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Brahma Chellaney On Taiwan: Taiwan in the age of Trump: Navigating the perils of US unpredictability

Donald Trump’s return to the White House has offered Taiwan a paradoxical mix of reassurance and risk. Trump’s visceral hostility toward China could reinforce deterrence in the Taiwan Strait. Yet his disdain for alliances and penchant for transactional bargaining threaten to erode what Taiwan needs most: a reliable US commitment.Taiwan’s security depends less on US power than on US reliability, but Trump is undermining the latter. Deterrence without credibility is a hollow shield.Trump’s China policy in his second term has oscillated wildly between confrontation and conciliation. One day, he threatens Beijing with “massive” tariffs and calls China America’s “greatest geopolitical

Ahead of US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) meeting today on the sidelines of the APEC summit in South Korea, an op-ed published in Time magazine last week maliciously called President William Lai (賴清德) a “reckless leader,” stirring skepticism in Taiwan about the US and fueling unease over the Trump-Xi talks.In line with his frequent criticism of the democratically elected ruling Democratic Progressive Party — which has stood up to China’s hostile military maneuvers and rejected Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework — Lyle Goldstein, Asia engagement director at the US think tank Defense Priorities, called

people: 賴清德 習近平

title: EDITORIAL CARTOON


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The human cost of Xiaomi’s rapid pivot from smartphones to EVsThe wife of a Xiaomi employee is seeking recognition for her husband, who died of a heart attack when work pressure piled up after layoffs during the COVID-19 pandemic

Months before he dropped to the floor in agony while grocery shopping with his young son, Wang Peizhi (王培志) stayed up all night frantically preparing Xiaomi Corp’s flagship store for the launch of its first electric vehicle (EV).

Wang’s work had piled up after the company, led by billionaire cofounder Lei Jun (雷軍), unveiled a bold plan to become the first tech firm to successfully shift into automaking.

Lei, 55, staked his reputation on the transition, a feat even Apple Inc failed to achieve, vowing that it was his “last entrepreneurial project.”

A key part of executing that vision was Xiaomi’s retail network — Wang’s responsibility. To compete with the likes of BYD Co and Tesla Inc in China’s burgeoning EV market, the company had decided to overhaul its chain of retail outlets by converting stores designed for smartphones into showrooms to feature full-sized sedans and SUVs.

However, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Xiaomi fired about half of the staff responsible for the effort, leaving about 10 people, according to a former employee and a current staff member, both of whom worked with Wang and asked for anonymity to discuss sensitive issues.

The small team felt their workload sharply increase at the beginning of last year, when the company raced to roll out EV stores in time for the launch of its signature SU7 sedan, the people said.

Wang worked longer hours as he took on the team’s biggest projects in addition to his duties carrying out routine maintenance on the company’s web of stores, they said.

Plus, he was based in Xiaomi’s headquarters in Beijing, making him more visible to top company brass.

In the first eight months of the year, he worked on at least 267 retail stores, often retrofitting stores with an area for EVs, according to a trove of internal documents, photographs and WeChat messages reviewed by Bloomberg News.

On Aug. 25 last year, less than three days after he collapsed in front of his son, he died of a heart attack at the age of 34.

Local authorities ruled that Wang’s death was not related to his job at Xiaomi, but his widow is convinced that his punishing work schedule contributed to his death.

“He was treated just like a leaf: When it falls, people step on it without noticing its existence,” Luna Liu told Bloomberg News.

She agreed to speak publicly for the first time since his death because she thinks his case deserves more attention. She also shared thousands of her late husband’s work-related WeChat messages out of concern that Chinese companies push their employees too hard, with little regard for their health and welfare.

Xiaomi had given Wang more responsibility because he took his duties so seriously. He was in charge of some of the company’s most high-profile projects, including its flagship showroom just off Tiananmen Square. He still had dozens of other projects to manage at the same time.

Wang’s motivation for working long hours is complicated. People close to him said he felt a strong sense of obligation and would take on tasks himself because there was not anyone else who could share his duties. He also drove himself hard, keeping track of hundreds of projects and grinding for hours to make sure he delivered on what the company needed.

He was paid well by Chinese standards, bringing home about 600,000 yuan (US$84,000) a year, including stock options, according to his widow.

However, he lived under “immense mental strain” because he was caught between the demands of top company leaders and the realities on the ground, she said.

“He was sandwiched between his bosses and the stores whenever there was an issue with one of the projects,” she said.

In response to a detailed request for comment from Bloomberg News, a spokesperson for Xiaomi said: “We are deeply saddened by the unfortunate passing of our colleague and extend our deepest condolences to his family and friends. At the same time, we do our utmost to provide support and assistance to our colleague’s family under the applicable laws and regulations.”

Xiaomi is not the only company pushing its employees to work long hours. Staff across China’s tech sector complain that they spend all their time at the office. Several told Bloomberg News that overwork — defined by the WHO as more than 55 hours a week — is prevalent in many top firms.

Wang’s story offers a rare glimpse of the enormous pressure inside China’s tech companies. One reason is a renewed urgency to stay competitive in China’s increasingly crowded market, where battles for customers in sectors from EVs to e-commerce are red hot. Rivalry with the US in semiconductors and artificial intelligence (AI) has also brought the culture to some state-affiliated companies.

Excessive work culture, dubbed “996” for the expectation to be in the office from 9am to 9pm, six days a week, is deeply rooted in China’s tech sector.

A decade ago, it was driven by the belief that hard work would reap rewards as rapid economic growth created opportunities, according to Mary Gallagher, a professor of global affairs at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana.

Now, it is more about national priorities and a sense of patriotic duty as China competes in chips, AI and EVs.

“These industries that are doing so well — including on export markets — and are so important to the confidence that [Chinese President] Xi Jinping [習近平] wants to see in the economy,” said Gallagher, the author of Authoritarian Legality in China: Law, Workers, and the State.

“There’s enormous pressure in those places,” she said.

Lei’s pivot to EVs began with an initial investment of US$1.4 billion, followed by massive spending on nearly every corner of the supply chain, from batteries and chips to air suspension and sensors.

In all, it pumped more than US$1.6 billion into more than 100 suppliers from 2021 to last year, according to data compiled by Chinese analytics firm Zhangtongshe and Bloomberg.

As EV production was ramping up at the beginning of last year, company leadership also turned their attention to boosting sales. Two months before Xiaomi launched the SU7, Wang took on even more work. He was sending WeChat messages to colleagues from early in the morning to late at night, with some of them sent from his home. On one particularly long day at the end of January last year, he asked about the installation of mirrors at an outlet at about 2:30am. A few hours later, he pressed a furniture supplier to finish a project five times faster than originally quoted.

“At one point he was shouldering the workload of seven or eight people. He said he was busy like a spinning top,” Liu said. “Many times I told him: ‘Although you come back home every day, sometimes I feel I haven’t seen you for days.’”

After the Lunar New Year holiday in February last year, Wang worked at a relentless pace, exchanging hundreds of photos and messages with colleagues about the flagship showroom in Beijing, according to the collection of documents reviewed by Bloomberg.

As the location neared completion at the end of March, Wang spent all night there, toiling to fix the lighting system and charging poles in the basement. He also raced to get the floor reinforced after finding it had cracked under the weight of a car.

One evening, Xiaomi president Lu Weibing (盧偉冰) announced in a post on Chinese social media that he would make a long-awaited visit to the flagship store in Beijing the next morning. After sharing the news with a colleague, Wang worried about getting the showroom ready at short notice.

“Tomorrow decides everything,” he wrote on WeChat.

His hard work paid off: About two weeks later, Lei lauded the flagship location as “one of the most iconic among our 59 stores nationwide.”

The SU7 launch in March last year catapulted Xiaomi into China’s EV market.

Costing 215,900 yuan, it comes in below the 219,800 yuan asking price for a BYD Han L and the 235,500 yuan price tag of a Tesla Model 3. The Porsche Taycan — the vehicle to which the SU7 bears an uncanny resemblance — starts at about US$100,000.

Since the unveiling, Xiaomi’s stock has soared about 200 percent in Hong Kong, but the company still has a long way to go before it could break into the elite club of automakers. It has set a delivery target of 350,000 units this year, up from its previous goal of 300,000. By comparison, China’s top car brand, BYD Co, sold about 4.3 million EVs and hybrids last year, many overseas, while Tesla moved about 1.8 million vehicles globally.

Xiaomi has “democratized technology” and created an image that has resonated well with Chinese consumers, said Bill Russo, founder and chief executive officer of Shanghai-based advisory firm Automobility.

“Xiaomi is a known consumer brand that makes technology affordable and that’s been their value prop from the beginning for virtually every device that they manufacture,” Russo said. “Lei Jun is kind of a rock star in the perception of the Chinese consumer.”

In the past few years, China has been gripped by a national debate over the need to improve work-life balance. Social media platforms such as Weibo and Xiaohongshu have been flooded with posts — which are impossible to verify — about long working hours. The topic took on greater importance in the past few years following a series of high-profile deaths attributed to overwork, with the Chinese Communist Party voicing its support for protecting the rights of workers.

Work culture appeared to improve during the pandemic, when some tech staff were allowed to work flexible hours. The Chinese government also rolled out some efforts to improve working environments in an attempt to beat back the public outcry following a series of deaths attributed to overwork. Public officials held discussions and announced plans to improve working situations.

In 2021, Chinese authorities opened an investigation into working conditions at e-commerce company PDD Holdings Inc following the death of an employee in her early 20s. The employee collapsed while walking home with colleagues. Her death sparked a social media backlash against PDD and the relentless working schedules expected of its workers. The following year, a content moderator at Bilibili Inc, China’s largest anime streaming site, died from a brain hemorrhage.

Both companies have denied wrongdoing.

Neither PDD nor Bilibili responded to requests for comment.

China’s national labor laws cap standard working time at 44 hours per week, but employers can negotiate with trade unions and employees to extend that. Figures from the Chinese National Bureau of Statistics show that staff at Chinese companies have worked longer hours in the past few years. Last year, the average workweek totaled 49 hours with no break, up slightly from 47.9 in 2022.

Full-time employees in the US last year worked an average of 43 hours a week, according to a Gallup survey.

This year, the Chinese government released an action plan to “regulate the unwholesome work culture,” pushing provincial governments to take a greater role in preventing excessive hours.

“Local authorities are urged to better protect workers’ rights to rest and tighten supervision over employers’ behaviors of illegally lengthening employees’ working hours without permission,” the state-owned China Daily reported in March.

However, the problem has not gone away.

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd’s engineers canceled vacations and worked through this year’s Lunar New Year holiday to play catch up after DeepSeek shocked the global tech industry with its low-cost, powerful AI model in January.

PDD, locked in a price war with Alibaba and JD.com, also made some staff cancel their holiday plans during the same period.

It offered overtime bonuses to those who stayed behind to keep its Web site running, said one employee in Shanghai, who asked for anonymity to discuss their schedule.

The employee, in her mid-30s, said that she received a bonus of about 3,000 yuan after working four days during the holidays.

Alibaba and PDD did not respond to requests for comment.

Another engineer, at Shanghai-based chip equipment maker Ueascend, said that he was only able to take one day off per week since he joined the company last year.

Team calls were sometimes scheduled on the few days he had off, and when urgent projects came in, he would work from morning until 11pm for days, said the 25-year-old, who also asked for anonymity to talk about their working hours.

Staff at drone maker DJI and Apple supplier Desay Battery also claimed poor working conditions.

Bloomberg News was unable to reach Ueascend.

Desay Battery did not respond to requests for comment.

A DJI spokesperson said that its staff work an average of nine hours per day and regularly get a two-day weekend.

In April, Chinese media reported that Xiaomi was requiring employees to work at least 11.5 hours a day, with those who worked less than eight hours were told to submit a formal explanation.

Xiaomi did not respond to questions about the media reports.

A survey published last year by Chinese job hunting platform Maimai showed that Xiaomi workers averaged 11.5 hours a day, among the most in the country’s tech industry.

Staff at ByteDance Ltd. Meituan and Tencent Holdings Ltd all clocked double-digit hours, according to the survey, which did not explain its methodology.

In the US, the average workday spanned 8 hours and 44 minutes, with just 5 percent of employees working on weekends, according to data from workforce analytics company ActivTrak.

ByteDance declined to comment, while Meituan and Tencent did not respond to questions from Bloomberg News.

Wang’s long hours did not go unnoticed. He was praised by his bosses for expanding Xiaomi’s network of EV showrooms, according to his internal performance review, which covered the first half of last year.

The company credited him with rolling out new stores “at a unified standard, with high efficiency and quality,” the review said.

In the weeks leading up to his death in August last year, Wang worked on at least 80 stores, according to his WeChat messages.

Most of the sites he visited were in Beijing, but he kept a frantic schedule, criss-crossing northeastern China.

Only two team members were available to help him with a broad range of tasks that included renovation as well as supplier management and accounting, according to one of the former colleagues.

During a three-day trip at the beginning of the month that he died, he visited at least 14 Xiaomi outlets in Harbin, Changchun and Shenyang. He made his last business trip on Aug. 20 last year, visiting at least three stores in Tianjin, about 30 minutes from Beijing by train or a 1.5-hour drive.

On Aug. 22, Wang felt so weak he called in sick and went to a hospital for medical checks. While there, he received dozens of WeChat messages from staff at about five different outlets. He told a store manager in Shenyang that he was sick and someone else would visit his projects that day.

“Xiaomi’s employees are all warriors,” the manager replied, encouraging Wang to get better and including a crying facepalm emoji.

The work exchanges lasted until at least 4pm. Later that day, he took the trip with his son to a grocery store. There, his heart seized up, briefly stopping the flow of blood to his brain, and he slumped to the floor.

He was rushed to an intensive care unit by ambulance, his widow said.

Less than three days later he was dead.

Bloomberg News reviewed a copy of Wang’s death certificate that listed acute myocardial infarction — commonly known as a heart attack — as the cause of his death.

Wang was in good health at the time of his death, had no pre-existing conditions and maintained an active lifestyle, his widow said.

He underwent regular annual physical exams, but missed his appointment last year because of a scheduling conflict, she said.

He would spend his time off with his family, going on hikes in the mountains around Beijing and accompanying his son to extracurricular activities, she and a colleague said.

He regularly went on 5km runs to ease the stress of his job, another colleague said.

Wang’s widow told Xiaomi that she believed her husband had died from excessive work.

The company reported the incident to local authorities, which determined that Wang’s death was not work related.

According to Chinese guidelines, an employee is deemed to have had a work-related death only if they die within 48 hours of receiving treatment for an injury sustained on the job.

The Beijing Municipal Human Resources and Social Security Bureau did not respond to a request for comment.

