In my view, one of the potentally gravest pitfalls of democratic political involvement is when the people - the ultimate servee and server of the system - begin to take the system itself for granted. They either take its benefit as given, or they see its flaws as something immutable and attempt nothing to correct it. I see the Taiwanese Political Transformation as one of the greatest social experiment of the modern era. For it has shown, and is still showing, the process by which democracy takes root in a country previous ran by a authoritarian government and whose culture , 5000 years + and counting, is often though of by cynics as unfit for democratization. This article, written by a very well-known Taiwanese political and social thinker, was written in response to the recent controversy surrounding Ma Ying Jiu and the so-called "special purpose fund". One can either agree or disagree with her views and her displeasure with Ma's rash decision to resign (afterall that's what democracy is for), but you cannot doubt that it is written with care, earnesty, and intelligence. It is certainly thought-provoking, and in this day and age, that is of the utmost importance.
【龍應台】自首報告
當2006年底馬英九的特支費成為一個司法事件之後，我才知道，原來首長特支費中不需收據的那一半，可能並非首長薪水的一部分而是公務費，不能匯入個人薪資。英九，可能因此被檢察官起訴。罪名，可能是貪汙。
我太驚訝了。從1999年秋天踏進台北市政府成為台北市的首任文化局長開始，我的特支費的一半，3萬4000元，就是每個月直接匯入薪資帳戶的。秘書作業自動處理，沒問過我，也沒有任何人告訴過我還有其他的可能作法。我倒是記得跟公務員同仁有一段對話。
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5 comments:
yeah, recently i think ma has become rather narrow-minded and not a good judge of character. for example, the mayor of 基隆, whom he backed, was infamous for corruption and the mayor of 台北縣 has also done very little since taking office. i'm not sure i would vote for him.
politics is not rational. Just like when we love someone we are not rational. For example, there are stars, suns, clouds, and moon, why would someone love moon instead of stars. So here is my irrational response to Ma - acting cute all the time, no gut.
Jimmy, I agree with your comment of Ma been narrow-minded and lacks judgment. But I still see him as a man of principle. And I’ll vote for him if he can truly show the capacity to transcend party line, not just talking about it.
Pete, is that "all cute, no gut" direct to someone else as well? Haha….! I agree with you that politics and love can be irrational at times. But they don't need to be. Democracy offers a chance for learning and experimentation, and hopefully through that people can become more rational in their choice making process.
As for love, I'll tell you this - there is no moon. Or, to put it another way, the moon does not one person encompassed. For the moon is a singular idea, a singular experience, a singular emotion. But a person, on the other hand, has multitudes. A person can have all the attributes of sun, stars, and moon, etc., and when one truly loves another, he or she loves completely.
Another thing, just like politics can evolve, love can also be rational. I believe one can become close to someone through an intuitive, rigorous induction. Feeling also helps, no doubt :P.
“Do I contradict myself? Very well, then I contradict myself, I am large, I contain multitudes.”
-From Walt Whiman.
chien chien, sometimes, a cigar is just a cigar, I wasn't directing my comment to anyone:)
People are rational, the problem is others don't think they are.
now i`ll read your rss
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