Why the Government is Paralysed: Economic Microcephaly and Political Huntington's Disease

Why the Government is Paralysed: Economic Microcephaly and Political Huntington's Disease
United Daily News editorial (Taipei, Taiwan, ROC)
A Translation
October 22, 2007

The Chen regime's performance for the past seven and a half years can be summed up two ways: One, its international standing has deteriorated steadily, yet its reaction is to butt its head against the wall. Two, its domestic policies are an unmitigated catastrophe, yet its reaction is to spend money as if there were no tomorrow. Sudden price increases have left the government at a complete loss. Yet the government's reaction is to redouble its efforts to "Join the UN." Its reaction is to neglect the welfare of the people, by tilting at windmills, and putting the cart before the horse. The government is paralyzed by its own incompetence.

Leave aside increases in the price of produce following Typhoon Krosa. The government has never had a policy for dealing with increases in the price of oil or consumer goods. It has done nothing but watch from the sidelines. Whether the problem is short-term commodity price fluctuations or long-term supply chain adjustments, the Chen regime has essentially abandoned the ordinary citizen and left him to fend for himself. But all it takes is a single order from Chen Shui-bian to promote the "Join the UN" campaign, and a sluggish and unresponsive bureaucracy immediately springs to life. The post office, the water company, the power company, and other public services cooperate by stamping "Join the UN" slogans on everything from private correspondence to utility bills. When senior citizens collect their monthly social security checks, local governments misappropriate their chops and affix them to "Join the UN" petitions without their knowledge or authorization. Central government agencies compete with each other contributing to the "Join the UN" campaign. From top to bottom, everyone is in perfect lockstep. The efficiency is astonishing.

The government is indifferent to the welfare of the people or the health of the economy. By contrast, it is passionate about political mobilization. Superficially this would seem to reflect the ruling regime's monomania and irrationality. In fact, the root of the problem is the ruling party's inability to solve real problems by normal methods. Therefore all it can do is play political games. All it can do is set off smoke grenades, diverting the public's attention. In fact, the Chen regime's "irrational" political games are in fact rational calculations based on an awareness of its own incompetence. Such a regime is more frightening than one that is merely insane. Such a regime is so cold-blooded it would consciously sacrifice the future of the nation for selfish political advantage.

Why are people incapable of bettering the economic circumstances of the people, able to do such an enthusiatic job of promoting the "Join the UN" campaign? It's no secret. It's because the "Join the UN" campaign requires only obeying orders from above. It does not require individual intelligence or independent judgment. But dealing with even minor issues such as fluctuations in the price of green onions, requires precise market information and specialized administrative ability. It requires balancing the interests of farmers, merchants and consumers. But the Chen regime's populist nature ensures that it will attempt to appease all parties. Therefore whenever it encounters such a lose/lose/lose situation, it has no solutions. All it can do is pretend not to hear the people's complaints.

From beginning to end, the "Join the UN" movement has been a campaign requiring no thought. It is something "easier done than said." That's because the government is not actually seeking to "Join the UN." It is merely seeking to exploit "Join the UN" propaganda for political advantage. The target of the government's propaganda is not foreign governments, but domestic voters. What's so difficult about that? Spending the public's money to wash the public's brains, all the while trumpeting the process as a heroic undertaking. What could be easier than that?

As long as postal service and electric company officials obey orders, they are assured of glowing performance reviews. As long as financial, economic, and defense officials comply with orders to provide funds and stage skydiving shows, they have demonstrated their fealty to the regime. Under such circumstances, what need do executive branch officials have for independent thought? Or even brains? Hence the spectacle of Government Information Office Chief Hsieh Chi-wei leaping to the podium to respond to questions directed at Chang Chun-hsiung, without being summoned. Hence the spectacle of Vice Minister of Finance Li Jui-tsang ordering civil servants to participate in a signature drive for the "Plebiscite to Join the UN." Hence the spectacle of Minister of Finance Ho Chih-chin denying all knowledge of such an order. Hence the spectacle of the Executive Yuan claiming that increasing garbage collection fees did not constitute decision-making, and passing the buck to the Environmental Protection Agency. What are these confused thoughts and moral inversions, if not classic symptoms of microcephaly? Under such circumstances, for Frank Hsieh to equate the economic welfare of the people with the "feeding of pigs, dogs, and chickens" is hardly surprising.

When the Chen Shui-bian administration first took office it payed lip service to reform. Over the past two years, not only have chants of "reform" died on the wind, so have boasts about "bolstering the economy." Obviously, the ruling regime knows its lies have been refuted by its own actions. Last year the Japanese media used the term "necrotic" to describe the dysfunctional state of the Chen regime. Most worrisome today is that Taiwan will be despoiled by a political authority in an advanced state of necrosis. How can the people hope for a peaceful existence under a regime afflicted with both "Economic Microcephaly" and "Political Huntington's Disease?"

