The audacity to change

Tuesday November 4^th 2008 would obviously go down in history as one of the most significant days of world history in the 21^st Century; the beginning of a new era if you will, and the culmination of the unremitting struggles of people of color who were displaced from their native Africa and brought to the Americas to build a new nation

under the ugly legacies of slavery, segregation and institutional oppression.

Like most persons in North America and I’m sure many parts of the world, a tear came to my eye after witnessing his historic feat. It was a surreal experience to see so much joy and exuberance at your historic election victory.

But more than that, America as a nation proved to me, one of America’s fiercest critics on matters of foreign and military policy that it can, in the words of Dr Martin Luther King, overcome and strive to become an even better society based on optimism.

In the 28 years of life that God has given me on earth, there are many simple pleasures that I take for granted; like getting on a bus, visiting a restaurant, voting, or being able to attend whatever University I want to attend. The truth is, my foreparents were not privileged to have such rights since it was in the domain of the aristocracy who defined us scattered peoples of Africa as too inferior to know what it means to understand such basic human rights.

As a matter of fact, I too have personally experienced forms of racial prejudice in my life, but it can never be compared to what my ancestor’s experienced.

Having received my formal education and socialization in a predominantly black small island nation, I only became aware of how negatively my pigment is viewed by others while undertaking the first part of my University studies in the Republic of China. Many Asian people would make offensive comments upon seeing me in the college setting or on the street. Of course, what they didn’t know is that I speak mandarin and understood the ugliness of their comments in totality. That to a certain degree made me feel inferior and also angry since I was not being judged by my character but by the negative stereotypes associated with the color of my skin. There are personal experiences I can share where members of school groups bluntly refused to be in any group where the “black one” would be but it won’t be worth my energy for this post.

When I look at Obama today, I think of Rosa Parks; the fact that she sat on that bus in Montgomery so that Martin Luther King Jr would have been able to walk in segregated areas. I think of Dr King who walked so that Barack Obama can run for President and I think of Barack Obama who ran for President so that my future offspring can fly and exhaust the limits of their potential. And I reflect upon how the United States has come as a nation.

Quite frankly, I was a bit skeptical of the American voters in this election cycle since for starters, I felt as if Obama’s race would have caused him the presidency as well as the fact that the US electorate, on two occasions voted for the Texas cowboy who did nothing but ruin Americas standing abroad and of course contribute to the current economic meltdown that has affected every fabric of American, and global society. We are all acutely aware of the fact that while America boasts of having a great democracy, it’s by any means perfect. We can just look back in retrospect at how the cowboy and his band of cronies stole the 2000 elections.

In fact, after the 2004 elections, I commented to one of my Mandarin Chinese instructors then “how can so many Americans be so dum”? and as such I was worried that the same predicament would have befallen another Democratic nominee for President, let alone a man of color which such an interesting background.

But on the night of November 4^th, America gave me sufficient reason to think of them as a different nation by their historic election of Barack Obama; a President that I hope would be a genuine man of the people, a man who would be honorable in his new role and someone who would restore America’s tattered image abroad and one that would continue to work on perfecting the Union, amidst the significant economic challenges facing the US

The dynamics of this historic election cycle was different than other elections in modern time not only because of Barack Obama’s candidacy, but because of the fact that there was a height of political interest never before seen in a long time especially by the youth and I am referring here to American youth in particular. There is this tendency to think that young people have a propensity to be cynical about politics or a bit ignorant and detached on current political events. My generation, the YouTube and Facebook generation or as John Zogby, a renowned US pollster refers to us first globals, played a pivotal role in having Barack elected. His political genius in getting the youth involved is indeed amazing for a politician. That to me signals the beginning of a new era in young people’s involvement in the political process and I can only hope that what happened in the USA can catch on in other parts of the world, especially in countries where despots and dictators serve at the disgust of its oppressed citizens. YOUNG PEOPLE RISE UP!!!!

Obama did not have an easy ride on the long road to the Presidency as he had to prove himself to be a formidable candidate against the Clinton political institution in order to get the blessing of his party; but I truly admired his disciplined and calm approach to a tough primary season.

