Family

My cousins visited us,along with their parents. They came from abroad. Before they finished the senior high in Taiwan,they were sent abroad.
My older cousin spoke like an adult yesterday. That was to my surprise. I only remembered her younger days in Taiwan. They're grown-ups now.
And I know why people miss their families.

Sometimes I think a man should do something great,just like a CIA agent Leonardo DiCaprio plays in the movie "Body of Lies".

But I also know that sometimes a man would be another kind of human being,like the actor in the first installment of renewed James Bond movie series,"Casino Royale". James,in the movie,meets a girl that melts his heart gradually,he even wants to settle down with her after falling in love. That's not easy for a agressive,power-hungry and conceited man.

In the ends of both movies,the two guys all end up,probably,alone. I think that would be my destiny too.

However,in the process,something might be unveiled.
Maybe there will be ansers to a long-asked question by myself:"What is the meaning of life?"

Real World

Let's talk about business.

The latest copy of Taiwan's BusinessWeekly unveiled some scoops of one of the fastest-growing companies in the world - Samsung.

Samsung is now a corporate giant in many ways. It makes the most LCD monitors,occupies a large proportion of LCD TV market and is second to none when it comes to NAND Flash or DRAM making.

Samsung is also the second biggest hand-set maker,only a spot shy of Nokia.
From the inside story of BusinessWeekly,Samsung makes its fame by mass producing design-oriented but affordable products. And it always tries to kiss up to its enemies to learn and gain hi-end techniques.

Now Samsung has a whopping leading advantage in comsumer electronics,and one should not be surprised to see a staggering amount of advertisements and commercials posted and aired all over the world.

How can we,the Taiwanese,beat them?

Of course the magazine puts out some strategies to meet the global giant. But one thing is vital important: Samsung has the Korean government get its back. And the Korean government could do and come up something attractive to allure Foreign Direct Investment(FDI). In my opinoin,their government works better than ours.

Taiwan's economy used to benefit from small-and-medium size companies. But now,this island is ailing because of the transit of capital. Taiwanese entrepreneurs have moved their money and factories to mainland China and caused a series of bilateral effects. Now we suffer from a lack of energy inside and a striking challenge outside.

The remedies not only rely on the free-trade deal with China,which is the so-called ECFA. But to transform our economy to the next generation,and to lead the world by hiring persons with global perspectives.

Acer's climbing to laptop market is a good example. I think without Gianfranco Lanci,the CEO of the Acer group,it would not be the No.2 right now in the laptop industry. At least not so fast to be among the top brands of the world.

So,for other enterprises,if they want to compete with the world,they may have to find the guys who can win the world. Not just by us,the Taiwanese,only.

That's what I think about tackling Korea. And they do have realized and done the philosophy of global recruitment. Not only for corporates,but the government itself has hired some foreign experts as advisers.

We have to keep up,or to be left behind. 

50

Tonight,I went to a concert. It was really awkward. It was held to celebrate an anniversary. But I couldn't know how the concert relate to that anniversary. The content was messy,and without any comment or interpretation,I had no idea what was going on when the show was brought up.

I don't like drum performance,I'm usually not entertained by drums. But this concert was kicked off by a series of drum-knocking. How boring it was!

I guessed all of the company's big shots seated on the lower deck had the same kind of feeling as mine,wondering what to do to get rid of the boredom. Counting sheeps? Maybe.

I postponed seeing a doctor tonight. Under a treatment,I'm supposed to see him and take medicine for six to twelve weeks.

Anyway,from the beginnig of the show,I'd started counted the time before its end,and had been cooking up something for tomorrow.

I have something up to do tomorrow.

Day 4 (11/29)

Yes,when I wrote this article,it's been more than ten days passed after Nov.29. I had been busy for a while,and now let's read on and make it a piece of memoir in Tokyo:

We went to Yoyogi Park as commited to each other last night. But before the Park,we went into the Meiji Shrine and took a look of the surrounding areas. The weather was delightly perfect. Sunny,but not hot at all. And to my surprise,we witnessed a wedding ceremony. This was not my first time to see a Japanese traditional wedding ritual,but I guessed it was my newly-made friend's. I had saw it on the second day I got here.

