will give them a lesson, and slowly they will realize it is not good to post the print-out on anywhere they like. However, it is such a common practice that the police normally choose not to take any action, because they always have more important things and more urgent tasks to attend to. ¡@ It is important for the Taiwanese to realize all these common practices will damage the image of Taiwan as a well-developed society. Otherwise, the Taiwanese can only be impressed by the Japanese and envy the cleanliness there, and will never be able to be at the same level as them.
Refunds to delayed THSRC passengers are irresponsible
Saturday's heavy rain delayed the high-speed trains for some passengers. Therefore, the THSRC compensated those passengers at 50 percent of the original ticket price. ¡@ However, I think the THSRC's compensations are lacking in responsibility and sincerity. Due to train delays, some business passengers missed their crucial meetings, which could incur additional costs for having to rearrange meetings. THSRC can't make sure this kind of delay doesn't happen again, but it made bad compensations (only 50%) which only reduced its losses in this incident. ¡@ I admit the reactions and compensations that THSRC took really harm my eagerness to board a high-speed train. Why should I trust a company that regarded company profit over the rights of consumers? I suggest THSRC take some extra steps and actions to recover the confidence of passengers in high-speed trains.
Black Bat Squadron pilots are Taiwan's unsung heroes
Last week, a seminar called "The Black Bat Squadron in Xinzhu: A Salute to the Brave People," held by a famous writer, Long Yintai, drew my attention. While watching a documentary film on the tragic history, I was moved by these pilots¡¦ bravery and fortitude in serving the nation. ¡@ This untold history dates back 54 years ago to 1953, when our Air Force established the 34th squadron at the Xinzhu Air Force Base exclusively for assisting the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency and gathering related military intelligence. Due to the fact that this squadron always entered Chinese air space during the nighttime for reconnaissance and surveillance missions, the 34th squadron was nicknamed the "Black Bat Squadron." In its twenty years, the squadron completed a total of 838 "spying" flights over Mainland China and lost 10 B-17s, P2Vs and various recon aircraft, as well as 148 crew members. ¡@ In addition to air drops, the "Black Bat Squadron" was also sent to conduct combat air patrol, collect enemy side information, perform electronic countermeasures, reconnaissance, and surveillance missions. When the PLA activated its air defense radar system, our recon planes could detect the wave bands, directions, and function of radars. The information was so useful for electric wave-jamming that the enemy couldn¡¦t detect the location, altitude, and speed of our aircraft. Moreover, one of the most invaluable contributions made by the squadron was its assignment to fly over China¡¦s nuclear test sites and take photographs, which provided evidence that shocked both the United States and the former Soviet Union. ¡@ When a group of superior pilots died as martyrs, Taiwan acquired economic aid from the U.S., and the financial assistance brought about not only a stable society but economic growth. Therefore, the merits of these unsung heroes and their devotion to the country should be remembered by later generations. Last but not least, let us give our supreme salutations to these national heroes, who protected the nation and sacrificed their lives for the peace and freedom of Taiwan, and their bereaved families.
With friendly people, Taipei worth visiting
During my 6-day stay in Taipei, I was deeply impressed by the local people who are able commute by the metro railway system in such a friendly and orderly manner. One good example ¡X they always make it a point to queue up behind the yellow line, allowing passengers to alight from the train first before they move into the cabin. No rush and hassle. Everything is done in such a calm and disciplined manner. ¡@ With clear announcements in four different languages before reaching the approaching station, it minimizes the possibility of missing the right station. This is extremely convenient, especially for tourists. ¡@ Apart from that, asking for road directions is definitely an easy task in Taipei. No one will shun away from you just because you are asking for a "strange location or a place that they have never heard of". In fact, they will go an extra mile and help us enquire from another passerby. ¡@ Most Taipei people are extremely helpful and friendly. They are approachable and will not hesitate to answer to any question. Besides, most places are easily accessible by bus and the MRT system. And to enjoy authentic local fare, night markets are definitely the best places to go for. Despite the political chaos, notorious traffic jams and dirty alleys filled with litter, Taipei still remains one of the Asian cities which I would love to visit once more.
