More power to the nude
Dear Johnny,
What's up with independent Legislator Li Ao (
How in the world is this supposed to block weapons purchases? Now if someone like KMT Taipei City Council candidate Chin Li-fang (
I can just imagine someone like US Democratic Senator Ted Kennedy showing up in the Senate with a life-size nude of himself, thinking it might have some effect on administration policy (other than scaring the hell out of everyone).
One thing you can say for Taiwanese politics: It certainly is entertaining.
Sam Small
Johnny replies: It gets better. Many of my readers may not be too familiar with the carnal past (and presumably present) of everybody's favorite scholar-cum-headkicker, the inestimable Li Ao. But if you check out his autobiography you can read about his sex life in rattling detail. He even includes pictures for your reference: his same nude pose, as well as some Western ladies who would look up at him from the pages of a magazine when he only had himself to play with.
But more credit to him. I've always been a sucker for the "horny scholar" sub-genre of the formerly vibrant Hong Kong film industry. It moves me deeply to think that Li Ao is keeping his end up on behalf of all those sorrowful students pining for a fox demon in the guise of a human seductress.
Platform-free zone
Dear Johnny,
Got this line out of the Taipei Times this week for KMT Taipei mayoral candidate Hau Lung-bin's (郝龍斌) election blog aimed at hoodwinking anyone who's dumb enough to log on in the first place:
"`Voters are not that attracted by campaign platforms, so we first posted Hau's personal stories and experiences on the [first] blog to give voters a better understanding of his character,' said [Web site director] Tso, who declined to give his Chinese name" ("Mayoral candidates seek votes in the blogosphere," Nov. 14, page 4).
Yeah, true, voters aren't attracted to the campaign platforms, but then again, it's hard to be attracted to a woman you've never seen. When do you think these guys will release their platforms? About a month after the election?
Unfortunately on this rock, "election" and "platform" only refer to people on stages with horns yelling "Dim di-you-ah!!!" and not to a set of coherent plans they might adopt after buying the election with the help of their gangster patrons.
Lastly, why would the guy be afraid to give his Chinese name? What's he hiding? Rotting KMT money hidden underneath the floorboards?
Michael Faass
Johnny replies: Try not to get carried away, Michael. Taiwanese are traditionally reticent about giving their names to media organizations. With all the wankers who work for them, wouldn't you be?
But rest easy, my friend, because at least Mr Tso had the courtesy of offering his English name (Tony). So now you can ask for him personally and put it to him that the foundations of KMT headquarters in Bade Road are filled with NT$1,000 bills. But I'm telling you, you won't find any floorboards. Tiles, maybe.
Concerns that the US might abandon Taiwan are often overstated. While US President Donald Trump’s handling of Ukraine raised unease in Taiwan, it is crucial to recognize that Taiwan is not Ukraine. Under Trump, the US views Ukraine largely as a European problem, whereas the Indo-Pacific region remains its primary geopolitical focus. Taipei holds immense strategic value for Washington and is unlikely to be treated as a bargaining chip in US-China relations. Trump’s vision of “making America great again” would be directly undermined by any move to abandon Taiwan. Despite the rhetoric of “America First,” the Trump administration understands the necessity of
In an article published on this page on Tuesday, Kaohsiung-based journalist Julien Oeuillet wrote that “legions of people worldwide would care if a disaster occurred in South Korea or Japan, but the same people would not bat an eyelid if Taiwan disappeared.” That is quite a statement. We are constantly reading about the importance of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), hailed in Taiwan as the nation’s “silicon shield” protecting it from hostile foreign forces such as the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), and so crucial to the global supply chain for semiconductors that its loss would cost the global economy US$1
US President Donald Trump’s challenge to domestic American economic-political priorities, and abroad to the global balance of power, are not a threat to the security of Taiwan. Trump’s success can go far to contain the real threat — the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) surge to hegemony — while offering expanded defensive opportunities for Taiwan. In a stunning affirmation of the CCP policy of “forceful reunification,” an obscene euphemism for the invasion of Taiwan and the destruction of its democracy, on March 13, 2024, the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) used Chinese social media platforms to show the first-time linkage of three new
Sasha B. Chhabra’s column (“Michelle Yeoh should no longer be welcome,” March 26, page 8) lamented an Instagram post by renowned actress Michelle Yeoh (楊紫瓊) about her recent visit to “Taipei, China.” It is Chhabra’s opinion that, in response to parroting Beijing’s propaganda about the status of Taiwan, Yeoh should be banned from entering this nation and her films cut off from funding by government-backed agencies, as well as disqualified from competing in the Golden Horse Awards. She and other celebrities, he wrote, must be made to understand “that there are consequences for their actions if they become political pawns of
RSS