When we went out of the Shrine and headed to the Yoyogi Park,there was a billboard with a picture showing people in traditional gowns. Then I knew the Shrine might use itself as an attraction to those would-be brides and grooms,commercially. I thought so.

Afterward we hanged out in Yoyogi Park a bit,and turned to a flea market across a road soon. There,we had fun looking for things,mostly clothes,with cheap prices. And sure we were both satisfied when leaving the market.

Shibuya(涉谷) and Ometosando(表參道) were the last few places we visited together. We talked a lot and shared our views of life,travel and philosophy of design. We stopped at the Aoyama district,this was the last place I could be. I could't walk ahead more,nor be my friend's company. It was time. The final call to go back to the hostel,take the luggage,hop on a train and make it in time to my flight.

It was sad to say good-bye. I shaked my friend's hand,and said good-bye,eventually.

On the way home during the flight,I slept,ate and slept again. I thought I went with a mood,but ended up happily. How amazing! I would never figure out and fathom the depth of humans,relations and life. But I think I can try to meet them open-mindedly,and take the results well.

Sometimes,you do what you do,and leave the rest out of your reach to others.

The followings are a few photos I like the most. They may be the reason I go back again someday.

Day 3 (11/28)

International Day.
Today I met four cute persons.

(1).A girl in Department of Medicine(藥學部) of University of Tokyo,who's from Liaoning Province,China,said "Follow me!" to show me the main gate of the school. She was taking part in a senior high alumni reunion of Lianing,and happened to meet me on her way. She used"I didn't expect to meet a Chinese before going to that event" as conclusion. She was cute.

(2).A 25-yo boy,studying microbiology at U. of Tokyo,wanted (or was going) to be an engineer after graduation from the Graduate School. He showed and led me to a Chiyoda Line(千代田線) subway station. That trip took us more than 20 minutes. How nice he was! Though he barely spoke English,we catched up with each other a bit. And I knew he went to the Tokyo Tower once,with his girlfriend.

(3).Katharina,a fashion designer,who had her intership in Hong Kong,revisited H.K. and flew to Tokyo. Her next stop will be Kyoto.
She lives in Germany. She's a german with fluent English,and a pair of beautiful big eyes. She's pretty,slim and young.
Did she say she has graduated or something? I didn't really catch that part.
Anyway,we might visit Yoyogi Park together tomorrow. I'm going to show her the way there.

(4).An architecture student from New Zealand. He's a Chinese,and soon to be a New Zealander. Only 2 years later,he'll have a N.Z. passport,said he.
His home is in Sichuan,China,and he's invited to join a contest here in Tokyo. He said he went present something before noon and had a dinner in Roppongi Hills(六本木).
He's traveling around central Japan for 3 weeks,including Yokohama,Osaka,Nara,Nagoya and Tokyo. He'll leave Japan from Osaka. He's on vacation after that contest,because the school is off. The flight ticket is offered by the host unit. His professor's good friend,a teacher/professor in U. of Tokyo,is going to show him the architecture of the university itself,on next Wednesday,Dec. 2.

Day 2

"Where can I have my lunch?" I kept asking myself when I was at Meiji Shrine. The shrine looked so devine,and it truly was,I couldn't eat wherever I wanted. So I brought my sushi and kept hungry until I finally found a place to eat them. It was outside the shrine,next to a subway exit. There was a small park,and I ate them there.

I also went to Omotesando Hills,a place seemed like to mimic Beverly Hills. With elite boutiques standing alongside the both sides of sidewalks,Omotesando Hills gave me a fleeling that"Am I walking around the Beverly Hills?" They even have similar names,using "Hills" as the the second word.
I can't say which one is better. Actually,they're both good.

Imparial Palace,Ginza and Tokyo Tower were the other places I visited for the rest of the day.
I heard that "Japan is a high-definition world." That means everything is neat and clean so it looks like you would watch everything in Japan like with high-definition. Is that true? Yes,it is. I've proved it by myself.

Of course there are shortcomings of Japan. We'll talk about them later. Now it's time to take a rest.