Xiaomi denied any wrongdoing.

It offered the family 50,000 yuan as a hardship payment, but no funds were paid out, Liu said.

The company helped her access her husband’s investment portfolio, but later rescinded some of his stock options, she added.

Days after her husband passed away, Liu took to Sina Weibo to address Xiaomi’s boss directly.

“I hope Mr Lei can take a look at employee Wang Peizhi’s sudden death,” she wrote. “My husband contributed to the success of Xiaomi’s EVs. He was so tired because of too much pressure from work.”

Her posts gained little traction, with some people commenting that she was just seeking additional compensation from Xiaomi.

By the end of the year, she stopped using Sina Weibo.

“It’s okay if I was misunderstood or insulted, but the company still owes me an apology,” she wrote in one of her final posts.

Within Xiaomi, Wang’s death was not widely reported, two of his former colleagues said.

Zhang Jian (張建), a Xiaomi executive in charge of nationwide stores at the time, hosted an internal meeting about Wang’s death, according to the current employee.

He told colleagues that Wang had died from a heart attack and the company was talking to his family.

No changes to the team’s working hours were made.

Zhang has been promoted to head the company’s EV sales in China.

These days, the workload at the company varies by department.

On Wang’s former team, tasks usually pile up at the end of the month, the current employee said.

Another current Xiaomi employee who works on a different team in Beijing said they usually work between 50 and 60 hours per week and rarely go in on weekends.

A separate staffer on the company’s smartphone research team said they work more than 50 hours per week, including occasional hours on Saturday and Sunday.

Wang’s widow said he left his family with debts totaling about 4 million yuan, including the mortgage on their house.

His life insurance policy, provided by Xiaomi, disbursed a one-time payment of about 800,000 yuan.

At home in Beijing, she has tried to piece together the memories of her late husband by organizing his WeChat chat logs — most of which are related to his work.

However, she does not have access to a separate app he used for internal Xiaomi messages, leaving the full picture of his job responsibilities unknown.

What she is sure of is that she did not see her husband often during his final months.

“The work took all his time when he was needed as a father, as a husband,” she said, adding that Wang rarely returned home before 9pm and even then his phone kept buzzing with work messages.

“Almost every time he came back from work, our son was either already asleep or just about to go to bed,” she said.

One of the last messages Wang sent was a desperate plea for a contractor to work faster.

“What I signed up for was a life or death commitment,” Wang wrote. “Don’t leave me hanging.”


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LOCAL SUCCESS: In the doubles, Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei and Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia defeated Italians Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini in straight sets

Elena Rybakina on Monday punched her ticket to the WTA Finals last four with an impressive 3-6, 6-1, 6-0 victory over second seed Iga Swiatek in round-robin play in Riyadh.

After cruising past Amanda Anisimova in her opener on Saturday, Rybakina claimed her second win of the week to guarantee herself top spot in the Serena Williams Group.

Anisimova on Monday rallied back from a set and a break down to triumph 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 in her all-American battle with seventh seed Madison Keys, who has been eliminated from the competition.

Kazakhstan’s Elena Rybakina returns to Iga Swiatek of Poland in their WTA Finals singles match in Riyadh on Monday. Photo: Reuters

“Madi was playing so well, it was quite a battle out there,” fourth seed Anisimova said. “I’m happy I turned things around in the second set and kind of turned the frown upside down. It was an exciting match and it was nice to have a little bit of a fight out there.”

Rybakina was the last of the eight singles players to qualify for this season’s WTA Finals, and she did so by clinching the title in Ningbo, China, and reaching the semi-finals in Tokyo in the last two weeks of qualifying tournaments. She has now won each of the past eight matches she has played.

“I’ve been playing really well the last few weeks. I was improving each match and of course the results were following after,” the 2022 Wimbledon champion said. “It’s a great opportunity to play here against the top players. I’m really excited about the next matches, and hopefully I can bring the same intensity and the same game.”

Rybakina went into the clash having lost all four of her previous meetings with Swiatek this year and it looked like she might suffer a fifth straight defeat to the Pole when she dropped the opening set in 35 minutes.

However, the Kazakh sixth seed adjusted tactically, utilizing her kick serve and big forehand to maximum effect to sweep 12 of the next 13 games and complete the upset in 1 hour, 37 minutes.

“It’s always very tough to play against Iga, she brings so much intensity on the court. In the second set, I pushed myself, the serve improved, and I’m happy I stepped in and played much better,” Rybakina said. “Mentally I’m happy I stayed focused no matter if I lost the first set, I was still trying to stay aggressive.”

Swiatek will have to battle it out with Anisimova to secure second place in the Serena Williams Group and a place in the final four.

“I will have to watch and analyze, but I just think I wasn’t that solid in getting back those fast long shots, and she was more aggressive and also more solid in finishing the rally, but I will have to watch to understand fully,” Swiatek said.

Making her WTA Finals debut this week, Anisimova was down a set and 1-3 before she seized the momentum by taking the next seven games en route to victory in 1 hour, 43 minutes.

The result means Keys has no chance of advancing to the semi-finals. The Australian Open champion had not played for two months before traveling to Riyadh as she dealt with an adductor injury.

In the doubles, sixth seeds Hsieh Su-wei of Taiwan and Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia defeated Italian top seeds Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini 6-3, 6-4.

title: Rybakina advances to last four


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All three catches Marvin Harrison Jr had on Monday in the first quarter converted long third downs for the Arizona Cardinals, and that certainly helped set a tone against the Dallas Cowboys.

“Put the pads on. Showed up,” Cardinals quarterback Jacoby Brissett said, drawing laughter after being asked how Harrison created opportunities early and often. “Once he got off the bus, I knew he was going to be open. We knew we were going to get our chances outside.”

Harrison went on to a career-high seven catches for 96 yards, including a four-yarder from Brissett for the game’s first touchdown, and the Cardinals finished seven of nine on third-down conversions in the first half of a 27-17 win that ended their five-game losing streak.

Marvin Harrison Jr of the Arizona Cardinals, right, rushes against Daron Bland of the Dallas Cowboys in their NFL game in Arlington, Texas, on Monday. Photo: AFP

“I knew we’d be aggressive in the first half, especially trying to get me the ball a little bit. So obviously that was music to my ears and I was excited about that, but that was a lot of credit to the O-line, man,” Harrison said. “They did a good job of giving Jacoby enough time to make some throws, and then after Jacoby did his part as well, putting the ball where it needs to be. I’ve just got to finish the play.”

Maybe this game was a bit easier to watch for Marvin Harrison Sr, the Pro Football Hall of Fame receiver and father of the second-year Cardinals receiver who was the fourth overall pick in last year’s draft.

The elder Harrison told ESPN.com in a story posted before the game that it has been “very hard” for him to watch Arizona’s offense.

The eight-time Pro Bowl pick who had 1,102 catches and 128 touchdowns said that he “just can’t relate” to watching the current style of offenses that are so different from his 13 NFL seasons with Indianapolis from 1996 to 2008. He won a Super Bowl with the Colts at the end of the 2006 season.

“Everybody has their own opinions ... he said that’s how he feels, not how I feel,” the younger Harrison said. “I trust in all the guys. I know everyone works really hard throughout the week to be successful... I just try to do my part and be accountable on my end, do my best to help the team.”

Asked if he thought his father enjoyed watching his latest game, Harrison Jr responded: “Yeah, I think so.”

Harrison Jr has 31 catches for 492 yards and three touchdowns this season. The former Ohio State star’s previous game high for receptions was six, once this year and twice during his rookie season.

On the opening drive for the Cardinals (3-5) against Dallas (3-5-1), he had a 13-yard catch on third-and-eight, and gained 15 on a third-and-10. The first quarter ended with his 20-yard reception to convert third-and-14, on the same drive that ended with his touchdown catch that put Arizona ahead 10-0.

“How many did he have? It seemed like he converted a bunch,” Cardinals coach Jonathan Gannon said when talking about third-down conversions. “He was winning a bunch of one-on-ones out there, and Jacoby found him.”

Brissett started his third game in a row with Kyler Murray out again because of a foot injury. In the previous two games, Harrison Jr caught four of the eight passes thrown his way for 90 yards.

“This has been building for him. It’s a step in the right direction,” Brissett said. “You saw it in his eyes when he got off the bus and we’re in the locker room. Coach told me what the first couple of plays were and he was like: ‘We’re going to switch it up and we’re going to get hits to Marv.’ And I’m like: ‘All right.’”

title: Marvin Harrison Jr sets the tone in Cardinals win


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Granit Xhaka salvages a draw against Everton to lift Sunderland up to fourth

Sunderland on Monday climbed into the English Premier League’s top four after Granit Xhaka’s deflected strike salvaged a 1-1 draw at home to Everton.

The Black Cats would have moved up to second with a victory, but were outplayed in the first half and trailed to Iliman Ndiaye’s brilliant individual effort.

Everton were left to regret not making more of their first-half dominance as Thierno Barry missed a glorious chance and Jack Grealish hit the post.

Sunderland’s Granit Xhaka, right, scores against Everton in their Premier League match at the Stadium of Light in Sunderland, England, on Monday. Photo: Reuters

Sunderland took less than a minute of the second half to hit back when Xhaka’s strike flicked off James Tarkowski to beat England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford on his return to the Stadium of Light.

The home side then looked the more likely to claim all three points, but Wilson Isidor fluffed Sunderland’s best chance to snatch victory.

“The first 25 minutes was not good enough,” Xhaka told Sky Sports. “At this level you get punished, but the second half was very good.”

A point at least maintains Sunderland’s unbeaten home record and their impressive start to a first top-flight campaign in eight seasons.

Everton edge five points clear of the bottom three in 14th, but the Toffees glaring lack of a prolific No. 9 again cost them victory.

“For 20 to 30 minutes I thought I’d be disappointed going home with a point. By the end of the game, I was pleased we got a point from it,” Everton head coach David Moyes said. “We missed a big chance to make it 2-0, and because we don’t get that it gave Sunderland a bit of confidence and gave the crowd something to get behind.”

A moment of magic gave the visitors the lead on 15 minutes as Ndiaye danced his way through four Sunderland defenders before firing into the top corner for his fourth goal of the season.

Grealish then hit the post from long range, but it was Barry’s miss that will live long in the memories of the traveling support heading back to Merseyside.

The Frenchman has still yet to score since his ￡27 million (US$35 million) move from Villarreal in July and will not get a better chance than when he sliced horribly off target with the goal gaping at the back post from Grealish’s cross.

Despite a sub-par first 45 minutes, Sunderland were level within 44 seconds of the second half when Xhaka netted his first goal since joining from Bayer 04 Leverkusen.

A share of the spoils takes Sunderland above Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea, and level on points with Liverpool, but they will need to be much better to protect their unbeaten run at the Stadium of Light when leaders Arsenal visit on Saturday.


title: Morant returns as Grizzlies fall to Clippers

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Ja Morant on Monday returned from a one-game suspension for conduct detrimental to the team, scoring 18 points and adding 10 assists in the Memphis Grizzlies’ 114-106 loss to the Detroit Pistons.

In his post-game comments, Morant added little response to the friction that boiled over for him and the franchise at the weekend. Many of his answers were short and involved the theme of following the organization’s statement when the suspension was announced.

“Y’all asked that question of them, huh?” he said. “So y’all know the answer to that.”

Ja Morant of the Memphis Grizzlies, right, shoots against the Detroit Pistons in their NBA game in Memphis, Tennessee, on Monday. Photo: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

There were few details about the disagreement between the organization and its star guard. The team-imposed punishment was issued based on actions by Morant, the team’s leading scorer, in Memphis’ loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday last week. Morant served the suspension on Sunday during a loss at Toronto.

Memphis coach Tuomas Iisalo avoided details of the disagreement with Morant before Monday’s game, saying it was “an internal matter” and would not be discussed in public.

“We had a discussion, and we’re all looking to move forward and beat the Pistons,” said Iisalo, who is in his first full year as Grizzlies coach.

Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks, right, dunks against the Indiana Pacers in their NBA game in Indianapolis, Indiana, on Monday. Photo: AP

He took over on an interim basis late last season after the organization fired Taylor Jenkins.

Morant was in the Grizzlies’ locker room before the game, but ignored reporters’ questions before getting dressed for warmups and leaving without saying a word.

Morant, who had only eight points in Friday’s loss, seemed disengaged during the second half and was less aggressive throughout. Normally one of the league’s best finishers in the paint, Morant settled for jumpers, attempting almost as many three-pointers as he did shots in the lane.

Morant answered each question after that game with a variety of “go ask the coaching staff.”

At one point, he was asked what the team could do differently, replying: “According to them, probably don’t play me, honestly. That’s what basically the message was after. It’s cool.”

With Morant struggling, the Grizzlies let a 69-55 halftime lead evaporate quickly in the second half.

There was little advancement in Morant’s comments after Monday’s loss compared to Friday. He continued to refer back to the organization’s statement.

“Obviously, they can’t go and tell y’all something I ain’t said,” Morant replied to a question, later adding: “If I didn’t have a good relationship with [them], I wouldn’t talk to them at all.”

In Indianapolis, Indiana, Giannis Antetokounmpo made a 17-foot buzzer-beating jumper to give the Milwaukee Bucks a 117-115 victory over the short-handed Indiana Pacers.

Antetokounmpo had 33 points, 13 rebounds and five assists on a night he went 14 of 21 from the field.

Kyle Kuzma added 15 points to help the Bucks win for the third time in four games, taking the first of four scheduled matchups against a Central Division rival they have faced 22 times since the start of the 2023-2024 season.

This time, though, longtime Pacers center Myles Turner was dressed in a Bucks jersey after signing a free-agent deal in July. Fans serenaded him with boos all night, starting with a pregame video tribute that played even before player introductions.

Turner had nine points, seven rebounds and five blocks while connecting on three of seven shots and scoring only two points in the second half, a short, tiebreaking basket with 2 minutes, 22 seconds left.

Pascal Siakam led the Pacers with 32 points and eight assists.

Turner’s replacement, Isaiah Jackson, had 21 points and 10 rebounds. It was Jackson’s highest scoring total since a 26-point game in January 2022.

Indiana eliminated Milwaukee in the first round of the playoffs each of the past two years and this one had the same kind of feel, with the score close throughout.

It looked the Pacers might steal another one when they charged back from an 11-point deficit with 6:08 to go, finally tying it on Aaron Nesmith’s driving layup with 14.6 seconds left.

After calling a timeout, Milwaukee inbounded the ball to Antetokounmpo, who never gave it up before hitting the winner.