Recognizing the nature of China's Three Warfares
Recently, a U.S.-based think tank, the Rand Cooperation, published a book titled "Entering the Dragon's Lair: Chinese Antiaccess Strategies and their implications for the United States" aroused the world's attention. ¡@ In this report, the Rand especially listed ten strategic principles for defeating a technologically superior adversary from the People's Liberation Army, including "avoiding direct confrontation, exploiting U.S. vulnerabilities decisively, sizing the initiative early, achieving victory through surprise, key-point strikes, paralyzing first and annihilating later, achieving information superiority, raising the cost of conflict, frustrating the adversary's strategic intention, undermining its resolve and determination and preventing it fighting the type of war it wants to fight." ¡@ These "avoiding direct confrontation" and "frustrating the adversary's strategic intention, undermining its resolve and determination and preventing it fighting the type of war that it wants to fight" are, in fact, what the principles of Guerilla Warfare proposed by Mao Zedong. Among them, "avoiding the strengths and attacking the weakness of the enemy" is to exploit delaying tactics making the US army exhausted so as to undermine its resolve and determination and prevent it fighting the type of war that it wants to fight. This kind of destroying the enemy's fight will is what Suntze said "breaking the enemy's resistance without fighting" for the supreme excellence of Psychological Operations. ¡@ Therefore, how we overcome the PSY-OP tactics of the PLA lies in the competition of the fighting will and is actually the foundation of what we establish ourselves in an unassailable position. ¡@ Further, China consolidated its "Three Warfares" ¡X Psychological Warfare, Media Warfare and Legal Warfare ¡X not just dating back to 2003, when it was revising its "Decree of Political Work." ¡@ As a matter of fact, in 1928 Mao Zedong explicitly pointed out that "the Communist Party can only defeat its enemy with its left hand taking leaflets and right hand holding weapons. The modes of operations are similar to what the U.S. did twice in its Gulf Wars, which bombarded Baghdad by superior missiles on the one hand, and publicized the operations through global media on the other. We can say they are different in approach but equally satisfactory in result. ¡@ In recent years, China has activated its Media Warfare toward Taiwan. In terms of non-military parts, China was trying numerous concrete measures such as giving away pandas, its promise of tariff-free importation of Taiwanese agricultural items, and allowing Chinese tourists visits to Taiwan. ¡@ In addition, China also deployed more than 900 missiles aiming at Taiwan, showed off the performance of its F-10 fighters, performed a successful anti-satellite weapons test and developed aircraft carriers, which are military parts. By ways of cooperating both military and non-military operations, China's purpose is to force our people to succumb to its intention and expects to conquer Taiwan without costing a soldier or a bullet. ¡@ However, the ultimate goal of the People's Republic of China is to eliminate the existence of the Republic of China. The objective of the PRC's Media Warfare is to fulfill its effect by psychological intimidation and the Legal Warfare is to justify its excuse to invade Taiwan, by the Anti-Secession Law. Therefore, whatever we accept ¡X the goodwill of giving away pandas or make a concession due to China military intimidation ¡X the PRC will not allow the ROC to exist on earth. If we cannot uphold the last position of ROC, we will suffer the outcome of failure without a fight. ¡@ Therefore, only by recognizing the nature of China's Three Warfares can we counter the PRC's tactics and defend our psychological defense. I hope our people will understand this and enhance alertness; therefore, we can wipe out China's ambition to invade Taiwan by Three Warfares.
Tobacco smoking and alcohol consumption are 'Western?'
In response to the article "Cancer surge comes with Western habits" in your Health Section dated June 1. It amazes me that such a claim can be made that "smoking and "alcohol consumption" are "Western habits" that plague the East. ¡@ Tobacco and alcohol are no more western then salt-laden Hot Pot or Betel Nuts. To suggest that these two vices are somehow "Western" is absurd and the above-mentioned article is nothing more then malign propaganda. I guess when a man in Beijing gets cancer it is easier to blame the West instead of the lack of exercise and endemic air pollution.
Hoping for a break-through in the murder of Captain Yin
The news reports about the mysterious death of the late naval Captain Yin Ching-feng have always saddened me over the years. ¡@ My hope was revived only after President Chen Shui-bian made the public vow of using all resources to crack the case concerning Yin's death and to conduct a thorough probe into the scams involving the Lafayette battleship procurement from France. ¡@ All nations rely on their loyal Armed Forces so that the top leaders may lead the nations and the people may lead a secure life and materialize their goals or dreams. ¡@ This was why President Chen ¡X the commander in chief of the Armed Forces ¡X wanted to get to the bottom of Yin's murder and to do justice for one of the nation's loyal officers. ¡@ We can understand that all members of the Armed Forces have been closely watching how the commander in chief has been handling Yin's case. ¡@ But with less than one year in office, President Chen has not yet completed what Yin's widow Lee Mei-kuei called "one piece of unfinished business" during the president's two consecutive terms. ¡@ Noted for his perseverance and fighting spirit, President Chen has been able to pull out stunning surprises under adverse circumstances. ¡@ We do hope that President Chen, still the most powerful and influential leader in Taiwan, can live up to his promise by giving top priority to the murder of Yin and directing all resources at his hand to crack the case before leaving office next May. ¡@ President Chen has won the loyalty and respect of the Armed Forces for what he has done for them. ¡@ For the same reason, he will win a salute from the Armed Forces if he is determined to do justice for Yin and other officers like him by making Yin's death one of his most important legacies.