Day 1- In Tokyo

I almost missed my plane today. I woke up so late,my dad had to hurry give me a ride to the airport to catch a shuttle flight,from Kaohsiung to Taoyuan. Hail Dad.

I have to admit I went with a bad mood. I cannot say why,all in all,it is my fault.

Anyway,since I will be here for 4 days,just follow the plan I made a couple months ago.
That time,I was kept away from this country because of the outbreak of swine flu.

Today I went to Daiba(台場),a romantic place usually shown as a background in Japanese dramas.
It was romantic. And chilly. Especially when I lost two buttons of my jacket.

Let us explore the city again tomorrow,and 4 days later,I can be home again.

Accounting Lesson

Today's Accounting lesson was a torture. I went to the class after finishing dinner just half an hour before it started. The result was I almost passed out during the class.

Drowsy,lenthy lecture and full of food in my stomach made me feel so sleepy and couldn't keep myself awake anymore but fell asleep.

I chose to attend that class,because it'll finally do me good when I need to use basic accounting knowledge in judging a financial statement.

The truth is Accounting takes lots of time to practice if you want to get a whole picture of it. I failed doing that by lack of time excercising examples provided by textbook and the lecturer.

It's no doubt that Accounting plays an important role in modern business. I need more time to better study it.

Sonia Sotomayor

Sonia Sotomayor,the latest named U.S. Supreme Court Justice,the first hispanic who claims this title. (Photo:AP)

Couldn't imagine how deeply diversified of people from different ethnicities working together at Los Angeles Int'l Airport,when I set my foot on America for the first time.

America,a once so-called "Melting Pot" of world races,was tainted partly becaused of the war on terrorism. And I prefer calling U.S. "A Plate Putting with Many Cuisines" to "A Melting Pot." Melting means everything is melted together.

Though,America has gone on a right way and retaken it's role that it used to play. It's good to see talents being recruited and has their spots on American society.

Sonia Sotomayor,the first hispanic Supreme judge,will take a role on any critical issues like abortion and same-sex marriage.

She now holds the power to judge and have a say on America,that stands for everyone is equal before law,and everyone's able to have equal rights,like a hispanic American sharing the spureme jurisdiction,Whites and Blacks alike.

I know not much about Justice Sotomayor,but I hope she speaks for justice,and a better America.

Great...I didn't do it!

Once upon a time,I had a chance to complete the following :

New York. Fly to Boston.Down to Baltimore,Washington,Miami and perhaps Tampa Bay. Then en route to Chicago.Make a left turn to Los Angeles. Last stop,San Francisco.

Obviously,I didn't do it. Given the circumstances inside and outside,I was capable of traveling all over America.

I didn't do it.

Now I want to turn back time, grasping tightly all I've missed.
Opportunities,they hide behind those you think you can't make.
And if keep locking youself up in the pattern you used to be or getting used to,you'll lost them easily.

I would no longer have time to travel like what are mentioned above,if I keep a full-time job. And sure,there's no chance going back to the past.
So this is the George-three-year-later blaming the George-three-year-earlier.

Time's gone. Of little use to regret. But I still miss all the good things slipperd away from my fingers.

Down to earth

The H1N1 epidemic is alive again. Seems like it would repeatedly destroy my plan to the nation of sakura if the disease failed to be scaled down.

This time may be one of the last few chances I could travel freely for some reasons.So going fearlessly but fully prepared is necessary. A flu shot might help,if there is one.

I may travel frequently in half a year from now,and I can work with strolling over the wet streets along the Seine supposed it would be damp in February. Though it's not really my thoughts exactly.

Take good advantage of a 9-day vacation just announced by the government for the next Chinese new year. Sadly,I would never see the green lawns and leaves as people would witness in spring or summer,when I take my backpack and get away in winter.

Paris is always a heavy hitter in tourism industry.Too many must-sees in this city turns out to be a cruel test for travelers. A bittersweet self-indulgent in an exotic country. "Excuse-moi, la gare,s'il vous plait."

Still a bundle of nerves,I pray that I'm well on my way toward any trip and safe like any other day. And,don't break the bank.

Unlock the power

前天吧,在網路上看FOX NEWS,剛好那天除了歐巴馬去Indiana演講之外,還有柯林頓把2個記者從北韓帶回美國的新聞.