Obama admires me and has joined my list of role models that I think I can follow. He is a committed parent and husband and I do wish many absent fathers especially fathers of color would translate all that aura of inspiration and hope into responsibility as parents. On father’s day at a Chicago Church, Obama was quite succinct when he spoke to black fathers and I hope the message was heard. In a recent interview on MTV, Obama said something which I was very happy with and he was referring to the current fashion trend in young men who feel the need to wear their baggy pants at the crown of their legs with their butts on the outside. To them, it may be a fashion statement but to Obama, its offensive. Way to go Barack!!!

I personally hope on a more serious note, that Obama’s election would help in bringing an end to racial divisions and stereotypes that exists and will continue to exist in the US. The truth is, we humans are egotistical beings and would always see the need to look at another person as lower than yourself. What we need to do is to work hard on trying to become tolerant of each other’s cultures, races and customs. If we were a more tolerant and open minded world, most of the world’s conflicts would have never happened.

So now President Obama, you have won this election on a platform of change and the world awaits your era at the white house. Whatever happens at the end of your four or even eight years on Pennsylvania Avenue, you have already made history and for that I am justly proud and have reason to hope that my own personal goals can be met one disciple step at a time.

No more free lunches - Part II

In my last entry, I made a bold prediction that Taiwan's foreign policy on its allies in the developing world would see a drastic change under President Ma's stewardship. For starters, there are already indicators that Taiwan is tightening its belt, for want of a better word.
The inauguration ceremony of any new leader in Taiwan is filled with pomp and circumstance while world leaders opinion makers, public sector officials, and other delegates are hosted by the Taiwanese government all at the expense of Taipei.
However, in a recent article appearing in the China Post newspaper, the President elect has asked his aides to limit spending on his presidential inauguration ceremony and avoid waste.
To do that, Ma's aides requested that Taiwan's diplomatic allies limit the number of visiting representatives they send to attend the ceremony, while foreign dignitaries would not be put up in presidential suites. In another move to restrain costs, the accommodations for foreign guests will also be centralized at one or two hotels.
Countries that are not Taiwan's allies are also welcome to send representatives, but will have to foot the bill for their air fares. Taiwan will handle their expenses after arriving in the country.
Already, the Ministry of Foreign affairs in Taiwan expressed concern that China would be using the election results as a springboard on which to convince Taiwan's remaining allies to switch their recognition. Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement soon after two referendums on Taiwan's pursuit of U.N. membership quest failed to reach the required 50 percent threshold as the turnout rates for both referendums fell below 36 percent.
The ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)-initiated referendum supported joining the world body using the name Taiwan, while the Kuomintang (KMT)-initiated version backed readmission to the U.N. using the country's official title, "Republic of China," "Taiwan," or any other dignified title.
The ministry said in the press release that it has explained the failure to Taiwan's diplomatic allies to prevent a false interpretation of the failed referendums.
However, it is not clear how the new president would handle his foreign policy. Apart from his eagerness to
What is clear however is that with a more amicable relationship between Taiwan and China, with both sides making generous overtures to each other, Taiwan may be looking more inwards to get its economy back on a robust footing and to expand trade ties with the mainland, which is already prospering.
With that in mind, Taiwan would be in order to know where its priority lies. Continue to play hide and go seek with China over its remaining allies, or reengage China on solid principles of economic engagement that would see a new wave of political and economic stability between Taiwan and its neighbor
It is still not clear what China's attitude to the new Government in Taipei would be. Bear in mind that China’s growing missile capabilities will be its most important means of exerting military leverage over Taiwan. China currently has 300-350 short- and medium-range missiles deployed opposite Taiwan in Fujian province. The PRC force of DF-11, DF-15, and DF-15A missiles is increasing by about 50 missiles per year according to a 2002 Republic of China (Taiwan) National defense report.
Additionally, there has been concern in Taiwan in the recent presidential election cycle that Taiwan may become the second Tibet, which seem to justify President Chen's party's assertion that China's human rights record and lack of respect for democratic principles would be non negotiable for the Chinese in any future negotiations with Taiwan. The Chinese believe that Taiwan is a part of China and their expectation is that the island would be reunified with the motherland under the principle of one country, two systems, as is applied in Hong Kong and Macau.
Moreover, the President elect is eager to strengthen its bilateral relationship with Washington, which while it does not recognize Taiwan diplomatically, sees Taiwan as a strategic economic entity in the Asia Pacific region. It is bound by the Taiwan relations act to defend Taiwan in case its unable to do so for itself in any conflict with China.
Ma announced his intention to visit Washington, before his May 20 inauguration, two days after winning a landslide victory for the Kuomintang party in presidential polls.The request poses a dilemma to the United States as it risks irritating Beijing. It is still not clear what is the status of his request.
On Taiwan's relationship with its remaining diplomatic allies in the Caribbean, Africa and Latin America, it is still unclear what policy changes, if any would be made by his administration. We have some indication that the spending spree on political maneuvering might be coming to an end. For example, political parties in the Caribbean who tend to think that relying on one of the China's for political handouts in an election season in exchange for diplomatic loyalties can think again.
It is my own personal belief that Taiwan's future engagement with the region would be based on principled practices. No more of the St Lucia scenario or any of the other back door deals that tend to intrigue local Caribbean politicians.
Also, the Taiwanese people tend to think that their priorities need to be focused elsewhere; on their economy. They already expressed a disinterest in joining the UN under the name Taiwan in the referendum and they are expected to look inwardly to a future that is promising to be optimistic under a charismatic, well loved President who is expected to carry the hopes of 23 million people for the next four, maybe eight years.

