France 2012 : the Presidential Election

In about three weeks,France is going to elect its next president. The lastest edition of Economist points out some perils that France will soon encounter.

The budget deficit,of course,is the main concern. France's public finance is said to close to those of Spain's. But much to my surprise than the readings and texts of its deterioting solvency,Frenchmen see ''globalization'' as a threat,rather than a chance to prosperity. And a chart shows that peeple in France only regard ''market economy is the best available'' for about 38%,far lower than its european counterparts like Germany and U.K.,which hold more than 50%.

It's intriguing to learn more about how France thinks. For me now,at least for the time being,France looks kind of socialist than a liberal democracy.

Europe Crisis

The Euro crisis or European debt crisis comprises of the Europe Crisis,and it has almost damaged the accumulated economic confidence since the beginning of 2011.

Ailing debt solutions,indecisive policies and countless negotiations hurt the economics at most. We're all dragged in this spiraling nightmare.

History may repeat itself. Shadows of another Lehmen Brothers triggering big deals are looming...

Looking Back

Today is the last day of 2010. As usual,it is a year full of turbulance. But in business,we've saw an overall boom in economy. From asset prices to stock markets,it is a year of recovery.

Many companies have posted highest profits ever,breaking their own history.
It's good to see the market recover from recession,and hope this momentum would last for the upcoming year.

ECFA

ECFA,the abbreviation of an accord called Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement,a FTA-like treaty between Taiwan and China.

Recently people talk about it a lot. After the Special Municipalities Election,one can regard the voters have okayed the Ma Administration's general policy,so it's worthy to look more into ECFA. It is one of the renowned reconciliation policies toward China,alongside with the direct flights across the Taiwan Straits and great lifts for Chinese tourists to Taiwan.

ECFA is an economic treaty that asks for both sides to open markets. By cutting customs tax to zero in several years,goods like chemicals,steel products,fishes and fruits can be sold to another market without tax,increasing the competativeness of the exporting nation.

There are some differences in the criterias that each side steps back and meets another in the half way. For instance,Taiwan lowers the taxes to zero for Chinese chemicals and some raw meterials. China would favor steel products,bicycle parts and machine parts with zero taxation. Generally,China is seen to "yield" Taiwan. Not only with more items imported from the counterpart granting zero tax than that of Taiwan,China also allows vital Taiwanese industries like Steel Making,Machinery and Financial Services to prosper in the middle kingdom.

But one might think of why. Why,would China do such a favor to Taiwan? And what would happen if China pull back from the treaty,when Taiwanese have got so used to it and have enjoyed the benefits so well of it ?

It's right to take hold of the momentum of a booming Chinese economy,that's why voters in this 2010 election chose the ruling party to govern three municipalities,compared with only two of the opposition party. But it's also why voters cast more ballots to the opposition by the sum of all electoral districts,for fear of an overly reliance to China.

About the trip to America

In Northwestern University,Chicago,I saw a breath-taking scene that I would never see in Taiwan.

The N.U. had an inner lake inside the campus,and outside of it was Lake Michigan. Between them was a levee. I was so moved when standing on the levee,watching the borderless Lake Michigan,or maybe the inner sea of America. I thought Lake Michigan was probably bigger than Taiwan,or pretty much the same size.

That was the best part of the journey. I went to New York and Boston,and revisited Chicago and L.A. I had saw what I expected to see,but the time there in N.U. surprised me the most. I thought I found peace there.

I thought I found peace there.

Oh,the railroad trip from New York to Boston on Amtrak was also great. Autumn foliage was everywhere during the Conneticut part,the train even took me to come so close to the Atlantic Sea. It was a coastline route.  

Typhoon Fanapi

Typhoon Fanapi stroke Taiwan around the Sep. 18th and 19th weekend. It was a fast-growing typhoon,which formed itself from a tropical warm mass of air to a storm scaled as a middle strong typhoon,only within a couple of days.

It went directly from the Pacific,which is at the right side of Taiwan,westward to hit the Central Mountain ridgets and made its way into the mainland China territories. All of Taiwan was in its reaches especially for the 19th day,every TV station in the island ran typhoon alerts as headlines hour after hour,informing everyone to prevend any possible disaster caused by lack of attention.

Luckily,most parts of Taiwan stayed almost intact,without any damage. But Kaohsiung,where I live,and Pintung and Taitung were the hardest hit places. Lots of houses,cars,lands and roads were soaked in water. My home was no exception,here are some pictures of how we got hit by the water:

 We only suffered a bit from the flood,with the scooters in water and a car without harm thanks to its elevated design of the bottom. But unlike us, lots of residents in the places mentioned above witnessed their cars and houses(the first floors) all in water,I couldn't imagine how bad they felt.

Stardom

One day I watched the Major League Baseball games on TV,and soon realized the faces like Derek Jeter,Jorge Posada and some other big names had been in the baseball career for a long time.

Sure they were with talents when they were young. Scouts had good comments on them. They practiced and played hard on the field. But they would not be household names if they drop out in the halfway. They've worked their way up and achieved their stardoms.

I began thinking about my own career. I should stick to the curent one and take it as my life career. If I choose to be cross-country and swith the to another lane,it might take me to a new territory and need more time to build any sense of that industry.

No venture,no gain. I'm already in one good business,is there anything worth to try out for ?