Elsewhere, the Timberwolves trounced the Nets 125-109, the Knicks mastered the Wizards 119-102, the Nuggets dethroned the Kings 130-124, the Jazz edged the Celtics 105-103, the Rockets downed the Mavericks 110-102, the Lakers beat the Trail Blazers 123-115 and the Heat defeated the Clippers 120-119.

Additional reporting by staff writer


title: Trump backs Cuomo in NY mayor race

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ELECTION DAY: The US president crossed party lines to support independent Andrew Cuomo, and threatened to cut federal funding to New York if Zohran Mamdani wins

US President Donald Trump on Monday endorsed former New York governor Andrew Cuomo for mayor of New York City and threatened to hold back federal funds to the city if Democratic candidate Zohran Mamdani won the mayoral election yesterday.

Trump, a Republican who has offered frequent commentary on the New York mayoral election, injected himself further into the race by crossing party lines to support Cuomo over Mamdani and the Republican candidate, Curtis Sliwa, who trails badly in public opinion polls in the heavily Democratic city. Cuomo, a longtime stalwart in the Democratic Party, is running as an independent after losing to Mamdani in the Democratic primary.

The New York City election has been closely watched nationally as one that could help shape the image of the Democratic Party as it seeks its identity in opposition to Trump. Mamdani, 34, a self-described democratic socialist who is leading Cuomo in the polls, has energized younger and more progressive voters, but he has also alarmed more moderate Democrats who fear a shift too far to the left might backfire.

Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani speaks during a campaign event in New York on Monday. Photo: AFP

Republicans have attacked Mamdani’s candidacy throughout the campaign, with Trump casting him as a communist.

“Whether you personally like Andrew Cuomo or not, you really have no choice. You must vote for him, and hope he does a fantastic job. He is capable of it, Mamdani is not!” Trump wrote on social media.

Trump said a vote for Sliwa would only help Mamdani.

“If Communist Candidate Zohran Mamdani wins the Election for Mayor of New York City, it is highly unlikely that I will be contributing Federal Funds, other than the very minimum as required, to my beloved first home,” said Trump, a native New Yorker.

The US federal government is providing US$7.4 billion to New York City in fiscal 2026, or 6.4 percent of the city’s total spending, according to a report from the New York State Comptroller.

Trump has threatened federal funding cuts throughout his second term in office over climate initiatives, transgender policies, pro-Palestinian protests against Israel’s war in Gaza, and diversity, equity and inclusion practices.

Yesterday marked the nation’s first major Election Day since Trump returned to the White House, and his leadership and policies dominated the debate in almost every race — even though he was absent from the campaign trail.

The biggest contests were in Virginia and New Jersey, the only states electing governors this year. Trump lost both last fall, but voters in each have a history of electing Republicans for statewide office. The Republican candidates have closely aligned themselves with the president, betting that his big win last year could still provide a path to victory this time, even if the party occupying the White House typically suffers in off-year elections.

Meanwhile, strong Democratic showings could provide the party a pathway back to national relevance — even if its top candidates have taken very different approaches, from adhering to a moderate line to wholeheartedly embracing government spending to improve voters’ lives.

Trump did not set foot in either Virginia or New Jersey to campaign with Republican gubernatorial candidates Winsome Earle-Sears or Jack Ciattarelli, but both contests are likely to be viewed as a referendum on his job so far.

Over the past year, his tariffs rocked the global economy, his “big, beautiful” budget bill threatened rural hospitals and health insurance coverage for millions, he enacted massive cuts to the federal workforce and he sent the National Guard to multiple US cities.

The president endorsed Ciattarelli in New Jersey’s governor’s race, but held only a pair of tele-town halls on his behalf, including one on Monday night.

Trump also did an Election Night eve tele-town hall for Virginia Republican candidates, but he did not mention Earle-Sears, speaking mostly in favor of the Republican candidate for attorney general. Earlier in the campaign, Trump gave Earle-Sears only a half-hearted endorsement, saying he supported the Republican candidate for governor though he did not use her name. Earle-Sears was nonetheless a fierce defender of Trump and his policies, just as Ciattarelli was in New Jersey.

Despite Trump’s distance, a good night for Republicans would almost certainly be viewed as a political victory for Trump and his “Make America Great Again” policies. A bad night for the Republicans would give Democrats a strong — though perhaps fleeting — start heading into midterms that are still a year away.


title: Typhoon Kalmaegi kills 26 in Philippines

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NEXT STOP: Still reeling from flooding and record rainfall that have killed 40 people, Vietnam is facing another disaster with Kalmaegi on the way

At least 26 people have been killed and hundreds of thousands displaced, as rains driven by Typhoon Kalmaegi yesterday flooded swathes of the central Philippines.

Entire towns on the island of Cebu have been inundated, while cars, trucks and even massive shipping containers could be seen swept along by muddy floodwaters in videos verified by Agence France-Presse.

In Cebu alone, 21 people were confirmed dead, Philippine Office of Civil Defense Deputy Administrator Rafaelito Alejandro said by telephone, giving the storm’s current death toll as 26.

“Based on information that we have, most of them died from drowning,” he said.

In the 24 hours before Kalmaegi’s landfall, the area around provincial capital Cebu City was deluged with 183mm of rain, well over its 131mm monthly average, state weather specialist Charmagne Varilla said.

“The situation in Cebu is really unprecedented,” Cebu Governor Pamela Baricuatro wrote on Facebook.

“We were expecting the winds to be the dangerous part, but ... the water is what’s truly putting our people at risk,” she said. “The floodwaters are just devastating.”

Local disaster official Ethel Minoza said the bodies of two children had been recovered in Cebu City, where rescuers were still attempting to reach residents trapped by floodwaters.

Deaths in other provinces included an elderly resident who drowned in an upper floor of their home in Leyte province and a man struck by a falling tree in Bohol.

Don del Rosario, 28, was among those in Cebu City who sought refuge on an upper floor as the storm raged.

“The water rose so fast,” he said. “By 4am, it was already uncontrollable — people couldn’t get out [of their houses].”

“I’ve been here for 28 years, and this is by far the worst we’ve experienced.”

Scientists warn that storms are becoming more powerful due to human-driven climate change. Warmer oceans allow typhoons to strengthen rapidly, and a warmer atmosphere holds more moisture, meaning heavier rainfall.

Hundreds still living in tent cities after a magnitude 6.9 quake rocked the island in late September were “forcibly evacuated for their own safety,” Cebu information officer Rhon Ramos said by telephone.

In total, nearly 400,000 people were pre-emptively moved from the typhoon’s path, Alejandro said at an earlier news briefing yesterday.

Late yesterday afternoon, the Philippine military confirmed that a helicopter with five personnel deployed to assist relief efforts had crashed on northern Mindanao island.

The Super Huey helicopter went down while en route to the coastal city of Butuan “in support of relief operations” related to the powerful storm, Eastern Mindanao Command said in a statement, adding that search and recovery operations were under way.

A spokesperson declined to say if there were any survivors.

The typhoon is now moving westward through the Visayan island chain, with winds of 130kph and gusts of 180kph toppling trees and downing power lines.

In related news, the death toll from a week of flooding and record rains in central Vietnam yesterday rose to 40, authorities said, as Typhoon Kalmaegi loomed.

Vietnam’s central belt has been deluged by torrential rains turning streets into canals, bursting riverbanks and inundating some of the nation’s most-visited historic sites.

Up to 1.7m fell over one 24-hour period in a downpour breaking national records.

The fatalities occurred in Hue, Da Nang, Lam Dong and Quang Tri provinces, the Vietnam Disaster Management Authority said, adding that six people remained missing.

The onslaught of extreme weather is set to continue, with Typhoon

Kalmaegi is forecast to make landfall in the early hours of Friday morning, the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting said.

It could hit Vietnam’s coast with winds of up to 166kph, as it approaches tomorrow, it said.

The region was yesterday reeling from the past week’s extreme weather, with some remote areas still isolated by road-blocking landslides.

Nearly 80,000 houses remain flooded, the disaster agency said, while more than 10,000 hectares of crops have been destroyed and more than 68,000 cattle killed.


title: Poland wants its own drone wall to fend off Russia

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Poland plans to start building a national anti-drone system within months, without waiting for the EU’s “drone wall” initiative, Polish Deputy Minister of National Defense Cezary Tomczyk said.

The ministry would announce investments this month in technology for detecting, jamming and neutralizing hostile drones, as part of a wider air-defense program, Tomczyk said.

He did not say how much the investments would be worth, but the goal is for Polish companies to secure at least half of the contracts.

Independent New York City mayoral candidate Andrew Cuomo visits a local gym while campaigning in Staten Island on Monday. Photo: Bloomberg

In September, NATO deployed fighter jets to shoot down about 20 drones that crossed into Polish territory during a massive Russian airstrike on Ukraine — the first such response since the full-scale invasion began in 2022.

The incident exposed gaps in the country’s defenses as it was forced to deploy expensive missiles against cheap uncrewed aircraft.

“We agree with the idea of strengthening the defense of the skies over the entire European Union and are willing to consider external proposals or solutions,” Tomczyk told Bloomberg News in an interview.

“But we give priority to national projects,” he said.

The EU’s drone wall can “complement” the Polish system in the future, he said.

“If there are any external tools, we will use them to the fullest,” he added.

Tomczyk said the ministry plans to use the EU’s new Security Action for Europe (SAFE) defense loan program to finance the country’s drone shield, but declined to provide details.

Given its borders with Russia, Belarus and Ukraine, Poland got the biggest initial SAFE allocation, allowing it to tap into 43.7 billion euros (US$50.38 billion) of funding.

The Polish government wants the first new capabilities to be operational within three months of the announcements, and for the whole anti-drone system to be completed in two years.

“A counter-drone weapon must be comprehensive,” Tomczyk said. “It should consist of various sensors and effectors operating simultaneously, first detecting and identifying objects, and then neutralizing them.”

The new anti-drone initiatives would become “another layer” of the country’s air defense network, next to already deployed long- and medium-range systems, he said.

All these elements are meant to protect against a wide range of aerial threats, including aircraft, helicopters, drones and cruise missiles.

In July, the Polish ministry said it would spend 200 million zloty (US$54.2 million) this year to buy combat and training drones.

Warsaw has also sped up procurement procedures for the weapons.

“The way in which both Russians and Ukrainians are using unmanned weapon systems today shows that strengthening our capabilities in this area must be a priority in all spheres of activity: in the air, on land and at sea,” Tomczyk said.


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Crackdown on Myanmar scam hub triggers fraudster recruitment rush

Recent raids on one of Myanmar’s most notorious Internet scam hubs sparked a recruitment rush as fleeing workers scrambled to enlist at nearby fraud factories, experts and insiders said.

Online scam hubs have mushroomed across Southeast Asia, draining unsuspecting victims of billions of US dollars annually in elaborate romance and crypto cons.

Many workers are trafficked into the Internet sweatshops, analysts say, but others go willingly to secure attractive salaries.

People from various countries who were working in the KK Park compound in Myanmar and crossed to Thailand via the Moei River carry their belongings after disembarking from a boat in Mae Sot District, Tak Province, on Oct. 24. Photo: AFP

Raids late last month roiled Myanmar fraud factory KK Park, sending more than 1,500 people fleeing over the border to Thailand — but many stayed behind to pursue new opportunities in the black market.

A Chinese voluntary scam worker said that a few hundred people who left KK Park arrived at his own compound 3km away on Oct. 23 — lured by monthly salaries of up to US$1,400. The man spoke on condition of anonymity for security reasons, but shared with reporters a live location on a messaging app showing he was in Myanmar, near the Thai border.

“Some people will be picked up by unscrupulous bosses, while others will be picked up by good companies,” he said. “It all depends on your luck.”

Jason Tower, senior expert at the Global Initiative against Transnational Organized Crime, said many KK Park scammers have simply been “re-recruited” by other gangs.

“There are some people looking for a new location to engage in scamming from,” he said. “They might see this as a job.”

Webs of anonymous crypto payments and chronic underreporting by embarrassed victims make losses to scam centers hard to quantify. However, victims in Southeast and East Asia alone were conned out of up to US$37 billion in 2023, according to a UN report, which said global losses were likely “much larger.”

War-torn Myanmar’s loosely governed border regions have proven particularly fertile ground for the hubs.

The embattled junta — which seized power in a 2021 coup — has been accused of turning a blind eye to scam centers enriching its domestic militia allies. However, it has also faced pressure to curb the black market by its international backer China, galled at hubs recruiting as well as targeting its citizens.

Last month, the junta said its troops had occupied about 200 buildings in KK Park and found more than 2,000 scammers.

Analysts say the raid was likely limited and heavily choreographed — designed to vent pressure to take action without too badly denting profits. But it nonetheless prompted an exodus of 1,500 people from 28 nationalities into Thailand, Thai provincial authorities said.

Among them were about 500 Indian nationals and about 200 Filipinos.

Authorities face the daunting task of discerning trafficking victims from willing scammers.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, one Filipino man described fleeing KK Park on Oct. 22 with about around 30 compatriots as a pro-junta militia arrived to aid the crackdown.

“Everyone ran outside,” he said. “This was our chance to escape.”

Grabbing what few possessions he could, the man fled the compound he says he was trafficked into and crossed by boat to western Thailand.

With one expert estimating about 20,000 people had been working in KK Park — the vast majority believed to be Chinese nationals — those who fled to Thailand likely made up less than 10 percent.

However, those who stayed behind are not necessarily willing participants.

After the KK Park exodus, the Chinese scammer at the nearby compound said that local armed groups scrambled to cash in — with unemployed scammers “sold” to other operations for up to US$70,000.

Whether they are willing workers being headhunted or human trafficking victims is unclear.

The scammer who spoke to AFP reported hearing “booms every evening” after the raids, but dismissed it as “all for show” rather than a meaningful crackdown by Burmese authorities.

And with the continuing flow of scam workers — willing or coerced — rights advocates say the problem can only be solved by targeting the Chinese bosses running the show.

“[They] must be arrested, prosecuted, and have all their assets seized,” Jay Kritiya from the Civil Society Network for Human Trafficking Victims Assistance said. “That’s the real crackdown.”


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NEPAL

Avalanche kills seven

Rescuers were yesterday digging through ice and snow on Mount Yalung Ri to recover the recover the bodies of seven climbers who were killed by an avalanche a day earlier, officials said. An avalanche pounded the base camp at 4,900m on Monday morning, but snowstorms prevented rescuers from reaching the site. Improving weather yesterday allowed a helicopter to reach the base camp and rescuers were able to begin shifting through the snow and ice. Dolkha District Police Chief Gyan Kumar Mahato said four climbers who were injured in the avalanche were rescued by the helicopter and flown to the capital, Kathmandu ,for treatment. Among those killed were two Nepalese mountain guides, but the identity of the remaining five was still unclear. At least three bodies were pulled out of the snow by yesterday afternoon, he said.