No more free lunches - Part I

Taiwan's rockstar Nationalist party flagbearer Ma Ying Jieu successfully placed presidential power back in the hands of his party after eight colorful years of a Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) stewardship of Taiwan.
The DPP was the first political party in 2000 to win a democratic election as an opposition party, creating a historic peaceful transfer of executive power, much to the dismay of the Chinese Communist party, whose unflattering rhetoric and threatening language characterized the estranged political relationship between the two sides of the strait at least up until 2005 when the Nationalist party's leader Lien Zhan made a historic visit to Mainland China dining with long time adversaries in the Communist party, which is still technically at war with Taiwan.
Outgoing President Chen was never afraid to use pro independence rhetoric and point his finger at China over their aggressive attitude towards Taiwan. His unapologetic language which mostly appealed to local Taiwanese served as a point of ethnic and political division in Taiwan among its people.
President Chen Shui Bian's presidential stewardship of Taiwan was never devoid of missteps, mishaps, public discontent and near instability in some cases, on issues many Taiwanese would be more than happy to forget.
From his idle threats to declare Taiwan independence, to allegations of corruption surrounding his first family, to overseeing an economy (which is one of Asia's most powerful) that went from from one of Asia's most prosperous, to one of Asia's most struggling.
In the March 2008 Taiwan journal, the Council for Economic planning and development did not disguise its concern over the state of the economy. Taiwan's economy in September fell into the "slowdown" category of the government's economic performance chart for the first time since December 1993.
In September 2007, the island's economy was rated at 20 points on the composite index compiled monthly by the Council for Economic Planning and Development. The figure, three points lower than August's rating, put the economy in the color-coded chart's yellow-blue zone, an area representative of an economic slowdown
For the 21 months prior to September, Taiwan's economy was rated either in the chart's green zone for stable growth or in higher zones representative of robust growth.
The council attributed the step backward in September to scandals that unsettled Taiwan's financial sector, slightly slower activity in the island's manufacturing and exporting sectors, and uncertainties created by mainland China's recent war games.
Chen and his DPP would go down in history as probably one of the most controversial in the history of the relatively new Taiwanese democracy. While there is a litany of issues that can be addressed here, I would want to focus on Taiwan's efforts at diplomacy during that period.
On the diplomatic front, while the DPP's foreign policy followed the established convention of the previous government, it was not devoid of insurmountable challenges in which Taiwan found itself on the offensive against Beijing's overtures to countries in the third and developing worlds which recognized Taiwan over Beijing in exchange for generous aid packages, scholarships and other tangible benefits.
In the last eight years of DPP's rule, Taiwan lost nine countries who switched recognition to China which includes three in the Caribbean, (Grenada, Dominica, and St Lucia) Latin America, the rest in Africa and one nation in Eastern Europe (Macedonia). Only recently, did St Lucia resume diplomatic relations with Taiwan under controversial circumstances at best.
In any event, a commitment on support for Taiwan independence and International recognition has always been the cornerstone of Taiwan's relationship with its diplomatic allies. It seem to many as a fairly reasonable reciprocal arrangement; a voice for Taiwan in exchange for very generous aid offers. With China's increasing economic and political influence in Africa and other developing regions of the world, it would a very interesting period in Taiwan/China diplomatic dance with the rest of the world as they seek to charm one over the other.
The irony in all of this is that while Taiwan was playing Russian roulette with its Chinese neighbor, the economic relationship between the both countries increased 100 fold under the Presidency of Chen. It was under his presidency that for the first time since 1947, direct flights from cities in Taiwan and China were allowed under a deal brokered by Lien Zhan and his Chinese counterpart during his historic visit.
Taiwanese businesses and investment on the mainland have increased significantly under President Chen's stewardship who ironically also supports the liberalization of trade and other restrictions between the "two china's.
Now that the Nationalist party have regained executive and legislative power, it has the blessings of 58% of the Taiwanese people to propagate more progressive economic reforms and at the same time, engaging in a more pragmatic and moderate relationship with Mainland China, who have also welcomed the election of a new President.
The moderate Ma (whose name is translated into English as horse) has committed to not declaring formal independence for Taiwan during his presidency.
He has said he aims to increase commerce with the mainland by easing investment restrictions, introducing regular air service to Shanghai and Beijing, and—later—negotiating a peace accord.
Writing in the winter 2007-08 Washington Quarterly, China scholars Chu Yun-han and Andrew Nathan say that "Ma would endorse the one-China principle, the idea that there is only one China of which Taiwan is a part, as long as Beijing and Taipei can each interpret this principle in its own way.
In my next entry, I would attempt to provide my own predictions on how Taiwan's foreign policy especially on the tabooed checkbook diplomacy with diplomatic allies would be shaped under President Ma who has already suggested that money from the piggy bank would not be flowing as freely as before. Some food for thought.

