Hammering the point home.

I just got back from the videoconference held here in Taipei at the Presidential Office where President Chen Shui-bian spoke with members of the European Union's Parliament in Brussels. What was eminently clear (a redundancy I know, but hell, I'm tired) was the fact that Chen had one point he wanted to get across; the European Union member states, by lifting the arms sanctions on China, was abandoning its universal values such as democracy and human rights, to serve national interests. Without being explicit, he implied that the EU member states were being hypocritical. And he made the point over and over again. No EU MP could have left that meeting without having an idea of what Chen wanted to say.

I was wondering how long this would take.

China is upset again. Asia's powerhouse sure does have a thin skin. They don't want Bill Clinton to meet with President Chen Shui-bian because they don't like "political" leaders from other countries being seen as lending legitamacyto Taiwan. Then again, one can understand their frustration and confusion. For even when someone such as Jiang Zemin steps down from the presidency, he still can hold onto a few state posts and exert his power within the party. Not so in a democracy. Bill Clinton is coming to Taiwan as a private citizen and collecting a hefty speaking fee as well. More here.

Cannabis helps prevent memory loss.

Who'd have thunk it? Back when you lost your keys, playing both detective and suspect in your tableau vivant of Poe's The Purloined Letter to the throb, crash and hum of Captain Beefheart, you may have been staving off Alzheimer's disease. So says The Guardian.

Pugilism.

I cannot say that I am a boxing fan, but I am a fan of boxing, an incongruity that has surprised a few friends. I've never paid to see a live fight, nor have I played part in the pay-per-view scheme. Perhaps if I were to see a live fight, my interest would wane. Yet, I think Norman Mailer's "The Fight" is great piece of journalism, and I have enjoyed a number of Joyce Carol Oates pieces on the sport. The two sports that have captured the imagination of American writers are baseball, of course, and boxing. This piece in the Washington Monthly on women's boxing paints an ugly picture of the sport. Take a look.

The Big Dawg is on his way?

As a US citizen, an Arkansan, a resident of Taiwan and two-time supporter of former president Bill Clinton, I would be remiss if I didn't mention that he has been invited to stop in Taiwan and is scheduled to make his appearance on February 27. As for the question mark, something could always go wrong. Enough dignitaries and performers have made last-minute cancelations on their way here, so I'll believe it when I see him on the concourse of Chiang Kai Shek Airport being hassled by Taiwan's overzealous press. More of a news release than a story, but if you like there's more here.

Hunter S. Thompson is dead.

At the age of 67, Thompson shot himself. The inventor of "gonzo" journalism takes his leave. "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro." HST. The New York Times has cobbled together a shoddy obit, of which I'm not going to post because its not worth your time or mine. I'm sure we'll see better and fuller soon.

On Caravaggio ...

I tend to shy away from reading about art extensively. John Berger is great, and I remember enjoying Otto Freidrich's book, Olympia: Paris in the Age of Manet some 15 years ago. Yet this three-part series in the Guardian on Caravaggio is well written, intriguing and absent the offputting jargon that many an art writer falls prey to.

Caveat lector- you shouldn't open the link if you have dinner plans or an appointment any time soon. It's a long, engrossing read. Here.

He's a funny man.

James Wolcott, who writes for Vanity Fair, is damn funny. His blog entries have a spluttering guffaw in every other sentence. I wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of his pen. Read his post on Michael Medved, laconically titled "Michael Medved is an Idiot."

And you were worried about the coming invasion!

The real worry is of course the drying up of Taiwan. Yes, this plum of an island will be a shriveled prune by 2035. I know I shouldn't be so flippant when it comes to environmental issues, but this Taiwan News headline doesn't help. More.

The suicidal chef.

A book review on mental depression, the kitchen and the vain search for perfection makes me want to read it, but the biographer's quote at the end of the review "he was like a souffle that had fallen," strikes me as a trite, overpushed metaphor. And that makes me reconsider. Here it is.

Chinese New Year's vacation has ended.

So, if you think you sinned too much, here is a test to tell you where in Dante's hell you can expect to be when you meet your maker. The final exam.

On rationalizing legitamacy ...

For those of us who are creatures of habit, who lack credibility because we refuse to fork out the cash for a Mac or cannot be bothered to learn Linux, the Firefox browser (as in I love tabs and the find function) brings with it a sniff of the alternative and an air of street cred.

As in, "I can't believe you still use Explorer." And "I'm sticking it to the man." (Of course we are doing this on a Windows operating system.)

Last week's wacko repents ...

I know I've relied a bit too much on other blogs out there lately and will attempt to nip that problem in the bud. Yet there has been an update on the wacko post, Billie's letter outraged many a reader, and she has since apologized for her offensive drivel.

You can read the letters and her response here. (You may have to scroll down a few posts. It should be at the top of Atrios' Thursday, January 27 entries.)

The sparrows ...

This is one of the funnier discussions I've seen up over at Testy Copyeditors. Talk about bad writing. Jeebus!

In politics, every day is a new day!

Well, Kaohsiung Mayor Frank Hsieh has been named as President Chen Shui-bian's pick for the premier post. Though the rumors have been flying about for over a week, a number of people have tilted their heads and said, "I thought Chen didn't even like Hsieh, that they didn't get along. They are from different party factions." (Or something to that effect.)

So, I mentioned this today to a government official, and he just laughed and waved his hand at my naivite. "You know in politics, yesterday is just that, yesterday. Old enemies can become friends overnight."

If you want to check out Bloomberg's account on the Hsieh appointment, here it is.

In Vino Veritas ...

When Republicans party, they let it all hang out. A piece in the Washington Post on inauguration balls covers this morsel:

Though there was no official poem for the occasion, impressionist Rich Little, emceeing the Constitution Ball at the Hilton Washington, did provide a bit of inaugural doggerel.

The gist of it was: "Let's get together, let bitterness pass, I'll hug your elephant, you kiss my ass!" And the crowd went crazy.

Little said he missed and adored the late President Ronald Reagan and "I wish he was here tonight, but as a matter of fact he is," and he proceeded to impersonate Reagan, saying, "You know, somebody asked me, 'Do you think the war on poverty is over?' I said, 'Yes, the poor lost.' " The crowd went wild.

I first saw this at Daily Kos, the site says it comes from David Corn and of course, here is the Washington Post link.

Some bloggers I like, but don't have on my list.

Steve Gillard, Jesus General and fafblog.

Wackos, they are out there.

Atrios posted this up at Eschaton, but I have yet to figure out how to link individual posts on his site unless they are already in the archives, so I am posting the link here. A letter to the editor in Ridgecrest, California.

This is stunning in its ignorance and underlying theme. Free speech for only god-fearing Christians.

Chen Shui-bian hits back with brass knuckles or cotton candy?

Well, there doesn't seem to be a whole lot on this yet, but I'm sure we'll have more details tomorrow. The president says that if China passes its "anti-secession" law in March, then China would have unilaterally upset the status quo, thus giving Taiwan the right to hold a referendum on an "anti-annexation" law. What that law would entail is anyone's guess, but it's nice to know that the president will stand up to China after such a provocation. Then again, it's difficult to say if this is substance or bluster. More here ...

The good news and the bad news ...

The bad news first: Taiwan has lost yet another diplomatic ally as Grenada switches its allegiance to China. Officials in Grenada said that Taiwan didn't take the realtionship very seriously. More here.

And the good news? The good news is that Taiwan has been taken off the "Special 301" list, meaning that the US is, for the nonce, convinced that Taiwan takes Intellectual Property Rights seriously. Here is the Taipei Times story.