Zhao, the "media tycon," always began his statements on the cross-strait relationship with a seemingly plausible premise in order to arrive at his "logically" sound conclusion: Taiwan should not reunify with China Mainland.

This was the premise Zhao had proposed.The ROC was founded in 1911, 38 years earlier than the PRC in 1949, and that is an undefinable fact. As a result, China Mainland should respect the fact that the ROC exists on Taiwan in the first place, and so on.On the political talk show the evening before yesterday, Zhao almost hysterically shouted out this "premise" again, but a wet blanket appeared.

One of the panelists, Mr. Shen, a hale and hearty medical doctor at 84, reminded Zhao of the truth that the ROC is just a "nation" with partial sovereignty on Taiwan because it has been defeated and fled to the island. Zhao disrupted him and said, "So what?" Then the discussion ended at commercial time.

What Mr. Shen did not say is that the status quo was the outcome of an unfinished civil war. Dear Islanders, do you really want to resume the war? The answer to the question may hinge upon a flash of inspiration in your mind.