Even more grafitti

Still in the dark about the KMT win?

Don't worry. You're not alone. I guess a lot of foreigners in Taiwan are too (as indicated by some of the Taiwan political blog comments I have recently read). What you can't understand is why Taiwanese would choose a party that seemingly doesn't support independence. The reason is simple: although we may have our own Western democratic sympathies, we still do not understand what really drives the Taiwanese to vote the way they do.

I have long wanted to blog about why foreigners' political sympathies seem to naturally lean towards the DPP (my informal poll in the image below would seem to back this up). Here's my take on the situation.

Let's face it. By and large, the foreign contingent in Taiwan are newbies, with varying levels of Chinese understanding as well as various levels of culture shock. I can tell you from my over 10 years living here that I wish I knew stuff when I arrived that I know now. And I have seen and heard remarkably uninformed positions about how Taiwanese should know this or that or should do this or that. What's missing is visitors to Taiwan reading a lot of situations correctly, something that not even I will boast that I can do with 100% accuracy.

Furthermore, we are mostly a China bashing lot, mainly since we do not see China as necessarily important to our well-being. There's not much to like about China, is there, with their dismal human rights record. Taiwanese and China, however, are linked in a political and economic love-hate relationship which cannot be denied. As a Canadian living next to the giant United States, that would be like denying that America has no effect on Canada.

So, coming from countries with backgrounds of independence movements and an emphasis on freedom, we tend to equate independence with our freedom. However, is this the case in Taiwan? For all extents and purposes Taiwan operates as independent even though the UN does not recognize her as such. Secondly, I'm not so sure that Taiwanese equate their freedom with independence. I have found that there is more of a connection between freedom and economic mobility in the Taiwanese mind.

As a foreigner living here in Taiwan, I love the freedom and the independence that my country offers and would not understand why Taiwanese in their right minds wouldn't either. But I'm really just imposing what I would want on the way Taiwanese think. Maybe they already feel they have these things.

There is also the matter of the losing party itself. Over the past few years, the DPP could be considered to be somewhat of a party of idealists. They are 'cause' fighters. The people who support the DPP strongly are independence activists to the core.

The DPP's Frank Hsieh's 2008 Campaign Platform was called "The Pursuit of Happiness in Taiwan" and is a reflection of the happy, happy, joy, joy attitude the party has taken when faced with a serious economic situation. The rejected drive to enter the UN under the name Taiwan is largely this kind of "'heart's in the right spot" policy which didn't really have a realistic chance to pass considering that people are currently preoccupied with making ends meet.

They have also tried a rectification campaign by using the name Taiwan on passports and in government offices which has resulted in alienating a lot of people. They have even gone after national monuments such as CKS Hall and changed the name of Taiwan's main airport from CKS to Taoyuan International. They would like to reverse historical wrongs which is often no easy job (look at the fruitless efforts in Burma or Tibet) by using symbols and school textbooks. These kinds of changes truly come from the bottom and are better not imposed from the top by governments. Lots of observers say that Taiwanese are brainwashed by the past but I disagree. What we think is brainwashed is just the Taiwanese saying they need more time to come around and be convinced (being fairly conservative in the first place).

The past 8 years plus have been years of introspective while the world outside has been globalizing at a furious pace. Taiwanese are obviously fed up with being isolated and impeded by silly protectionist restrictions (a mutual fund I own was discontinued because it didn't meet the correct content restrictions, that is, no China content). Not only this but relations with with once friendly countries have been sullied by dirty remarks (I recall "snot" and "China's got them by the balls" being used in diplomacy).

The DPP has also screwed up their chances by not setting a good example, which would have been a good idea on a first outing in power. First, they have been the pots calling the kettle black. They have proven themselves as corrupt as the KMT in Taiwanese eyes. I will not deny that both parties have corruption issues. However, President Chen has been disgraced by his family's embroilment in corruption which doesn't help the party image.

Added to this, there is a strong streak of playing one part of society off against another, turning friends into enemies, even within families. It was very evident last election with staff being divided into camps, not talking to each other and being suspicious of other's intent. This is the Taiwanese first policies that are directly squarely at people who supposedly do not love Taiwan or consider themselves Taiwanese (read Mainlanders). At times, this really felt like the DPP was getting their revenge after all those years. I think of CKS Hall with the mockery of the monument and efforts by some to bring the sins of the father upon the son (going after the Chiang family).

