I got an email from a fellow named James Finnegan who has recently started a blog to generate some PR for Taiwan's UN membership campaign in the form of the blog ROC the Boat. "It's pretty bare right now," he said -- and he's not lying -- but I assume that'll change very quickly.

The only two articles up so far are about the metal band ChthoniC that has been touring across the US as part of the Ozzfest lineup, enlightening Slipknot and Lordi fans across the country*, and a timeline of Taiwan's efforts to become a part of the UN.

To be honest, I'm jealous of the guy (even though he's in Washington, and I'm in Taiwan). The fact that he gets to write about this stuff and get paid for it is enviable. Most of us writing over here have other jobs, so we bide our time between writing and working, among other things (What? I have a life!).

* You should note my cynical optimism. I'm not dissing heavy metal fans. Some of my favorite bands are bands that have played, or fit the bill to play, at Ozzfest (though none of them are the ones with "Cannibal" in their name or dead bodies and pentagrams on their album covers). Hell, I got into politics because I was a die-hard Rage Against the Machine fan. I'm happy that these guys (ChthoniC) are getting the word out, yet, still, when I look at them, I ask myself, "Why not Bono