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Johnny Neihu's Mailbag

Dear Johnny,

I would like to say a few words to Richard King about the hard words for President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) in his letter (Johnny Neihu's Mailbag, Dec. 22, page 8).

Firstly, I am very glad that Johnny Neihu wrote the original article ("Election 2008: The `sissy factor,'" Dec. 15, page 8). It's exactly what I was thinking about Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九).

I don't know many politicians like him who change their opinion many times a week. Now that he is candidate he pays more attention!

We all know that many women in Taipei like Ma, but I am afraid that these young ladies don't know how to distinguish between a "handsome" man and a wise Taiwanese politician.

Have you heard of Taiwan's "strawberry generation," Richard? These are the young men and ladies who know little more than how to use a computer, are impressed by "beautiful" people and multiple language skills and desire superficial things.

If a war starts in the Taiwan Strait one day, this generation will simply hide under their beds.

About Chen: Even if he likes to give too many speeches, at least he has had a lot of guts these last eight years. He said and did many things that were right.

I think Taiwanese should awake from their deep sleep that the pro-blue-camp media have lulled them into, stop talking about the "worst economy" under the Democratic Progressive Party and stop admiring the Chinese and dictator Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石).

If Ma becomes president and delivers on his promises, a bad situation will result for Taiwan the moment China feels strong enough.

I don't want my kids to live in a Chinese-dominated country.

Would you want that for yours, Mr King?

Bill Tso

Hualien

Johnny replies: For all of the hunger for educational success and international academic glory, I get a strange feeling when I compare today's "strawberry generation" with the Speechifier-in-Chief.

These days it seems to be about pumping endless amounts of cash into your little darlings so that they can enter select schools and end up doing something with their brainless, unchallenged lives that has no connection whatsoever with their personal interests.

And you simply don't see the rags-to-riches story that Chen encapsulates anymore.

But there's something about Ma that sets him apart from your strawberry generation precursor, too.

He may have been filial, uncontroversial and well-behaved -- the classic sissy -- but how does that explain his once apparent, and sadly missed, ability to occasionally buck the system that bred him?
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