I find this ethnocentrism personally distasteful. In fact, when looking at history, this is what we might expect from the KMT. It is ironic to see the current KMT doing a better job at championing unity of all the people in Taiwan. If Taiwan is to stand a chance against China then people need to unify, not to divided and labeled and even sometimes demonized.

Overall, my point is this: Taiwanese march to a different drum than we do. What is important to us foreigners is not always as important to them. And though I might make the strong connection between things like achieving independence and earning freedom in our own minds, we should not just assume that these things are necessarily connected for or as important to Taiwanese. And that is why Taiwanese seem to consistently defy our political expectations.

Questions raised by this election...

Watching the coverage for the election, a few questions come to mind...

1) How many Taiwanese hold foreign passports and also have citizenship in Taiwan?

Technically this is illegal since Taiwanese and citizens of countries such as America are not allowed to hold more than one passport.

In reality, authorities seem to loook the other way about this but it does sometimes ignite political trouble if officials and their families do this. It becomes a question of loyalty. But let's be honest, people of all colors do this.

And why do they do it? Well, there's an expression in Chinese: "A cunning rabbit has three (burrow) holes." That is to say, make sure you have a few escape options should something happen.

In the end, it's kind of a game deciding which passport to use upon entry into Taiwan. Boys have to be particularly careful what they do in order to avoid being enlisted in the military.

2) How many people will give up their votes because they will not return to the place of their household registration?

Taiwanese, according to the law, cannot vote by proxy, that is, distance vote from places other than the place they are registered. The impact of this is a mass pre-election movement of people back to their original homes.

The north of Taiwan has a distinct political advantage due to this since many people gravitate to cities like Taipei in order to get jobs or to live. As the northerners most likely stay put, they are more likely to vote. These days the north is predominantly Blue (KMT).

The southerners have two choices: return home or stay put. If they stay put (to save the time or money or both returning), they lose their vote. If this happens in large numbers, it could have an impact on the election.

Who loves Taiwan more? VS. It's the economy stupid!

Who loves Taiwan more? It's really a ridiculous rhetorical question, isn't it? And it may not even get a definite answer when Taiwan votes tomorrow. And I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that I believe Blue is going to win. However, it is far from certain that Blue can deliver.

Some really solid Greens that I know are having second thoughts about voting Green again. I think this is representative of Taiwan in general. People are fed up with the political manoeuvering and are looking for some action on the economic front.

And there is a distinct difference in the election strategies of the two parties. Greens are still in their big love-in with rainbows and peace-niks (while at the same time demanding more defence spending). They are the party of dreamers and idealists. They covet a seat in the UN using the name of Taiwan. Dream on! Their leader, Hsieh, has suggested to postpone the election in order have a sit-in for Tibet. Hey DPP, the 60s called. They want you to return your tie-dies!

The KMT or the Blues have very correctly read the situation. Taiwanese are feeling the economic pinch. They are arguing to get the economic house in order. Everything else comes second. The business of Taiwan is business! That's what made Taiwan great! That's what made Taiwanese rich! Taiwan has languished as its Asian neighbors have surpassed, especially Korea. It's a realistic and pragmatic approach and I believe Taiwanese are listening. They may just place their hope in the KMT to restore the good old days. What remains to be known is if the KMT can deliver the goods.

So, this election, Taiwanese will vote with their pocketbooks and not their minds. Will Tibet influence the election? Well that's what Western thinking would argue, isn't it? The truth is that Taiwanese are less international in outlook than the average Westerner. Taiwanese, in the end, are very Taiwan-centric. The economic question will overrule any other political concerns they may have for the time being. And that will be a refreshing change!

Another badly thought out Taiwan Beer campaign

Combining COSPLAYers with Taiwan Beer. Frankly, it seems like a strange match but I assume Taiwan Beer is trying to cash in on that ever-elusive teen and pre-teen beer market.

Maybe better luck outside of Taipei, which tends to be on the dry/tame side when it comes to alcohol drenched fun among the high and university aged crowds...

Open some of the alternatives here. So cute! So lovely! So strange!

http://www.f-2.com.tw/?page_id=322

Hey, I'm not a prude and I have been known to have given my nieces and our cats a sip of the good stuff once and a while but, c'mon, alcohol and little kids don't mix.

Remember Deuce Bigalow 2???

French man:
"And then what is next?
Take wine away from my children?
I put out this cigarette.
God bless America."

Propaganda time!

Looking closer at this already notable poster...

