NORTH KOREA

Ex-ceremonial head dies

Kim Yong-nam, the former head of the rubber-stamp parliament who served as nominal head of state for more than 20 years, has died, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported yesterday. He was 97. From 1998 to 2019, Kim served as president of the presidium of the Supreme People’s Assembly, a post that gave him a symbolic role as head of state. However, the real decisionmaking power lay with leaders Kim Jong-il — who died in 2011 — and his son Kim Jong-un. Kim Yong-nam died from multiple organ failure, KCNA said. Kim Jong-un visited his bier “to express deep condolences over his death,” KCNA said.

INDIA

Voter overhaul launched

The government yesterday launched a revision of its voter rolls, expanding a contentious exercise that activists said could fuel disenfranchisement in the nation. The three-month voter registration overhaul, known as the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), began in 12 states and territories, many of which are slated to hold local elections next year. Tens of thousands of election officials and nearly half a million volunteers are to go door-to-door to help residents complete voter enumeration forms. Officials “will help the elector fill the enumeration form, collect it and submit it,” Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar told reporters while announcing the exercise. The final electoral roll is expected to be released on Feb. 7 next year.

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

Americas summit postponed

A meeting called the Summit of the Americas has been postponed because of tension in the region, the host nation said on Monday amid US military deployment in the Caribbean. Originally due to take place next month, the gathering has been delayed until next year after consultations with nations that had been invited to attend, including the US, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. “We fully support the decision to postpone the summit and will continue to work together with the Dominican Republic, and other countries in the region, to plan a productive event in 2026 that will be focused on strengthening partnerships and enhancing security for our citizens,” US Secretary of State Marco Rubio wrote in a social media post. Many countries in the Americas are furious over the US deployment off Venezuela’s coast, including attacks on what Washington calls drug-smuggling boats. The Dominican statement said “deep differences make it hard to hold a productive summit in the Americas now.” It also cited damage that Hurricane Melissa caused to some countries due to attend the summit, such as Jamaica.

title: World News Quick Take


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Although somewhat of a mixed bag, the exhibition at TFAM presents elements of beauty, curiosity and weird obsessions that are fun, and even occasionally illuminating

Since the 1990s, biennials of contemporary art have proliferated around the world like Starbucks. They are a sort of global franchise, but based on an adaptive model and ostensibly without central control. Host cities and museums in places like Taipei or Gwangju or Sharjah see them as necessary for participating in a sort of international order of the artworld. But that order is still dominated by Western metropoles like Berlin, New York and London. So the question remains, how local can and should biennials be?

This debate in the early years of the Taipei Biennial focused on the nationality of curators as a measure of Taiwan’s agency. From the first international Taipei Biennial of 1998, most Taipei Biennial curators have come from major Western institutions. From 2000, a system emerged in which Taiwanese co-curators were paired with more famous Western counterparts.

The practical issue was artworld power, which both grants access to the world’s top art talent and draws the attention of international journals and critics. Taiwan has so far lacked sufficient curatorial starpower, and in recent years, as the Taipei Biennial has matured, the debate over national agency has become less urgent. The Taipei Fine Arts Museum (TFAM) and the local arts community has perhaps correctly become more concerned with finding curators that can simply mount an exhibition that can walk the tightrope of being “good” for both local audiences and international experts.

For the 14th Taipei Biennial, which opened last Saturday at TFAM, the curators are Sam Bardaouil and Till Fellrath, co-directors of the Hamburger Bahnhof — National Gallery of Contemporary Art in Berlin.

HORIZONTAL/VERTICAL

They chose to create an exhibition that, as Bardaouil described at last Friday’s opening, is not only a horizontal selection of contemporary artists from different geographies, but also a vertical selection that reaches back into TFAM’s collection to produce a dialogue with Taiwan’s art history.

In the curator’s statement, the duo describe an intention to evoke “Taiwan’s layered history — marked by colonial rule, shifting identities and political transformation.”

As one meanders through the galleries, archive works are constantly popping up like Facebook memories, historical snapshots that trace Taiwan’s evolution into modernity. The arc goes from the Japanese colonial era to the new “Chinese identity” imposed by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) government after 1949 and then on to the gradual emergence of “Taiwanese identity” since the 1980s.

In all, the biennial features 150 works by 72 artists from 37 cities. More than a third of these artists are Taiwanese, and at least 20 can be considered as “historical artists” represented by pieces from the museum’s archive.

The other artists in the exhibition are international — from France, Thailand, Korea, Saudi Arabia, China and many other places, though many of these are now concentrated in major Western artworld centers.

Interestingly, artists are listed by city rather than by country. One supposes it’s an attempt to subvert ideas of national identity and nationalism, but it also reveals how living artists have seen their identities shift with historical eras. The catalog notes that artist Anna Jermolaewa was born in Leningrad, a city now known as St Petersburg. Chen Chih-chi (陳植棋) was born in 1906 in “Taihoku Cho,” the Japanese colonial era name for New Taipei City.

Though subtle, there is a clear intention here. In our current historical moment, when politics weighs so heavily on everything, Bardaouil and Fellrath have made an unexpected and refreshing decision to eschew the politics of the moment or any sort of ponderous philosophical arguments.

title: Taipei Biennial: one for the viewer


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Anthony Hopkins on alcoholism, anger, Academy Awards — and 50 years of sobriety As the actor approaches his 90th year and publishes an autobiography, he reflects on his early years on stage, being inspired by Laurence Olivier, becoming a Hollywood star and conquering his demons

“What’s the weather like over there?” asks Anthony Hopkins as soon as our video call begins. He may have lived in California for decades but some Welshness remains, in his distinctive, mellifluous voice — perhaps a little hoarser than it once was — and his preoccupation with the climate. It’s a dark evening in London but a bright, sunny morning in Los Angeles, and Hopkins is equally bright in demeanor and attire, sporting a turquoise and green shirt.

“I came here 50 years ago. Somebody said: ‘Are you selling out?’ I said: ‘No, I just like the climate and to get a suntan.’ But I like Los Angeles. I’ve had a great life here.”

It hasn’t been all that great recently, actually. In January this year, Hopkins’ house in Pacific Palisades was destroyed by the wildfires.

“It was a bit of a calamity,” he says, with almost cheerful understatement. “We’re thankful that no one was hurt, and we got our cats and our little family into the clear.”

He wasn’t there at the time; he and his wife, Stella, were in Saudi Arabia, where he was hosting a concert of his own music played by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. They’re now in a rented house in the nearby neighborhood of Brentwood.

“We lost everything, but you think: ‘Oh well, at least we are alive.’ I feel sorry for the thousands of people who have been really affected. People who were way past retirement age, and had worked hard over the years and now … nothing.”

Hopkins will be 88 next month, but clearly doesn’t consider himself past retirement age. As a two-time Oscar-winner, a knight of the realm, a fixture of pop culture and one of the most revered actors alive, he has an embarrassment of laurels to rest on, but there’s still plenty on his schedule. He’s just finished a movie with Guy Ritchie, for whom he has a newfound admiration — “He’s precise in what he wants to see” — and he’s coming back to Britain soon, he says, to make a new movie with Richard Eyre (The Housekeeper, about Daphne du Maurier), then another one in Wales.

Nor is he too old to move with the times. On a recent Instagram video, he put on one of Kim Kardashian’s much-ridiculed Skims face wraps and channeled Hannibal Lecter.

“Hello, Kim. I’m already feeling 10 years younger,” he announces to the camera, followed by Lecter’s trademark sinister lisping-slurping action.

“Fun, wasn’t it?” he says, laughing.

Kardashian told him she thought it was hilarious, he says.

But recently Hopkins has also been looking back, too — at his whole life. His new memoir, We Did OK, Kid, is far from your stereotypical luvvie memoir, partly because Hopkins is far from your typical luvvie — even if he does cross paths with past greats such as Laurence Olivier, Peter O’Toole, Katharine Hepburn and Richard Burton — but mainly because he’s surprisingly upfront about his often troubled early life. When he describes his childhood in the Welsh town of Port Talbot, the only son of a family of bakers, it feels like a different planet.

“My father had that attitude: stop whining, stop complaining, you don’t know what you’re talking about, stand up straight, get on with it!”

His father was also prone to depression and anxiety, Hopkins says. It was wartime and postwar Britain; life was just like that.

By his own account, the young Hopkins comes across as a bit of a loner and an oddball. He had few friends, was frequently bullied and wouldn’t even go to his own birthday parties. He showed so little promise at school, one teacher told him he was “a brainless carthorse.”

“I was living in my imagination, my dream world, I suppose,” he says. “I couldn’t understand anything intellectually or academically and that drove me into a kind of loneliness and resentment.”

He retreated behind a mask of insolence, “a tough stance and a cold remoteness,” and that became his identity. Perhaps, in a way, he was already acting?

“Yes, yes, I think I was,” he says. “The only way I could protect myself was, if I got a slap across the head from a school teacher, I’d stare them out and I’d defy them. I wouldn’t react at all.”

You can almost picture a young Hannibal Lecter doing the same.

His despairing parents had all but written him off, but he told them: “One day, I’ll show you,” he says. “I discovered that I had one small gift: I could remember things.”

He was an avid reader, and easily retained facts, figures, whole poems and speeches from plays.

An early epiphany in terms of acting was seeing Olivier’s film adaptation of Hamlet at school in 1949, when he was 12.

“I was shocked by my reaction,” he says. “I don’t know what it was about that, but it made such a punch in my head, hearing Shakespeare for the first time.”

He started memorizing speeches from Hamlet and Julius Caesar. His parents were amazed. (Decades later, his father, on his deathbed, asked Hopkins to recite Hamlet for him.)

Hopkins even goes as far as wondering if he has Asperger’s or some other form of autism. As well as his memory, he details behavior such as repeating words obsessively and a “lack of emotionality.” He has never sought a professional assessment.

“My wife, Stella, she diagnosed me. She said: ‘Well, you’re obsessive. Everything has to be laid out perfectly.’ I have to have everything arranged. So that’s a little twist in the brain, I suppose. But I’m quite happy with whatever inner disturbance I have.”

Hopkins’ memory is the foundation of his acting, he says. He reads his scripts 100 or 200 times, so every line is etched into his memory before he turns up on set. It started as a protection mechanism when he was a young actor, but it’s become his technique.

“That was my gift, really: to know the part so well that I had no fear. Once you know the script, you have a relaxation to go on stage in rehearsal, so you can hear the other person. The art of acting, I think, is to be able to listen.”

In 1964, 15 years after being transfixed by Olivier’s Hamlet, Hopkins found himself auditioning in front of the man himself to join London’s National Theater (cheekily, he did Othello, a role Olivier had recently made his own, albeit in blackface). He considers Olivier his mentor.

“He gave me this huge break in my life. He seemed to admire my physical strength, because I had that in me, and I had this sense of Welsh danger, you know, quick-tempered.”

He didn’t really get along with the English middle-class chumminess of the British theater-world, though — the “kissy-smoochy-darling stuff,” as he puts it. “I’ve never felt comfortable with that.”

One area where he did find common ground — far too much of it — was alcohol.

“Drinking was a family tradition,” he says.

It was a theater tradition, too. This was the era of “angry young men” epitomized by John Osborne’s Look Back in Anger (Hopkins had been riveted seeing Peter O’Toole’s version in 1957), and of legendary, hard-drinking “hell-raisers” like O’Toole, Oliver Reed, Richard Burton and Richard Harris. Did he fit that description?

“Yes, yes, I did. I would not be trusted, and I would have fights and quarrel with, especially, directors. Looking back, it’s all paranoia. They were trying to do their job; I was trying to do mine, but I couldn’t take any … it wasn’t criticism, I couldn’t take any authoritative bullying. So I’d lash out.”

He would often get into physical fights in pubs, too.

The week before Hopkins’ first marriage, to fellow actor Petronella Barker in 1966, he impulsively quit the National because of one such director, declaring he was giving up acting. He recalls his colleagues getting sloshed at the wedding reception then heading off to perform in the afternoon matinee. He used to do the same.

“Oh yeah, it was terrible. You used to be on stage and not know where you were or why you were there, adding 10 minutes to the play.”

It was just the done thing, he says.

“Yeah, we are rebels. We can fight. Who cares about the establishment? When you’re growing up, it’s healthy to want to punch out and be rebellious and survive. And it was a bit of fun, I thought. But I remember thinking one day: ‘Yeah, and it’s going to kill you as well.’”

It certainly took many of his contemporaries. By the mid-70s, even as his career was going places, Hopkins’ drinking and heavy smoking were taking a toll on his health — and his relationships. In 1969, after two years of marriage marked by rows, depression and a lot of whiskey, he walked out on Barker and their one-year-old daughter, Abigail. He describes it as “the saddest fact of my life, and my greatest regret, and yet I feel absolutely sure that it would have been much worse for everyone if I’d stayed.”

He and Barker divorced in 1972.

The real wake-up call came in December 1975, in LA. He woke up one morning to find his car missing, and called his agent to tell him.

“Nobody stole it,” his agent replied. “We found you on the road.”

Hopkins had driven all night from Arizona to Beverly Hills, about 500 miles, blackout drunk.

“I was insane, I was nuts, I couldn’t remember half the journey,” he says. “And that’s a deadly way to live, because I didn’t care about myself. I could have taken out an entire family … I knew I needed help, I knew it was over.”

The way he narrates it, a literal voice in his head asked him if he wanted to live or die. He replied: “‘I want to live,’ and the voice said, ‘It’s all over now. You can start living.’”

He went straight to Alcoholics Anonymous. Afterwards, “I got out on the street, 11am, Dec. 29, 1975, and everything looked different. Everything seemed sunnier, everything seemed more … benign. No threat in the air.”

He doesn’t go as far as to claim it was God that spoke to him, but it was “a moment of clarity,” he says, “from deep inside here [he points to his head] or here [he points to his heart].”

He has never craved a drink since.

“We all have that power within us, and we choose our lives and navigate through that kind of … inspiration, I suppose it is.”

By this stage Hopkins was living and working more and more in the US, and in cinema.

“I just wanted some sunshine, and I didn’t want to be standing around in wrinkled tights holding a spear for the rest of my life,” he jokes.

It was his hero O’Toole who had first coaxed him on to a movie set, in 1968. He knocked on Hopkins’ dressing room door at the National one day and said, “I want you to do a test for me,” Hopkins says. “He’d had a few jars, and we went to the pub afterwards.”

The screen test was for the historical drama The Lion in Winter, starring O’Toole and Katharine Hepburn. As Richard the Lionheart, Hopkins looked and felt at home on screen.