其實很享受能夠完全溝通的感覺,不需要翻譯,雖然只能掌握到7/8成的內容,但是已經夠了,剩下的是增加單字量,以及習慣各種口音.

能夠了解一種外語,並且溝通無礙,真的是一種很暢快的感覺. 這是我高中時拒絕學測,拒絕指考後,所做的最正確的一件事. 從那時起開始喜歡閱讀英文報章雜誌,還有一些簡短的短篇故事,其中有些是西方世界masterpieces的簡易版,像是莎士比亞的作品.

高中時看到國文課本,不禁覺得我們的國民要被這些[之/乎/者/也]還有那幾個唐宋八大家的懷才不遇心境害到何時? 感覺那些人的文章多是悲觀,充滿壯志未酬的心理,搞的中華民族的心理年紀都超齡,民族缺乏活力. 為什麼不多介紹一些外國的作品? 這世界也不是只有中國人啊!

就是從這種心理出發,開始對英文有興趣,直到現在.

還好我在高中不想讀書,不想拼明星學校的那段時間裡,還有唸英文,現在真的是很受益. 或許唸外文系出來的也不一定找的到工作,語文不能當飯吃. 不過當成一種興趣,自己練習,到能夠慢慢地進步,真的很欣慰.


話說,FOX NEWS是保守派的新聞台,多半是偏共和黨的,所以當柯林頓帶回2個記者時,它們當然高興,但是也認為這樣是讓北韓得逞了,美國派出層級這麼高的人去跟北韓低頭. 針對這點,FOX的評論中對這次營救行動帶有貶意. 隨後前保守派的駐UN大使 Bolton也投書華盛頓時報吧,認為這次的事情處理得並不好. Bolton,全名是John Robert Bolton,之前英國金融時報有出過他的專訪,標題是Hungry Hawk.

所以,美國國內的衝突跟黨派之見並不小啊,不是只有台灣有藍綠之分. 從以前觀察他們的國會選舉及總統選舉,就知道其實民主 /共和兩黨再很多議題是差異很大的,尤其小布希上台真是有種撕裂美國社會的感覺. 從他一開始跟高爾的計票爭議,就已經讓民主黨支持者很不爽了,到之後的二次伊拉克戰爭以及想要開發北極圈石油的想法,讓美國社會的對立加重.

不過,不同台灣的是,他們是一個完整的國家,最後所有爭吵,會回到國家政策的爭辯之上,並不會像我們一樣,最後導引到統獨的走向,然後一切無解.

在接收媒體的訊息時,最好有能力可以自行判斷,因為像是國內的媒體,翻譯有誤的真的不少,畢竟有些很道地的用語,連唸英文系的人都不懂了,何況非語文主修出身的記者?

美國財政

節錄一段在經濟學人看到的文章:

The Economist, 7/4

Raising taxes has not prevented cuts. Some states have slashed bloated programmes such as prisons. A handful of states have sacked workers; many more have frozen hiring or are asking workers to take furlough(compulsory unpaid leave). New Hampshire has agreed to cut $25m in personnel costs,either through lay-offs or furloughs. If the later,the governor has even agreed to furlough himself.

上面是在說美國各州的財政狀況,其實不只加州,連伊利諾州也是蠻慘的樣子,州長想提高所得稅50%.
而上面文章中的新罕布夏州,州長甚至自願放無薪假.
看起來,美國的狀況似乎不怎麼妙.

完整的文章中,有提到一些歐巴馬的刺激經濟政策,但是各州的財政缺口不小,就算2009跟2010年用了聯邦的經費支援州政府支出,到了2011年還是會有財政赤字,而且金額不小.

看完文章後,我想到去年去芝加哥的狀況. 在我要回台灣的前二天吧,看到報紙Chicago Tribune報導芝加哥地鐵(CTA)的預算問題. CTA營運是虧損的,所以要編預算支持它的營運,但是州政府似乎想砍預算的樣子. 我有點忘了,總之不是正面的消息.

這好像也呼應到之前交通部長說重話,要台中蓋捷運後要自負盈虧的說法.
不過這稍微離題,有點扯遠了.