... you can see the various uses of dog shit, that is 'the dog-shit' and 'dog shits', ...

















... brought to you by your friendly neighborhood ... GOVERNMENT PROPAGANDA!!! (click on the pic for an up close look!)

At the 2008 Lantern Festival

It's good to know that someone finally acknowledges the creativity unleashed by the perfect teaming of high school teens and refreshing Taiwan Beer.

I wonder if there were freebees for the creators while on the job...

From the looks of the result, they should have stayed off the juice! They even threw an empty into the work!

For more click here

Taiwanorama

Smile for the camera!

Oh look there's a new moon!
(Click to see its full glory!)

Edison Chen is an idiot...

...but then so are most of his flings as well.

And of course we love Canadian-born Edison (his actual name is Edison Chen Kwoon-Hei, 陳冠希 or 陈冠希) for reminding us that the Chinese stars are just as 'naughty' as anything Hollywood side.

It's Asia's latest sex scandal (since the huge Chu MeiFeng scandal) and if you live in Asia and haven't heard about it then you must be some sort of hermit living atop a mountain!

What is different this time is the scope (several Canto stars and models) and the people it deals with, that is Hong Kong's (now seemingly incestuous) group of pop idols. Even the great Jackie Chan has been tinged by the scandal.

Check out the unraveling story here in pictures...
hollywood grind

Wiki has also started up a page...
wiki

And here's a great and thorough commentary...
imagethief

What will happen to the stars' careers? Who is the mysterious KIRA blackmailing the stars with more pictures? Do any of the stars pay his demands? We'll see as this unfolds.

By the way, Chu MeiFeng (mentioned above), a politician by trade, tried to start a singing career after her scandal. Maybe these stars will try to start a political careers. Now that would be real news!

Meanwhile what are we to do? Snowfall in parts of China and with rainfall and cold in Northern Taiwan. Stuck at home with nothing better to do than to get immersed in the news of this scandal.

The moral of the story is make sure you don't have any 'questionable' material on your hard drive when you bring your computer in for repairs. You never know how scrupulous those repair guys are.

Dragon dance enters a Catholic church. What the #$&% ???

Saw some strange stuff in Pingdong this time on our trip south for the new year period.



Some dragon dancers walked straight into a Catholic church. I guess they didn't know that churches are usually calm and peaceful places of contemplation. Indeed, I can confirm that there were at least three or four people in the church spending some quiet time with their deity.

Another thing that struck me about this Catholic church were the lights outside. Not your typical Jesus salute but instead a full tribute to Santa!

My wife picked this out immediately as I had mentioned that in churches the focus was more on Jesus and little or nothing about Santa these days as he has become somewhat of a secular icon used to sell things.

Not so, it seems... but maybe he was selling something: religion. My guess is that Jesus lacked the cuteness factor that catches the eyes of Taiwanese. Santa fit the bill instead.

Mud volcano lit up!

The Asian Riff

Here's a little something that I found of interest. Have you ever listened to Turning Japanese by the Vapours? There is a little riff that is the hook of the song that sounds Asian. Well it happens to be called the Asian Riff. But that's where its 'Asianess' of it ends.

After doing a little hunting for what it was called, I learned that, although we associated it with Asian, its roots are Western. Apparently it has been used in Western music from way back in the 1960s.

You might actually be fairly familiar with it. It is used in several well know songs:

• Kung Fu Fighting, Carl Douglas
  
• Turning Japanese, The Vapours
  
• China Girl, David Bowie
  
• Young Folks, Peter Bjorn and John
  

Read on and have a listen to the riff here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asian_Riff

Acronym Madness!

"The most beautiful city......'in' the riverside. MeHAS."

There's this TV commercial here in Taipei that has been driving me crazy with its glaring grammar error in its English part. It's for a new apartment development in XinDian called MeHAS in English (美河市).

Dumb name right? Well it's an acronym: Metro （捷運）、 Environment （環境）、 Health （健康）、 Aesthetic （美學）、 Sustainability （永續）. It just so happens to also have the sound for Mei He Shi or 美河市.

It appears to be a play on another acronym, Lo-has, which you might see here and there in Taiwan. I saw it printed on a handbag. It means Life of Health and Sustainability wiki and it's a kind of marketing concept, something that is unfortunately lost on us non-marketing types.

Taiwanese do love their acronyms but often do not know the meanings. Although DIY (do it yourself) is well-known, you will often hear people use DM when talking about flyers or brochures. DM means one of two things, either Distributed Material or Direct Marketing. It depends on who you talk to.

