Yesterday, former president Lee Teng-hui
This means the year-end elections will be a duel between the Lee-Chen and Lien-Soong alliances. It may also be seen as a fight between the Lee-Chen "Taiwan first" and Lien-Soong "one China" ideologies.
In an attempt to blur this abundantly clear distinction, Soong commented that the "love for Taiwan" is no different coming from the "native consciousness" and "non-native consciousness" camps. Unless he was deliberately trying to confuse the issue, Soong's answer shows how limited his understanding of "native consciousness" truly is.
Love comes in many forms. Some people will claim that love is the driving force behind any manner of depraved action -- including murder. Some even argue that China would not insist on unification if not for its "love of Taiwan."
At the core of the "native consciousness" movement is the concept of "Taiwan first." This means giving top priority to the interests of Taiwan and thinking entirely from the standpoint of Taiwan. It is entirely different from the "one China" ideology under which the glory and interests of "one China" comes first.
In another jibe at the Lee-Chen alliance, Soong also indicated that Lee intends to act as the "power behind the throne"
The real reason Lee was "forced" to come out of retirement was "sour grapes" on the part of Soong and Lien after they lost the presidential election and, of course, their continuing obstruction of all constructive activity in the legislature.
Even before the last presidential election, Soong was notorious for temper tantrums when things didn't go his way. Cases in point include Soong's breakup with Lee over the down-sizing of the provincial government and the KMT's nomination of Lien as their presidential candidate.
As for Lien, losing the election was simply earth-shattering, as he has had things served to him his entire life on a silver platter.
If Soong does not know what "sour grapes" means, Lien does not even know how to spell the words. Never mind that Lee and many other people had stuck their necks out for him, and played the bad guy with Soong just to nominate and campaign for him -- all Lien cares about now is vengeance against Chen, even if it means dancing with an enemy he loathes, Soong.
Bonded by their quest for vengeance and the "one China" ideology, Lien and Soong have made things impossible for the Chen administration. As their parties enjoy a legislative majority, the legislative agenda of the Chen administration has taken a severe beating.
Still, if Lien did not steer the KMT onto a "pro-China" path, Lee might feel hesitant about helping Chen, even though the Chen administration has been brought to a virtual halt by the PFP and KMT. The KMT's abandonment of the "native consciousness" path has made the legislative majority unreflective of the popular will. For this reason, Lee had to come out of retirement.
While it is a good thing to see the Chen administration getting a new chance with the help of Lee, it is sad that Lee has come back to oppose the petty vindictiveness of his party and former colleagues. If only the opposition had acted in the interests of the country, instead of dragging our proud nation low with petty partisanship, then Lee would be able to enjoy his retirement and have more time to play golf.
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