Three decades ago, I could not even finish a 600m run and was mocked by my classmates for being effeminate because I did not like sports. To my utter shock, I was drafted into the Marine Corps, and for a three-year term, while others were only required to serve two. I stood there speechless as the conscripts around me erupted into thunderous applause, celebrating that there was one fewer Marine Corps slot left in the draw.
I was sent to a military academy for training, but I graduated top of my class. I also participated in the last formal military parade held on Double Ten National Day in 1991, marching in perfect step. I endured grueling training for six months. Former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) was in office at the time. Later, with the shortening of compulsory military service, I only ended up serving for two years and 45 days. I left the military with eight-pack abs and the rank of sergeant, and often went jogging near my home. My former classmates could hardly believe how much I had changed.
Military training taught me to calmly face many challenges in a highly competitive environment, and it was that experience that gave me the ability to repay my family’s debts after returning to civilian life.
Today, mandatory military service is significantly shorter and alternative service options are available. Many celebrities, such as singer-songwriter Chang Yu-sheng (張雨生), actors Ming Dao (明道) and Leon Dai (戴立忍), TV entertainer He Yi-hang (賀一航), TV show host Hu Gua (胡瓜) and actor and singer Greg Hsu (許光漢) all served in the military and maintained their fame after doing so.
Male celebrities who dodge their military duty should acknowledge their wrongdoing, apologize to society and complete their service to erase the dishonor of draft dodging.
Serving in the military is a duty one must fulfill. Rather than burying your head in the sand, it is better to face it head-on. At the very least, you do not have to worry about one day being exposed, ruining years of hard-earned success in the entertainment industry in a single instant. Nor would someone be able to hold such a thing over you later to blackmail you after you have earned your fame. A single act of foolishness can create endless trouble down the line — the wise avoid such behavior.
Jimmy Hsu is a farmer.
Translated by Kyra Gustavsen
KMT Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun’s (鄭麗文) recent visit to Beijing and her upcoming visit to Washington will serve as a high-level test of her diplomatic mettle. In Beijing, Cheng was received with symbolic gestures, a warm reception, and high-level access. In Washington, she will receive far less pomp and far sharper questions about the KMT’s vision for the future of Taiwan. Her challenge will be to persuade Washington that the KMT’s engagement with China can coexist with strong deterrence. Cheng’s April 7-12 visit to mainland China coincided with an intense period of conflict in Iran. Despite the strategic significance of Cheng’s trip,
The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has sent the vast Asian chemicals industry into a tailspin. Deprived of the likes of Qatari natural gas and Saudi Arabian oil, the region’s fertilizer and plastics plants are slowing production or even shutting down. Everywhere except China, that is. In petrochemicals, China is unique. As well as a traditional industry that uses oil and gas as feedstock, it has parallel output that relies on its abundant domestic coal. Unsurprisingly, India and other regional powers want to copy and paste the Chinese method. This would not be easy — or climate friendly. The
Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto says he knows how to fix the problems facing Indonesia. Yet his economic mismanagement and authoritarian tendencies are steering the nation toward a familiar mix of currency instability and political chaos. The world’s fourth-most populous nation risks reversing the hard-won democratic and business reforms that came after the Asian Financial Crisis in 1997. At that time, the rupiah collapsed and the political upheaval that followed forced former president Haji Mohamed Suharto from power. Prabowo’s administration is ignoring similar warning signs. That disconnect was apparent in a national address on Wednesday, when Prabowo projected the swagger that has
“Of course you can choose not to be Taiwanese, just do not stay here,” chairwoman of Taipei 101 operator Taipei Financial Center Corp Janet Chia (賈永婕) said in an online interview with local entertainer Tai Chih-yuan (邰智源), triggering intense discussion on social media, with politicians across party lines weighing in. In the interview, which was aired on May 14, Chia and Tai’s discussion over a meal in Taipei 101 covered Chia’s career change from entertainer to chairwoman and US climber Alex Honnold’s free solo climb up the Taipei 101 building. During the interview, Chia said, “Being on this land, we
RSS