Getting back to MeHAS, I noticed that the error in the TV commercial has since been corrected in a subsequent commercial from 'in' to 'on'. Yeah!

Also, I should point out that although this development's name is dumb, there are worse names used. Often housing developments in Taiwan take names of world destinations along the lines of Edinburgh, Riviera, New Europe, Beautiful New York and the like. It's easy to spot them since the Chinese characters used to represent the names are only used in the sound sense and not the meaning sense.

The most clever names are those that capture a Chinese meaning and a English title at the same time. The best example for this that I know is COSMED drugstore. In English you have the combination of cosmetics (COS) and medicine (MED). In Chinese it translates sound-wise and meaning wise as 康是美 which is Kang (Health) Shi (is) Mei (Beautiful). Very clever indeed!

If you have any other examples of acronyms or names that you want to share, drop me a line!

Can't get it up???

Here's a funny sign my wife spotted. The sign reads "YangWei, ZhaoXie" which if read sounds exactly like the sound for the words "Impotence, Premature Ejaculation" in Mandarin. It actually advertises for a Chinese doctor, we assume for these conditions.

What's remarkable, besides this sign being out in the open on a major thoroughfare, is that the characters used are totally wrong. We assume that it was done to throw kids of the scent.

However, kids are pretty smart these days. I give them more credit than perhaps the sign creators have. My guess is that kids and adults alike will get a chuckle out of this sign.

Of course, it is entirely possible that the creators of the sign knew this would happen all along and did it for effect. They make a futile attempt at hiding the meaning, knowing all the while the marketing job is done and they have covered their asses in the eyes of prudish parents.

That's Taiwanese ingenuity for you!

Blinky the three-eyed fish awaits

It always kills me how people can frolic in the waters in Kenting and be completely oblivious to the nuclear plant just meters from the beach.

It's clearly visible in the background. And although it's probably claimed safe and probably is safe, wouldn't you still want to err on the side of caution???

Most Taiwanese are ok anyhow. Lots of Taiwanese don't go in deeper than waist deep as they are not swimmers. Students often refer to "play water" which usually means wading and splashing around with friends.

My guess is that Taiwan built the nuclear plant there long before people got into the beach craze. Masses of Taiwanese heading to the beach and beach culture can be seen as relatively recent thing in Taiwan. As are bikinis. When I first arrived in 1997, girls rarely wore bikinis at the beach. Typically they wore shorts and a t-shirt. Thank god for progress on this front!

The Height of Convenience

The pursuit of convenience seems to define the Taiwanese. Always looking to cut corners to simplify life. Looking for shortcuts to success and riches.

The overuse of the word "convenience" in English by Taiwanese is a matter of fact. It has some funny and questionable uses such as in "Traffic is convenient" (which actually should be interpreted as meaning transportation around the city provides convenience to get around).

In the end, Taiwanese are just attempting to describe their 7eleven around every corner (or often 2 or 3 7elevens per city block!) mentality of convenience.

For example, check out this girl lighting her coal BBQ using a spray can blow torch. Similarly, I've also seen people use hair dryers as well to get the show on the road. No time-wasting fan waving and blowing on the coal chunks for these guys!

Any other tales of locals (or expats) achieving the ultimate convenience in Taiwan? Drop me a line...

Praying to Matsu the 3G way

Here's a new twist. Too lazy to make it to the temple? What to worship Matsu? Now you can on your 3G phone.

Chinapost

I must have missed this story a few weeks back but I have seen cellphone provider Vibo's ads on TV for this new service lately. They feature a young girl telling her mother that the new way to worship is 3G. She then puts the cellphone to her head as people would with incense sticks at the temple and proceeds to pray.

According to the article:
"Through uniquely designed software, customers can pay their respects to Matsu, pick fortune texts, and throw the crescent-shaped wooden divining tools to seek good luck and answers from the deity."

Count on the Taiwanese to put a high tech twist on local religion. Couple this with the height of convenience and you have a winning mix.

BTW, it's not the first time that Matsu has met high tech. OKWAP has (had) a model of phone dedicated to Matsu as well...

Engadget

Last minute campaigning

Oh, do my eyes deceive me?

Caught the 101 New Year's message on the tower again on the eve of the election of the legislators. Coincidence or a last minute plea for votes?

