Interestingly, some Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) politicians had a knee-jerk reaction to Hsieh’s post about the quality of these hot springs. However, these KMT politicians have made two kinds of mistakes, namely word substitution and self-contradiction. Firstly, Hsieh’s post was about hot springs and made no mention of Fukushima at all, yet his critics are determined to conflate these two issues. If so, why is no KMT politician willing to live next door to a nuclear power station? Unfortunately, given an opportunity to teach the public a thing or two about science, these KMT politicians prefer to vilify a particular person based on their own prejudices.

August 31, 2023 21:43 UTC

Property presales could exceed NT$200 billion in fallBy Crystal Hsu / Staff reporterPresale projects and new houses for sale in the coming fall sales season could exceed NT$200 billion (US$6.28 billion) in northern Taiwan, representing a 16.6 percent increase from the same time last year, as developers seek to cash in on preferential lending terms for first-home buyers, My Housing Monthly (住展雜誌) said yesterday. The volume might hit NT$212.2 billion during this fall season, which would be the second highest in eight years, despite recent bans on transfers of presale house purchase agreements and an ongoing economic slowdown, it said. New Taipei City ranks second with NT$65.6 billion worth of new housing, it said, pointing out that Sanchong District (三重) alone underpins 60 percent, or about NT$40 billion. Keelung and Yilan would have NT$1.51 billion and NT$495 million of new housing aimed at local residents, it said. The fall season starts on Sept. 28 and lasts through October.

August 31, 2023 17:10 UTC

Minister in good wishes to exchange studentsBy Liu Tzu-hsuan / Staff reporterMinister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) presented a national flag to 40 students as they are to embark on a 10-day trip to Saint Lucia tomorrow as part of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ (MOFA) International Youth Ambassador Exchange Program. Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu, center wearing suit, yesterday poses for a photograph with Taiwanese students headed to Saint Lucia for 10 days on an exchange visit. He thanked the program for enhancing the people-to-people relationship between Taiwan and Saint Lucia, adding that the youth ambassadors would be warmly welcomed by locals. Tourism and agriculture are key industries in Saint Lucia, and Taiwan’s technical missions have been assisting locals in planting various crops, it said. The youth ambassadors are to share their trip on the program’s Facebook page, it added.

August 31, 2023 17:08 UTC

EDITORIAL: China’s information blockadeFacing a seventh consecutive monthly increase in the youth unemployment rate, the Chinese government on Aug. 15 announced that it would suspend publication of the figures. Chinese academics even estimated that the actual unemployment rate was 46 percent, because young people in rural townships had not been surveyed. Since 2017, China has also stopped sharing its fertility rate data. By covering up unpleasant statistics, Beijing intends to blind its disillusioned citizens and pacify discontented young Chinese, especially as such information could be considered a threat to its rule. The Chinese government has even removed several prominent writers’ social media posts on the country’s unemployment rate or stock market.

August 30, 2023 16:42 UTC

Raimondo urges US, PRC to ‘step up’ on global issuesAFP, BEIJINGUS Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo yesterday met with China’s premier, calling for Beijing and Washington to work together to solve issues of global concern. Yesterday she held another round of talks with Chinese officials, meeting Chinese Premier Li Qiang (李強) to stress the importance of open communication between the two powers. US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, left, shakes hands with Chinese Premier Li Qiang before their meeting at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing yesterday. Raimondo also reiterated the US position that it is not seeking to decouple its economy from China’s. Earlier yesterday, Raimondo met Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng (何立峰), describing the US-China commercial relationship as “one of the most consequential” in the world.

August 30, 2023 13:16 UTC





US may approve JASSM sale: officialBy Lo Tien-pin and Jonathan Chin / Staff reporter, with staff writerThe US is likely to approve the sale of Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles (JASSMs) to Taiwan by the end of this year for use by its Lockheed Martin F-16Vs, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said yesterday. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, made the remark hours after the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency approved the export of 50 JASSMs to Japan for US$104 million. The ministry in January announced plans to spend NT$4.51 billion to acquire long-range precision weapons for the air force’s F-16 fleet. According to other sources in the military, the long-range precision weapons could be 100km and 380km-range JASSMs, the AGM-84H Standoff Land Attack Missile-Expanded Response and the glide bomb AGM-154 Joint Standoff Weapon. The Legislative Yuan is scheduled to discuss the defense budget with ministry officials this week.

August 30, 2023 06:21 UTC

Fighters seek to restore Brazil’s MMA dominationAFP, SAO PAULO, BrazilSelf-described “nerd” Caio Borralho quit his chemical engineering studies to become a professional mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter, part of a new generation looking to reinvigorate the sport in Brazil, home of legendary champions. Brazilian UFC middleweight fighter Caio Borralho takes a break during training at an academy in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on Aug. 9. Other Brazilian fighters such as former champions Charles “Do Bronx” Oliveira and Alex Pereira are also on campaigns to restore the country’s dominance. Now they’re native-born MMA fighters.”Brazil has the second-most UFC fighters of any country, and is its second-largest market, after the US, Galetti said. MMA has become a lucrative business for numerous Brazilian fighters, some of whom have become superstars on the level of Brazil soccer star Neymar.

August 30, 2023 04:59 UTC

Taipei calls on Beijing to stop military harassmentINCURSIONS: More than 20 PLA warplanes and warships were detected around Taiwan within a 24-hour period, undermining regional security, the defense ministry saidAgenciesTaiwan yesterday urged China to stop “military harassment” that risked damaging regional security after it said it detected 24 Chinese warplanes near the country. “The People’s Liberation Army’s [PLA] continuous military harassment in the region could lead to a sharp escalation of tensions and worsening of regional security,” the Ministry of National Defense said in a statement. “We urge Beijing to take responsibility and immediately cease all unilateral actions that undermine regional stability,” it said. A graphic shows the flight path of a Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s BZK-005 uncrewed aerial vehicle from 6am on Monday to 6am yesterday. The latest Chinese mission happened the same day Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) arrived in Shanghai for annual city-to-city talks.

