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Reposted by Chhiū-ông-kong 樹王公

Tomasz Śniedziewski @tsniedziewski.bsky.social · Sep 15

Good afternoon, Taiwan!

Some kind of landscape

📷: Hasselblad SWC
🎞️: Fujifilm Neopan Acros 100 II

#BelieveInFilm

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Jeff Wasserstrom @jwassers.bsky.social · Sep 14

I don't read many substacks, but Broad & Ample Road by Michelle Kuo & Albert Wu is special, for insights on Taiwan above all, but good on various other issues, too, eg hwere trends in publishing/patterns of translation/graphic novels ampleroad.substack.com/p/underdog-s... cc @wwborders.bsky.social

Underdog Stories in the Shadow of Empires

Two Taiwanese Graphic Novels about Memory and History

ampleroad.substack.com

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Cin-Ty Lee @cintylee.bsky.social · Sep 15

The Honduran Emerald, a beautiful hummingbird endemic to the dry oak-pine forests of Honduras. I recently had the pleasure of being in Honduras to learn more about their conservation and sustainable ecoutourism efforts. Honduras has so much to offer, from birds to geology to amazing culture.

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Lev Nachman @lnachman32.bsky.social · Jul 14

Hey UK/EU! My new book "Contested Taiwan:
Sovereignty, Social Movements, and Party Formation" is officially available for order, and will arrive early August!

www.combinedacademic.co.uk/978029575392...

Contested Taiwan- Combined Academic

Where statehood is contested, questions of identity and territory define the political landscapeDespite maintaining de facto sovereignty, states like Taiwan ...

www.combinedacademic.co.uk

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Chhiū-ông-kong 樹王公 @shuwanggong.bsky.social · Jul 14

Patriot missle batteries deployed to Taipei City's riverside parks. The tactical purpose is said to deter a decapitation strike on the capital by using the river terrain (smart). Psychologically this will make an impression on Taipei residents.
tw.news.yahoo.com/%E6%BC%A2%E5...

漢光演習愛國者飛彈車進駐北市河濱公園 (圖)

國軍「漢光41號」演習實兵操演13日進入第5天，愛國者防空飛彈車進駐台北市觀山河濱公園，吸引民眾目光。

tw.news.yahoo.com

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Chhiū-ông-kong 樹王公 @shuwanggong.bsky.social · Jul 13

Taiwanese banks have had the most exposure to the US for 39 consecutive quarters. "the gap in exposure between the U.S. and China has exceeded USD 100 billion for eight consecutive quarters, hitting a record USD 134 billion in the first quarter of this year."

Chhiū-ông-kong 樹王公 @shuwanggong.bsky.social · Jul 13

Another indication of decoupling: '..exposure to China peaked at USD 59.5 billion at the end of 2021, but has gradually declined over the past three years, reaching USD 46.1 billion in Q1 2025 — a decrease of USD 4.47 billion per year on average.
www.cna.com.tw/news/afe/202...

國銀對中曝險近8年首度退居第3 與美差距寫新高 | 產經 | 中央社 CNA

中央銀行今天公布114年3月底國銀國家風險統計，美國連39季居國銀最大曝險國，國銀對中國大陸曝險近8年來首次退居第3名，盧森堡躍居第2名。此外，國銀對美中曝險金額差距連8季破千億美元，今年首季差距為1340億美元，寫新高紀錄。

www.cna.com.tw

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Chhiū-ông-kong 樹王公 @shuwanggong.bsky.social · Jul 13

This recent NY Times article was pretty good but may have underestimated how nimble Taiwan is disenaging faster than most people thought possible.
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/07/b...

Can Taiwan Really Disconnect Its Economy From China?

www.nytimes.com

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Sense Hofstede @sensehofstede.nl · Jul 13

Taiwanese investment in China steadily declining – Taipei Times: ‘In terms of Taiwan’s total outward investment, the percentage of businesses investing in China has dropped from 83.8 percent in 2010 to 11.4 percent in 2023, 7.5 percent last year and 2.7 percent in the first quarter of this year’

Taiwanese investment in China steadily declining - Taipei Times

Bringing Taiwan to the World and the World to Taiwan

www.taipeitimes.com

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Chhiū-ông-kong 樹王公 @shuwanggong.bsky.social · Jul 13

@michaelturton.bsky.social considers the mass recalls in the context of the long history of Taiwanese resistance to misrule--powerful grassroots social movements and even armed rebellion have been a feature of Taiwanese history for a very long time.
www.taipeitimes.com/News/feat/ar...

