Amid fuss over the Kaohsiung mayoral court case and the deliberations of the Central Election Commission on referendum protocol, one item of electoral news slipped by this week with barely a sound.

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By Johnny Neihu 強尼內湖
Who needs recognition from the big powers when you've got the Schmids?

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Ma ain't Sarkozy
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By Yang Chuen Jen 楊君仁
In response to growing international calls for renewable energy, Council for Economic Planning and Development Minister Ho Mei-yueh (何美玥) has proposed that farmers install solar panels in their fields.

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Soft power is real power, but it relies on the consensus of UN members
By Joseph Nye
Joseph Stalin once dismissed the relevance of "soft power" by asking, "How many troops does the Pope have?" Today, many self-styled realists dismiss the UN as powerless, and argue that it can be ignored. They are mistaken.

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By Bill Carter
In the television business the grim reality of the writers' strike has set in, with the prospect of a long shutdown of scripted shows growing stronger by the day.

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By Amelia Gentleman
The authorities here managed to do very little about the city's soaring wild monkey population -- until the deputy mayor toppled from his terrace to his death as he tried to fend off a gang of the animals.

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