At 10pm it had already disappeared which seems to be in accordance with the election law. No campaigning after 10pm I believe...

Can anyone confirm this?

Click on the picture for a closer look. The tower reads 2008 Love (a heart) Taiwan.

Playing the Nazi card... again!!!

When will it ever end? Your a Nazi, I'm a Nazi, everyone's a Nazi!

Here's a political party banner on a Taipei bridge. Looks harmless right? Guy in a Mao suit (in Taiwan it's called a ZhongShan suit after Sun Yat-Sen). Picture of Sun Yat-Sen up above.

And then down below... Oh, aren't they cute, President Chen and Ma Ying-Jiou. But wait! What's that I see? Could it be? Naw! That's impossible! Not after using it the last election!

You got it! Nazi symbolism is once again being used to put down politicians. Chen even has the little mustache!

In case you aren't familiar with the practice, take a look at a few posters from the previous elections. Notice the use of Hitler and Saddam Hussein. Saddam has gotten a reprieve this time around...


















It will be interesting to see what kind of mud they dig up for the Presidential race.

If you would like to see my other articles written about the Nazi influence in Taiwan, use the Google search on this page and search using the word "Nazi".

Could this be more of a blatant slap in the face?

This now looks like a pile of crap. Was that their intention?

Regardless of what you think of the guy, this is a real eyesore. The addition of the kites makes it look like some kind of freak show Halloween party. Those are kites hanging there but they look more like masks. This could not be unintentional. And what an ugly mismatch of styles. Not artistically appealing at all.

Nor meaningful. I really don't see the link between kites and peace. Furthermore, I think a lot of visitors won't either! Although I might be sympathetic if it were done in a constructive way, I'm convinced that this rectification of names and sites campaign is just a cover for the government and rectification groups to sow their revenge. They can finally have their chuckle at how tacky this looks.

Unfortunately these spiteful acts acts are done at the public's expense. If there is a change in government, watch for an immediate (and costly) reversal of this policy.

eee PC has some serious supply problems!

I ordered my 8GB version of the eee PC on December 23, 2007 and it still hasn't come into the store yet. What the #$%^? It's been over 2 weeks now!

I have gotten all kinds of stories from the retailers. Out of stock, doing inventory, whatever...

3C and Best even list it in the stores with a price around $14500 but I have yet to see even one on the shelves. They claim that they had some 8GB versions before but they sold out. Can anyone confirm that the 8GB versions have even come out yet?

In fact, I believe there's a huge supply problem in China. The prime culprit may be Apple. Apple is already pissed at Asus for beating it to the bullet with this computer. It has it's own plans for flash memory computers, as does Dell.

See:The Most Hated Company In the PC Industry

And although some have pointed to the hard time securing 7" LCD monitors, in fact I believe Asus is competing with Apple to secure a supply of 8GB flash memory. A quick scan of store flyers will tell you that Apple iPod Touch and iPhone are the only other top selling tech to carry an 8GB flash memory card internally.

Well, these are my suspicions. Can anyone confirm or deny this? Damn the dealers lousy excuses!

Corny foreigner ads in Taiwan... What a bunch of sell-outs!

It has come up in conversation recently that there are truly corny ads here using foreigners.

The first one that comes to mind is that Tarzan guy for the insurance company. He looks like some guy they picked off the street and his acting is less than stellar.

However, the Orlando Bloom ads for Toyota have just started running which might be comparable. They are amazing to the extent of how bad he acts in them. Not much effort was put into them. Oh well, Orlando is still cashing that check!

By the way, the choice of Orlando for an Asian ad is a pretty good idea since most Asian girls go gaga over him due to his Lord of the Rings performance as an elf... yes, a freakin' elf! It seems girls kind of go for that pseudo-gay elfen type for a sex-symbol.

If you want to see even worse Hollywood sell-out ads, look for Lux soap. Liz Tyler and Chalize Theron are my favorites although Rachel Weisz as a mermaid also crack me up. Maybe you can also find sell-out Claire Forlani, Catherine Zeta Jones for Visa or even Brad Pitt's Toyota ads as well...

Dubai World Islands - Who owns Taiwan???

Or better yet, is there even a Taiwan island???

I was watching Discovery with my wife when we saw a documentary about Dubai's next land mass project The World.

You may have already heard of Dubai's Palm Island. The World is the next big project originally intended to have private islands for millionaires but now opening up to hotel and resort developers.

