畫像1 畫像2

遊民畫家泊仔送的畫像,在左圖中白鳥的右下方,就是他自己。

  我想我是一個認真的人,有時候到了嚴肅的地步。還記得剛入小學的第一課就是ㄅㄆㄇㄈ,老師說下週要考,可是一週過去了,我還沒全學會,急得不得了,回家就發燒了,媽媽還得幫我惡補。下星期老師竟然完全忘了考試這回事!而我至今餘悸猶存。
  最近一位好友退休,她在嚴肅這件事上比我更勝一籌,在我們為她舉行的餐會中一絲不苟地討論未來生活的意義,我勸她不必急,不妨先混一混。李豐(寫《我賺了四十年》的那位台大醫師)在電話上聽了我的轉述,大笑道:「你混得怎樣?」我說:「不錯啊!」她卻不以為然:「我聽妳聲音就知道妳還是那樣,說話太快了!」幾十年來她一直勸我慢下來。慢才能品味生活,才能靜攬人生,才能修鍊身心。
  不僅需要調整步調,我也想改變自己的寫作風格,輕鬆一點,閒適一點,更多一點生活,多一點感覺。渴望有自己的部落格,不被字數、時尚、市場、刊物風格、主編好惡綁住。大部分是為自己寫吧,也為了分享,至於未來,就交給上天了。 email: yenlinku@mail2000.com.tw
 

2023-02-01

Standing Up to China Means Standing with Taiwan?

Y Ku 

My friend Jo sent me the following message and asked me what I thought about it.

https://www.aei.org/events/a-conversation-with-sen-dan-sullivan-r-ak-standing-up-to-china-means-standing-with-taiwan/?mkt_tok=NDc1LVBCUS05NzEAAAGIlxlbv_MFuKG3a9lW69PJZpIvN4aUg1AfAsr7sKNSMwNusWz8HUUx1IP8vOgAuXrKG1r6q9YzBs20nDCmB86dsvTBDhatITvjD3pkSPioNECnLQ

Here is my answer: 

        Today's China is different from what it was in the 1930s and 40s. The mindset of Cold War in Eisenhower's days should no longer govern the world in the 21st century. I hope the US will play a more positive role in promoting peaceful negotiations across the Taiwan Strait, at least not provoking confrontations or continuing to use Taiwan as an instrument  or a pawn in the "1st-island chain" in the Pacific for the US interest in East Asia.

         Senator Dan Sullivan exaggerated the threat and influence of China. He mentioned his visit to Taiwan in 2021 to provide vaccines because China prevented Taiwan from getting Western vaccines. It is totally untrue. The reality is that the DPP government not only delayed in buying Vaccines like Pfizer, Moderna and Az, but also prohibited local enterprises and religious groups from donating them to the Ministry of Health and Welfare. The alleged purpose was to preserve the market for a local product Medigen, which, unfortunately, was never approved by WHO. Neverthless, its price soared in the stock market from NT$30 per share in January 2020 to NT$389 in May 2021.

        We were not only short of vaccines, the government also put the production and distribution of masks under state control in 2020, but gave them as free gifts to foreign countries including the US. The people in Taiwan had to wait in long lines outside drug stores in rain or under the scorching sun to buy our own quotas. A friend of mine got up at 4:00 am so that he could buy the masks his daughter needed to go to work. To return the favor, countries like Japan, Lithuania, Slovakia, Checkslovakia and Poland, in addition to the US, also donated vaccines to Taiwan afterwards. But China's donation offer was not accepted by the DPP government.

          Nowadays the US actually poses more threat to Taiwan than any other countries. The  forced move of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. ,together with its engineers, to Arizona is an international act of robbery and tyranny. The forced selling and delayed delivery of US military weapons at prices much higher than what other countries had to pay has also been a long-term economic burden on Taiwan. I hope the people in Taiwan could be wise and lucky enough not to be turned into the second "heroic" Ukrain as Sullivan expected. 

       Taiwan is not Ukrain. Any country wants to be the next Ukrain?


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