美國的消費型態,因為這次金融海嘯有了一些改變,不知道這是不是導致經濟學人在文章中說到的 [州政府稅收的三大來源:企業稅,消費稅,及個人所得稅,三者全部減少] 的結果. 而且就算整體經濟面已經開始復甦了,州政府的赤字還是不會很快改善,因為稅收增加的速度會比經濟復甦的腳步慢.

美國看起來不太妙,不過就算這樣,他們的人均收入還是很高,他們就算衰退,還是很有消費力啊.

經濟學人分析事情都很精細,不過因為不是身處在那個地方,有時候還是會懷疑說的是不是真的? 不過我想,應該有7成以上是可信的吧! 而且他們的文章分析的都很精闢.

time

想一想，自己快要25歲了
時間真的過得很快
自己也不年輕了，似乎再一眨眼
就要來到3字頭了

還有好多事想做
放在心裡，當作努力的目標
只是不知道是不是真的有機會去實現

如果機會真的來了，我又敢去實行嗎？

有時不知是好事還壞事
處女座的人，對事情常常是以分析的角度出發的
分析完利弊得失後，再總結到底該怎麼做
不過在幾次經驗後，發現似乎無法以分析解決的事情變多了
所以才對報紙上那句「無法分析的事情，就留給時間解決吧」
特別有感覺


或許，真的該留給時間解決吧
事緩則圓
留些空間讓自己好好想想
畢竟，現在身上也沒錢
辦不到想做的事
要有錢的話，要工作個三、四年後了

只是，到那時，我再也不年輕了

南中國 (二)

話說這次去澳門又去吃了一次瑪珈烈蛋塔
還是好吃，只是畢竟心裡有準備了
真正吃時，就沒有上次那種驚喜
不過還是好吃啦，雖然很膩，吃太多不好
哈哈哈

台灣的價值，在中國崛起的現在似乎慢慢被掩飾了
感覺經濟是國家的命脈
所以大家不敢不去正視中國
要理解他的大、他的商機
連報紙都是好幾個版面的「兩岸新聞」

其實想想，台灣的價值還是在的啊
只不過需要外在衝擊來提醒我們自己是誰

台灣的民主，是華人世界從來沒出現的東西
看看這個世界，會中文的地方
除了台灣，哪裡是真正自由民主的呢？

大家還是努力吧！
相信除了依賴中國開放市場，台灣還是可以開拓其他空間
不過不能再閉關自守就是了
要認識這個世界，中國也是其中之一！

南中國 (一)

今天，或者該說昨天下午，從澳門返家了
原本是想用這次端午假期去日本走走的
只是遇到日本新型流感疫情擴大
臨時改行程，改到澳門找同學聚聚
順道去中國珠海

其實每次旅行回來心情總是不太好
或許是因為去了別的地方，欣賞了人家的好處
總覺得台灣不如人
但是這次去的是泛南中國地區
人種其實跟我們沒啥差別
基本上如果不講話，不太知道你是哪裡人
附帶一提，在珠海、澳門聽了三天粵語
回來高雄，居然分不出路人在說台語還是粵語

澳門進步神速
現在的澳門，酒店、飯店瘋狂的蓋
看的我都呆了，難怪朋友不擔心工作的事
畢竟想像一下
如果現在有十家的夢時代同時在高雄市動工
那會造就多少工作機會？
何況澳門新建的飯店，幾乎每間都有十幾層或以上吧
房間數多的驚人啊！

現在在台灣，大學生2萬8千塊的薪水搞不好算高了
可是在澳門，大概都有3萬台幣以上吧
聽說當個文員(行政、事務員之類的)差不多是8千澳門幣
工作也容易找
我朋友薪水更高，且一樣都是大學畢業而已

只能說，還是多出去看看吧
我們自己待在島內，久了就算不想，也已經變井底之蛙了
台灣的人力，貶值的非常嚴重

今天先寫到這裡好了
很多想法，之後再慢慢說

電影啊電影

最近看了二部電影
Nothing But The Truth跟天使與魔鬼
N劇是我在前幾天晚上睡不著時看的
感覺...唸法律的人很威風啊
因為法律永遠只保護懂法律的人
原本一個記者好好的，又英勇揭發政府陰謀
沒想到結局如此淒涼