1. Taipei, Taiwan


2. London, England


3. Montego Bay, Jamaica


4. Caracas, Venezuela

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DIPLOMATIC DANCE

The recent announcement by St Lucia to re establish diplomatic ties with the Republic of China on Taiwan underscores the Caribbean region’s inability to fully comprehend the true extent of the relationship between Taiwan and China and an indifference to develop a practical foreign policy on matters relating to the “two China’s”.

The competition for diplomatic recognition in third world states by the two China’s is indeed a false reflection of the true nature of the relationship between Taiwan and China and it is rather unfortunate that we continue to be blinded by Aid and electioneering diplomacy in our negotiations with Taiwan and China, rather than seeing what other potentially tangible benefits in areas of trade and cultural exchanges we can obtain from them, and the role we can play in shaping the new geopolitical construct of the world by creating reciprocity.

HISTORY

What then is the reality of the historical “conflict” between Taiwan and China? It is simply a war between two rival political parties (The Chinese Nationalist Party and the Chinese Communist Party) for the control of Mainland China. The Chinese communist party succeeded in defeating the Nationalists and as a result was forced into settling on Taiwan thus continuing the Republic of China which is the oldest surviving Republic in East Asia, established in 1912 and replacing the 2000 year Qing Dynasty rule. In Taiwan, the Nationalists were always in a state of war readiness to retake the mainland from the Communists; the Communists doing likewise on the mainland.

Most countries recognized the legitimacy of the Republic of China on Taiwan over the Chinese Communist party until it was in the interest of Western block countries to begin recognition of the Communist People’s Republic of China.

Whereas most countries switched diplomatic recognition to Mainland China, the same countries maintain trade and cultural offices in Taiwan (de facto embassies), Taiwan also has (de facto) embassies in most countries that officially recognize the Government in Beijing. There is trade between Taiwan and most developing and first world countries of the world and there are many trade agreements between Taiwan and those same countries of which significant bilateral benefits are derived.

