Telling it like it is
In support of Dan Bloom, (Letters, March 26, page 8), I would like to add the following comments. Yesterday I received an e-mail from the BBC Global Minds asking me to join its viewers’ panel. While completing the survey I came across a perturbing part and sent the BBC the following e-mail.
“I have just completed your online questionnaire and have found one part extremely disturbing which I am going to report to the British Trade and Cultural Office, Taipei. Under the section ‘which country do you live in,’ you have listed Taiwan as ‘Taiwan, Province of China.’ I have previously written to you about this on two occasions but you still persist with this title. Once again, TAIWAN HAS NEVER BEEN A PROVINCE OF CHINA and, for the sake of all Taiwanese people in general and my wife in particular, I hope it never will be. Yours sincerely, Michael Wise, Taiwan, ROC.”
I have also found this to be the case in most UK government Web sites and also the Halifax, Plc Web site.
It is getting harder to know what the name of this beautiful island is and what its people are called, not only for anyone living abroad, but also for those of us who have chosen to live here and call it home. Especially when we read the following quotation from President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九): “Let’s begin today and work toward ethnic and social harmony, and peace in the Taiwan Strait,” he said. “Let’s work together so the Chinese people can pursue progress and world peace in an amicable atmosphere” (“Kuo’s articles discriminatory, Ma says,” March 25, page 1).
I’m happy that Ma is preaching to the Chinese people about world peace or anything else, but I’m also confused, so my question to him is: “Do only Chinese people live in the Taiwan Strait?”
MICHAEL WISE
Tamsui
Congratulations to China’s working class — they have officially entered the “Livestock Feed 2.0” era. While others are still researching how to achieve healthy and balanced diets, China has already evolved to the point where it does not matter whether you are actually eating food, as long as you can swallow it. There is no need for cooking, chewing or making decisions — just tear open a package, add some hot water and in a short three minutes you have something that can keep you alive for at least another six hours. This is not science fiction — it is reality.
A foreign colleague of mine asked me recently, “What is a safe distance from potential People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Rocket Force’s (PLARF) Taiwan targets?” This article will answer this question and help people living in Taiwan have a deeper understanding of the threat. Why is it important to understand PLA/PLARF targeting strategy? According to RAND analysis, the PLA’s “systems destruction warfare” focuses on crippling an adversary’s operational system by targeting its networks, especially leadership, command and control (C2) nodes, sensors, and information hubs. Admiral Samuel Paparo, commander of US Indo-Pacific Command, noted in his 15 May 2025 Sedona Forum keynote speech that, as
In a world increasingly defined by unpredictability, two actors stand out as islands of stability: Europe and Taiwan. One, a sprawling union of democracies, but under immense pressure, grappling with a geopolitical reality it was not originally designed for. The other, a vibrant, resilient democracy thriving as a technological global leader, but living under a growing existential threat. In response to rising uncertainties, they are both seeking resilience and learning to better position themselves. It is now time they recognize each other not just as partners of convenience, but as strategic and indispensable lifelines. The US, long seen as the anchor
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) last week announced that the KMT was launching “Operation Patriot” in response to an unprecedented massive campaign to recall 31 KMT legislators. However, his action has also raised questions and doubts: Are these so-called “patriots” pledging allegiance to the country or to the party? While all KMT-proposed campaigns to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers have failed, and a growing number of local KMT chapter personnel have been indicted for allegedly forging petition signatures, media reports said that at least 26 recall motions against KMT legislators have passed the second signature threshold
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