“I think that anger in me, or whatever it was, it gave me a strong presence. And I was cunning. I could listen to advice. Hepburn said to me: ‘You don’t actually need to act. You’ve got a good head, you’ve got good shoulders. Just speak the lines.’”

By the 1980s he was building a solid, steady career as a character actor — all of which went out of the window, or at least up to a higher floor, with The Silence of the Lambs in 1991. Director Jonathan Demme had seen Hopkins in David Lynch’s The Elephant Man, playing a kindly Victorian doctor, and somehow thought he’d be perfect for the part of Hannibal Lecter — the psychiatrist turned cannibal serial killer. When his agent told him the title, Hopkins asked: “Is it a children’s film?”

Hearing him talk about his most famous role, it’s clear how much Hopkins brought to the part himself. He instinctively knew how to play Lecter, he says — not as a monster but as the opposite: serene, precise, unblinking, “at once remote and awake.” Elements that went into the character, he’s said, included Hal from Kubrick’s 2001, Bela Lugosi’s Dracula, Katharine Hepburn and his old drama teacher at Rada, plus a soupcon of camp. The result was a character like no other; a new horror archetype, even.

“I went to Pittsburgh for the initial wardrobe-fitting,” he says. “They wanted me to be in an orange jumpsuit. I said: ‘No, I want a slimline green suit. Lecter can employ anyone to make it, because he’s so smart, and he’ll kill if you don’t obey his orders.’”

He thought hard about his first scene with Jodie Foster, when she visits his prison cell to ask for his help.

“I remember Jonathan Demme saying: ‘How do you want to be discovered when Jodie first sees you? Would you be lying down or reading a book?’ I said: ‘No, standing.’ He said: ‘OK. Why?’ I said: ‘I can smell her coming down the corridor.’ He said: ‘You’re weird.’”

Foster was also weirded out by him. She later admitted she avoided him as much as she could on set. On the last day of the shoot they had lunch together. Foster told him she was scared of him.

“I was scared of you, too!” he replied.

Such was the cultural reach of The Silence of the Lambs that on Oscars night 1992, host Billy Crystal was wheeled on to the stage strapped to a gurney in a Lecter mask. Hopkins still didn’t believe he’d win best actor (the movie won five Oscars that night, including his award). In his mid-50s, he was suddenly in the A-league and in demand, with some of his best (and certainly his most lucrative) work ahead of him. He seems to have thrown himself into it — big-budget epics, broad action thrillers, horror sequels (he played Lecter twice more) and period dramas, plus the occasional paycheck role (Transformers: The Last Knight, say).

He has played a whole gallery of great men: Richard Nixon, Alfred Hitchcock, Pope Benedict, Sigmund Freud, Charles Dickens, Pablo Picasso, King Herod, King Lear, Methuselah, not to mention the Norse god Odin in Marvel’s Thor movies.

But he is perhaps at his best playing the less-great ones. His outstanding turn as a repressed butler in Merchant Ivory’s The Remains of the Day, for example, who is tragically incapable of connecting with those around him, especially the housekeeper played by Emma Thompson. It’s another meticulously controlled character in the Lecter vein, which surely says something about the British class system.

“James Ivory is one of those special directors,” says Hopkins, “because he lets you figure it out. He doesn’t direct but he’s got an artist’s eye. He knows about design. Everything was so perfectly arranged, you didn’t have to act.”

It was as another relative nobody that Hopkins won his second Oscar in 2021, as an old man untethered from reality by dementia, in Florian Zeller’s The Father. The awards ceremony was one of the most awkward in history. As well as being delayed and curtailed by the COVID pandemic, the event was overshadowed by the recent death of Chadwick Boseman, who it was assumed was such a shoo-in for best actor that this was made the final award of the night rather than the traditional best picture. To everyone’s surprise, the Oscar went to Hopkins instead.

Hopkins wasn’t there to pick up the award. He wasn’t even watching. “I was asleep!” he says. “I certainly did not expect it. God, where was I? I was in England, yes.”

He was about to start shooting a film the next morning.

“And so I didn’t show up and went to bed. Four o’clock in the morning, my agent’s voice: ‘You got the Oscar!’ I said: ‘What?’ It was a wonderful surprise, but the film itself was one of the easiest. I thought: ‘Well, I don’t have to act old. I am old.’”

Despite having been a Hollywood fixture for so long, and a latter-day Instagram star, Hopkins is not at all interested in celebrity.

“I’ve never been one for the glamour side, the red carpet. I go along if I have to do one of those premiere things, and they’re pleasant and friendly and they’re OK, but I’d rather be at home playing the piano or reading a book,” he says. “It’s a necessary part of my professional life, to do publicity, but I don’t crave it.”

His social circle is small: a few close friends, and his third wife and her family. He met Stella Arroyave in 2000, when she was running an antiques shop in Pacific Palisades, and they married in 2003.

“She broke me wide open, helped me overcome the old feelings of regret and anxiety in a way that’s set me free,” he writes of her in his book.

Even talking now, about his life, there’s the distinct impression that this is not Hopkins’ comfort zone. He is cordial but guarded, happier to offer an anecdote than an opinion. There are areas of his life he’s not keen to discuss: his daughter, for example, from whom he remains estranged. (He doesn’t dwell on it. “If you want to waste your life being in resentment … fine, go ahead. That’s not in my camp,” he said in a recent interview.)

There’s also a line in his memoir about his second marriage, of nearly 30 years, to Jennifer Lynton, where he says: “It was only years later that she knew about my infidelities,” but he does not expand any further on that. He first met Lynton in 1969 when she was a production assistant — she picked him up from Heathrow after he’d missed a flight because of his drinking — and they married in 1973. She saw him through the worst of his alcoholism, he says, but she always preferred London to LA, and they drifted apart.

“She deserved better than me,” he writes, regretfully.

He is also reluctant to comment directly on politics or current affairs (he became an American citizen in 2000), although he sometimes does so obliquely, through the prism of one of his roles. When I ask about his repeated mentions in the book to having “a monster inside me,” for example, he references Nicholas Winton, the real-life hero he portrayed in 2023’s One Life, who rescued more than 600 children from the Nazis in eastern Europe and brought them to Britain.

“His only belief was, we must learn to be flexible, learn to be reasonable, learn to listen to the other guy, even if you don’t agree,” says Hopkins. “And stop being certain. Once you have certainty, no one can get into you. That’s deadly. That causes horrific problems in the world, once you think you’ve got the answer and nobody else. We’re living in it today: you’re wrong, I’m right; if you differ from me, I’ll have you killed or I’ll have you canceled or unfollowed. I mean, what are we talking about? It’s rubbish. Changing the language to suit our own preconceived bigotry because somebody doesn’t agree with us, politically or philosophically or racially. What are we doing? We’re human beings, fragile animals.”

There is nothing studied or strategic about Hopkins’ reticence, though. That’s just the way he is, and doubtless always has been. When he mentions the photograph of himself, aged four, on the back cover of his book, he says: “I still feel like that young kid.” At that age he was “too young to comprehend any meaning in existence,” he writes. So, as he approaches his 10th decade, has Hopkins come to any conclusions?

“No. I know nothing,” he says, laughing. “I don’t think we know anything. I look around and I think: ‘How did I get this far?’ I have no idea how my particular life has moved from when I was in Port Talbot, a little boy lost, to here. It’s beyond my comprehension. And I mean this deeply.”

He does, however, invoke that desire he had within him from a young age: to succeed, to show his parents and the world that he wasn’t “a complete dummy.”

“I try to tell this to younger people, if they want to listen to me: really begin to believe that you have a power inside. You can do almost anything. Just tap into that trigger moment that will push you forward. Never give in. If you fall down, get up again. Don’t feel sorry for stuff, never be a victim and just get on with it. It’s a tough philosophy, but I think some of my younger friends have taken that advice.”

Does he still have that desire to show the world?

“Yes, I go on working,” he says. “They offer me work, and I do it and I enjoy it. I go over my script over and over and over, so that by the time I get there, I know it all, and that inspires confidence in people around you. You better show up and know your stuff, because otherwise you get left behind. I suppose the message is, live life as if this is your last day.”

That’s exactly what he’s doing. “Now, at my age, I’ve accepted everything. I have no guarantees. I wake up in the morning, I say: ‘I’m still here. I’m strong, I’m fit, and a lot of my friends have gone.’ I look at my life and I think: Oh God, I’m so — and I mean this, really — I’m so lucky. I was gonna use the expletive, but I won’t.”

It’s the Guardian, I say, you’re allowed to swear.

“Fucking lucky!” he says.


title: 國軍「頭重腳輕」危機浮現　內部士氣亮紅燈

content_text:
我們想讓你知道…國軍要能真正「強化國防」，不只是晉升將官或調整編制，更該回到核心問題基層士氣。當基層願意留下、士官能領導、官兵敢發聲，這支軍隊才配得上「保家衛國」的信任。

▲基層軍士官每天繁冗的業務、續亂的訓練、政令一日三改讓許多人心生疲勞感，長期下來，軍中形成惡性循環：基層退伍潮越演越烈，留下的士官疲於奔命，部隊任務卻絲毫不減，士氣與效能同步下滑。（示意圖／國防部發言人粉絲專頁）

●何翊瑞／教官、 中正大學戰略暨國際事務研究生

近年國軍將官晉任異動頻仍，儘管國防部對外表示「為強化國防體質、確保指揮效能」，但實際情況卻反映出一個難以忽視的現象——國軍正在陷入「頭重腳輕」的結構性危機。

在組織金字塔頂端，將校人數節節攀升；然而，最貼近戰場的基層尉級軍官與士兵卻呈現長期短缺。根據多名現役官兵私下透露，部隊內出現了「上多下少」、「士官比兵還多」的反常現象，基層戰力空洞化，已成國防現實隱憂。

士官「拔苗助長」現象普遍 戰訓斷層惡性循環

為了填補士官編制，部隊普遍以「內升」替代正規訓練，讓部分未經完整士官培訓的人員火速晉任。這些「臨時士官」上任後缺乏戰術與管理能力，不僅無法承擔帶兵重任，更因壓力與責任失衡而紛紛報退。

基層軍士官每天繁冗的業務、續亂的訓練、政令一日三改讓許多人心生疲勞感，長期下來，軍中形成惡性循環：基層退伍潮越演越烈，留下的士官疲於奔命，部隊任務卻絲毫不減，士氣與效能同步下滑。

「敢言者」成標靶 基層反映無門、退伍意願濃厚

雖然國軍內部設有多條申訴與輔導管道，但多數官兵卻坦言「越反映越難過」。目前許多再入營士官表示：只要一反映部隊問題，就被貼上標籤，連同袍都開始疏遠你。上級的輕描淡寫處理態度，最終導致變成誰都不敢講。

這種「沉默文化」讓許多問題長期被掩蓋。從生活困境、人事評比、甚至到霸凌事件，往往在層層上報的過程中被模糊處理。國軍內部的透明化與問責機制仍有明顯落差，也使年輕官兵對軍中體制產生深層不信任。

後備旅 戰力混亂

除現役體系外，後備戰力的混亂同樣備受國際關注。美方多次關切台灣後備旅整編進度，卻發現實際狀況遠不如預期。

有退伍超過五年的人員被強制編入後備旅，與現役或不同軍種編處同一單位，讓部隊內部訓練標準、思想背景、指揮習慣各異，導致部隊內部矛盾重重。

許多基層幹部憂心指出，若戰時動員後備部隊，這種「臨時拼湊式」的指揮鏈恐將讓政令難以貫徹，成為國防戰力最大漏洞。

結語

國軍要能真正「強化國防」，不只是晉升將官或調整編制，更該回到核心問題基層士氣。

當基層願意留下、士官能領導、官兵敢發聲，這支軍隊才配得上「保家衛國」的信任。

▼在組織金字塔頂端，將校人數節節攀升；然而，最貼近戰場的基層尉級軍官與士兵卻呈現長期短缺。根據多名現役官兵私下透露，部隊內出現了「上多下少」、「士官比兵還多」的反常現象，基層戰力空洞化，已成國防現實隱憂。（圖／資料照）

►思想可以無限大－喜歡這篇文章？ 歡迎加入「雲論粉絲團」看更多！

●以上言論不代表本網立場。歡迎投書《》讓優質好文被更多人看見，請寄editor88@ettoday.net或點此投稿，本網保有文字刪修權。


title: 原子小金剛飛上錶盤　17萬聯名錶全球限量178只

countries: 瑞士 日本

content_text:
▲Louis Erard 與原子小金剛聯名腕錶限量178只，176,800元。（圖／Louis Erard提供，以下同）

記者陳雅韻／台北報導

瑞士腕錶品牌Louis Erard 宣布與日本經典動漫角色原子小金剛（Astro Boy）展開前所未有的聯名合作，推出全球限量178只的2340系列特別版腕錶，面盤設計靈感取材自手塚治虫原作插畫，以多層結構呈現原子小金剛高速飛翔的標誌性姿態，背景描繪未來都市Metro City，細膩的垂直髮絲紋營造深邃光影效果，並暗藏反派角色身影，象徵正邪對比的永恆主題，勾起動漫迷的童年回憶。

▲Louis Erard 與原子小金剛聯名腕錶正反面都有原子小金剛圖案。

與原子小金剛聯名錶款是Louis Erard首款一體式鍊帶運動腕錶，鈦金屬錶殼經拉絲處理，搭配拋光不鏽鋼錶圈與錶耳，厚度僅 8.95 毫米，錶帶也以雙材質打造，搭配立體層疊方式浮雕面盤呈現的原子小金剛，錶背也有他的動感身影，致敬原作世界觀與原子小金剛守護的人性理想。

▲Louis Erard 與原子小金剛聯名腕錶的指針與時標具夜光顯示。

Oris則與全球鐘錶收藏社群RedBar合作推出限量250只的聯名錶，以1965年復刻Divers腕錶為設計藍本，搭配煙燻紅色漸層色面盤，因為紅色正是RedBar的代表色，象徵雙方的緊密友誼，隨錶附黑色橡膠錶帶與不鏽鋼鍊帶，讓佩戴者能輕鬆轉換風格。

▲Oris與全球鐘錶收藏社群RedBar合作推出限量250只的聯名錶，91,800元。（圖／Oris提供）


title: 快訊／美股3大指數開盤齊跌！道瓊下殺破400點　台積電ADR跌1.72％

companies: 台積電 蘋果

content_text:
▲美股4日開盤三大指數齊跌，台積電ADR也下挫1.72%。（圖／路透）

記者趙蔡州／綜合報導

華爾街各大頂級的投資銀行高管近日齊發出警告，儘管企業盈利強勁，但目前美股的估值過高，未來12至24個月內恐出現10%回檔，引發投資人擔憂。美股4日開盤後，美股三大指數全部開低，道瓊指數下跌419.52點、那斯達克指數下跌374點。

