LOS ANGELES — A true winner came to Los Angeles earlier this month. He is Chinese, but he has had nothing to do with the Beijing Olympics. He is very important, though, because in his hands lie one of the keys to peace in Asia.
He cannot take credit for the hyped-up ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics. He is far more modest than its computer- generated "fireworks" and far more straight with facts than the listed ages of Chinese girl gymnasts, utterly brilliant and deserving though they were.
He is Taiwan's president. Please note that Taiwan is the China you won't hear much about during the Olympics. Beijing officially views it as a nonexistent state entity — as little more than an offshore island, separated from the mainland by about 160 km of sea, an illegal breakaway province.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.