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"Taiwan had an election to declare their independence from China (or not.) They chose not by a margin of 38% for independence."

Beg pardon but this is a rather simplistic and 'single issue focused' statement. The Taiwanese election was not agenda driven by 'independence' of the island from mainland China. It already is a separate and independent country. The KMT{Kuomintang) vs DPP{Mingintang) election was a signal by the island populace that they were finally tired of the lies, cronyism, corruption and failed world diplomacy of CSB - Chen Shui Bian. The election of Ma and the current KMT party is a hope for a return to actual professional people who can restore the island's infra-structure as well as gain/regain the islands presence on the world diplomatic stage.
Taiwan has seen its economy undermined by out-sourcing to the mainland of extensive amounts of manufacturing and technology under the DPP/CSB regime. It has seen competent experienced diplomatic professionals replaced by DPP cronies who could barely read & write but were skilled in vote buying and construction contract selling...to the highest bidder where they happened to get a 'hong bao'(red envelope - kickback) amounting to millions of dollars US).
Now I'm not saying that things are suddenly going to become a land of legality and courteous behavior, this is Taiwan; but the people sent a clear message that they wanted a better gov't representing their interests.
Will Ma Ying Jou and his crew do this? We'll see. But they are clearly a better group than what they replaced.
Like I said, the "Independence from the mainland" issue was not the big dog in the election. But it certainly has been given heavy lip-service by those who want it to look that way.

Oh, and the US Fleet hardly raised a ripple of attention in the local press while they were off shore. And those who did know about it were glad to know the Fleet was there.
And the 'Chinese attack rumor' is floated with regularity. Look at things with common sense - If the PRC wanted to take - over Taiwan, they would want the technological and logistical assets in place. Why blow all of them up?

My Tawainese friend told me that the general population was not ready to go to war with China, at this time...that is a fact. You may conclude that that is it simplistic, but that is the fact on the ground as my friend reports. According to my friend, there was a lot more going on than what was reported—but you sound like that you know better. You stated that this is a rather simplistic and sing issue focused statement, but I merely report what a national has told me. By the way, if war breaks out, take cover - I am not sure what the Chinese have.