Last week in China, a hostage taking ended in a bad way. This shocking video is floating around the internet depicting a plain clothes police woman shooting dead an armed robber while showing little if any regard for the wounded hostage.

New from Formosa Films is its first feature length film FORMOSA BETRAYED starring James Van Der Beek, Tzi Ma and Wendy Crewson. The film, inspired by actual events, was shown theatrically in all major markets in North America beginning this past February. FORMOSA is a political thriller that portrays the devastating oppression that the Taiwanese people have endured as a result of decades of occupation and military rule. The film has a social conscience and speaks volumes about the ignorance of many Americans toward the plight of the Taiwanese people who have sought independence for centuries, and serves to educate those who view the film.

Today I caught my first Tilapia; probably my first fish in about 10 years. I was an avid fisherman. I used to wake up at 3:00am and drive for a couple of hours just to make sunrise at my favorite spot on the river. I would spend hours there, usually with my brother, sitting silently waiting for a hungry steelhead to take the bait. Many times we went home with more mosquito bites than actual hits. Sometimes, we were lucky. But more often than not, we weren't. This is the joy of fishing. Or at least it was.

Just about a year ago, I was was driving a really old, but really cool 150cc Kymco Apex. I bought it for NT$18,000 but within 6 months, I had invested the same amount in repairs. After a year, the amount climbed even higher! I was at the point where I was torn between selling it and cutting my losses, or keeping it because I had spent so much on it. My decision was very quickly and abruptly made for me when I was T-Boned by a car.

The driver was found to be at fault as he had broken two of Taiwan's traffic laws.

Being a father there are few moments, if any, where I am not proud of my daughter's achievements. At 3 years of age, Kiera never ceases to amaze me. She has not only learned how to speak Mandarin fluently, but can now translate between English and Chinese with a seamless fluidity that is truly astounding. Of course, I am being a father when I say that she is the most intelligent and talented child that I have ever known, but it is true! There are these moments of intellectual greatness and there are others. This is one of the many.

We have been trying to teach Kiera how to swim; a rather daunting endeavor as both my wife and I cannot swim. Earlier this year, we enrolled Kiera in some swimming lessons at the AmVets Pool. Teacher Lily and all of the other teachers were great; really patient and helpful. Kiera was by far the youngest in the beginner class and as such, received extra attention by her instructors. After 3 lessons, Kiera had begun to surpass some of her older counterparts who were still afraid of the water. The other parents began to complain to the teacher, arguing that the 'little foreign girl' is taking time away from my child. Rather than create an uncomfortable situation for all parties involved, we decided to pull her out of classes until next year.

We continued to go to the pool, and with the help of our friends who could swim, we managed to get Kiera comfortable enough to be in the pool without her water wings. My fatherly pride came in a huge wave when, this past weekend, Kiera began to put her head completely under the water. It started with a few quick dips of her face and ended with full ninja style, drop to the bottom of the pool, body dunks. She enjoyed it so much that she even fought to stay under for longer periods of time. Kiera drank a lot of water that day, but I think that she thinks it was all worth it!

Well, I guess it was just a matter of time before H1N1 reared its nasty little head at my school. H1N1 is rumored to have started in Taichung via an infected army base in the Donghai area about 3 weeks ago.