Category: Taiwanese Politics

KMT-Affiliated Buddhist Monk Jumps Ship

Master Hsing Yun comes out against the KMT presidential candidate and in favor of Taiwan's main independence party:

Hsing … spoke with Tsai [Ying-wen] and called her “Taiwan’s Goddess Matsu,” saying that Tsai would definitely be elected president.

Sounds vaguely blasphemous to me – but I'm no Buddhist, so what the hell do I know?

Buddhist master Hsing Yun jumps ship, from the KMT presidential candidate Hung Hsiu-chu's sinking coffin to the boat of Tsai Ying-wen (the DPP's candidate).

(Hsing Yun leaps into Tsai Ying-wen's boat (DPP) from Hung Hsiu-chu's sinking coffin (KMT). Tsai appears thrilled with his endorsement. Image from Holy Mosquito)

POSTSCRIPT: Ha. I take it that's KMT chairman emeritus Lien Chan dressed in a People's Liberation Army officer uniform on Holy Mosquito's cover photo.

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Communist Party’s Preferred Candidate Touts CCP’s Terms Of Surrender For Taiwan

Complying with the Butchers of Beijing's "One China" policy is just "common sense", claims KMT presidential contender Hung Hsiu-chu

Yoda saying, 'That is why you fail.'

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For Enlightenment, Click The “Like” Button

Spotted earlier today on Facebook:

The KMT's presidential candidate Hung Hsiu-chu photoshopped to look like a Buddhist bodhisattva

This strikes me as a little mean. KMT presidential contender Hung Hsiu-chu's religion is her religion, and if it brings her comfort during difficult times then I can't find it in myself to belittle her for it.

However…

The mandarins of Taiwan's Kuomintang do like to go on about how Confucian agnosticism is the one and only true path to public policy decision-making. So I eagerly await to hear their sneers now that one of their own has abandoned their central article of faith.

POSTSCRIPT: Hmm, well it looks like what's being satirized here isn't necessarily her religious views per se, but her comparison of herself to a type of Buddhist saint as well as a Buddhist warrior-angel:

“Read [the sutras], pray to a bodhisattva, but also be a bodhisattva,” Hung said. “In the face of Taiwan’s populism and hypocrisy, maybe I should also be a Vajrapani [warrior-attendant to the Buddha] that safeguards virtuous values.”

A Buddhist Vajrapani (warrior attendant to the Buddha).

(Vajrapani image from Photobucket)

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Lien Chan Returns After Celebrating The Marvelous Exploits Of The People’s Liberation Army

If the KMT's chairman emeritus wishes to tie his party to the Butchers of Beijing and their PLA stormtroopers, that can certainly be arranged.

The KMT's Lien Chan and Hung Hsiu-chu with an image of bloody Chinese tank treads running over a bicycle at Tiananmen Square.

Welcome back to Taiwan, Lien Chan. Not everyone has a good time at Tiananmen Square, but you enjoyed yourself.

And that's the important thing.

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KMT Chairman Emeritus Lien Chan Disappointed With Paucity Of Communist Propaganda In Taiwanese History Courses

Helpfully offers to rectify this unbearable situation by allowing joint teams of propagandists from the KMT and the Chinese Communist Party to re-write the history books

A seated Lien Chan saying, 'Will collaborate with Communists for business concessions.'

 

Joe Hung saying, 'Collaborate? Did someone say, Collaborate?'

I think Lien's found his first volunteer.

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Hung Hsiu-chu Returns Tanned, Rested…

…and ready for a thrashing in Taiwan's January presidential election

Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential candidate Hung Hsiu-chu’s (洪秀柱) campaign team yesterday said that Hung would return to her normal schedule today, ending the “temporary break from daily campaign activities” she announced late on Wednesday night.

[…]

[But even] KMT spokesperson Yang Wei-chung (楊偉中) mocked [her recent Buddhist-related Facebook] post, saying, without specifically referring to Hung, “[are we going to have] a union of religion and state now?”

Evidence her own party has stopped lampooning her behind her back, and does it now directly to her face.

“Little Hot Pepper” Can’t Take The Heat

Get thee to a nunnery: KMT presidential candidate Hung Hsiu-chu goes to ground, placing her ill-fought campaign on hiatus.

When I first heard of Hung's bid, I regarded her warily. She wasn't one of the KMT's heavyweights – but then again, Bill Clinton wasn't a Democratic heavyweight back in '92. And, similar to Clinton, there was something admirable in her willingness to throw her hat into the ring against near-overwhelming odds.

But within a week or two, she astonished everyone by stating that she couldn't rightly say that the Republic of China actually existed.

A baffling admission, from one wishing to be president of that supposedly non-existent country!

Since then, her campaign has descended into a clown show – her 15% approval rating testifies to that. Apparently, a sharp tongue ≠  political smarts. 

Look, it was always going to be an uphill battle for the KMT after the misrule of President Ma Ying-jeou. A competent Kuomintang candidate might have managed a close (but face-saving) loss. Who knows what a brilliant one might have done?

If there's any lesson in all of this, it's that competitive party primaries are indispensable for discovering who party nominees truly are. Because had Hung Hsiu-chu been tested in debate with other KMT presidential hopefuls, her gaffes would have been made and pounced upon.

And she would have been quickly winnowed from the field.

Hung Hsiu-chu Irritated That Presidential Campaign Cuts Into Her Busy Litigation Schedule

The KMT's candidate for the Taiwanese presidency files yet another lawsuit against a media critic.

Perhaps if Hung Hsiu-chu hadn't flunked her bar exam she'd realize court cases suck up time and psychic energy – things she may need in her battle for high elective office.

So you just keep on stamping out those brush fires, Hung.

LMAO.

Should Hung Hsiu-chu Take The China Post’s Advice And Become Taiwan’s Dictator-For-Life?

I think the living would soon envy the dead:

Picture of KMT presidential candidate Hung Hsiu-chu with captions: '...autocracy can work, sometimes, under wise leadership.' -- The China Post. Democracy and autocracy each have their merits. July 25, 2015. and 'If coronated president, I promise to rule cruelly (yet wisely!) during my 38-year term.' --Hung Hsiu-chu

Long-time observers of Taiwanese politics will note this marks a logical progression from her predecessor's 2012 campaign slogan:

Image of man beaten bloody during Sunflower protests against Taiwanese president Ma Ying jeou, with caption: 'Rah rah, Obey Ma, Respect his, Authoritah.'

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