Month: May 2017

Taiwan’s King of Comedy Passes Away

Chu Keliang in costume
Entertainment 
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Popular entertainer Chu Ke-liang died of liver failure at 5:00am this morning, Monday, May 15, at National Taiwan University Hospital after a long battle with colorectal cancer. He was 70 years-old. President Tsai Ingwen was among the many who sent condolences to Chu’s family. President Tsai wrote on Facebook that Taiwan had lost a generation’s King of Comedy. “We hope he will continue to bring laughter in heaven,” said Chu’s family, who released a statement around 7am. Born Hsieh Hsin-Ta

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Taiwan’s Shortest Taxi Driver Dedicated to Helping Disabled

Taiwan's shortest taxe driver
Society 
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[Cover picture: Mirror Media] Known as Taiwan’s shortest taxi driver, Cheng Jianzhi (程健智) quit his job in veterinary research to fulfill his high-school dream of driving a ‘barrier-free’ taxi. Just 123cm tall, Cheng was born with Osteogenesis imperfecta, also known as brittle bone disease. Cheng was forced to drop out of high school due to injuries, but enrolled in veterinary studies at the age of 27. After graduation Cheng worked for the Council of Agriculture. Now 44 years-old, as a

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Taipei Mayor Gaffes Again: Rape is Cheaper than Seduction

ko wenje Taipei Mayor
Politics 
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Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) apologized today after making controversial comments at a closed-door meeting with Democratic Progressive Party representatives yesterday. During a discussion of the city’s urban renewal program, Ko made an analogy comparing forced land acquisition for a set price per ping as being like rape, while offering market rates to land owners was a form of seduction. After making the analogy, he said “rape is cheaper than seduction.” The mayor’s comments were lambasted in the press, and

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Road Rage: Young Man Beats up 60 year-old

an old man is beaten up by a younger man in a road rage incident in Taipei City
Violent Crimes 
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A 60 year-old man was beaten up by a younger man after he stopped his scooter at a red light, blocking the path of a couple on a scooter behind him, on Yanping Road, Taipei City yesterday, Tuesday, May 9. The younger man, who was not named in Chinese language reports, took a knife out of his scooter’s helmet compartment and threatened the older man, named Zhai (翟) before beating Zhai with his motorcycle helmet. Mr Zhai suffered a black

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Taitung County Macaque Loses Both Arms

severely injured Formosan macaque
Animals 
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Concerned citizens have uploaded pictures of a severely injured Formosan macaque to a Facebook group in the hope of getting the attention of relevant authorities. A Facebook user surnamed Lee uploaded pictures and video taken on May 8 of a macaque in Taitung County’s Donghe township. The animal has both forelimbs missing, with exposed bone and bloody flesh. After the pictures were uploaded to the I Love Taitung Facebook group, other users also uploaded pictures of the same animal taken

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2 Dead in Single Vehicle Crash

the wreck of a taxi after it crashed at high speed on the national highway Ilan County Taiwan
Traffic Accidents 
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A taxi driver and his son are dead after the driver lost control of his car at high speed on a highway offramp in Ilan County last night. Mr Lee, 56 and his 23 year old son were returning home to Ilan from Taipei City at around midnight when the accident occurred near the Ilan Interchange on Highway 5. The taxi appears to have hit a concrete traffic separator at the top of an off-ramp before flipping and rolling. Firefighters

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Woman Falls From Third Floor and Goes Back to Sleep

woman stuck in canopy after falling from building
Odd News 
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A 51 year-old woman in Taichung fell from the third floor of a building and landed on a first floor awning. Her legs crashed through the awning, leaving her upper body resting on top. Ambulance officers found the woman bruised and unconscious, but not seriously injured. Family members told them the woman had taken sleeping pills and had been hanging a quilt on the third floor balcony when she fell. Firefighters received a report at around 5:00am that a woman

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Dog Groomed in Convenience Store Dining Area

dog being groomed in convenience store dining area
Stupid Stuff 
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Pictures of a couple grooming a dog on a convenience store dining table sparked outrage among Taiwanese netizens after they were uploaded to social media. The pictures appeared on a popular breaking news Facebook page. Although the location of the store was unspecified, it could be clearly seen that the incident occurred in a Taiwan 7-11 store. The pictures showed dog hair strewn over the table and on the floor. The pair seem oblivious to customers eating nearby.

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Two Road Construction Workers Killed in Hit and Run

scene of a hit and run accident on the national highway
Traffic Accidents 
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A newspaper delivery truck driver left the scene of an accident after hitting and killing two road construction workers on the National Highway at around 4:00am this morning, May 7. The driver returned to the scene and turned himself in about half an hour later. Mr Zhu, 58 said he had pulled over about 200 meters down the road after suspecting he had hit somebody or something. However, another road construction worker who was unaware of the accident told the

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Drunk Driver Kills Scooter Rider

BMW on its roof after accident in Tainan City
Traffic Accidents 
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Tainan: A drunk driver hit a scooter waiting to turn at an intersection in Tainan this morning, killing the 76 year old female rider instantly before crashing into trees and flipping the BMW. The 21 year-old driver surnamed Tsai was found to have a blood alcohol level of 0.71. Three passengers traveling in the car were hospitalized with minor injuries. The accident happened at 5:36am.

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Couple Dies During Car Sex

BMW in which a couple died while having sex in Chonghe District New Taipei City
Odd News 
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New Taipei City, Chonghe District. Police were called to a scene in Chonghe City after two people were noticed motionless in a car at around 6:00pm this evening. According to Apple Daily, the BMW had been parked in the spot since Sunday evening. A man and a woman were found with the lower halves of their bodies naked. Police said the woman appears to have been giving the man oral sex when she died. The couple has been described as

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