One Irish contingent plans to fashion their island with luscious green grass just like that of Ireland, in the middle of a desert climate!!!

So it got me thinking (upon my wife wondering out loud) about if Taiwan had an island and who would be allowed to purchase it. Maybe this is China's big chance to get their paws on Taiwan, albeit without the military, political, social and economic impact of a real life capture.

The websites devoted to The World Islands don't offer much help with regard to whether a Taiwan island exists. It would be interesting to know. And if so, has it been purchased and by who?

Here is what the island developments will look like in the end...

Merry Xmas from Taiwan 2007

Here is something I have never seen before. It's a picture of carolers singing in front of a police station. And although I shouldn't be too surprised to see carolers, I was surprised to see them out in the terrible weather we've been having of late.

Merry Xmas to all my readers. Hope you expat types are not too homesick. Get someone and shack up somewhere!

In other news, Xmas activities are taking over Constitution Day events. Apparently:

"Taichung citizens could light lamps on their Christmas trees free of charge. The municipal government would pay their power bills."

Christmas celebrations trump Constitution Day in Taiwan

Wow! City government supporting a religious holiday. Wonder how long the ignorance will last?

Book Reading: Notes from the Other China

I'm also the creator of Troy Parfitt's website http//www.troyparfitt.com for his book "Notes from the Other China".

Check it out for info about the author, particularly the regularly updated blog excepts that are outtakes and b-sides from his "Notes from the Other China".

Just wanted to add too that The Notes from the Other China book launch will occur on Saturday, Dec. 15 at Taipei's PS Cafe located just northwest of the Zhongxiao-Dunhua MRT/intersection. The address is 181 Dunhua S. Rd. Section 1. Their phone number is: 2776-0970.

Troy is going to do a brief reading, and we'll be all having some wine.

See you there and check out the site!

The Eee PC is here!

In case you have been living on Mars (oh yeah, living in Taiwan is a bit like that), then you are aware that the future is here. And it is the ASUS eee PC!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ASUS_Eee_PC
http://eeepc.asus.com/global/product.htm

It's roughly half the size of a regular laptop and it's totally stripped down to basics. 7" monitor, no cd player and, this is the clincher, no hard drive. That's right! This is a computer with a flash drive!

As such, this is the computer that everyone is talking about and looking at in stores and at computer shows. CNET has pronounced it one of the most likely gifts under the tree this Xmas. Asus thinks it can sell an amazing 3.8 million units too! They may just be right as the Eee PC has been selling like hotcakes and is sold out in many places.

There are some limitations due to the fact that it uses Linux and not Windows but the flavor of Linux used is very easy to use, with icons and easy tools. Also, there are two main models with 4GB and 8GB storage space respectively. With an OS on the flash drive as well occupying 2.5 GB then that doesn't leave a lot of space.

However, it comes equipped for what many people say the direction of things are going. Instead of storing your files locally, you can upload them to the web using such things as Google Docs.

Personally, I see this as a truly mobile laptop at only .92kg (no more lugging around hefty laptop with a sore shoulder). All the rest of that stuff like drive space, playing games, cd player, bluetooth are really all unecessary on a stripped down laptop.

I would use it to surf the net around the house (ie. move it around). I would also use it for teaching privates at WIFI hotspots. also, i could use it as a light presentation tool (usign the pre-installed Open Office suite with a program similar to Powerpoint) for the classroom or business classes. Finally, I could use it to watch downloaded movies on our flat screen TV. Or I could put a few movies on it for the road...

In the end, the Eee PC represents the first major move away from moving parts (CD, HD) in computers. The result will be lighter and less power consuming (hot) portables from now on...

Here's a great review:
http://www.linuxlinks.com/article/20071204141457291/Asus-701-Introduction.html

Alexander the Great Falls

Alexander Gym, of which I am a member, collapsed yesterday. Although I didn't have much to lose considering my contract was nearly finished, I'm sure a lot of people have been caught.

Personally, after the investors and employees have been paid, I doubt that members will get back any money.

I guess people didn't learn the lesson from the previous big closure of a high profile gym in Taipei 101. At that time, there was talk about limiting gym memberships to just 1 year at a time to prevent such disasters...

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/biz/archives/2007/12/11/2003392128

California Fitness must be laughing its way to the bank. If they were smart, they'd try to lure the former Alexander members over with some incentives.

The latest on the MRT's future

This time in English. Who knows what kind of a time span but ambitious none the less...

Luxy on a Sunday night