Motorbike gangs in Taiwan

This is an interesting video about motor bike gangs in Taiwan. I' haven't come across anything like this yet, but it certainly is disturbing. Maybe if the Taiwanese were allowed to carry guns, these kids would be a little less likely to jump random people on the street.



If you're interested in the foreign community's perspective check out this link

http://www.forumosa.com/taiwan/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=81399

More Morakot

The damage that Typhoon Morakot left in its wake has been devastating. The mountainous villages in Southern Taiwan were the most badly hit by the storm. Entire villages were completely wiped off the map. hundreds if not thousands are still stranded in the mountains, days after the typhoon left Taiwan to prey on China. Apparently, relief efforts have been sub par. I'm skeptical about these claims, however. Natural disasters are always difficult to deal with, both during and after. Considering the political environment that Taiwan is currently in, I'm not sure that this isn't just an attempt by certain Taiwanese media outlets to pin the blame on President Ma Ying Jiou (馬英九), just like the aftermath of hurricane Katrina was placed squarely at the feet of George Bush, with only non mainstream media pointing out that governors and mayors shared in some of the responsibility.

Is it possible that the current administration really did neglected these people. The most common complaint against President Ma is that he and his administration felt too proud to ask for any humanitarian aid. ha may be true, however, it's obviously a highly subjective statement. It is fact, however, that international governments and humanitarian groups have provided assistance to Taiwan.

Whether we will see any substantial changes to Taiwanese policy regarding typhoons is not known. Whether President Ma emerges unscathed seems unlikely, but the extent of his political damage is unclear.

Typhoon Morakot

Typhoon Morakot hit Taiwan last weekend, and devastated the southern part of the island. Northern Taiwan was relatively spared, but not so in the south. The internet in my apartment is not working and I am in an internet cafe right now, runnning low on time. I will write more when I can, but check the news story in the link I posted. The pictures are truly telling of the devastation

Biking along the Danshui River

The city of Taipei sits in a basin surrounded by mountains in the northern part of Taiwan. In the Taipei basin there are three rivers, The Danshui, Keelung, and Xindian. They all merge with the Danshui river and flow to the ocean. At the mouth of this river is Danshui city. Following the river from Taipei to Danshui is a bike trail and park system. So, this Saturday, me and some friends rented bikes in Danshui and biked along the river. It was beautiful and quite scenic. I would like to buy a bike of my own, but for now, I'm content with renting them for $4 a day.