截至台灣時間4日晚間10點40分，美股道瓊指數下跌419.52點，或0.89%，報46917.16點。那斯達克指數下跌374.66點，或1.57%，報23460.06點。S&P 500指數上漲80.45點，或1.17%，報6771.52點。

大型科技股則多數都走跌，蘋果（AAPL）上漲0.1%，報269.10美元；谷歌（GOOG）下跌1.47%，報279.95美元；Meta（META）跌0.61%，報633.80美元；亞馬遜（AMZN）跌0.44%，報252.88美元；微軟（MSFT）跌1.10%，報511.33美元，台積電ADR（TSM）跌1.72%，報299.60美元。


title: 直播主玩盜版嗆任天堂「我頻道超多」！踢鐵板遭判罰50萬

content_text:
記者楊智仁／綜合報導

任天堂 Nintendo 再度對盜版遊戲實況開鍘。美國科羅拉多地方法院日前裁定，一名為「EveryGameGuru」的實況主因涉嫌多次非法直播未發售的任天堂遊戲，需向任天堂支付 17,500 美元（約新台幣 56 萬元）罰金。

根據外媒報導，這起訴訟起於 2024 年，任天堂指控「EveryGameGuru」在過去兩年間利用模擬器放送盜版 ROM，直播超過 50 場遊戲內容，其中至少 10 款為未正式發售的新作。面對任天堂的警告該實況主不但未收斂，甚至在社群媒體上表示自己擁有「上千個備用頻道」可無限次繼續開播，甚至挑釁「我可以玩這遊戲一整天。」

案件審理期間，被告多次逃避法院傳票、拒收郵件並疑似銷毀證據，最終法院批准任天堂提出的「缺席判決」請求，依公司建議金額裁定罰款 17,500 美元，由於被告未出庭抗辯判決自動生效，其實任天堂原本可以要求更高金額的 10 萬美元，但最終他們並沒有這麼做。


title: 私生飯尾隨Faker「飯店蹲點偷拍」 T1嚴厲斥責：請給選手休息空間

content_text:
記者蘇晟彥／台北報導

《英雄聯盟》S15世界賽將在成都舉辦，但作為地主隊的LPL賽區已全數倒地，將在9日上演KT、T1的電信大戰。但近日卻傳出私生飯闖入飯店，偷拍Faker運動並將照片流傳，讓T1在官方微博嚴厲斥責「請勿再選手飯店私密空間蹲守、尾隨，並發布嚴重侵犯選手安寧等」，讓不少粉絲氣炸直罵，「拜託不要丟臉好嗎！」

距離《英雄聯盟》世界賽總決賽不到5天，T1創造歷史成為連續四年都闖入總決賽的隊伍，將與KT上演電信大戰，最終冠軍必定從LCK賽區中誕生。但未料，近日就傳出有私生飯入侵到T1下榻的飯店，更拍下選手私底下的照片，讓T1官方嚴厲斥責，並強調「有身分不明的人員在選手酒店蹲守，同時尾隨、偷拍選手發佈到社交平台，已經嚴厲打擾到選手的日常生活。」

對此，有網友就發出疑似是尾隨Faker運動的照片，讓不少粉絲大罵，「私生飯別鬧了好嗎？」、「給選手一個安靜的空間可以嗎？」、「不要丟粉絲的臉！」

T1官方全文如下：

衷心感謝大家一直以來對T1始終如一的支持與喜愛。在今年世界賽期間粉絲們熱情的應援下，T1創造歷史成為首支連續四年闖入全球總決賽決賽的隊伍，俱樂部和選手感謝線上線下粉絲們的付出，目前，T1全體選手也正全力以赴備戰，力求在決賽的舞台上呈現出最精彩的表現。

在此，根據近期存在的涉嫌侵權情況，T1向各位粉絲及公眾誠摯地提出請求，並對個別人員的惡意侵權行為發出嚴格抵制聲明：近日，存在個別不明身份人員在選手酒店的私密空間蹲守選手，尾隨、偷拍選手隱私並發佈至社交平台的惡意行為，嚴重打擾到了選手的正常生活及訓練安排，涉嫌嚴重侵犯選手的隱私權、安寧權、肖像權等相關人格權益。

在未經同意的情況下以任何形式非法獲取、洩露選手個人信息均屬於嚴重違法行為，請大家切勿輕信、傳播上述信息，用實際行動抵制涉嫌侵權的不當行為。T1在此向個別人士正式發出警告，請立刻停止一切侵犯選手隱私權的違法行為，T1將一如既往地全力保障選手的安全與隱私，對於任何侵犯選手權益的行為，我們已經做好證據並諮詢律師事務所準備人格權維權法律程序，將保留追究法律責任的一切權利。

在全球總決賽賽訓期間，我們懇請大家為選手們營造一個能夠充分休息、集中精力的環境，讓他們以最佳狀態迎接比賽，在選手賽場以外空間減少打擾、減輕選手壓力。希望大家共同維護良好的電子競技觀賽氛圍，給予選手應有的尊重與支持，再次感謝各位粉絲的理解、配合與長期以來的支持。

謝謝大家。 T1電子競技俱樂部


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▲美國財政部長貝森特（Scott Bessent）。（圖／路透）

記者閔文昱／綜合報導

美國財政部長貝森特（Scott Bessent）近日透露，隨著技術演進，美國AI晶片巨頭輝達（Nvidia）最先進的Blackwell晶片未來可能獲准銷售至中國，引發外界關注。這番談話被視為美方對晶片出口限制鬆動的「口風」，也讓美中科技角力再度成焦點。

貝森特接受美國財經媒體《CNBC》專訪時表示，隨著輝達不斷推出更新晶片，Blackwell的技術優勢可能在12至24個月內被超越，屆時性能等級將下滑至「第2、第3甚至第4」層級，「那時它可能就能出售」。他強調，這反映的是科技演進速度，而非談判進展。

▲黃仁勳先前在GTC大會上公布Blackwell B200 。（圖／達志影像／美聯社）

外界解讀，這是對輝達執行長黃仁勳近期「盼望Blackwell重返中國市場」言論的呼應。黃仁勳上周在南韓釜山APEC企業峰會期間表示，希望華府能允許對中銷售；但川普總統2日明確表示，Blackwell是「領先10年的尖端技術」，目前不會提供給其他國家。根據《華爾街日報》報導，黃仁勳先前曾積極遊說白宮，但最終遭國務卿盧比歐與商務部長盧特尼克等高層反對，導致議題胎死腹中。

貝森特同時透露，美中外交互動將在明年加速，包括川普與中國國家主席習近平計畫互訪，並可能於2026年深圳APEC與佛州G20峰會再度會晤。他強調，美中關係正回到「更穩定的軌道上」，雙方在高科技競爭之外仍保有溝通空間。

countries: 中國 美國

people: 黃仁 習近平 川普

title: 美財長鬆口！輝達Blackwell晶片「有望賣中國」　最快2年內解禁


countries: 韓國 英國 中國 印度 喬治亞 美國 日本 北韓 法國 伊朗 巴基斯坦 以色列 俄羅斯

people: 川普 金正恩

title: 國際火線／韓國造核潛艦，將打開核武擴散潘朵拉盒子？

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▲美國的俄亥俄級核潛艦「喬治亞號」。（圖／美國海軍網站）

文／朱錦華

上月29日，韓國總統李在明會晤美國總統川普時，首度公開提出希望允許韓國自主建造核動力潛艦，同時請求美國提供核燃料支持。川普隨即十分爽快的答應讓韓國在美國費城建造核潛艦，不久前我才寫過一篇關於以北韓建造核潛艦為故事焦點的韓劇《暴風圈》。沒想到，在真實世界裡，如今韓國也出手了。

今年3月8日時，北韓首度公開正在建造中的「核動力戰略導彈潛艦」照片，同時報導了北韓領導人金正恩視察造艦的主要造船廠。

▲李在明（右）會晤川普時，請求美國協助建核潛艦。（圖／路透）

韓國表示，要求建造核潛艦，是為了提升對周邊海域潛艦活動的追蹤能力。媒體分析則指出，其真正目的，旨在提高對北韓、中國、俄羅斯等鄰國的威懾力量。如果計畫實現，將徹底改變韓國海軍在海底的作戰布局。

所謂核潛艦，基本上是指核動力潛艇。它跟常規柴電潛艇的主要區別是兩者在水下的續航能力。韓國現役最先進的3600噸級「蔣英實號」柴油潛艦，水下連續潛航僅能維持2至4周。相對的，核反應爐提供的能源，理論上可以使用二、三十年。美國的「俄亥俄級」核潛艦，一次出航可潛藏於水下70至90天！潛藏得越久，也就意味著威脅潛伏的威懾力量越大。

▲北韓最高領導人金正恩前往主要造船廠視察，針對核潛艦興建進行指導。（圖／路透）

核潛艦跟柴油潛艦另一個不同點、也是最重要差別的關鍵點，在於前者能夠發射核武，而後者不能。儘管說，核潛艦不一定會或需要配備核武。但若不如此，它的重要性就大打折扣了。韓國要建造核潛艦，其真正目的，也必然是志在核武。唯有如此，才能嚇阻已經擁有核武的北韓的威脅。

儘管目前國際上存在著《禁止核武擴條約》(Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons)。目前美國、俄羅斯、英國、中國、法國、印度、巴基斯坦、以色列與北韓等9個國家被確認擁有核武器。但後面4國並未簽約；以色列甚至從未正式承認擁核。

▲中國094型晉級核潛艦。（圖／路透）

美國政府因為反制俄、中、北韓的戰略考量，未來很可能讓韓國的核潛艦攜帶核武。日本首相高市早苗得知川普允許韓國建造核潛艦後，立刻要求跟進。她的要求獲准的可能性也很高。如此一來，東北亞的海底可就熱鬧了。加上遠在中東的伊朗正在秘密發展核武、川普從APEC回來後又立刻宣布重啓核武試爆，《禁止核武擴條約》恐怕很快就會變成一張廢紙。

之前我寫過一篇題為《當核彈變得像茶葉蛋一樣普遍》的文章，預測核武普遍化是必然之事：尤其是核彈微型化是必然趨勢（例如戰術核武已經誕生）。核武全球化的潘朵拉盒子即將打開，試問你能往哪裡躲？


title: 王子二度道歉！律師讚5細節「蠻有誠意」：往後公眾人物比照辦理

references: 臉書 Facebook

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▲粿粿跟王子發生婚外情，事件持續延燒。（圖／翻攝自IG）

記者趙蔡州／綜合報導

藝人王子（邱勝翊）被范姜彥豐指控跟粿粿發生婚外情，他4日晚間二度發聲向范姜彥豐道歉，掀起各界的關注與討論。對此，律師李怡貞表示，她看了王子的聲明後，覺得王子的道歉蠻有誠意的，沒有看到任何暗藏的酸語，沒有龜縮好一陣子或找藉口，「這個精神蠻值得讚賞的，希望往後公眾人物的小三，小王都要比照辦理」。

律師李怡貞4日晚間在臉書表示，王子的聲明她覺得道歉蠻有誠意的，一路以來看這麼多的小三或小王，能這麼快出面道歉，而且還二次道歉，真的少見，「聲明中我也沒有看到任何暗藏的酸語當利器，沒有龜縮好一陣子，沒有反告原配妨害名譽，沒有說是被騙被勾引，沒有用公眾人物的流量繼續豁出去，黑紅也是紅，我是覺得這個精神蠻值得讚賞的，希望往後公眾人物的小三，小王都要比照辦理。」

但她也說，希望王子的這個聲明不是想要在演藝圈立刻振起的前奏，「畢竟你們插足別人的婚姻，同時也破碎了一個家庭，而且本來就知道自己賠不了錢，那一開始就不要玩火，引火燒身也是自找的。」

▼王子二度道歉，聲明稿全文。（圖／翻攝自Facebook／王子 邱勝翊）


references: 臉書 臉書社團

title: 康橋帶千名學生爬合歡山　「違法搭帳篷」被檢舉挨罰

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▲該校舉辦千名學生登山活動。（圖／翻攝臉書）

記者許力方／綜合報導

新北市知名私立康橋國際學校安排國中生登山活動，上月帶領上千人分梯次攀登合歡山，但沒有事先向太魯閣國家公園申請，就在合歡北峰違規搭設多個帳篷，被民眾發現檢舉，太管處依法開罰1500至3000元不等。對此，校方表示，為確保學生安全搭設的緊急醫療帳篷，未來會依規申請。

校方表示，國中階段安排學生攀登合歡群峰5座百岳為目標，上個月開始上千名學生分梯次前往登山，因山區天氣變化多端，為確保學生安全，都有攜帶緊急醫療帳篷，提供隨隊醫護人員能及時照應，且每天都會收拾乾淨，這次沒有事先申請有缺失，未來會依規先向主管機關提出申請。

▲校方違法搭帳篷被檢舉，太管處開罰。（圖／翻攝「靠北登山大小事」臉書社團）

太管處指出，該校學生日前分多梯次前往攀登合歡北峰、西峰，校方擔心發生意外，在北峰三角點附近搭設了緊急醫療帳篷、天幕使用，被民眾發現後檢舉，經太管處派員前往查看，發現校方未事先申請，依《國家公園法》開罰2張各1500至3000元的罰單。

太管處說明，合歡北峰並沒有開放露營，民眾要在國家公園內臨時搭設帳篷，事前一定要申請，但也不一定申請就會通過，會視山林狀況審核。由於合歡山區屬於脆弱的高山生態環境，若搭帳篷、經踩踏破壞，導致植物生長不佳，需長時間才能恢復。


title: 準鳳凰各國預測挑戰「超級颱風」　一路向西成颱後大爆發

countries: 日本 美國 台灣 菲律賓

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▲準鳳凰未來發展良好 。（圖／翻攝NOAA）

記者許力方／台北報導

中央氣象署預估，明天（5日）清晨今年第25號颱風「鳳凰」將生成，並於周末抵達菲律賓附近，可能增強為中度颱風。氣象專家分析一致認為，準鳳凰未來發展良好，AI以及各國電腦模式也一致看好鳳凰成颱後高強度發展，可能挑戰「超級颱風」等級。

根據美國聯合颱風警報中心（JTWC）發布的預報，初步預測路徑與菲律賓、日本氣象單位一致，顯示準鳳凰下周可能在呂宋島北部附近以中、強度颱風左右的強度登陸，且屆時其強度將達到美國颶風等級中約四級的颶風，1分鐘平均風速為120節（約時速220公里）。