Notes from Central Taiwan: Recall as resistance - Taipei Times

Bringing Taiwan to the World and the World to Taiwan

www.taipeitimes.com

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Chhiū-ông-kong 樹王公 @shuwanggong.bsky.social · Jul 13

This was a highly local election in a rural area. It's a data point, but not too much should be read into it at this point.

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Chhiū-ông-kong 樹王公 @shuwanggong.bsky.social · Jul 13

Now the rules for county councilor recalls are different (and weird). But I were the KMT, I would be worried about the 32% turnout in a district that the KMT candidate (You Ying) won by just four percentage points in 2024. He's up for recall in August. Where is the KMT's vaunted ground game?

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Chhiū-ông-kong 樹王公 @shuwanggong.bsky.social · Jul 13

Interesting failed recall in Nantou. The target was a DPP county councillor. 12,000 votes favored recalling her; 6,000 voted no. But the recall failed because the number of votes for the recall did not meet the 1/4 threshold of 14,000. Turnout was only around 32%.
www.cna.com.tw/news/aipl/20...

中選會：同意票未達門檻陳玉鈴罷免案否決 | 政治 | 中央社 CNA

民進黨南投縣議員陳玉鈴罷免案今天投、開票，中選會表示，同意罷免票數為1萬2160票，不同意票數5867票，同意票數不足原選舉區選舉人總數1/4以上，投票結果為否決，在陳玉鈴此任期內，不得再對陳玉鈴提議罷免案。

www.cna.com.tw

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Chhiū-ông-kong 樹王公 @shuwanggong.bsky.social · Jul 13

Before tea, indigo.

'During the town’s heyday in the late 1800s, more than 80 ships traversed these waters [from Sanxia to Bangka), transporting not just indigo but local tea, camphor, timber, furniture, coal and rice noodles.'
www.taipeitimes.com/News/feat/ar...

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Chhiū-ông-kong 樹王公 @shuwanggong.bsky.social · Jul 13

So the rather dismal conclusion from all six major cities is that total youth migration was net 13,365. The big destination city was Taoyuan, which attracted +70,097 youth. But this does not set off the total net decline of 276, 507 youth across the six major urban areas.

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Chhiū-ông-kong 樹王公 @shuwanggong.bsky.social · Jul 12

@donovan-smith.bsky.social with a great analysis of the proposed recall of one of the KMT's most flamboyant and obnoxious legislators. She's a briliant example of a politician who is more of an influencer than a traditional politician. Very blue district though.

www.taipeitimes.com/News/feat/ar...

Donovan’s Deep Dives: Hsu Chiao-hsin’s Achilles’ heel - Taipei Times

Bringing Taiwan to the World and the World to Taiwan

www.taipeitimes.com

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Chhiū-ông-kong 樹王公 @shuwanggong.bsky.social · Jul 12

In general, Taiwanese speak far better English than 30 years ago. Progress has been slow but dramatic over the decades. It's not Singapore though. Taiwan overwhelmingly speaks Mandarin or Taiwanese. Most jobs and convenience require at least Mandarin although it is possible to get by in English.

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Chhiū-ông-kong 樹王公 @shuwanggong.bsky.social · Jul 12

Taiwan's TOIEC scores continue to rise. In 2015, the average reading and listening score was 532. In 2024, it was 581. The average score for students aged 5-17 is 611. Average score was highest for 25-29 age group: 634. Speaking and writing score also up slightly.
tw.news.yahoo.com/%E8%87%BA%E7...

