The Volokh Conspiracy
[David Kopel, April 5, 2008 at 12:17pm] Trackbacks
Taiwan Presidential Election TV Interview Program:

Originally broadcast on KBDI-TV channel 12, Denver, April 4, 2008. Filmed at the Public Television Service station, Taipei, Taiwan, March 20, 2008. I interview Dr. Yen Chen-Sen from the National Chengchi University's Institute of International Relations and Dr. Lai I-Chung from Taiwan Thinktank. The one-hour video is here.

Unalienable:
David, I've noticed that you have posted several times on Taiwan topics. Have you ever proposed to the powers that be there that near universal arms ownership, similar to the situation in Switzerland, could serve as an extra level of protection for the Taiwanese against the feared invasion/takeover from the mainland? Obviously, such would not serve as an absolute protection, but it could add more protection on the margin and strengthen the hand of the Taiwanese in diplomatic negotiations. Who knows whether it might make the crucial difference in the long run?
4.5.2008 7:40pm
Wugong:
Unalienable,

You're assuming that most people on the island would want to fight. This is not necessarily the case. There are plenty of people in Taiwan who very much want to be joined with the mainland. Personally, I think they would be making a mistake, but this is less of a clear cut case as the mainland develops economically. If anything, Taipei seems less economically humming at present than Shanghai and other cites. To put it mildly, this did not used to be the case.
4.5.2008 8:51pm
Unalienable:
Wugong, Actually, you're mistaken in assuming that I am making that assumption. Quite the contrary. That's why I specified that one of the likely benefits of arming the people of Taiwan would be strengthening their hand in diplomatic negotiations.

If the Taiwanese were armed when negotiating being absorbed into the mainland, they should be able to obtain better terms than if such negotiations occurred while the Taiwanese people were disarmed.
4.5.2008 10:37pm
Chukuang:
I suppose. But are you assuming that the whole army will have been destroyed? Remember that, like in Israel, all men in Taiwan join the army and train for a few years right after high school. If the entire army is destroyed, I don't think there will really be any official body with whom the PRC can negotiate at that point. Remember, we're talking about modernized military forces here, not American settlers versus the British.
4.5.2008 10:56pm
Unalienable:
Chukuang,

I have in mind two basic scenarios: (1) The mainland invades or (2) The Taiwanese negotiate some kind of closer relationship that is accepted by the mainland in lieu of invasion.

For both scenarios, the Taiwanese people are in a better position vis a vis the mainland if every household is armed, as in Switzerland (where private ownership of fully automatic machine guns was common, when I last checked).

Note: This is not the same as every household including men who have completed military service. Such training without near universal weapons ownership doesn't help much at the margins.
4.6.2008 2:57am

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