An Exchange on "Diversionary Dragons, Or 'Talking Tough in Taipei'" (Diversionary Dragons, Or 'Talking Tough in Taipei': Cross-Strait Relations in the New Millennium) (Critical Essay‪)‬

In "Diversionary Dragons, or 'Talking Tough in Taipei'" (Journal of East Asian Studies 9, 3: 369-398), Yitan Li, Patrick James, and A. Cooper Drury presented a newly created data set to show that Chen Shui-bian used independence rhetoric and confrontation with the mainland as a diversionary tactic in the face of domestic political difficulties. In the present exchange, Jonathan Sullivan challenges the authors' understanding of how the Democratic Progressive Party used the Taiwan independence issue--and the authors' interpretation of independence-and raises questions about the coding of press coverage as a means of identifying underlying preferences. The authors respond, concluding that the future use of such diversionary tactics is by no means foreclosed. KEYWORDS: Taiwan independence, diversionary theory of war, cross-strait relations, Chinese politics, international conflict Understanding and Measuring "Taiwan Independence" in Presidential Discourse