My prayers go with the people of Tainan

I just heard the news about the earthquake which struck in Tainan. I feel a special affinity for Taiwan, which is very closely connected with Silicon Valley. Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, the Philippines – and Hong Kong also – all have a special affinity with California and its people and I think we should stick closely together and support a free world.

Whenever China tries to convince people that draconian authoritarianism and lack of basic human rights is somehow necessary, I always think of the healthy, thriving democracies in Japan and especially Taiwan as examples of how dead wrong China is.