IMPACT
press
Oct./Nov.
1999 Articles:
"Big House"
of Horrors
The U.S. Sell-Out
of Taiwan
E-Mail Us
Your Comments
|
The U.S. is
Selling Out Taiwan
by Auren Hoffman
art/Eachean Edmundson |
Remember 1938?
Remember 1938?
Remember 1938?
Remember 1938?
Remember 1938?
 In August, Taiwan President Lee told the world what everyone has known for the last 20 years -- Taiwan is a state and should have state-to-state negotiations with China.
Lee said the obvious: Taiwan is not some breakaway province of China but a thriving democracy with one of the strongest economies in Asia.
After those remarks, China made the predicted threats of taking over Taiwan. You'd think the U.S. would support Taiwan -- which has been a strong trading partner, a strong ally, and a strong democracy. Instead, the Clinton Administration has actually blamed Taiwan (and specifically President Lee) for antagonizing China.
This sounds like appeasement and 1938 to me.
In the latest edition of Forbes, former Defense Secretary Casper Weinberger penned a thought-provoking piece on the current Taiwan fiasco. He notes that over the last few years, the official U.S. policy toward China has been one of appeasement. He points out that this is extremely dangerous and makes the very pointed analogy to the Munich Pact with Hitler and Mussolini in 1938 when Britain and France sold out Czechoslovakia.
Weinberger contends that Clinton is today's Neville Chamberlain -- who instigated World War II because of his unwillingness to act and stand up for the free world early.
For the last five years we have had a policy of appeasing China where did this get us? We got massive human rights abuses, threats on friendly neighbors, trade embargoes of our goods, massive espionage within our own borders, and attempts to tamper with our elections. This is not a country that we want to appease.
For once the U.S. should act with moral discipline and support what's right -- even at the cost of making China angry. We should give our full, 100% support to the Taiwanese people and guarantee their security. If we can protect the Kosovars or the Kuwaitis, we can help protect Taiwan (which happens to be a huge trading partner of the U.S.).
SUMMATION: Don't repeat 1938. Don't sell out Taiwan.
Email your feedback on this article to impact-press@mindspring.com.
|