Foreign English teachers must understand local culture
As everybody knows, the topic of whether hiring foreign teachers is good or not is popular one in Taiwan. Some people say that foreign teachers are beneficial to the children's English pronunciation and writing, but some say it's difficult to examine the foreign teachers' moral standings and qualifications. In this verbal battle, the cultural difference between the nonnative teachers and Taiwanese students tend to be neglected. ¡@ Foreign teachers' expectations for the students are different from Taiwanese teachers' expectations because of the cultural differences. ¡@ Sometimes the different understandings of culture and English deficiency cause unfortunate misunderstandings between teachers and students. The misunderstandings might in fact not only diminish students' interests for learning English but also disappoint foreign teachers teaching overseas. ¡@ Language and culture are inseparable. Assisting those foreigners who want to teach English in Taiwan in understanding Taiwanese culture is urgent and essential. Only by knowing the nation's culture, can a foreign teacher guide local students to understand his or her own culture and language. The department of Education in Taiwan should offer courses that are related to Taiwanese culture and moreover, require foreigners to be intern teachers before they can officially be teachers of English in Taiwan. All of these are helpful ways for both nonnative teachers and students to adapt to each other since, after all, teaching is a way of communicating.
Parents should teach children to respect life
This is regarding the news report entitled "Alabama boy shoots 1,000-lb. boar" (The China Post, May 27). The father of this boy should be put in jail immediately. The report says that the boy had killed "his first deer" at the age of 5. Excuse me, but what has a boy at the age of 5 or 11 to do with a shotgun in his hands? No wonder in the U.S. people get shot down by their classmates when parents can give them a shotgun at the age of 5. Are they totally crazy? ¡@ Whow! What a funny game! What a hero this boy is. Let's all go into the forest to hunt huge hogs. How many people live on this planet currently? Some 6.6 billion. Should everyone really have the right to kill all the animals he wants to kill, because it's so funny? Does this hog not have a right to live? ¡@ Parents should teach their children to respect life and something peaceful but not how to kill. When I was a boy of 5 or even 11, I went out with my friends from the neighborhood to play on the playground or in the park. ¡@
A new era for language equality dawns in Taiwan
Due to the positive effects of the national languages development draft law, endangered languages in Taiwan such as Hakka and aboriginal languages have started reviving. The government now wants to build up a society which welcomes every variety of languages because a language is valued as the important heritage of culture, and there should not be judgments on different cultures. ¡@ Retrieving the Taiwanese history and the memories of citizens who received education in the early period of restoring Taiwan, languages except Mandarin were suppressed by the government at that time in order to unify the lingua franca and enable the government to release policies. However, the consequences of this strategy brought out serious damages of the balance or the equality between the languages. The local languages such as Taiwanese, Hakka, and aboriginal languages were considered inferior languages and represented subordinate cultures. ¡@ In recent years, the public and the government awakened to the great significance of varied languages. Each language conceals its own remarkable character and uniqueness which has been conveyed from generation to generation, and these languages and cultures are essential to form a genuine Taiwan. After understanding the essence of language equality, the government established the national languages development draft law, and carried the plan out by promoting Hakka Television and Taiwan Indigenous Television, and also encouraged all levels of schools or institutions to provide various national language courses. ¡@ In order to create a society with respect for different languages and cultures, citizens in Taiwan must work together with the government. Taiwan will be an ideal country for its residents.
'Baby hatch' clarification
In my column on page 4 of The China Post's May 20, 2007 edition, "Blair, gender tests and baby hatches," I regret that I did not make myself more clear about the case in which a 3-year-old toddler was left in a so called "baby hatch" at a hospital in Kumamoto, Japan last week. A day after I had submitted my column for publication, news reports said it was possible that a financially secure but frustrated father had perhaps simply abandoned the little boy at the baby refuge known as a "hatch" at the hospital. In an interview on Friday on ICRT radio I was able to call this unfortunate incident "an abuse of the baby hatch idea." I wish now I had chosen my words for the column with greater care, and I apologize to readers for any confusion I may have caused. I stand by my view. "Baby hatches" to provide safe places of refuge for unwanted babies are in my view a humane and laudable effort to save precious lives. Any abuse of such a refuge system to simply abandon unwanted children is an outrage!
