An Old Hand's Taiwan

                    外國人: Are you being microaggressed? The Monkey doesn't like being looked at like that. It makes it feel "othered," you species-ist bigots! Another worn out staple of expat online discussions is the "problematic positionality"* of being referred to by locals as "foreigner." Any posts on the subject descend into expressions of outrage at how they and foreigners in general will never be accepted here. The following is my 2NTD response to the cry bullies. * Postmodern bullshit term courtesy of Laurier university and Goolag  Taiwan: Where the bicycles should come with trigger warnings. Note on the current crop of foreigners I have to just make the general observation that, as Taiwan has gotten easier than ever for westerners to live in, there seems to be an increased sense of whiny entitlement among newly arrived foreigners. Perhaps it is just my impression... or perhaps it is millennials:...

Old Hand Answers Hate Mail... or Expat Robinson Crusoe Theory Confirmed Phone Ninja is going to express her dissatisfaction on the Internet Anyone who has spent any amount of time in Taiwan expat online spheres knows that it contains a real mixed bag of characters. Some are nice, helpful people. Others are mostly neutral. Still others put their mental issues on display for all to see. You know you've stirred up the snowflakes in the latter category when you start receiving 'triggered' responses in the comments. Of course, in the Taiwan expat world, those responses are also going to be colored by the delusions and generalized weirdness that only comes from our unique "community." Without further ado, I'll post some excerpts from love letters I received from those special individuals (actually, they are often from one particularly troubled soul) who thought my descriptions of expat Robinson Crusoe types were perhaps a little too close to home. Link fo...

Expat Robinson Crusoe Syndrome (*Thanks for the compliments on my photography. Apart from memes and PRC propaganda, all photos are mine.) "Will you walk into my parlour?" said the spider to the fly. No, this photo has nothing to do with the topic. Talk to the fangs. One of my favorite phrases used to describe expat behaviour is Robinson Crusoe Syndrome. I first saw it in an old-school travel book about Taiwan. It describes how some western expats seem to view themselves as some sort of castaways on an exotic land, meeting exotic men and women Fridays and having experiences only they can relate to others. Yes, some expats act as if they are on an exotic adventure to an exotic land with exotic primitive people who only they can decipher. In reality, Taiwan is a destination for thousands of western expats. Many have been here for decades. Taiwanese themselves are a modern, technologically savvy people and Taiwan has to be one of the easiest countries in Asia...

Regressivism among foreigners in Taiwan Persimmons drying in the sun in Xinpu Expats in Taiwan are, as a group, overwhelmingly left-leaning. This is not surprising nor is it new, as it’s no secret that many westerners come to Asia to put otherwise useless liberal arts degrees to use. Anyone familiar with western universities knows that Arts and Social Science departments tend to engender liberal perspectives in their students. This on its own does not bother me. Moderates on either side of the political center, I find, can be reasonable people. We're not all Archie Bunker, after all What does bother me, however, is rampant political correctness and extremes of group identitarianism. Even when I left it, my country was already becoming enamored with PC. When I arrived in Taiwan, it was actually a breath of fresh air, especially coming from the sometimes-confining climate of the west. People here just speak their minds without the “avoid offense” filters...