TAIWAN

I just returned from Taiwan. I was there for two and a half weeks and enjoyed the trip immensely. The only negative about going there is the distance. It took almost a full day of travel and the time difference is twelve hours. So when it is nine in the morning here in Miami it is nine in the evening there. The jet lag I experienced was and is still awful!! But other than that one complaint and the fact that Lewis was not with me, Taiwan was fantastic. I know that Lewis would have loved experiencing Taiwan and all that it had to offer. It was a truly fabulous trip!!! I met my son in Taiwan and we went all over the island; we rented a car and went down one coast and up the other.

The major reason I enjoyed the trip so much was due to the people. They were nice, kind, giving and all around good, good people. The country, including the cities are clean and amazingly safe. Most young people there speak English and the older population do try to communicate with you. My son speaks Mandarin Chinese and it came in most helpful!

We went hiking, scuba diving and to every Temple in the country. Or at least it felt that way. There are Buddhist, Confucianist, Hindu and Taoist Temples in Taiwan. There are even a number of Christian Churches. The Temples in Taiwan are extremely colorful, all are of different sizes, some are very large with multi levels and then there are small ones containing only a single room. All the Temples supplied incense to light as offerings to their many deities. The Temples were very accepting and warmly greeted you in.

As we drove around the Island of Taiwan we listened to various Podcasts about Taiwan, its history and its culture. But the one that stuck out in my mind in particular was the one that discussed Taiwan’s future. It was a discussion about the threat of a Chinese incursion into Taiwan. One of the participants in the Podcast was a United States Major who stated that the US will not come to Taiwan’s aid. America will not go into war with China to save Taiwan. Another participant was a historian that stated that no country would help Taiwan if China invaded and that it is only time before it occurs. Not if, but when. And the Podcast was recorded three years ago.

As I said earlier the Taiwanese people are good decent people. They want the same as everyone else wants. They want health, they want happiness, they want to live well. They want for their families the same as we all do. They want education, the ability to prosper, the ability to make their own choices. They want freedom!!! Not to be under a dictatorship. The Podcast even stated that they might all be subjected to reeducation. Which in Chinese parlance means brainwashing and punishment!! Are the Chinese going to have the twenty year old’s take over and tell the educated, experienced professionals how to run the country, how to administer medicine, and such and now have those who had ran the country be made to carry out manual labor for re-educational purposes? Which has happened before. What a scary thought. But it could occur. I met some Taiwanese who are truly worried. But from what I saw the majority of the populous does not want to talk about it and are refusing to deal with the issue. They are closing their eyes and wishing it to go away.

Does any of this sound familiar? Is our country not under a similar peril? Is our freedoms being eroded right in front of our eyes. Is free speech free anymore? Is the judicial system being over run and ignored by those in power? When a person can be pulled off the street by masked men and taken away, because he/she attended a rally or said something that someone did not like and get away with it, the government behind it is called authoritarianism or for a better word fascism. If we do not believe in what that person had said or done and we allow this to occur without a word on behalf of that person then we are allowing our fundamental freedoms, not just the person who it is being done to, to be taken away from all of us!! And then who is to says that it will not happen to us? If your response is, well they had it coming to them, then what you are doing in that instance is allowing it to occur and refusing to see the bigger picture that it effects all of us.

When people who are legally in our country can be taken off the streets and extradited to foreign countries, because they have been accused, not proven, just accused to be dangerous to our country we are all in danger. If we look at it and say to ourselves that, that can never happen to me and do nothing, then we are helping to erode the meaning of a democratic nation. Please consider the fact that the many people in our country who are now being removed also had once believed the same thing. They believed it would never happen to them, because they believed that they were here legally, but as you know it is happening. Why do you think for a moment that it cannot happen to you? What false narrative do you play in your head to believe that? Will you believe it when it happens to one of your family members, or a friend, or only when it happens to you? At which time it will be too late.

I can give other examples, but those who see it, will understand what I am saying and those who do not, will never see it until it hits home. Or they will be the lucky ones that are untouched, but who will live in a new America, one without any freedoms. Or they may be the ones ready to take over where the Nazi’s of Germany left off.

So back to Taiwan, they have no choice. If it happens they will have to deal with it. They will have to deal with an outside force, not one of their own choosing. But our situation in America is different, we put the government that exists today into power and we can remove them from said power. We are still in control, but not for long. We have to decide as a nation how to proceed. Not by force, but by demanding that the government live up to the provisions of the American Constitution. Do not give the government an excuse to declare martial law under any circumstance. Then all is lost. Someone smarter and more capable then I has to come up with a plan. I am hopeful it will happen.

My tag line has always been “Life is not merely surviving!!!!” I believe it means more now than it ever has. We as a nation do not want to merely survive!!! We want our freedoms!!! We want to be able to chose what we want for ourselves and our families. We want to live a life of happiness that includes all of our existing fundamental freedoms. We want the ability to say what we believe and to be able to protect those that need our help!!! Of course, I will travel, I will live my life to the fullest and I will not give up. I did not do so when I was diagnosed with Stage 4 Cancer, I did not do so when my love of my life passed away and I will not give up now. America will survive and we have to do that which needs to be done for it to remain the nation that we love. So, laugh, love, smile as often as you can and be vigilant!!!! But most of all, be safe!!!

Life is not merely surviving!!!!!

So now I sit here afraid to hit send to publish this blog. I am fearful of who may actually read this. I fear what can happen to me if I do. But that is what they, those in power, want you to be, afraid. They can only control the masses with fear. It is fear that keeps people from acting and speaking out. But it is time that the general public starts to act. We, the ordinary people, have to rise up and make our voices heard before they become too powerful. People now turn off the news, they cannot listen to those in power, they are putting their heads in the sand, but to what avail. If we wait they will only get stronger, if I am afraid now, what will the country look like in a year when the power gets more concentrated? When judges are removed, when laws start to coalesce? When those that wear masks and arrest people without cause start coming after the ordinary citizen who has done nothing, but to raise their voice? It will be far worse and even more frightening. That is why we all must act now. I am giving you my hand for support, to help raise your awareness and give you courage to act. To let you know that you are not alone!!!