臺灣多益考生平均增13分創歷史新高

記者黃朝琴／臺北報導 TOEIC（多益）臺灣區總代理忠欣公司今（9）日表示，2024年臺灣考生聽力與閱讀測驗平均分數達581分（滿分990分），較前一年提升1

tw.news.yahoo.com

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Chhiū-ông-kong 樹王公 @shuwanggong.bsky.social · Jul 12

Kaohsiung (pop. 2.73 mil.) has also seen its youth (15-14) population decline by about 100,000 from about 905,000 to aroun 808,000 between 2020 and 2024. Unemployment is low but so are salaries. It saw net negative migration of youth in each of these years like Tainan.
udn.com/news/story/7...

高雄青年失業率低起薪輸北北桃 | 聯合新聞網

高雄近年爭取科技業落腳，拚產業轉型，但統計發現，大專畢業生平均薪資3萬8780元，低於全國，跟北部明顯落差，而30歲至3...

udn.com

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Jesse Johnson @jljzen.bsky.social · Jul 10

Chinese fighter jets twice risked collisions with Air Self-Defense Force surveillance aircraft over the East China Sea on Wednesday and Thursday, according to the Defense Ministry in Tokyo, in the latest close encounters between the two militaries.
www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/07...

Chinese fighters came within 30 meters of Japanese spy aircraft, Tokyo says

Chinese fighter jets twice risked collisions with ASDF surveillance aircraft over the East China Sea on Wednesday and Thursday, the Defense Ministry in Tokyo said.

www.japantimes.co.jp

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Chhiū-ông-kong 樹王公 @shuwanggong.bsky.social · Jul 11

Sanity check: state media coverage does not support speculations that Xi has lost power. Maybe there's oher evidence, but not here.

China Media Project @chinamediaproject.bsky.social · Jul 11

Visualizing Power in China’s Press: Despite speculation about Xi Jinping’s political troubles, our latest analysis reveals his continued dominance in Chinese state media, overshadowing all known potential rivals. chinamediaproject.org/2025/07/10/v...

Visualizing Power in China's Press - China Media Project

Despite speculation about Xi Jinping's political troubles, our latest analysis reveals his continued dominance in Chinese state media, overshadowing all known potential rivals.

chinamediaproject.org

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Chhiū-ông-kong 樹王公 @shuwanggong.bsky.social · Jul 11

@thomchau.bsky.social on the recalls with special attention to KMT position as articulated by a senior leader firmly in the Ma camp. The recalls are not going to change their China policy founded on the 1992 consensus but they support increased defense spending.

asia.nikkei.com/Politics/Tai...

Taiwan's KMT defends 'One China' stance as no-confidence votes approach

Opposition official says island had 'stable' ties with Beijing under his party

asia.nikkei.com

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Chhiū-ông-kong 樹王公 @shuwanggong.bsky.social · Jul 11

Tariffs and recalls--On “Taiwan This Week” @ICRTNews today with Gavin Phipps and @brianhioe.bsky.social. Available now on usual podcast platforms.
podcasts.apple.com/tw/podcast/t...

Tariff talk and recall chatter

Podcast 單集・Taiwan This Week・2025/07/11・47 分鐘

podcasts.apple.com

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Chhiū-ông-kong 樹王公 @shuwanggong.bsky.social · Jul 10

Like most other urban areas in Taiwan, Tainan's youth (15-24) population declined by about 40,000 from 2020 to 2024. Tainan is notable because at least 8,500 (net) young people have moved out of the city in each of those years. Tainan pop.: 1.8 million. Youth: 413k.
udn.com/news/story/7...

六都施政大體檢／【青年就業篇】台南青年事務分散盼設單一窗口 | 聯合新聞網

台南市長黃偉哲競選主軸之一是吸引年輕人來台南發展，任內職缺媒合、創業輔導到相關補貼，近5年青年失業率逐年下降。不過藍營議...

udn.com

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Chhiū-ông-kong 樹王公 @shuwanggong.bsky.social · Jul 10

Possibly. Yilan landlords seems to be determined to charge Taipei rents to Taipei emigrants. OK, it's a little cheaper but nothing like it used to be. A special problem for foreigners there is that a lot of rentals are in the rent subsidy program and not available to foreign nationals.

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