CKS memorial zapped away by DPP's anti-Chiang ray gun
Saturday the Democratic Progressive Party whipped out their infamous transitional justice weapon ¡X The Chiang Removal Ray Gun. Yes, last pointed at the airport, Saturdays target was the CKS memorial ¡X they zapped the CKS memorial with its magical clean wipe Chiang removal ray! And wham! Instant change to the DPP's likening. ¡@ I find this act very surprising for a democratic government as a majority of Taiwanese clearly were/are against changing the CKS memorial's name and the central government did not care, they did it anyway. Such force is not very democratic at all. And what about the new name with "Democracy" in it, is that supposed to make such a forcibly renamed monument perfectly OK? ¡@ Lets examine the New Democratic Memorial in Taiwan. Unlike all other memorials in Taiwan, this is the first memorial that was not built on its own. Instead, it actually required an already existing memorial to be censored, totally erased from the map ¡X such an act is unprecedented in democracies, it just does not happen or if it does it takes local and national referendums, but in Taiwan. It was Zap! Gone! No more CKS memorial. The central Government did not care what the Taipei city government said, nor did it care what the citizens opposing the name change and designation had to say. The CKS memorial had forcibly been taken, thus stolen. ¡@ Stolen? Well there are only two ways that something can change hands once it exists. It can be given in payment because the recipient has earned it somehow or its stolen. ¡@ Did the government earn it? Was they achievements of the DPP over the last 7 years so wonderfully great for the people of Taiwan that the people want this memorial as a gift to the DPP and Chen Shui-bian at the end of his administration? No! The ruling party has done nothing the past seven years. In fact the livelihoods of Taiwanese has become worse ¡X How could the ruling party have been awarded such a monument and at the expense of a man that devoted his entire life to the welfare of Taiwan's people. ¡@ Since the Democracy Memorial was not earned by the central government and it now suddenly belongs to just certain people, there should be no argument over the fact that the CKS memorial has been STOLEN! It is now a DPP stolen asset that once belonged to all Taiwanese citizens. ¡@ Has anyone reminded the President that stealing from the people so a privileged few in government can rise within the party is 100 percent pure communist? Also, it's an act only a dictator would make! Such theft is light years away from being a democratic decision.
Taiwan's future can't be built by changing names of places
Wasting taxpayers' money to change the CKS Memorial to Taiwan Democracy Memorial is just another example of how out-of-touch the ruling DPP party is with Taiwan's 23 million people. Rather than spending time on energizing the economy, fixing the flailing education system, and creating a sustainable future for our next generation, they choose to play on the fragile emotions of their supporters, using 2-28 incident families as political pawns. The most ironic thing is that they spend their time memorializing a democracy that already happened. ¡@ We are living in a democratic country with a democratically elected president and legislature, however our "elected" officials do not know how to properly behave in a democracy. They view their non-Minan speaking constituents with utter contempt, even though more than 60 percent of Taiwanese (according to the DPP's own polls) said they did not agree with the name change. Additionally our democratically elected officials bypassed their own legal system instead using a cowardly "administrative act" to temporarily change the name of the CKS Memorial since it is under construction. The DPP needs to focus on the important issues at hand and stop playing the ethnic card. It's time for them to show some maturity and accountability. Taiwan's future cannot be built by changing the name of the airport, postal service and people's tombs.
How to make the streets of Taiwan cleaner and wider
Compared to other countries, most streets and roads in our country look cluttered and crowded. I noticed two major factors that cause this unsatisfactory 'townscape' ¡X one, the cluttered signboards hanging at many stores, secondly, various articles occupying space in the front of most stores. ¡@ When you look at a typical street in Taiwan, you find diverse signboards of different sizes on the outside of almost every shop, running both vertically and horizontally. When you walk down a street and pass the front of shops, you get used to walking zigzag, because there are a lot of things on the sidewalk ¡X vendor stands, motorcycles, and store owner's possessions and so on. ¡@ You will find there is less space along most of Taiwan's streets, because there are too many signboards hanging on stores and buildings. I think that most people would agree that they feel more cheerful and breezy when they are walking through the streets of other countries, especially developed countries. It's because there aren't so many signboards and miscellaneous articles in the streets of other countries. ¡@ Someday if our streets and roads can be improved and made more neat, it would be make walking more comfortable for us. Also, if signboards can be improved in terms of quantity, quality, and size, the [wall and air] space in our streets and roads will also increase and look better. Making such improvements shall be a huge and uphill task. It will need a lot of money, and whether or not these improvements can be made depends on two crucial elements: first, the government's determination to act and provide financial assistance to store owners; second, whether people's minds and traditional culture can be changed to recognize the benefits of bettering our environment. ¡@ A well-researched and complete plan developed by the government should be presented and introduced to the citizenry, and plenty of communication with neighborhood residents will be needed. This reminds me of the successful and outstanding restoration project of Cheonggyecheon Stream in Seoul, South Korea. This project is really praiseworthy and an achievement particularly impressive to many people in the world. ¡@ As a first step, I suggest the Taipei City government select a street and carry out improvements to upgrade the street scene. Two major improvement measures need to be undertaken and enacted. First, reduce the quantity and size of signboards. Second, recover the original sidewalk space. It may not really cost that much money. In the future it would be wonderful to see our country's streets cleaner, neater and wider.
Who wants to take a tour of 'Democracy Memorial Hall'?
