Taiwan Democracy always a difficult and lonely road

Searching for archival news or documents is one of my favorite past-time, and this speech I found below is quite interesting because it spelled out the inconvenient truth

that 

U.S. Interests and Taiwan Democracy in Fundamental Conflict 

Taiwan Leaders Put U.S. and Taiwan Security at Risk for Political Gain 

according to the speech U.S.-TAIWAN RELATIONS: WHAT’S THE PROBLEM? by Richard C. Bush, The Brookings Institution, given on December 3, 2007 

About the first point: There is nothing more to say, and nothing more to add.  No one is going to help Taiwan in its quest for democracy except the people of Taiwan.

About the second point: Now that there are no elections in Taiwan in the coming 3 months plus, no accusation could be made now for any political gains by the DPP, do the U.S. now support a Taiwanese referendum?

I believe that any referendum touching the sovereignty topic will be seen as "crossing the red line" regardless of when. 

This is the irony of western countries that use referendums all the time as a way of exercising democracy in their own countries and fail to support Taiwan when it's Taiwan's turn.