[siculars]

No, no, this is about exactly right. When the CCP comes for Taiwan, the exodus will be on a scale unseen in our generation.

It seems your family history has been blessed to not know this sort of existential crisis. For generations now, The US of America is, actually and literally, viewed as the land of salvation and opportunity for millions of people around the world. Do not pretend that it is not.

[dang]

Please do not take HN threads further into flamewar hell, and please keep personal attacks off of HN. Not cool.

https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html

[fshbbdssbbgdd]

This is something we can actually measure with polling.

750 million people worldwide wanted to migrate as of 2017: https://news.gallup.com/poll/245255/750-million-worldwide-mi...

Of those, the US is the most frequent top preferred destination, at 21% or 158 million.

Gallup also publishes a Potential Net Migration Index for each country, which finds that net 17% of Taiwan would like to leave, including 25% of the youth. This data is from 2015-2017.

[iszomer]

Times have changed. I've lived through that era where much of my childhood years were living under the impending threat of a takeover but over the years, I've come to realize that the path laid by the late Lee Teng-hui had been a noble and justified one. If it weren't for him and history, I would have continued to believe in the KMT (I no longer do).

[bllguo]

your appeal to emotion rings hollow. Did I deny that? My family viewed the US as such in the past. No longer, I can assure you. It is precisely because we have experienced life in the US and Asia that I feel that I can actually comment on this topic.

If you seriously think millions of Taiwanese think this of America I would love to see your reaction when you travel there. Ohio, the Mojave, Alaska. Insulting on a whole new level, really.

[filoleg]

> If you seriously think millions of Taiwanese think this of America I would love to see your reaction when you travel there.

Whether intentionally or not, I think you are misreading the parent comment.

They never claimed that this is how the Taiwanese population views the US now. They are claiming that this is how they are very likely to start viewing the US when/if CCP starts marching towards Taiwan. Those two statements are very different.

[bllguo]

Thanks. That's a more reasonable statement but I still stand by my main points that 1. a much, much larger contingent would stay than Americans seem to think, 2. the US is far less desirable a location now than ever, and 3. those that do come to the US will not be going to our backwaters, hell the standard of life in Taipei is arguably higher than in top American cities.

I also think violent takeover is a remote hypothetical but that's another discussion.

[filoleg]

Absolutely. Those points you are making [regarding why you don't believe that Taiwanese people will have a heavy majority that is for escaping to the US], they are valid, regardless of whether I agree with them or not. And I don't necessarily have a strong reasoning for disagreeing with them, hence why I am perfectly ok with agreeing to disagree on those. Especially since I agree with you in premise, I just disagree on the magnitude.

I fully agree with the violent takeover being a remote hypothetical though.

[Turing_Machine]

Okay, I'll bite.

Why is Alaska "insulting"?

Note: I live there, and it's awesome.

Ohio is also a perfectly fine place to live.

[bllguo]

Surely you understand that your preferences are not widely shared - that's probably part of why you like living there in the first place, no?

If you wanted to persuade a group of people to immigrate to the US, you'd mention Ohio and the Mojave desert first? Those are not "premier" locations regardless of how you or I feel about them personally.

[Turing_Machine]

> Surely you understand that your preferences are not widely shared

"Not a widely shared preference" and "insult" are two different things, entirely.

"Anchorage has the most ethnically diverse schools in the United States, including the three most diverse high schools, the three most diverse middle schools, and the 19 most diverse elementary schools. Even the least diverse schools in Anchorage rank in the top 1% nationally."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anchorage,_Alaska#Education

As for Ohio, over 11 million people like it well enough to live there. Again, it's not an "insult" to suggest that someone else might like it. Especially if their alternative is PRC.

[mcguire]

How would you respond to being asked (forced?) to move to Ohio? Or perhaps Germany?

[dang]

Please do not take HN threads further into flamewar hell. This site is not for this kind of thing, whatsoever.

https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html

[Turing_Machine]

If my alternative were to live under the PRC government?

I'd be grateful.

You?

[dang]

Please do not take HN threads further into flamewar hell. This site is not for this kind of thing, whatsoever.

https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html