菲律賓預測它有可能發展成「超級颱風」，歐洲中期天氣預報中心（ECMWF）和美國全球預報系統（GFS）模式預測則都顯示，準鳳凰正向西移動，可能在下周登陸菲律賓，目前呈現結構增強跡象，且北轉的可能性不大。

▲各國預測鳳凰成颱後可能快速增強，挑戰強颱 。（圖／翻攝JTWC）

氣象愛好「台灣颱風論壇」今（4日）晚根據各國預報分析，準鳳凰未來走向有3種路線，會是何種情境變數還很大，9至10日（周日至下周一）是關鍵。因其未來5天西進過程中發展環境良好，至少可達中度颱風，甚至挑戰強颱。通過菲律賓或進入巴士海峽後發展環境迅速劣化，強度會逐漸減弱。

此外，根據今年表現良好的Google AI （FNV3）模式系集圖顯示，鳳凰形成後將快速發展、增強，在抵達菲律賓前，巔峰可達強烈颱風，而且具有高度共識。

台灣颱風論壇指出，由於秋季的颱風常受到東北季風干擾，路徑從東岸或西岸通過各地風雨強度會有明顯差異。若颱風接近或影響台灣，影響時間約落在11至13日（下周二至四）之間。


references: 臉書社團 網友

title: 停車格怪怪的「畫到路中央」？　斗六市長親解：未來設行人道

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▲停車格怪怪的「畫到路中央」？斗六人熱烈討論。（圖／翻攝「斗六人社交圈」臉書社團）

記者許力方／綜合報導

畫這樣會覺得怪怪的嗎？有民眾日前行經斗六鎮南路時，發現車道旁畫設了新的停車格，看起來就像畫錯在路中間，右方還留了空間，引起討論，不少當地人驚呼「經過嚇到」。市長林聖爵特地出面回應，說明該處規劃成為標線型人行道，未來禁止停車。

有民眾近日型經斗六鎮南路，發現路邊停車格被重畫成靠近車道處，並在右方留出空間成行人通道，紛紛陸續發文到斗六社團詢問「畫這樣，會覺得怪怪的嗎」、「停車格感覺畫在路中間，這樣會不會危險？」甚至有車輛臨停在原先的路邊臨停，引起當地熱烈討論。

▲該路段將畫設標線型行人道。（圖／翻攝「斗六人(讚)出來」臉書社團）

不少網友看了直呼「我朋友問我斗六有什麼好玩的，我都會說可以來看我們有各種不同形式的人行道」、「車道越畫越窄，車流越來越塞」、「真的不建議，汽機車在同一車道會更阻塞，一般行人大多是走寶雅那邊」、「住在這附近的居民怎麼回得了家」、「明明路就那麼寬，一定要胡搞瞎搞，搞到汽機車爭道，真的是胡搞瞎搞。」

對此，市長林聖爵親上火線回應，該路段規劃為「標線型人行道」，市公所已經督促廠商盡速畫設。另外，由於發文照片中預設人行道有車輛停放車輛，轄區派出所也表示，經詢問市公所確認該處規劃為行人步道，呼籲行經車輛車速放慢並注意左右來車。

▼斗六市長說明鎮南路標線。（圖／翻攝林聖爵臉書）


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▲市議員黃家齊關切桃園RCA場址解編時程。（圖／市議會民進黨團提供）

記者楊淑媛／桃園報導

位於桃園市桃園區往中壢區緃貫路上的前美國無線電公司重金屬汙染案，也就是RCA汙染事件，迄今已將近30年，因周邊50公頃範圍都列為地下水污染管制區，嚴重影響當地的發展，市議員黃家齊4日於市政總質詢持續關切RCA場址解編的時程。

針對RCA場址整治與土地再利用進度。環保局長顏己喨表示，RCA污染場址已於113年11月與114年3月完成自主檢驗，結果均符合標準，預計114年12月及115年6月再進行兩次驗證，若結果合格，將依《土污法》申請解列。

都市發展局長江南志補充，該地為私有土地，解列後會由地主辦理都市計畫變更，市府將持續與地主溝通，尋求兼顧公共利益與地方發展的規劃方案。

RCA桃園廠過去因排放有毒廢料，使附近土壤及地下水遭受嚴重污染，從2008年開始整治地下水至今已17年。市議員黃家齊表示，RCA地下水管制區包含場內約7.2公頃、場外約42.8公頃，範圍約50公頃。由於，RCA場址解編的時程，攸關著當地的發展，市議員黃家齊持續於市政總質提出關切。

title: 桃園RCA場址解編時程攸關地方發展　市議員黃家齊關切

taiwan-subdivisions: 桃園 中壢


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▲衛福部南投醫院醫師為8旬病患以內視鏡切除壺腹腫瘤。（圖／資料照片，部立南投醫院提供）

記者高堂堯／南投報導

《財政收支劃分法》雖已修正通過、明年開始施行，卻因中央大砍一般性補助等款項，南投縣推估明年度中央財源恐怕只會小增約10億元，民意代表憂心老人健保補助等社福政策無法實施；縣長許淑華表示，由縣府負擔老人長輩健保費的承諾一定兌現，待明年3、4月縣議會臨時會通過追加預算，就會立即付諸實行。

縣府指出，明年新版財劃法開始施行，該縣統籌分配稅款會增加約144億元，但從中央各部會釋出的訊息，中央同時也會大幅減少原本對於南投的一般性及計畫型補助，而且中央補助計畫的地方配合款比例也會提高，縣府主計處初步計算，以後中央挹注縣庫的財源，最終可能一年只增加不到10億，在縣議會引發許多總質詢縣議員憂心財劃法修正結果最後變成空歡喜，也關心社會福利議題。

許淑華則強調，縣府在上個月將她接任後所有的91億元負債正式償還完畢，讓南投縣成為負債清零、沒有負債的縣市；在負債清零、沒有債務壓力之下，不論明年中央財源挹注的最後結果如何，她早已承諾宣布全縣65歲（原住民55歲）以上老人長輩健保費由縣府全額負擔的新福利措施，明年一定會推動實施。

許淑華說明，縣府確定會在明年度縣議會第一次臨時會審議時，提出這項健保費補助老人長輩的追加預算案，樂觀預期約在明年3、4月順利獲縣議會支持通過後著手辦理，屆時全縣將有超過10萬人受惠；另有部分長輩因故積欠健保費，縣府恐無法代為補繳，但縣府社勞局會積極與中央健保署聯繫研商如何處理，也提醒若一時疏忽或人在國外而欠繳健保費的長輩，有能力者就趕快繳清，以免無法享受縣府負擔健保費的新福利。

title: 投縣10萬長輩健保費全額補助　最快明年3至4月實施

taiwan-subdivisions: 南投縣 南投


title: 快訊／太子集團詐騙洗錢　9名被告5萬至70萬交保

countries: 台灣 美國 帛琉 柬埔寨

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記者劉昌松、趙蔡州／台北報導

由柬埔寨華人陳志主導的「太子集團控股」涉嫌跨國大規模詐欺、洗錢等重罪，遭美國檢調起訴。根據美方提供的情資，台北地檢署4日會同警方查扣太子集團在台資產逾45億元，並拘提包含主嫌王昱棠等25名被告到案，人資主管辜淑雯在內共11人4日晚間經約談後被移送北檢複訊，檢方訊後諭知9人分別以70萬至5萬元不等金額交保，剩辜淑雯和一名王姓涉案人正等候複訊。

▲天旭人資主管辜淑雯。（圖／記者劉昌松攝）

專案小組調查，太子集團為掩飾跨國犯罪所得，在台成立多家公司，其中包括由台灣太子公司主導，把境外資金引入聯凡等8家人頭公司，購買台北市和平大苑豪宅置產，另外還在台灣成立天旭公司，由人資主管辜淑雯負責招募工程師幫忙設計線上博弈程式，另外以顥玥公司員工擔任線上博弈的客服工作，等於是把台灣當成太子賭博事業的隱形基地。

除了在台開設多個人頭公司從事洗錢等犯罪工作外，太子集團還會招募台灣人到帛琉從事其他犯罪行為，其中黃婕、施亭宇、王蕾絢更被美方直接點名為制裁對象。

而在美方公布制裁後，太子集團在台操盤人、天旭公司高階幹部王昱棠立即聯繫部屬李守禮、邱子恩分頭將集團用來隱匿贓款的勞斯萊斯、麥拉倫、藍寶堅尼、法拉利、保時捷等名車過戶到他人名下，並試圖趁夜從原本停放和平大苑的車子連夜開走，所幸我國司法單位即時監控攔下。

台北地檢署主任檢察官林彥均、檢察官謝仁豪在連日分析後，已向法院聲請查扣包括和平大苑11戶、48個車位在內的不動產18筆(實價登陸約38億1421萬元）、26輛名車(市價4億7758萬餘元)、60個銀行帳戶(餘額2億3587萬餘元)，合計扣得45億2766萬餘元的資產。

▲天旭總經理李添特助劉純妤。（圖／記者劉昌松攝）

在全案蒐證告一段落後，4日指揮調查局台北市調處、刑事局、台北市警多個分局分47路搜索相關公司及被告住處，拘提王昱棠等25名被告、通知10名證人到案。北檢4日晚間複訊後，諭知天旭工程師張芷寧20萬、天旭總經理特助劉純妤15萬元，其餘7名被告5萬元至70萬元交保，剩辜淑雯和一名王姓被告待複訊。

▼人頭公司負責人王蘭亭。（圖／記者劉昌松攝）

▼天旭工程師張芷寧。（圖／記者劉昌松攝）


title: 美財長鬆口！輝達Blackwell晶片「有望賣中國」　最快2年內解禁

people: 習近平 黃仁 川普


title: 停車格怪怪的「畫到路中央」？　斗六市長親解：未來設行人道


title: 直播主玩盜版嗆任天堂「我頻道超多」！踢鐵板遭判罰50萬


title: 黃明志逃往泰國？「最強奶媽」曬截圖求救：請當地朋友給我消息

countries: 泰國 台灣 馬來西亞

references: 臉書 網友

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▲黃明志捲入謝侑芯猝逝案。（併圖／翻攝自謝侑芯ig、記者黃克翔攝）

記者閔文昱／綜合報導

台灣網紅謝侑芯上月22日於馬來西亞猝逝，原被視為突發意外，但案情近來出現重大逆轉。馬國警方今（4日）正式宣布，已將案件升格為「謀殺案」，並鎖定生前最後與她接觸的馬籍歌手黃明志為重點嫌疑人。警方指出，黃明志自事發後失聯多日，極有可能已潛逃，目前已正式列入通緝名單。最新消息指出，黃明志可能已逃往泰國。

吉隆坡總警長拿督法迪爾受訪時透露，警方研判黃明志應已透過媒體和社群平台知悉案情，「目前仍無法與他取得聯繫，我們相信他已經潛逃。」警方將依刑法第302條「謀殺」展開全面追緝，並呼籲知情民眾提供線索。

就在警方通緝消息曝光後，曾在網路上公開批評黃明志的「最強奶媽」謝薇安，晚間也在Threads貼出一則私訊截圖。內容指稱「最新情報，黃明志已逃往泰國」，她並留言呼籲，「若有朋友在泰國、知道消息，請直接私訊我！」貼文一出掀起網友熱議，許多人湧入留言關切案情進展。

對此，黃明志的台灣經紀人晚間透過臉書回應，坦言目前已與藝人失聯，「現在很多爆料真偽難辨，我只能說太弔詭，但我相信黃明志先生的判斷力，他會主動前往警局配合調查。」他也強調，不願蹭流量炒話題，希望外界尊重家屬與調查程序。


title: 國際火線／韓國造核潛艦，將打開核武擴散潘朵拉盒子？

countries: 韓國 中國 英國 喬治亞 印度 美國 北韓 日本 法國 伊朗 巴基斯坦 以色列 俄羅斯


title: Beyond前成員劉志遠是台灣女婿！　在台生活10年近況曝光

countries: 台灣 香港

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記者蔡琛儀／台北報導

「2025好友港節市集」將在11月8、9日在華山文創園區舉辦，去年的壓軸表演，由香港傳奇樂團Beyond前團員劉志遠，加上客家歌王謝宇威，合力演出多首經典港劇金曲，大會今年再度邀請兩人壓軸登場。

▲劉志遠、張啟樂、謝宇威。（圖／好友港節提供）

日前劉志遠和謝宇威彩排，連續三年成為大會總召的港星張啟樂特地來探班，還帶上港式小吃咖哩魚蛋。去年劉志遠和謝宇威表演反應非常熱烈，謝宇威表示，其實港澳很受西方文化影響，所以今年的曲目除了粵語歌曲之外，還會有經典英文金曲，希望能夠引起共鳴，勾起大家的共同回憶。

在台灣生活超過十年的劉志遠就表示，去年第一次參與演出，太太與親友都來觀賞演出，讓他很感動，「他們全部都是台灣人，來到這個跟香港有關的活動，正正就是這個活動的意義，把兩個文化背景不一樣的人拉在一起，在同一個空間一起渡過快樂時刻。」

張啟樂則表示，今年已經是連續三年擔任總召，感到很榮幸，感謝主辦單位「臺港經濟文化合作策進會」讓他有機會為在台灣的港澳人士出一份力；在私人生活上，他也希望自己能夠當個好爸爸，小孩將來能夠在台灣開心快樂地成長。


title: 桃園RCA場址解編時程攸關地方發展　市議員黃家齊關切


title: 康橋帶千名學生爬合歡山　「違法搭帳篷」被檢舉挨罰


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記者蔡琛儀／台北報導

在日本狂破160億日圓（約新台幣34億元）、超過千萬觀影人次的電影《國寶》在台上映後熱度持續飆升，上映僅十一天全台票房即突破1210萬。第二週末票房更較首週成長1.5倍，打破電影上映後票房逐週下滑的市場常態，延續日本上映時「口碑逆襲」的驚人模式。

▲日片《國寶》票房開紅盤。（圖／傳影互動提供）

《國寶》自日本上映以來，成為日本真人電影歷史票房第二名，更代表日本角逐奧斯卡最佳國際影片，並預計2026年於北美上映。主演的吉澤亮與橫濱流星，加上導演李相日及團隊打造的極致影像美學，即便是首次接觸歌舞伎的觀眾也能全然沉浸其中。

