“Taiwan is never a country” get over yourself. Get the fuck over yourself. This is why people like you disgust me. There are three main reasons why people claim that Taiwan is China. The first is that they are completely and blindly supportive of China’s imperialistic and oppressive antics. They think it’s right that they have when all it is is an obsessive, spoiled, immature attitude. The second reason is that they think, “oh well China is bigger and Taiwan is just a small island next to it so it doesn’t matter anyways.” This is the one that has the most genuine ignorance and laziness embedded in it. They hear more about China than Taiwan so they are partial to China. It’s the mere exposure effect, but it is in no way a justification for a person not versed in either country’s business to form a claim or even a feeble opinion. The third reason is that they believe Taiwan’s culture is so similar to China’s that it is China. Taiwan has major companies known around the world as Taiwanese companies and not Chinese companies, such as Asus, Acer, and HTC. Taiwan is known for its food, especially the night markets. When people talk about Taiwan’s night markets, they say “Taiwanese Night Markets” and not “Chinese Night Market” because they recognize that Taiwan is a separate entity. Taiwan is a democratic country. How can a democratic country rightfully belong to Communist China???? I can’t even understand how people spout trash about how Taiwan is China when they are so completely different. The brainwash game is real. And yes I say brainwash, because China is fucking good at doing that. The government convinces people that the MASS MURDERS they committed in Tibet didn’t even happen, or that they were insignificant. The government lied to its citizens about the country’s disastrous pollution, claiming it as fog for YEARS when they knew what was actually happening. And it lies and intimidates and oppresses like no other and if you think that for a second I will accept their claim over me as if I were an object then you’re damn wrong. And the similarities you see between Taiwan and China? They were majorly orchestrated by the Chinese government in the first place. When my mom and uncles and aunt were kids in school, they were punished for things like speaking Taiwanese with other students. It is a prime example of manipulation and suppression of Taiwanese culture and heritage. Why do you think that the Chinese government would go as far as to manipulate the children in Taiwan? It is because it needs to create a better claim on Taiwan for itself, because it knows that without manipulation Taiwan would be starkly independent and separate. It is not a natural occurrence it is a movement. It is a Movement of Oppression by the Chinese government. And saying that Taiwan belongs to China is the same saying that, because China successfully oppressed the Taiwanese on some accounts, it deserves to have a claim on Taiwan. It is akin to validating a bully’s actions because he successfully rendered his victim incapable of retaliation. When you say that Taiwan is a part of China, not only are you supporting the oppression that its people were subjected to, but also instances of oppression everywhere around the world and let me tell you it’s fucking despicable. And I am so tired of being lectured by self righteous Chinese on how I should “embrace my home country” and so tired of WHITE people telling me why THEY think a country they have no clue about belongs to the one the produces the Kung Fu movies they watch while eating takeout. This is part of what it means to be Taiwanese now. It means that at every claim to the heritage and every nationalistic statement made there will be a person that comes to insult is, invalidate us, and oppress us. And I am sick of it. I am sick of it, but I will speak out against it at every turn because though I am tired, I am angry. I will not allow people to tell me who I am. I am Taiwanese and I am proud of it, and I will not be bulldozed by ignorant, disparaging comments.