Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Reports on Taiwan's expansionist authoritarian neighbor.

Two new reports from the Heritage Foundation -- on Taiwan's neighboring nation that wants to rapaciously annex Taiwan. And to think that there are still all those foolish dreamers in the KMT that romanticize a fictitious "re"unification with (read - annexation by) China.

New from the Heritage Foundation on China's military versus Taiwan's military

• China's continues to oppressively violate its own people's human rights... (Topics covered: 1. Tiannanmen Square Suppression; 2. Political and other extrajudicial killings; 3. Treatment of Tibet; 4. Judiciary, Legal and Political Prisoners; 5. Arbitrary interference with privacy, family, home and correspondence; 6. No free speech; 7. No free press; 8. No freedom of Assembly; 9. No freedom of religion; 10. No Freedom of Movement, Internally Displaced Persons, Protection of Refugees, and Stateless Persons; 11. Governmental Attitude Regarding International and Nongovernmental Investigations of Alleged Violations of Human Rights; 12. Discrimination, Societal Abuse, and Trafficking in Persons.)

What an horrible government and what an oppressed society.

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Newsweek leaves Taiwan out of its ranking of countries... China ranked below Albania, but still too high.

Newsweek (a magazine with red sympathies or at least on the left of the political spectrum) came up with a ranking of countries that put China all the way back to number 59. Taiwan was left out. If not simply ignored, Mongolia did not make the top 100.

As Taiwan undoubtedly would have ranked very high in the world (much higher than China) in the 5 ranking measurements considered -- Education, Health, Quality of Life, Economic Dynamism, and Political Environment -- Newsweek does a disservice to its readers by excluding Taiwan from its ranking.

China received its best score in the Economic Dynamism category. No mention was given to the fact that China's economic rise was heavily fueled by Taiwanese setting up factories and transferring knowhow to China in the 1990's and 2000's.

China came in at the low rank of 93 for political environment. Its peers include Algeria, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Cuba and Syria. China also was quite low in education and quality of life.

Those in Taiwan, including the Ma regime, with rose-colored glasses gazing upon a false China dream, need to remember that there are more than 58 countries in the world that Taiwan could do better getting close to (make that more than 90 countries -- with the exception of perhaps Iran and Syria, Taiwan could do better pursuing an ECFA with almost any country other than China.)

Like captains choosing players for their neighborhood baseball team, China as it is currently governed by a brutish, oppressive authoritarian regime, should be one of the last standing -- meaning the last to be picked to play on any team. And if everyone in the crowd has to be put on the team, make China a bench sitter.

Friday, August 6, 2010

Piling lies on top of lies while followers hope to get something in the end...

"You tell them a lie, and then when you don't need it anymore, you tell them another lie and tell them they are progressing along the road to wisdom. Then instead of laughing, they follow you even more, hoping that at the heart of all the lies they'll find the truth. And bit by bit they accept the unacceptable. Amazing." - Terry Pratchett in Guards! Guards!

(p. 116 of Harper Torch edition) © 1989 Terry and Lyn Pratchett