WORLD ECONOMIC POWER

The United States while it does not recognize Taipei is probably one of Taiwan’s best allies in Asia. The electronics sector is Taiwan's most important industrial export sector and is the largest recipient of U.S. investment. Taiwan, which is pressured in the Caribbean not to do business with us in lieu of China was allowed by the Peoples Republic of China to become a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) as "Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu" in January 2002. In addition to the WTO, Taiwan is a member of the Asian Development Bank as "Taipei, China" and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum as "Chinese Taipei". These developments reflect Taiwan's economic importance and its desire to become further integrated into the global economy.

American influence is probably greatest in Taiwan and there is a sense of American consciousness among the Taiwanese populace probably found no where else in Asia. In fact, the US has obligated to defend Taiwan should there be a war between the two China’s. So the fact is that Taiwan is a very dynamic capitalist economy with foreign trade being the engine of Taiwan’s phenomenal rise as the world’s 16^th largest economy over the last 40 years

FOREGIN POLICY

It is quite ironic therefore, that while the two China’s ask our countries for our unwavering pledge of diplomatic recognition, attached with closed ended conditions, it is an established fact that in most countries, there are Taiwanese Economic and Trade Offices along with a Mainland Chinese Embassy doing business. The fact is, when either of the Chinas negotiates with the Caribbean on such matters, they do so from a position of strength and the very ambiguous, irrelevant and outdated matter of the One China policy.

It is my view that our region continues to take a superficial look at the relationship between Taiwan and China and there is the general impression in most of our Caribbean states that the two countries are at war with each other. Technically, they are still at war, but they do talk to each other and they adopt a very practical approach on trade and investment matters.

CHINA/TAIWAN TRADE

There is no doubt on the minds of many academics and scholars who have studied the Taiwan/China issue that the cross strait tensions that have existed since the end of the war has gradually decreased especially since both the Chinese Communist Party and the Nationalist Party in Taipei have begin to speak and do business with each other.

It was only in the year 2005 that the Honorary Chairman of the KMT, Lien Chan made a landmark visit to the Peoples Republic of China meeting with his Communist Party counterpart and other high officials. This meeting was the springboard for other trade and economic forums between both parties and an avenue through which businesses in Taiwan can begin to do business in China thus taking advantage of the economic expansion. The free trade area between Taiwan and China is soon to be established, direct flights between Taiwan and China have opened up in 2005 and business ties between the two sides of the strait could not have been better.

OUTDATED ONE CHINA POLICY

The historic divisions that have arisen out of the war between China in Taiwan in 1949 are no longer points of discussion in Taiwan and in China among Taiwanese business interests on the mainland. Whereas China have passed the anti secession law in the year 2005 declaring war on Taiwan if were to declare Independence, and whereas China sees it self as the legitimate representative of all the Chinese people, one cannot use these historic points in defining either side of the strait as “One China”. For argument sake, it can be said that Taiwan is probably more Chinese than mainland China since many of the ancient Confucian Chinese values along with the traditional Chinese writing system was brought to Taiwan at the end of the civil war. The National Palace Museum in Taipei is filled with artifacts taken from the mainland. Families also maintain their sense of strong Chinese identity in Taiwan Chairman.

Mao Tse Dong of the Chinese Communist Party on the other hand forcefully instituted his own reign of revolutionary terror called the Cultural Revolution in which he sought to get rid of all evidence of traditional Chinese values replacing them with Marxist Leninist political values. Even the Chinese Nationalist Party advocates maintaining the status quo of not declaring Independence for Taiwan because there is an implicit understanding by the political forces at play in Taiwan that it will be eventually reunited with Mainland China.

