lawmakers

Yesterday, I was lauding Hau Long-bin for his willingness to work with people from opposite parties for the common good of the people. In the last 6 years, it has been obvious that most politicians have put their own parties first and the real long-term interest of the people last. It may be because their own political ambitions depends on how the party fares in elections, and they think that helping officials from another party, even if it's in the best interest of the people, will be detrimental to themselves.

This confrontational attitude exists across the political spectrum, but it has been especially acute among pan-blue supporters since they lost the highest executive post in 2000. I am very ready to admit that president Chen Shui-bian has many faults and that he has been a less than ideal president, but we must recognize that he has constantly been trying to extend olive branches both to the opposition in Taiwan and to the mainland Chinese leadership. He has made efforts to reach out to the other site, certainly because it was his interest to do so, but the Taiwanese people would have also benefited a lot if that olive branch had been accepted.