The government has reduced the nation's problems to a single issue. If only we can hold a "Plebiscite to Join the UN," they promise, then we enter a Brave New World. How many times will ROC citizens fall for this Big Lie? The Democratic Progressive Party's fanaticism conceals a bigger secret. To paraphrase a popular expression: "It's your incompetence, stupid!"

政府為何癱瘓：經濟小腦症和政治舞蹈症
【聯合報╱社論】
2007.10.22 03:50 am

七年半來，扁政府的效能可歸結為兩個面向：其一，是國際地位一日不如一日，主政者卻迄今仍在推車撞壁；其二，對內施政一敗塗地，掌權者卻依舊胡亂揮霍。最近物價暴漲政府束手無策，它卻將全部精力用於推動「入聯」，遠民生、弄虛無，本末倒置，政府失能已至癱瘓的地步。

不談柯羅莎颱風後的菜價波動，從更早的油價飆升、民生用品百價齊發，行政部門自始至終袖手旁觀，拿不出任何對策。無論短期的物資調節，或者長期的供應鍊結構調整，扁政府皆形同棄守，無視於小民哀哀之苦。然而，對於陳水扁一聲令下衝刺入聯運動，行政部門卻馬上像活了過來，從郵局、水電等公用部門配合蓋印戳記，到地方政府盜用民眾領取敬老金的印章連署入聯，到各中央部會爭相挖牆掏壁上繳入聯宣傳配合款，上上下下步驟齊一，效率驚人。

政府對民生經濟的冷感，對照它對政治動員的熱中，表面上看，這反映了主政者的偏執與非理性；但實質上，更深的根源在執政黨根本無法透過常態行政來解決問題，所以只能玩弄虛無的政治花招，在高空製造煙幕，轉移民眾的注意。亦即，扁政府的非理性政治操弄，其實是它認清自己的「無能」後的一種理性盤算；那比主政者純然的瘋狂還可怕，因為這已到了冷血刻意耗喪國力與民心的地步。

為什麼無能處理民生問題的人，卻能把入聯運動推得淋漓盡致？祕訣無他：因為入聯運動只要聽指令行事即可，不需要任何智慧或獨立判斷；而處理任何小小的青蔥菜價波動，都需要精確的市場資訊及專業的行政智能，才能在農民、商人及消費者之間維持平衡。以扁政府素來的民粹取向，只想面面討好，碰到這種三難的局面，它既無能力解決，就只好裝作聽不見民眾的哀鳴了。

至於入聯，從頭到尾都不是一個需要思考的決策，本質上也是一個「做比說容易」的事。因為，目前政府推動的工作，其實不是「入聯」，而是「入聯宣傳」；何況，政府宣傳的對象也不是國際社會，而是集中在「內部宣傳」，這何難之有？花人民的錢，洗老百姓的頭腦，標榜政府的偉大志業，施政還有比這個更容易的事嗎？

對於台郵、台電等公司而言，只要聽指令行事就是功績一樁；對財經、國防部門而言，只要配合捐款及跳傘活動即可表示效忠；如此一來，行政部門官員還可能有什麼自主意識，還需要用什麼大腦嗎？包括新聞局長謝志偉跳上院會質詢台代張俊雄搶答，包括財次李瑞倉在部內動員連署入聯、而財長何志欽一問三不知，包括行政院說垃圾費的增收不是決策、而把責任推給環保署，這些意識錯亂、倫理倒置的景象，不就是一個「小腦症」政府的典型徵狀嗎？在這種情況下，謝長廷會把民生經濟說成是「豬狗雞」的問題，也就不足為奇了。

比起陳水扁執政初期的口口聲聲「改革」，近兩年，不僅改革口號已成絕響，連「拚經濟」的大話都已隨風而逝；顯然，執政者也知道它的謊言已被自己的行動拆穿。日本媒體去年曾以「死體化」一詞來形容扁政權的衰鈍現象，事實上，今天看來，更堪憂慮的，是被一個死體化政權無度糟蹋的台灣。試想，一個患了經濟「小腦症」政府，在操弄政治鬥爭上又患了嚴重的「舞蹈症」，人民如何奢想有太平的日子可過？

一個政府能將國家的問題化約到如此單一的地步，宣稱只要「入聯公投」，就能美化國家，這種「用來世換今生」的神話，能騙台灣人民幾回？民進黨的偏執，其實隱藏了一個更大的祕密；套句流行的話，可以這麼說：笨蛋！你的問題在無能。