Forcibly changing the name of CKS Memorial Hall to please the ruling political party's supporters is a shame. It is being done with the full knowledge that the majority of Taiwan citizens oppose the change. Also it is a very costly endeavor the Taiwan taxpayers now must pay for. ¡@ The proposed new name destroys the current monument's draw internationally as a tourist destination as the uniquely named CKS Memorial Hall would be rendered into a bland 'Democracy Memorial Hall' which has no international appeal as a tourist destination at all. Who would come to Taiwan to see a 'Democracy Memorial Hall'? Not many people at all. ¡@
Legalization of abortion is immoral and a form of murder
Where is the most dangerous place in the world to live? Is it Iraq, or perhaps Sudan? No, it is in the mother's womb. More people are murdered through abortion than through any other source. A few days ago, Mexico became one of last holdouts to fall under the spell of this evil that is gripping the world. ¡@ On a superficial level, we may be convinced that legalized abortion has not really changed much in our private lives and in the life of our societies. It all takes place in the silence of an operating room which ensures the woman's safety. And it is as if the fetus that will never see the light of day had never existed. ¡@ However, the recognition of the sacred character of human life and of its inviolability ¡X a principle admitting no exceptions ¡X is not some trivial little problem or a question that may be considered relative, in view of the pluralism of opinions we find in modern society. There are no "small murders." The respect for every human life is an essential condition if a societal life worthy of the name is to be possible. When man's conscience loses respect for life as something sacred, he inevitably ends by losing his own identity. ¡@ Today, in many people's consciences, the perception of the gravity of abortion has become progressively obscured. The acceptance of abortion in the popular mind, in behavior and even in law itself, is a telling sign of an extremely dangerous crisis of the moral sense, which is becoming more and more incapable of distinguishing between good and evil, even when the fundamental right to life is at stake. The moral gravity of procured abortion is apparent in all its truth if we recognize that we are dealing with murder. Given such a grave situation, we need now more than ever to have the courage to look the truth in the eye and to call things by their proper name, without yielding to convenient compromises or to the temptation of self-deception. ¡@ To claim the right to abortion and to recognize that right in law means to attribute to human freedom a perverse and evil significance: that of an absolute power over others and against others. This is the death of true freedom.
Taiwan's torch rejection is shocking
I am neither a Mainlander nor a Taiwanese. When I read the news of Taiwan's rejection of the Olympic torch, I was shocked and deeply disappointed. The route, while it may not fully indicate that Taiwan is an independent country, it doesn't fully indicate either that it is part of China. The route reflects a fair compromise that is in the interest of both China and Taiwan by leaving a sufficient ambiguity in this issue. This will gives flexibility to both the government for the purpose of accountability to its citizens. ¡@ This incident, in my opinion, reflects very badly on the attitude of Taiwan (this is unfortunate as it has been created by the actions of a few), and shows a lack of maturity as a responsible member of the international community. The Olympic games should be a platform of friendship and not a platform to address political issues. For this matter, neither should the WHO. Initially, I supported Taiwan's bid to join the WHO. However, this incident has made me think otherwise. I am no longer sure of Taiwan's ability to be a mature and responsible member of any international community.
Espionage report no surprise
A couple of days ago, an essay titled "Spies and Sighs: How China Watches Taiwan" published by the U.S.-based Defense News caught my eye. In this article, Lin Chong-pin, former vice minister of defense, said more than 5,000 mainland Chinese spies are operating in Taiwan. ¡@ In fact, we are not at all surprised with the espionage report. Most people might think that Taiwanese can freely enter China, but mainlanders cannot find access to the island. Even though some Chinese can get permission to enter Taiwan, they still have to obey various limitations. It seems we have tighter control over entering the country and that national security can be maintained. However, the reality is just the opposite. Judging from its attempt to invade Taiwan, China will leave no stone unturned to infiltrate the island with the so-called "fifth column." ¡@ In addition, there are serious loopholes and multi-faceted aspects of crisis existing in our national defense. As far as arms are concerned, due to the validation of war games simulated in the annual Han Kuang exercise, we need to intensify capability of countering both air and sea operations. What's worse is the Legislative Yuan continues to boycott the special arms procurement bill making it so that obsolete weaponry cannot be replaced. How can our armed forces withstand a People's Liberation Army attack using sophisticated equipment with outdated weapons? ¡@ All in all, what was revealed in News Defense is nothing but a tip of the iceberg. Numerous signs have indicated how crisis-ridden the nation is. Obviously, most people in Taiwan aren't even aware of this crisis. Our people are supposed to establish a psychological defense, and both the government and civil society should set up a sound security mechanism. Then we can get rid of the danger of classified data theft from the enemy, and sustain national security.