看完N劇的感覺跟之前看的「獵人遊戲」一樣
都是活生生的社會現實劇，最終的結局讓人不舒服
但是我想他們都是真實社會的情形
上禮拜一個青少年姦殺國中女生
在媒體前還做鬼臉，家長找民代幫忙
這不就是獵人遊戲中的劇情嗎？
這社會，真的要小心啊


天使與魔鬼則是一部可以當旅遊資訊看的電影
畢竟片中羅馬美景及教堂都拍進去了
還有標示出很多教堂方向

最得意之處是片頭我聽的懂一丁點法文
parce que，「因為」的意思
真開心啊
不過法國似乎真是歐洲的核子研究重鎮吧
核能發電的比率頗高

加油吧

這個禮拜還挺累的，覺得有點灰心
雖然說我的績效是落後的，每個月都最後一名
但是我不是很在意，畢竟我真的還有很多不懂

只是當我聽到要求我跟老鳥們一樣
要有相同的速率時
我的感覺頗差，畢竟我是新人
應該要想想：一個新人，如果速度是跟前輩一樣
要嘛這個新人很強，要嘛他做的東西很差
以我的情形來看，我還有一堆不懂的，會是前者的情形嗎？

其實他們也是好意，希望我加油
只是我覺得我們現行的作法有商榷的空間
現行的制度，其實對公司是有害的
只求速度，不求事實，對公司並不好啊

或許這就是社會現實吧
就好比報上說的，過去華爾街金融圈只為了績效
顧著作業績，也不管賣的是啥商品
就是一直賣，一直衝業績
搞到現在自己的公司都垮了，國家也跟著搖搖欲墜

我也不知道該說什麼，雖然不高興
現在也只能求自己做的又快又好
只是這種好，絕對只是表面的好
也就是paperwork的全部流程都正確
但是內容不一定有價值

Europe

最近看了一個投資歐盟的小冊子
也看到了拿台灣投資歐盟的情況
與我們的競爭對手-韓國-做比較


韓國投資歐盟的金額比我們多出很多
台灣則一直都很低
其實作為目前全球最大市場
我們對歐洲真的不夠了解
而韓國的大品牌LG,Samsung,Hyundai等
因該很早就布局這塊市場了
韓國目前也希望能跟歐盟簽自由貿易協定
到時成真後,不要說對台灣有影響
對日本跟中國都會有影響吧


我們這一代的年輕人
是在經濟富裕的環境下成長的
很多事最終也會交棒到我們手上
如果我們不能撐起來這個國家的經濟
到時候就只能看著台灣載浮載沉


我們都很渺小,但是任何改變
都是要從自身先做起

疲憊

今天一整天都昏昏欲睡好累啊
原來中午沒睡,外加開了長途的車程
會這麼累!
開車真是消耗體力的一件事

話說,最近實在很想退伙
不想再繼續吃公司餐廳的菜
但是也想不到公司附近有什麼地方可以吃中餐
天天都要自己帶也很麻煩
不過到目前還沒退伙的原因是有資深同事講八卦給我聽
如果退了,不就聽不到了嗎


好吧,其實也快聽不到她跟我說八卦了
等到那時再決定吧

la vie

Pourquoi notre coeur fait tic-tac? Parce que la pluie fait flic flac.

Pourquoi le temps passe si vite? Parce que le vent lui rend visite.

Pourquoi tu me prends par la main? Parce qu'avec toi,je suis bien.

Pourquoi le diable et le bon Dieu? C'est pour faire parler les curieux.

La Lecture

最近幾個週末以來,因為學法文
讓我的星期六充滿濃濃的法國味
而且遇到了好老師,教學風格幽默詼諧
真是幸運的開始,加上我開始看的懂一些以前有看過
但是不知道的單字
從某方面來說,我有進步了,哈哈
這感覺真好


下一步來學日文好了
語言要學得起來,感覺要花不少時間
趁現在有一點時間,可以多學一下東西
等到學到了一定程度,就可以靠多閱讀
讓自己的語言能力自然有機成長
語感會慢慢長出來


COOOOOL! 請多加油吧!

