ANALYSIS | Young Taiwanese aren’t so anti-China. That’s a problem for the island’s government | CBC News

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1. While in Taipei, CBC News spoke to teenagers and college-age students in Ximending, a pedestrian zone filled with clothing stores and eateries popular with young people.

   “I don’t think this is something to worry about,” said Lauren Chung, 20, a university student.

   “If mainland China really does [invade Taiwan], it will cause tension to go up between the two sides, so they probably won’t.”

   Her friend Amelia Xu said she also isn’t especially concerned about what would happen to Taiwan’s democratic nature and freedoms should the island eventually be taken over.

   “After Hong Kong and Macau were taken over [by China], people there still enjoyed freedom of speech. So I don’t think freedom of speech is something that worries me,” she said.

2. I live in Taiwan and can speak Chinese. I know many Taiwanese people, both young and old.

   People don’t want a war with China but they also sure as hell don’t want the CCP taking them over. They saw what has happened and is happening in Hong Kong and want no part of it.

   Finding some random 20 year olds shopping at Ximending is not an accurate way of measuring the public’s view on this issue.

3. The ruling government jailed the leader of an opposition party who held support from a plurality of young Taiwanese voters. The ruling government is also comically anti-China to the point that people are getting tired of their red-baiting. Among the opposition they’re sometimes called the green commies (their party color) because they shut down anyone who goes against their narratives and labels them a traitor-to-the-nation somehow. Basically young people are so disillusioned they have checked out and assume all governments just suck, so why hate someone living somewhere else because their government sucks too.

   Edit: If you haven’t guessed, most TWese on reddit are DPP (ruling party).

4. This is what bothers me about taiwan, is the large social disregard for the very real danger Taiwan is in. This article demonstrates that somewhat with the quote from the women who’s says “I don’t think this is something to worry about,”, I’m sorry but this is ridiculous. China is not spending 100 of billions of dollars each year to pretend to invade taiwan.

   I remember another article a while ago about the complete disinterest by the Taiwanese people to fight for there country, and how the population tries to to avoid military service at all possible. And when they do join its hampered by incredibly irrelevant “training”.

   Its not just a social problem either but a political and military issue as well. I encourage people to look up Taiwanese military issues, but to simplify it, they seem to focus on these big symbolic weapon systems rather acquire weapons that would actually help them in a war. The construction of an amphibious assault ship perfectly show cases this, what on earth will this do in defending there island home?

   It begs the question why should any nation come to there defense when they seem to not care themselves, or at the very least not care enough to take seriously the danger and changes needed to fight back.

5. Hot take: you cannot build a healthy nation if your only national idea is being Anti-XXXX.

6. Not being anti China doesn’t mean they love Beijing. It just means they’re tired of fear talk every election.

7. Information warfare doing its thing…

   Social media is a vector for enemy action.

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