Tutu sheds a new light on Taiwan
It is heartening to read the invaluable interview of Trista di Genova with former Anglican Archbishop of South Africa, and Nobel Peace laureate, Desmond Tutu (China Post, April 20, Page 1). ¡@ Amid the current debate of "transitional justice" that President Chen Shui-bian highlighted on several formal occasions recently, Mr. Tutu has shed new light on reconsidering the rightful perspective of social and political reform. ¡@ It is strikingly revealing that Mr. Tutu remarked in the interview, "I was impressed that people in this country seem to want to take account of their past. That's very impressive, because people don't usually want to do that." ¡@ Indeed, the unusual Taiwan phenomenon that Mr. Tutu wondered over only appears during the heated political election campaign season. Beyond that, our leaders will constantly call for "ethnic harmony" for all. The case of commemorating the "228 Incident" is a good example. ¡@ One remarkable legacy of Archbishop Desmond Tutu that we in Taiwan can learn has been stated very clearly in his article, entitled "The lesson South Africa can teach those haunted by the past." ¡@ Reading between the lines, one can readily appreciate the core values of compassion and forgiveness. Mr. Tutu stated in strong terms that the success of South Africa's transition was due to a miracle - the moral colossus that is Nelson Mandela, whose calm and sagacity, and his status as an icon of forgiveness, compassion, magnanimity and reconciliation, make South Africa the envy of every nation on earth. ¡@ The core contents of the thought-provoking article that Mr. Tutu proposed should be shared by our politicians, if they are really concerned about the best interests of Taiwan in the 21st century. ¡@ Taiwan used to be a nation that many countries envied for her "Taiwan Miracle" in a book written by Prof. Thomas Gold of UC Berkeley in 1982. Likewise, Taiwan was once praised as one of the "Four Little Dragons of Asia." Why is it that the international icon of Taiwan's society and state has been gradually rescinded at the turn of the century? ¡@ Mr. Tutu has given us part of the answer through which we can rejuvenate this country. In the meantime, Mr. Tutu has pinpointed out our own traditional values of forgiveness, compassion, and magnanimity, which have been ripped out of our current society by some shallow and badly educated politicians. ¡@ As the 2008 presidential election nears, all practices in contrast with the appeal of Mr. Tutu have been on the surface. While politicians are engaged in mud-slinging amid the election campaign, Mr. Tutu's precious teaching should be learned to ensure a harmonious society of forgiveness, compassion and reconciliation, through which we Taiwanese can look positively forward, instead of being haunted by the past politically. ¡@ The sincere advice of Archbishop Desmond Tutu to us fits identically our Taiwanese cultural and ethic values that we have gradually lost. It is suggested that the Ministry of Education adopt the teaching of Mr. Tutu and put it into the instruction of civic education in elementary and secondary schools. For the general education programs in the colleges and universities, the legacy that Archbishop Desmond Tutu has demonstrated is what we urgently need for helping shape good character. ¡@ As a matter of fact, Archbishop Desmond Tutu has reminded us of what we have long ignored, which has been the core of our genuine Taiwanese values.
Mistakes in translation shaped the western religious
ideas
During the
middle ages, the western church cultivated the idea that
everybody is a sinner from birth, because all human
beings carry the sin of Adam, the first man. This was
based on the reading of St. Paul¡¦s letter to Romans 5:12
(among other passages):
¡§Wherefore,
as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by
sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all
have sinned.¡¨
The
interpretation was that all have sinned in Adam. But the
original Greek text says ¡§eph'ho
pantes hemarton.¡¨ The eph'ho can be interpreted as
modifying the word death, which precedes it, and
grammatically, the only word that fits the context.
Eph'ho as a reference to Adam is both grammatically and
exegetically impossible. So the correct meaning is
actually ¡§¡Kon the basis of which (death),¡¨ ¡§because of
which (death),¡¨ or ¡§for which (death)¡¨ all have sinned.
The correct idea, then, is that because of death, people
became selfish and try to survive and protect their
existence more than anything else, which leads to
selfishness, the real sin.
Augustine
did not know the Greek language, so he read the Vulgate
translation of the bible.
The words eph'ho are wrongly rendered in the
Vulgate, in quo (in whom). Now the
in quo was understood to
modify Adam, so Augustine concluded that in Adam
all have sinned because all human beings existed in a way
in Adam, so they participated to his sin.
In medieval Western Europe, crimes were considered not
committed against the state but against the person of the
monarch. The offence demanded satisfaction and justice.
So we can see the concept of the ¡¥angry,¡¦ ¡¥offended¡¦ God
who demanded satisfaction that no human being could
offer, so he finally killed his own son -- for the sake
of humans AND HIS REPUTATION.