Taiwanese who support the Chinese Nationalist party also share that belief and by maintaining a peaceful status quo, a favorable business and economic environment can exist for the benefit of Taiwan and for the economic competitiveness that it is known for in the Asian region as one of the most powerful economies in that region. The fact is that Chinese are practical people and they are more concerned with their personal and economic advancement, business opportunities and economic expansion rather than which country would recognize then at the United Nations. The same can be said of Chinese on Mainland China. The difference is that Communism breeds a heavy feeling of efficacy and nationalism, a value that has been deeply entrenched in Chinese culture for over 5,000 years even before the fall of the Qing dynasty and the rise of the Nationalists and Communists.

Why therefore should the Caribbean region negotiate with Taiwan and China on the premise of the one China policy, as opposed to looking at what is in the best economic interest of the Caribbean in areas of trade and cultural exchange with the people of China and Taiwan? Trade which would also involve access to the expanding Chinese economy, resources for human development and the possibilities for future potential economic exchanges in areas of energy and natural resources?

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

In conclusion, it would be more than productive if visits by our leaders and technocrats to Asia from time to time translate into tangible results except for the photo-ops and other pleasantries associated with such state visits.

It would be nice if we can develop a constructive and practical policy on Taiwan, while at the same time maintaining diplomatic recognition in Beijing. Are we in the Caribbean only limited to being import oriented and tourism based economies? How can we as a Caribbean space become a significant player on the global stage by developing strategic trade alliances with powerful Asian economies? It would be instructive for us to look at Japan, an island almost the same size as Cuba which was virtually destroyed after the Hiroshima tragedy, an island with no natural resources except marine resources, but an island which effectively harnessed and utilized its human resource capacity to become one of the world’s most powerful economies.

It would therefore be instructive that countries who maintain diplomatic relations with either Taiwan or China at this time and who have embassies in the respective capitals to look into the possibility of establishing Trade and Cultural offices to augment the work of Diplomatic offices. Why can’t there be a CARICOM trade office in Taipei or in Beijing? How can we use our cultural resources to tap into in the Chinese market which would be translated into real and tangible benefits for our economies? Have we done a comprehensive study of the Chinese/Taiwanese economies to see what models can be applied to our current economic framework? All of these issues and more would greatly help our Caribbean leaders in determining what policy would be best on matters relating to the illusive Two China’s.

Bathing with the People

I have returned to Taipei after a week in South Taiwan. I will post some pics of my time in an aborigonal village so idylic that you'd think you were not living in Taiwan.
Unfortunately, the village is filled with senior citizens and children since most of the young people between ages 18-45 have left, seeking better economic fortunes in other parts of Taiwan.
The occassion in South Taiwan was actually a Mysteryland concert that brought together amateur and professional bands from around Taiwan.
I was a bit disappointed that there were few Taiwanese bands, especially abroigonal bands, considering the fact that we were in an aborigonal village.
Nevertheless, I took the opportunity to see what cultural lessons I could have learnt from members of that community.
I do not have time to go into it now but promise to do so next time.

Travelling

It is not very often that I get the chance to escape the relative modernity of North Taiwan to experience whats in store on the rest of the island. For the next few days, I will be heading to Hualien County as well as Pingtong County to see the beauty of Taiwan and its other natural wonders.

Will relate my experiences when I return. Happy Chinese New year, the year of the pig

I love your popular culture but it does not mean I respect you and your race.........

