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Moving to Taiwan
"This saturday, two days after George W. Bush’s second inauguration, I’ll be on a plane to Taiwain where I’ll stay for the next four years."
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By Andres Chang
During the Presidential campaign, many Americans threatened to leave the country if Bush won. Well, he won – and this American is leaving.
This saturday, two days after George W. Bush’s second inauguration, I’ll be on a plane to Taiwan where I’ll stay for the next four years. I’m planning to teach English. And I hope that by living abroad I can show people around the world that not all Americans support the war in Iraq.
I’m not leaving just because Bush is still in power. I’m leaving because of what Bush represents to me – that’s four more years of the war in Iraq and the Patriot Act.
This war is unjust and illegal. There are no weapons of mass destruction. There is no connection to Osama bin Laden. And the world is not a better place now. America has become an Empire that conquers sovereign countries without just cause. We do whatever we want just because we can. As Americans we’re proud of our history. We’re proud of defeating the British Empire. We’re proud of defeating the Nazis and the Soviets. But now we’ve become one of the empires that we fought against.
I also worry that we’re taking away the rights of our citizens. The Patriot Act allows the police to search my home without a warrant. It allows the police to detain me without a lawyer. As an American, I believe in my right to due process. The Patriot Act takes away that fundamental American right.
Sometimes it takes an immigrant to be a patriot. I was not born in this country but I love it. I proudly pledged allegiance to the flag when I was a school boy, even in high school – when it was uncool, and today I pledge allegiance every morning as a public school teacher. So, it’s with a heavy heart and a clear conscience that I leave my country. Sometimes it takes an ex-pat to be a patriot.
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