The word justice was also misinterpreted. In the bible,
justice has not the meaning it has in everyday life. It
is the Hebrew translation, ¡§tsedaka¡¨
means the act of god to save people. It is parallel,
almost identical, to the other Hebrew word ¡§hesed,¡¨
which means ¡§sympathy¡¨ or ¡§mercy,¡¨ and the
word ¡§emeth¡¨ means ¡§trust¡¨ or ¡§truth¡¨.
In the bible the use of the word is opposite from the
western usage (court justice). For example, in Matthew
1:19: ¡§Then Joseph her (Mary¡¦s) husband, being a
just man, and not wanting to make her a
public example, was minded to put her away secretly.¡¨ If
he were just, he should have punished her
according to the law. We can offer other examples, but
this is not a bible study. We only want to point out how
translation mistakes and word misinterpretations can have
tremendous influence on religious thought, and can
create a bad concept of God, which people today
fortunately cannot accept. On the other hand, the Eastern Church had not those concepts, because most of the people spoke the Greek language, and had different political and cultural ideas. The meaning of sin, the Greek word ¡¥hamartia,¡¦ means mistake. God is a medical doctor who cures, not a rigorous judge, and the Church is a hospital. These subjects will be covered in our next reading. Our servicemen are being killed by outdated military equipment
2007/4/10 ¡@ Last Tuesday, an UH-1H helicopter smashed into a police radio tower in a remote mountain region in southern Kaohsiung County, causing the deaths of eight servicemen. This UH-1H chopper model was produced at the time of the Vietnam War and introduced into Taiwan in the early 1970s. If there were no mishap, I am sure that nobody would care about this obsolete equipment, which cannot be replaced due to the shortfall in the national defense budget. Why do we have to wait for a tragedy, which claimed the lives of several high ranking officers, and only then begin to consider that this outdated equipment should be retired from the army? ¡@ Even though the military has done its best to include equipment replacement in its budget, a huge budget plan cannot catch up with the change of time. As we inspect and review the present equipment of our armed forces in service, we will see many of it was made during the 1960s. ¡@ Owing to frequent tragic accidents, the equipment has been like "an invisible killer," which poses a threat to our troops. For example, because of mechanical failures, two years ago, a 60A1 tank crushed an armor company commander in Taichung. ¡@ This type of tank can be also dating from the 1960s with the upgrade of the M60 tank. Others are, such as the Guppy Class (SS-478 Cutlass and SS-426 Tusk) submarines with more than 60 years in service, the M41 and M113 tanks at offshore islets having served for 50 years, the S-2T anti-submarine helicopters for 40 years, the M151 command vehicles and the UH-1H choppers dubbed "a flying coffin" for 35 years, and the C130 transport planes for 20 years. ¡@ The military has planned to retire all the outdated equipment and proposed budgets to buy new equipment to replace the obsolete equipment but plans have stalled with the lack of funds. The UH-1H helicopter accident may arouse people's sympathy about the dangers soldiers face even in peace time. ¡@ Also, let us not forget the special arms purchase bill, which is related to hundreds of thousands of military personnel's lives and death in wartime. Who will take the responsibility if there are no advanced weapons to maintain Taiwan's security and we see more soldiers killed on the battlefield unnecessarily when a war breaks out? We earnestly appeal to politicians in Taiwan ¡X don't make millions of military dependents shed tears and break their hearts. New high speed rail deserves recognition through branding
2007/3/21 ¡@ Branding products is, as all corporate public relations officials and marketing departments know, an important part of communicating with the public. ¡@ On a recent trip on the Taiwan High Speed Rail Corporation's new bullet train, however, I noticed that the current orange passenger tickets that the HSR issues to customers do not state anywhere, front or back, that the ticket was issued by the THSRC. In fact, although the ticket has all the information needed to board and disembark from the bullet trains, it lacks any kind of HSR logo or name identification with the HSR or even Taiwan. ¡@ When I recently asked the Customer Service Center at Taiwan High Speed Rail Corporation by e-mail if it might be possible in the future to "brand" the bullet train tickets, for local collectors and foreign visitors alike, I was told: "The design and layout of current THSR tickets materialized after extensive internal discussion and debate. On the tickets, one is able to find sufficient train information for riding the train. However, your suggestion is highly appreciated, and we have instructed our marketing department to take immediate action and place a logo on the tickets. Thank you for your concern." Thank you, THSRC, for listening. ¡@
2007/3/15 ¡@ It is good that China has again issued its Human Rights report on the United States. That report is available to every U.S. citizen, because the People's Daily posts the report. ¡@ The U.S. government does not block access to the People's Daily site, so anyone, including reporters, can read about human rights violations in the U.S. ¡@ Now, can the so-called communist leaders of China allow reports of human rights violations of China's government to be read in China and Tibet? This is a double standard by the government of China. The leaders of China will allow any Chinese citizen to criticize human rights in the U.S., but free speech about the human rights violations of China is forbidden. ¡@ Dear Chairman Hu Jintao, will you please end the prolific teaching of how to torture and the sale of torture equipment from China? If the Chinese government cannot end the sale of torture equipment, then China is a weak country. ¡@ Dear Chairman Hu Jintao, will you forbid the sale of human body organs from executed political prisoners? Will you, Mr. Chairman Hu Jintao, please release Muhammed Tohti Metrozi and Abdulwahab Tohti? Please Mr. Chairman Hu Jintao, please let these men leave China if they wish. No burn day would be beneficial
