Ok but they’re so cute it’s amazing

sigh

Do you have the memory of a goldfish? Status quo under the previous KMT administration was very healthy. No talks of invasion, lots of talk about economic ties and cultural exchange. It was great, actually. Xi and Ma met, which was the first meeting between leaders since the start of the civil war. Ma is a true statesman and a symbol of what proper Taiwanese governance should be. Peace across the strait was possible for once.

Then, the DPP got elected, started sucking America’s cock, started inviting top US officials for state visits, received awards from American state-funded institutions (like the National Endowment for Democracy), increasingly remilitarized, invited the US to sail through the Taiwan Strait… And the rest is history. Odd how it’s always the US-backed government that’s the “victim” in Western media, isn’t it? Surely China violated the status quo with respect to crossing the median line on their own accord, not because just a few weeks ago a US warship was invited to sail through the strait? Do you even remember what the status quo was?

Taiwan claims territory that conflicts not only with China, but with: Mongolia, Myanmar, Bhutan, India, Japan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Russia, Pakistan, and also Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, and Indonesia. Recognizing Taiwanese sovereignty violates the sovereignty of not only China, but also all of those countries… Which is absurd. Cut the crap and look at a map. ROC sovereignty would basically wipe Mongolia off the map. The funny thing is that Taiwan recognizing the sovereignty of the territory that conflicts with all of these other nations would have no bearing or impact on their sovereignty claim with China itself… Taiwan simply refuses to do so. The only claim that Taiwan cannot make freely is one that shrinks the borders of modern China (e.g. in the Arunachal Pradesh area and the South China Sea), but for everything else they have complete legislative authority to recognize foreign claims (after all, China has already done so, so doing so would not violate One China policy). They won’t, of course, because they refuse to recognize China’s negotiations in those territories as valid.

The KMT supports normalization of relations with China. China was perfectly happy with the status quo until the DPP systematically stomped on the status quo and tore it apart

Do you see the shit going on in the Yuan? The DPP is corrupt and sabotaging Taiwan’s economic growth for no good reason.

Young people want money. A nice house, good food, travel. It’s not that complicated.

Taiwan’s current government is incredibly pro-US. Trump understands that the DPP’s days are numbered given the rise of the KMT/TPP (which only lost the election because of a last second collapse of coalition). Taiwan’s government is pro-US in spite of the public’s interest, not because of it.

After all, Taiwan’s trade with the mainland and Hong Kong make up almost 50% of all exports. The bulk of this is in basic goods across the Taiwanese economy, not the product of one company.

In the past, Taiwan’s frigid relations with the mainland were due to sour memories (losing the civil war, getting kicked out, etc.) Today? Young people just want a prosperous life, and China is absurdly prosperous - especially for young engineers in tech. The US can either recognize that fact, or drag another country into war.

It’s pretty funny when foreigners care more about your own sovereignty.

Does it sound like a suppressed .22 to anyone else?

The entire principle of authoritarianism is either public support or public apathy. An authoritarian regime is only as stable as its populace.

A government that butchers its people against the will of the populace cannot survive even if it is democratic. A government that butchers people with the will of the populace will survive regardless of whether or not it’s authoritarian.

See: Israel, America, Canada, Australia, UK

There’s no fundamental difference between a democratic and authoritarian government in this regard. The primary difference is (and has always been) whether property is managed as a function of the state (monarchies, socialism) or as a function of the individual (democracies, anarchy).

Well, that and the “people” that get killed in democracies are usually of a different skin colour than you, so maybe you just don’t care?

The fact that Moscow Metro is up there despite Moscow being so fucking cold is wild

The collapse of the modern Italian state as we know it lmao

BBC is on a roll today

Oxford PV set up a 100MW plant back in 2021… But that was with efficiency barely better than traditional mono (23-26.81% for mono vs. 28.6% for perovskite).

The value proposition was never there before, but it might be now…

I mean… These terms exceed what Douyin does in China. It’s actually an insane level of concessions.

Every day the US pushes us closer to nuclear war.

In case anyone was wondering why China is rapidly building up their nuclear weapons stockpile, this is why. The US cannot stop their Cold War-era antics. They must always be superior. They must always be able to get the first say and the final say.

China’s nuclear doctrine is very clear: don’t launch nukes at them and they won’t respond with nukes, but if you do then nothing is held back. No first use, just like India.

NATO’s policy of allowing for first use stems from fears of being conventionally outgunned by the Soviets and now the Chinese. If anything, this should tell you where China’s military capabilities lie.

This is even more extreme than Douyin’s arrangement with the Chinese government lmao

It’s so funny

It’s an overt publication from the Chinese government. What reason do they have to lie? That would harm the credibility of the Chinese government, which is something that’s pretty strong in the Global South.

China obviously has something to gain, but it’s also obvious that they have more to gain from being honest in an overt publication like this than they do from being dishonest.

East Asian politics is played on centimeters, not miles.

A nudge a few centimeters in any given direction has the same effect as a North American leader completely flopping to a different position, because it indicates a fundamental issue: what direction is this guy taking me?

The right to resistance does not make occupation illegal. China is simply saying that Ukraine should be allowed to fight back just as Palestine should be allowed to fight back.

This is… Not evidence of coordination, but of network effects. The same reason that hockey fans descending into a riot after losing Game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals is not an indication that they organized a riot.

If anyone wondered what would have happened in the US if the US had a wave of protests similar to Hong Kong… This is what would have happened. In fact, this protest seems better organized, more structured, and a little awe inspiring to be honest

Now the question is if the students can organize en masse and march on the capital to occupy the Capitol.