L.A.& San Francisco,Jan. 2009

Landscape & skylines of L.A.,
from the Griffith Observatory


Beautiful campus of UCLA


Rodeo Drive,around Beverly Hills


The Stars Avenue,alongside Hollywood Boulevard


Golden Gate bridge


Haas Business School,UC Berkeley


The Pyramid Tower,S.F.


Union Square,at downtown S.F.

L.A.及舊金山

昨天回到台灣了
時差對我好像一點影響都沒有
可能我在機上睡的很好吧,不管是去還是回國
都是一下機就可以馬上行動,不必休息了

這一趟旅程,說實在的,有一種蠻失落的感覺
原來過去我憧憬的美國
實際的情況只是那樣

洛杉磯的市區,或許就跟其他資料顯示的一樣
所謂市區是貧民窟,郊區才是真正有錢人的住宅之類的
但是也未免真的太蕭條了一些
這裡指的市區不包括bunker hill等金融區
而是11街附近
還有搭Flyaway巴士進union station的路上所看到的
哇靠!還真的很蕭條啊...


行程最後的舊金山更是讓我帶著很沉重的心情離開美國
舊金山的廣東裔華人真是多到一種嚇死人的地步
真的是開了眼界了!撘公車往西舊金山去接另一輛公車的路上
看著源源不絕,一直上車的華人
我真是傻眼到了極點
這個城市是美國的城市嗎?

回到台灣後,搭高捷回家時
遇見同樣從美國回來的旅客,討論著她把錢存在美國的哪間銀行
我心裡頗覺得不屑! 這些所謂的華人.台美人.華美人
既想移居美國,又要享用台灣的好處
對我自己過去那種崇洋的心態,覺得可恥
看到舊金山大街小巷的華人時
我也覺得好丟臉
這些人為啥不回自己的國家去?

冷靜之後,我想,這是自由世界的自由選擇結局吧
既然美國政府不拒絕他們,他們當然可以選擇要在美國繼續他們的人生
台灣的環境如果不好,台灣人當然也可以自由選擇要不要移民
沒啥好憤怒的吧...


只是,越到後來越覺得
自己心裡一直湧著我是台灣人的呼籲
或許這是這趟去舊金山的意外收穫吧


以後看到所謂的僑胞,不管是自認為華美人或台美人
我想我會有點改觀了
他們都不是台灣人了,而是美國人


美西的情況跟美東應該不一樣
不過看到加州的兩個大城如此
尤其是洛杉磯,整個環境給我的感覺
讓我短期不會想去紐約
我猜紐約downtown的環境也是很髒亂吧


呼~~~~~~~~~ 很沉重的失落感到現在還沒消除
看來我必須要重新建構一下自己的價值觀了


最後,這趟去美國除了必要的食.住.交通費外
沒有什麼額外的消費,腦中一直想:
寧願把錢留在台灣花,也不想幫美國增進經濟

美國末日?

看新聞,好像有俄國學者預測美國會分裂成6塊
其實也不無可能啦
只是比起這樣,倒不如預言未來美國會出現一個拉丁裔總統
我覺得還比較有可能

去年有些財經雜誌都在評估美國的狀況
其中,商周更下了"美國末日"這樣的標題
與其反駁美國整體國力依舊強盛,未到末日云云
倒不如承認,有些產業確實已可能走到了盡頭

但是美國自己更新的能力應該不能被小看
歐巴馬似乎要以綠能產業帶動新一波的經濟成長
看似充滿希望,實際上依舊有不少困難必須克服吧

舉加州而言,州長阿諾推行汽車產業綠色化
將致力改造汽車的二氧化碳排放量及更好的油耗比率
只是看似嚴格的標準,在達到之前
眾家車商已經因不景氣而受到重傷了
未來要投入研發更環保的車種,勢必要拿出更多的錢來
就看未來汽車新一波的革命是否會成功了...

我們應該要多了解一下美國
這個國家不僅是我們出口商品的主要消耗國之一
更是我們在政治上的靠山
從以前二戰後的局面,到現在兩岸趨於和解合作的政治態勢
美國一直是我們很重要的夥伴
我們應該也不樂見美國倒下吧!