I am taken aback at how much hip-hop and rap has become deeply entrentched in the new cultural facade of Taiwan and how much the youthful population as well as powerful business interests have adopted this culture as if it were their own; the irony is that Taiwanese and most Asian socities engage in deep-seated ethnocentric conduct, excluding westerners as part of their social construct, except of course if you are white.
The modern, and bustling Taipei underground subway streets comes alive with millions of commuters everyday who use the system to get from point A to point B. But within recent years, the dark corrners of the long walkways now a deserted part of the MRT system has become home to large graffitti murals spray-painted onto the walls by the new generation of Taiwanese youth eager to duplicate their impressions of American urban culture as seen on TV. If you were dead in New York and regained consciousnes in the Taipei underground, you would never know you are out of New York City.
On my way home from work recently, I was distracted with the distant sound of contemporary hip hop jams coming from the above-mentioned area, this was followed with fainted echoes of chirping foot movements and upon a close look, I discovered that many high-schoolers were replicating the street dances that have been one of the defining hallmarks of black american hip hop. The kids were not lackluster or amateur in their dance moves; it was well-coreographed and executed with mechanical efficiency. They studied black american culture well or so it seems. I was not minded to strike a conversation with the eager youthfuls on their motivation because one would expect the same response`; .`Oh well, its fun`
There is a far deeper significance to their understanding, or lack thereof of black american hiphop culture. For starters, if you ask the average Taiwanese or Asian kid the meaning of hop hop, the answer will be unsatisfactory, since there is no understanding or appreciation of the roots of hip hop, which was born as a counter culture in an American society where the political and economic system kept the black minority in a vicious circle of poverty and opression for any decades.
The real significance lies in Taiwan`s ability to effectively copy the superficial aspects of hip-hop culture and convert it into a million dollar industy.
Firstly, they have copied the musical genre and recently, there has been a emergence of local Taiwanese hip hop stars who have carved their own niches and they expect to keep it that way for a long time. Additionally, no longer will you find black DJ`s or MC`s in clubs in Taiwan. That is fast becoming the domain of local hopefuls as well, who posess the financial backing of the wealthy night-club elite.
Secondly, hip-hop fashion is a bilion dollar industry in Asia. Its always funny to see a Taiwanese guy or girl in the bling at a night club and well, they literally ignore you as a black man if you try to strike a conversation because they seem to have the wrong impression of black people, especially men.
Thirdly, it is never an uncommon site to see scantily dressed Asian chicks adopting the role of the hip-hop dancers as seen in the American night clubs and BET videos. The dance aspect of hip hop have also been copied and in any given night, a group of professional dancers at a club in Taipei can make a much as US$400 just to play that role.
The biggest irony is this; I have seen many black Americans in Taipei (no offence to black americans) who have been relegated to the role of playing second fiddle-an outsider, an outcast it seems when in fact they should be the real ambassadors for their culture in Asia.
I think it is especially damming considering the fact that this society has an unwritten anti-black racist policy.
The biggest loss is however to the culture of hip hop itself. Like many other forms of music and entertainment, it appears that it looses its aesthetic value when money gets into the equation.
Personally, I think the same has happened to hip hop. What has began as a conscious anti-establishment movement and cultural concept has evolved into a bling bling, women-bashing, (in many cases), gang glorifying, profanity centred work of art.
From all appearances, artistes are prepared to sell their rights and originality for the price of a one time contract, giving their producers the right to become millionaires and in the process sustain the capitalist construct of western societies which exploits talent in the name of the dollar.
I would conclude this entry by making a very simple suggestion; that the new generation of artistes retake ownership of hip from the multinational capitalists and return it to the hands of the people with talent and genuine love for this art-form.

Back Online

It has been literally quarter of a year since I have not updated this blog. Unfortunately, I underestimated how safe, or rather how unsafe Taiwan was and in the process lost my laptop compliments some unscrupulous thieves who broke into my previous apartment in Taipei County.
It is also apparent that I am still in Taiwan, let alone Asia when in fact I made repeated promises of making a departure at the begining of 2007; notwhistanding the fact that I have applied to American Colleges and have been accepted.
The problem is that for poor students like myself without a passport of any significance, obtaining a student Visa as well as the financial resources to attend an American University can be a major issue.
I do tend to agree that anyone can live the "American dream", but I am always tempted to ask myself what cost is actually attatched to such a life, especially after College where you are most certainly placed in a precarious financial position, repaying the Banks student loans at high interest rates; in most cases not even repaying the capital amount on the loan after a number of years.
There are always exceptions to the rule and there is the affluent middle and upper class families who can invariably manage such financial issues for their kids.
It is therefore no wonder why many Americans are saddled with the curse of credit card debt for such a long time and why the banking system will always be profitable.
A lot has happened since my lack of a computer but will be willing to share with you everything at another time.
Chinese New year is upon us and it is ironic that Christmas (A Western Festival) recieves a higher profile in Taiwan, reinforcing my conviction that Taiwan has either lost its identity or seeking to find a new identity.
See y'all soon.