Taiwan’s leading anti-nuclear protest singer/songwriter, Hsiao Tao (小刀), brings his own individual brand political harmonizing to Taipei’s Witch House Pub tonight. Although the artist hasn’t released an album since his sarcastically titled 1999 Give ME a Fourth Nuclear Power Plant (給我一座核四廠), Hisao Tao and his band have continued to be an integral part of the local inside scene.
Musically a far cry from many of the nations faux-punk protest bands, Hsiao Tao’s anti-nuclear angst is largely free of distortion box effects. Sets by the singer include both acoustic and electric numbers, which has led to his generating a large following among the nations more mature rebels.
His numbers are full of cutting, poignant and sarcastic lyrics touching on issues like the nuclear power and equal rights for Aborigines and the handicapped.
Whether amped-up or unplugged Hsiao Tao’s folksy/bluesy sets are well worth checking out.
Hsiao Tao and his band (小刀樂團) will play the Witch House pub (女巫店) at 10pm tonight. The Witch House is located at 7, Lane 56, Hsinsheng South Road, Section 3, Taipei. (台北市新生南路3段56巷7號). Tickets cost NT$250 at the door.
Last Thursday, the Ministry of National Defense (MND) detected 41 sorties of Chinese aircraft and nine navy vessels around Taiwan over a 24-hour period. “Thirty out of 41 sorties crossed the median line and entered Taiwan’s northern, central, southwestern and eastern ADIZ (air defense identification zones),” it reported. Local media noted that the exercises coincided with the annual Han Kuang military exercises in Taiwan. During the visit of then-US Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan in August 2022, the largest number of sorties was on Aug. 5, “involving a total of 47 fighter aircraft and two supporting reconnaissance/patrol aircraft.
July 7 to July 13 Even though the Japanese colonizers declared Taiwan “pacified” on Nov. 18, 1895, unrest was still brewing in Pingtung County. The Japanese had completed their march of conquest down the west coast of Taiwan, stamping out local resistance. But in their haste to conquer the Republic of Formosa’s last stronghold of Tainan, they largely ignored the highly-militarized Liudui (六堆, six garrisons) Hakka living by the foothills in Kaohsiung and Pingtung. They were organized as their name suggested, and commanders such as Chiu Feng-hsiang (邱鳳祥) and Chung Fa-chun (鍾發春) still wanted to fight. Clashes broke out in today’s
Xu Pengcheng looks over his shoulder and, after confirming the coast is clear, helps his crew of urban adventurers climb through the broken window of an abandoned building. Long popular in the West, urban exploration, or “urbex” for short, sees city-dwelling thrill-seekers explore dilapidated, closed-off buildings and areas — often skirting the law in the process. And it is growing in popularity in China, where a years-long property sector crisis has left many cities dotted with empty buildings. Xu, a 29-year-old tech worker from the eastern city of Qingdao, has amassed hundreds of thousands of followers for his photos of rundown schools and
At times, it almost seems that former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) is out to sabotage the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT). As if on cue, with the recall campaigns against KMT lawmakers in full swing, Ma thought it would be a good time to lead a delegation of students to China and attend the 17th Straits Forum (海峽論壇) and meet with Wang Huning (王滬寧), the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Politburo member entrusted by Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) to be his second in command on Taiwan policy and to run the United Front Work Department (UFWD) in charge of subverting enemies,