August 29, 2023 21:33 UTC

Taipei charges 31 in connection to im.B caseStaff writer, with CNAProsecutors yesterday said that they have indicted 31 people in connection with the collapse of NT$9 billion (US$282.27 million) peer-to-peer lending platform im.B. Five of the 31 had been detained, including Tseng Kuo-wei (曾國緯) and Chang Shu-fen (張淑芬), the couple who founded im.B in 2015, the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said in a statement. Criminal Investigation Bureau agents escort Tseng Kuo-wei, center, the founder of peer-to-peer lending platform im.B, in Taoyuan on May 4. Entertainer Sheng Chu-ju (盛竹如), who appeared in advertisements promoting im.B, was not indicted due to a lack of evidence, prosecutors said. A Criminal Investigation Bureau official accused of accepting commissions from im.B would not face criminal charges, prosecutors added.

August 29, 2023 21:31 UTC

No ban on Japanese seafood expected: FDAFDA WATCHING: Prior to the releasing of water with tritium, a four-year inspection plan was initiated and the agency would keep monitoring the situation, an official said The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) yesterday said it would not ban Japanese seafood and aquatic products, but would continue to monitor the situation, as Japan is to start releasing treated radioactive water from the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant today. An estimated 1.34 million tonnes of water used for cooling the highly radioactive reactor cores are stored in tanks since a 2011 tsunami crippled the power plant, and Japan plans to release the filtered and diluted water in next 30 years. The International Atomic Energy Agency, the UN nuclear agency, approved the plan last month and said that the water hasBy Lee I-chia

August 28, 2023 18:36 UTC

This long-term, unbalanced development has led to China’s economic woes, with more economists believing the country is facing a scenario of “balance sheet recession,” as consumers and businesses stop borrowing and investing even though interest rates continue to fall. It took Japan about 20 years to emerge from a balance sheet recession, and it appears much more difficult for China to solve this problem in the short term. China should address the balance sheet recession by repairing the imbalance in its economic balance sheet over a long period of weak demand. China’s economic downturn is likely to continue, and the phenomenon of deflation is reflected in the slump in demand. Another solution to the balance sheet recession is to transfer private debt to the government, and then monetize the debt by printing a large amount of money.

August 27, 2023 21:39 UTC

BOJ holds course due to inflation: Ueda‘DISAPPOINTMENT’: he BOJ governor said that last month’s economic data for China was ‘on the weak side,’ but the US economy provided ‘some offset’ to JapanBloombergBank of Japan (BOJ) Governor Kazuo Ueda said that price growth remains slower than the central bank’s goal, explaining why officials are continuing with their current monetary-policy strategy. “We think underlying inflation is still a bit below our target of 2 percent,” Ueda said on Saturday during a panel discussion at the US Federal Reserve’s annual symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Powell said in a Friday speech in Wyoming that the US central bank is ready to tighten again if needed to tame inflation. Getting inflation down to 2 percent is expected to require softer labor-market conditions and a period of below-trend economic growth, he said. The BOJ loosened a grip on its yield curve control program last month in Ueda’s first surprise move.

August 27, 2023 17:38 UTC

Navy to add missile system to fleetSUPERIOR: Retrofitting ships with vertical missile launch systems would enhance air-defense capabilities as a higher firing rate is enabled, a defense official saidBy Lo Tien-pin and Jonathan Chin / Staff reporter, with staff writerThe navy is retrofitting its fleet with domestically developed Huayang air defense missile vertical launch systems, after the launchers recently passed certification tests, a defense official said on condition of anonymity on Wednesday. The Kaohsiung had previously been a command ship in the navy, the official said, adding that an add-on seen on the vessel was likely a prototype active phased array radar unit. Photo courtesy of the Republic of China NavyThe navy plans to equip Kang Ding-class frigates, the proposed next-generation guided missile frigates, the landing platform dock Yushan and potentially other warships, he said. Retrofitting the ship class with vertical launch systems — which have a superior firing rate over older launch systems — would bolster the navy’s anti-air capabilities, the official said. The retrofit would enhance the fleet’s air-defense capabilities, as vertical launch systems enable a higher firing rate than is possible with older missile launch systems, he said.

August 27, 2023 14:59 UTC

Royal Spanish Football Federation president Luis Rubiales, front, reacts after the FIFA Women’s World Cup final against England at Stadium Australia in Sydney on Aug. 20. Among those applauding Rubiales were women’s national team coach Jorge Vilda and men’s national team coach Luis de la Fuente. Until Friday’s assembly, he had received no public support in Spain, with political parties speaking out against him. Hermoso contradicted Rubiales’ version in two statements, one issued through her FUTRPO players union and a second published on social media. The statement included photographs that it said show Hermoso lifting Rubiales off the ground during the medals ceremony.

August 27, 2023 00:40 UTC

Psychological leave for teachersBy Liu Wei-ting 劉韋廷More than a dozen Taiwanese universities have reportedly launched a system of psychological leave. Psychological leave allows students to take a break from their studies if they feel burnt out and need time to recover. Schools allow students to take three days off per semester without a doctor’s note, but teachers and universities’ psychological counseling centers are required to ask them about their health. However, teachers need psychological leave too, especially part-time staff or substitute teachers who are not yet formal teachers. Students can take psychological leave, but the pressure on teachers is not insubstantial in comparison.

August 26, 2023 21:41 UTC