US officials far from pure
I was surprised by Arthur Ding's argument about the purity of US government officials ("Don't simplify arms sales issues," April 9, page 8,). He said, "After leaving their posts, many US government employees transfer to jobs at arms companies in order to earn higher salaries. However, if they return to positions in the government, they adjust their perception of their role and handle the issue of arms sales with a scrupulous attitude." In other words, he believes US government policies are not influenced by the business connections of government officials.
Such a Utopian view is clearly contradicted by some of George W. Bush's decisions, particularly his backtracking on the 1997 Kyoto Protocol for curbing carbon dioxide emissions and his decision to rescind Clinton-era regulations restricting arsenic pollution in drinking water. It is difficult not to link these decisions to the close ties between Republicans and traditional industries such as oil and mining.
Republicans also have extensive links to US arms manufacturers. As an advocate of Taiwan's interests, Ding has every right to defend US arms sales, but to think that the Bush administration does not have business interests in mind when it makes policy is naive.
Of course, Taiwan needs all the support it can get to survive, but the country's close links to conservatives around the world is an unfortunate legacy of the KMT era. In fact, such links could become major obstacles to Taiwan's political and economic transformation.
One obvious example is the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant, which will no doubt benefit conservative interests in both Taiwan and the US. But the plant could seriously undercut some of the central aspects of Taiwan's efforts to survive in the 21st century, such as upgrading its energy industry, developing cutting-edge technology and finding new products to sell.
It is important that Taiwan act like a liberal and try to win support from liberals around the world. A few AEGIS-equipped destroyers will certainly provide short-term deterrence, but they cannot guarantee Taiwan's survival in the long run.
David Finkenbinder
Taipei
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