"Vote for the man who promises least. He'll be the least disappointing." That is some sound advice from Bernard Baruch and it may be the only useful advice for voters in the upcoming elections.
I am sometimes asked if I follow the Taiwanese elections closely. My answer is no. Although I used to be quite the election junkie I have given up that "addiction" in recent years. The reason I don't follow Taiwanese elections is because there is nothing to follow.
When the politics of any country falls to a certain level of chaos there really is nothing to follow. Taiwan has reached that level. Politics is properly a discussion of issues and workable solutions. In a well-functioning democracy the voters look over the candidates, looking for issues that matter to them as voters. The voters then examine the candidate's positions and decide how to vote.
Taiwanese candidates rarely discuss issues or workable solutions to those issues. Note the emphasis on "workable" solutions; empty generalities and absurd fantasies do not count as workable solutions. Such "solutions" as turning Taiwan into a regional hub, a Silicon Valley of the east, an island casino, or any and all "secret plans" all fall outside the category of "workable solutions."
Rather than being about issues and solutions, the upcoming elections have more in common with soap operas. I should qualify that, however, by saying soap operas made on a small budget -- the recession is hitting campaign spending hard.
Soap operas generally feature a cast of characters and the plots consist of various intrigues among the characters. Woman "x" is married to guy "y" who is really in love with another woman "a." Woman "x" and woman "b" plot together to kill guy "y" and so on.
Soap operas rarely reflect real problems, real situations or real solutions. Rather they are characterizations going through melodramatic poses. Much like the year-end elections. The situation is worsened by the fact that the various political parties have nothing to say regarding issues and solutions.
Many of the political parties in Taiwan are nothing more that "private parties" belonging to one person. The People First Party is James Soong's (
That fact is related to a longstanding problem in Taiwanese politics. That is the reality that politics in Taiwan is often about "personality cults." Personality cults are politics where the manufactured image takes precedence over issues. People vote for a candidate because they like his image, not because they agree with his position on the issues.
When elections are dominated by cults of personality, the issues fall by the wayside. It is an important part of manufacturing a candidate's image, his cult of personality, to avoid any concrete position on the issues. The reason for this is that by not having the candidate commit to a position, by keeping his position vague, it allows the voter to fill in the blanks with whatever answer they find agreeable. It also keeps the candidate from the "difficulty" of fulfilling campaign pledges.
The reality that the year-end elections are soap operas on a low budget is unfortunate for Taiwan. This country is facing a difficult period and is perhaps at a crossroads. If solutions are not found and implemented, Taiwan's economy will continue its downward slide. As that happens, Taiwan will continue its downward slide in international importance and be well on its way to becoming an Asian backwater.
Let me close with one bit of advice for Taiwan's voters. The American comedian W. C. Fields once said, "I never vote for anyone. I always vote against."
Brian Kennedy is an attorney who writes and teaches on criminal justice and human rights issues.
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