同時，《國寶》也獲得多位藝文與文化界人士力薦，包括作家馬世芳、韓良憶。《造山者》導演蕭菊貞分享：「看完一夜難眠，非常好。」京劇大師吳興國更盛讚：「依然動人心弦，是極致輝煌之作。」知名作詞人許常德則力讚：「有一種感情超越成全，那就是深度的欣賞與佩服。」。

countries: 台灣 日本

title: 《國寶》在日破34億票房　台灣上映再打破市場常態太驚人


title: 圤智雨爆「黃明志約過台AV女優」　手握對話證據：真的很可怕耶

references: 網友 臉書 Facebook

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記者王靖淳／綜合報導

馬來西亞歌手黃明志傳出涉入網紅謝侑芯猝逝案，警方今（4）日宣布改以謀殺罪偵辦，稍早也正式通緝黃明志，消息曝光後引發外界關注。為此，網紅推手圤智雨在臉書發文談論此事，稱自己手中握有黃明志約炮台AV女優娃娃（翁雨澄）的對話證據，貼文曝光後，再度掀起討論。

▲黃明志被爆料約炮娃娃。（圖／翻攝自Instagram）

圤智雨發文爆料，黃明志約炮過台AV女優娃娃（翁雨澄），同時也在文中表示，自己看到女方最近感嘆「原來我只是眾多還沒死去的女孩的其中一位」的貼文時差點噴飯。至於兩人約炮的時間點，圤智雨指出娃娃早在2021年9月，在黃明志有女友時，就接受對方的約炮。他也強調，自己之所以會知道得如此清楚，是因為娃娃有把對話紀錄傳給他，「當時他就想要抓著黃明志做新聞。」

▲圤智雨發文談論黃明志。（圖／翻攝自Facebook／圤智雨雨的十二時辰）

談到娃娃最近的發文內容，圤智雨痛批：「人家出事了，你就出來潑冷水，結果自己2021年9月就在人家有女朋友的狀況之下，跟他上床了，然後現在打這種話，你是不是忘記你有傳對話紀錄給別人呢？我真的覺得，很可怕耶，誰跟你好你弄誰？」並透露自己有將兩人約炮的對話證據留著。貼文曝光後，立刻掀起網友討論。


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▲「溫暖有感 以愛復歸」更保80年慶祝大會。（圖／臺灣更生保護會提供）

記者吳銘峯／綜合報導

臺灣更生保護會今年正式邁入第80年。更保總會於4日舉行盛大的慶祝典禮，包含總統賴清德、副總統蕭美琴，都獻上賀電。法務部長鄭銘謙致詞時也特別強調，更保80年來，「不放棄任何一個人」，接納每一個曾經犯錯的人，給予陪伴和支持，讓他擁有重新開始的機會。

▲法務部長鄭銘謙致詞。（圖／臺灣更生保護會提供）

鄭銘謙致詞時表示，「回顧更保這80年來，臺灣更生保護會凝聚了社會最善良、最正向的力量。幫助了在人生旅途中曾經犯過錯的人，並以赤誠、溫暖，支持、協助、陪伴、接納他們。透過溫暖的愛陪伴過無數更生人重新站起來，迎向新生，更保這樣的堅持與努力，讓我們的社會更加的安全、祥和。」

臺灣高等檢察署檢察長暨臺灣更生保護會董事長張斗輝表示，今年是更生保護會成立滿80週年，更保長期秉持著愛與關懷的陪伴精神，協助更生人重返社會，安定人生。他更指出，今年是創會以來工作人員最多的一年，計229人；此外，更生輔導員人數達到949人，總計第一線工作人員約1,200多人。臺灣的更生保護工作在大家的共同努力之下，服務的質與量不輸給其他國家。集結眾人之力，與企業資源，以熱情和積極的態度，創造服務佳績。

▲更保董事長張斗輝致詞。（圖／臺灣更生保護會提供）

另外，這次大會也頒發十大傑出更生輔導員林光中先生等10名、行政院獎牌給予曾瀚霖先生等10名、法務部獎牌及獎狀給予如是社會福利公益信託基金等21 位、總會獎狀給予富邦人壽保險股份有限公司，感謝受獎人長期付出，犧牲奉獻，致力更生保護工作。

▼鄭銘謙頒獎表揚傑出更保員。（圖／臺灣更生保護會提供）

▼總統賴清德、副總統蕭美琴均發來賀電，恭賀更保80年。（圖／記者吳銘峯攝）

title: 「溫暖有感　以愛復歸」更保80年　鄭銘謙讚「不放棄任何一個人」

taiwan-subdivisions: 安定 員林

people: 蕭美琴 賴清德


title: Hyundai跨界小休旅車「加入N Line家族」！Venue運動版印度問世

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圖文／7Car 小七車觀點

Hyundai 近年積極擴展性能支線 N Line 的產品版圖，幾乎涵蓋品牌旗下所有車型。如今，這股運動化浪潮延伸至全新世代 Venue，小巧車身中融入更鮮明的性能語彙與更細膩的座艙氛圍，正式接棒成為 Hyundai N Line 家族的新成員。

Venue N Line 最早於 2022 年在印度市場推出，當時仍基於前一代車型進行改造。隨著新世代 Venue 問世，Hyundai 再度以更銳利的線條與更明確的動感姿態重新詮釋這款小型 SUV。車頭採用品牌最新的方正語彙，格柵以深色飾面搭配兩側進氣開口，並在保桿下緣加入類似 Creta N Line 的導流翼設計，整體視覺更具侵略感。

車身部分換上 17 吋切削鋁圈，內部紅色煞車卡鉗與車側、保桿的紅色飾條相呼應，塑造出屬於 N Line 的辨識氣勢。後方則可見雙出排氣尾管與整合擾流造型的下護板，並在車尾、葉子板與輪圈中心蓋嵌入 N Line 專屬徽飾，細節處無不強化運動氛圍。

進入車室，Venue N Line 採用以黑色為基調的內裝，並透過紅色縫線強調層次感。方向盤造型與電動旗艦 Ioniq 5 N 相仿，具備換檔撥片與駕駛模式旋鈕；座椅採黑色皮革包覆，同樣帶有 N 標誌。鋁質踏板、紅色環艙氣氛燈與金屬飾件進一步提升座艙質感，使其在小型 SUV 級距中展現截然不同的性能格調。

配備水準方面，Venue N Line 站上全車系頂端。儀表與中控皆為 12.3 吋全數位顯示螢幕，搭載內建導航與 NVIDIA 圖形系統，並配有 Bose 八揚聲器高級音響、智慧香氛系統與 Level 2 駕駛輔助功能。這套完整的科技配置，讓 Venue N Line 不僅外觀動感，實際使用體驗也更接近高階車款。

動力系統仍採用 1.0 升渦輪增壓汽油引擎，輸出達 120 PS 與 172 Nm，提供 6 速手排與 7 速雙離合自排兩種選擇，維持前輪驅動設定。雖然原廠尚未公布底盤細節，但推測仍延續前代 N Line 專屬懸吊與轉向調校，使其兼具日常舒適與操控樂趣。

全新 Hyundai Venue N Line 將率先於印度市場開售，未來是否擴展至其他市場仍有待觀察。不過從整體設計與產品定位來看，Hyundai 顯然希望藉由這款小型 SUV 為年輕族群提供入門級的性能體驗，也替 N Line 家族再添一名風格鮮明的成員。


title: 王子認找范姜彥豐協商「分期付款」　聲明遭網吐槽：人夫當然跳腳

references: Facebook 網友

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記者蔡宜芳／綜合報導

王子（邱勝翊）日前被范姜彥豐指控與粿粿搞婚外情，掀起各界的關注與討論。他4日晚間二度發聲，向范姜彥豐道歉，並坦承有參與協商，更透露了有提出「分期付款」的請求，聲明再度掀起熱議。

▲王子介入粿粿與范姜彥豐的婚姻，引發軒然大波。（圖／翻攝自Facebook／王子 邱勝翊、Meigo粿粿）

王子在聲明中提到，他從一開始找范姜彥豐協調時，就是真誠以對，所有的歉意都是真心的。他也指出，因為過去為父親清償債務，因此范姜彥豐提出的賠償金額對自己來說超出負荷，「因為這是我必須承擔的，也有跟您們協調能不能讓我分期付款，但可惜雙⽅共識不同，未能達成您們的期待，非常對不起。」

▲王子二度發聲。（圖／翻攝自Facebook／王子 邱勝翊）

對此，網友紛紛吐槽「先生不好意思～本店不能簽帳分期付款哦」、「所以要為家父還債比較重要，然後粿粿好自為之各自安好嗎」、「想賠錢了事，還要分期付款」、「喝茶還可以分期付款喔？人夫當然跳腳，結論價格談不攏」。

【王子聲明全文】

對不起錯就是錯沒有任何理由跟藉⼝從⼀開始到現在我都是真⼼⾯對在此風波發⽣前協商會⾯的時候我有親⾃向范姜先⽣當⾯鞠躬道歉並多次商討賠償⾦額 ，我在此公開、慎重的再次向范姜先⽣與粿粿道歉對不起在您與粿粿婚姻狀態尚存續的情況下做出了不好的⾏為對您造成了傷害 ， 我對您跟粿粿都非常的抱歉。⼀直以來我沒有逃避每⼀次協商我都誠⼼誠意毫無保留全⼒配合溝通 ，非常對不起 ， 我這份道歉不夠即時但當所有輿論鋪天蓋地的捲來，甚⾄裡⾯還夾雜許多不實、 荒謬的報導跟網友爆料時，我真的不知該如何澄清，也不知道該怎麼澄清或是不是有必要澄清，因此這份聲明我⼀改再改，因為每天看起來，都有不同的事情要澄清 ⋯到今天我決定無論如何，最重要的事情就是⼀定要先跟您正式、公開的道歉 。其實在您公開此事前，我知道這件事情總有⼀天會被爆出來，因此我沒有逃避也不會逃避，作為公眾⼈物犯錯，我早晚必須⾯對社會檢驗。從⼀開始我找您⾒⾯協調時，每次與您的協商我都是真誠以對，我的對不起是真的，我的鞠躬也是真的，您跟立達老闆謝先⽣的問題，我也都⼀⼀回答，您們需要我提出⾃⼰過去為家⽗清償債務的相關證明，我也完整詳細的整理所有記錄，並在當天提供資料讓您⽅了解這個⾦額對我來說是超過負荷的，我真的毫無保留，全⼒配合溝通因為這是我必須承擔的，也有跟您們協調能不能讓我分期付款，但可惜雙⽅共識不同，未能達成您們的期待，非常對不起。我知道犯錯就要付出代價這是我應得的所有的責難我不會逃避也會與粿粿共同誠實⾯對並積極解決真⼼感謝各界的關⼼與指正讓⼤家失望了對不起抱歉讓我借⽤這則聲明拜託⼤家，我能理解社會⼤眾對我的不滿，但有⼀些指控已經超乎我的想像，甚⾄未來有可能對受害者們造成⼆次傷害，懇請⼤家，事實的責難⽌於我，我全權承擔，但不實的流⾔蜚語，拜託⼤家適可⽽⽌。對於范姜彥豐先⽣與粿粿我真的真的很抱歉—邱勝翊


title: 投縣10萬長輩健保費全額補助　最快明年3至4月實施


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記者蔡琛儀／台北報導

韓喜劇片《放飛旅行團》即將在11月14日登台，首週末開出亮眼成績、連6天穩坐票房榜首，截至10月3日累積近39.4萬人次、票房突破36億韓圜。電影講述一群死黨從青春到30歲的友情故事，被讚「全程笑到不行」。主演之一的姜河那更因今年6部作品連發被封「最拼命演員」，卻語出驚人：「我沒打算一輩子演戲。」

▲姜河那自爆沒有想一輩子都演戲。（圖／采昌國際多媒體提供）

姜河那笑說：「作品什麼時候公開不是演員能決定的，只是今年剛好集中上映了很多部作品。大家問我都不休息嗎？但我其實拍得很悠閒。只是在這三、四年間拍的作品，全部都擠在今年上映，就覺得我好像一直在拍戲似的，但其實我現在手上沒有新作品了。」

他也透露自己沒有打算一輩子演戲：「我沒有想過要演到什麼時候。當演員這份工作，是需要有人來找你才能做的。如果有一天沒人再找我，就表示我的價值結束了。那時候即使想演，也不能演。想到那時候會做什麼別的工作，但那不是悲觀的想法，我覺得做別的事情也會覺得有趣。」他並補充：「我相信我自己。不管做什麼工作，我都有信心能做得開心。我不會理所當然地認為可以一輩子演戲。不過，只要有人願意找我，我就會一直當演員。」

▲《放飛旅行團》劇情爆笑。（圖／采昌國際多媒體提供）

姜河那在《放飛旅行團》中與金英光、車銀優、姜泳錫、韓善化等人攜手，拍攝氣氛猶如綜藝旅行。他笑說：「大家都笑到停不下來，真的像一群朋友一起出國拍節目。」台灣片商也推出「Threads揪好友北中南免費搶先看」活動，只要上傳旅遊合照與故事，就有機會免費觀影，詳情請見電影公司粉絲團與官方Threads。

title: 《放飛旅行團》才剛上映　姜河那突自爆：不覺得可一輩子演戲


countries: 日本 瑞士

title: 原子小金剛飛上錶盤　17萬聯名錶全球限量178只

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▲Louis Erard 與原子小金剛聯名腕錶限量178只，176,800元。（圖／Louis Erard提供，以下同）

記者陳雅韻／台北報導

瑞士腕錶品牌Louis Erard 宣布與日本經典動漫角色原子小金剛（Astro Boy）展開前所未有的聯名合作，推出全球限量178只的2340系列特別版腕錶，面盤設計靈感取材自手塚治虫原作插畫，以多層結構呈現原子小金剛高速飛翔的標誌性姿態，背景描繪未來都市Metro City，細膩的垂直髮絲紋營造深邃光影效果，並暗藏反派角色身影，象徵正邪對比的永恆主題，勾起動漫迷的童年回憶。

▲Louis Erard 與原子小金剛聯名腕錶正反面都有原子小金剛圖案。

與原子小金剛聯名錶款是Louis Erard首款一體式鍊帶運動腕錶，鈦金屬錶殼經拉絲處理，搭配拋光不鏽鋼錶圈與錶耳，厚度僅 8.95 毫米，錶帶也以雙材質打造，搭配立體層疊方式浮雕面盤呈現的原子小金剛，錶背也有他的動感身影，致敬原作世界觀與原子小金剛守護的人性理想。

▲Louis Erard 與原子小金剛聯名腕錶的指針與時標具夜光顯示。

Oris則與全球鐘錶收藏社群RedBar合作推出限量250只的聯名錶，以1965年復刻Divers腕錶為設計藍本，搭配煙燻紅色漸層色面盤，因為紅色正是RedBar的代表色，象徵雙方的緊密友誼，隨錶附黑色橡膠錶帶與不鏽鋼鍊帶，讓佩戴者能輕鬆轉換風格。

▲Oris與全球鐘錶收藏社群RedBar合作推出限量250只的聯名錶，91,800元。（圖／Oris提供）