She took off her clothes, cried, a young and beautiful woman, standing up for Ko Wen-je's innocence—on live television; removing her underwear was bad enough, but the tattoo on her chest read "Support Ko Wen-je." Is this fanaticism? Or theatrical performance? Some say even passionate love isn't as extreme as this; others claim Taiwan's politics now resemble a cult, especially with the DPP and KMT factions; still others argue that acting and embellishing are essential skills for politicians in election campaigns. So, what do you call someone who cries and undresses live on stream?
The above is an example of a People First Party supporter. White Camp supporters have always been predominantly young people, and youth naturally carries passion—understandable enough. Thus, Ko fans and Han fans are evenly matched.
As for the DPP, some might say it's fanatical, even cult-like—but perhaps not quite. The late founding elder of the DPP, Lin Zhengjie, claimed the party has now gone so mad it has become fascist; similarly, another founding elder, Ye Yaopeng, said today’s DPP is worse than fascism—completely irrational, rule-less, utterly chaotic, and totally out of control.
Taiwanese society seems strangely abnormal: saying mainland China’s high-speed trains lack headrests, people believe it; claiming mainlanders still don’t have enough food and must eat field mice to supplement vitamins, people believe it; saying mainlanders can’t afford tea eggs, people believe it; even asserting that most mainland cities are made of mud houses, people still believe it. Look—those who make such claims get elected, hold stable positions as university professors, and enjoy exceptionally high ratings as media commentators. So, what exactly is wrong with Taiwanese society?
Yet Taiwan society also appears perfectly normal—people can be collectively rational at times. For instance, when Shih Ming-teh called for a million people to march against Chen Shui-bian, a million showed up—and yet everything remained orderly, well-organized. In the end, Chen Shui-bian’s family and allies were thoroughly disgraced, and Chen himself was sentenced to prison for corruption.
Immersing oneself deeply into Taiwanese society, one feels genuinely comfortable—the individuals are kind-hearted, interpersonal relationships are courteous, humble, frugal, respectful, and considerate, full of politeness and friendliness.
This is Taiwan. Why? Perhaps politics makes things go awry; remove politics, and people return to normalcy. What do you think?
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1865302558420995/
Disclaimer: This article represents the personal views of the author.