2007/2/28 ¡@ It has been a wonderful Chinese New Year holiday. The skies were clear, the weather was beautiful and the atmosphere was festive. However, I am rather confused about traditional custom of burning paper money. ¡@ As I understand it, this burning of the paper money is for the ancestors. Ancestors are dead, right? Why continue this ritual that pollutes our air, leaves an unpleasant odor in the air, and puts people at risk of fire. Why does this polluting tradition continue? ¡@ I see the Taiwanese breaking their backs to make life better for the next generation. I see such effort put into making life as comfortable as possible for their kids, but they continue to pollute the environment for the sake of tradition. ¡@ I noticed years ago, the government tried using credit cards to burn to the dead to lower pollution levels. I heard that the government had passed legislation to require smokeless paper. The air stinks right now. I don't think it is working. ¡@ Taiwan needs to come into the modern world. ¡@ Global warming should be a motivating factor to reduce air pollution. This is a religiously backed action. Maybe it is time for the religious organizations to start being concerned with the environment. Selling this paper money brings real money into the temple coffers, and it brings out the coughers (no pun intended). Who will really act on global warming? Nobody
2007/2/14 ¡@ In a recent editorial, you asked "Who is responsible for global warming and who will act?" One answer is that humankind is responsible for global warming, and it is already too late to do anything to reverse the impact it is having and will have in the future on human life on Earth. Who will act? Nobody will act, because we are addicted to our post-modern lives of computers, TV, cars, electricity, airplanes, trains and ships, not to mention the thousands of coal-burning plants around the world that help fuel and pollute our greed. Rule banning bicycle racks on cars doesn't make sense
2007/2/10 ¡@ My local bicycle store informs me that after New Year the Taipei Police will no longer allow any kind of bicycle carrier either on the trunk or the roof of a car because they are too dangerous. Of course carrying ladders, gas cylinders, and four children on a motorcycle will continue to be tolerated because they are safe. ¡@ That seems to be another example of straight thinking, like trying to encourage an increase in birth rates by imposing fines on mothers who smoke while pregnant; did anybody bother to read the medical literature? Back in the 1960s there were studies that documented that most pregnant women stop smoking unless their husbands smoke. Age 12 is too young to be modeling
2007/1/30 ¡@ A 12-year-old girl, Dakota Fanning, recently posed in a photo-shoot for the designer Marc Jacobs. It is clear to me that there is a Lolita-like trend going on. Through the media we see Japanese girls blinking with innocence, Alizee waving and grooving to the music, and even Dakota posing for an advertising campaign. Doing so at the age of 12, however, has touched a raw nerve with many people. ¡@ In my opinion, a girl of 12 is too young for modeling and there is a thin line between adoration and pedophilia. ¡@ I can still remember the time I tried on my mom's leather shoes when I was a kid, kicking the floor with my heels. But she quickly told me when to stop and to put my sneakers back on. Her message taught me not to get carried away. ¡@ Starting a girl modeling at a very young age runs the very high risk that her attention will be drawn to nothing but high fashion, not to mention the effect this is likely to have for potential imitators among kids of a similar age. ¡@ Fashion is just one way to express ourselves. ¡@ Seeing photos of an expensive outfit on Dakota's tiny immature body did attract my attention. That is what a model does for a living. But, what will it be like if the industry keeps hiring children? ¡@ I would rather see them playing in the mud, racing around on a bike or pretending to be Michael Jordan making a slam-dunk. This is real child's play, which fashion is not. ¡@ Parents who kill children are quite simply murderers
2007/1/3 I was quite shocked when I read Tuesday's editorial "When parents kill children." Of course it is a tragedy if people seek suicide in order to escape their difficult situations. But, to take the children with them is not a sign of "love and care" because those parents could not leave their children behind "to face the despair by themselves" as you suggest. These parents have the free will to end their lives, but, to end their children's lives is just murder. You should not try to excuse those parents. A four year old child will not "knowingly" attempt suicide. Those children are victims to their self-absorbed parents. ¡@ Taiwan is not Africa. Despite the pain of losing their parents, those children still have plenty of opportunities to live a normal life as grown-ups and to have children themselves. ¡@ You ask "where is the government?" I will ask, "where are the responsible newspapers, who do not try to excuse those parents-murderer, but, call them by their real names?" |
