Lee Chien-min had long acted like a big shot at Taiwan's largest airport, but no one dared to disturb him until recently after a lawmaker blew a whistle on his abominable behavior. How could he, a supervisor at Taoyuan International Airport's Central Control Center, have kept his job for so many years? Were where government authorities? Scandals related to the airport have emerged with increasing frequency amid widespread public complaints about its dilapidated facilities and lax management, reflecting long-term negligence by the government. With peddlers selling lunch boxes and clothing around the clock inside the airport and Lee drinking and flirting with female workers while on duty, it has looked more like a night market or nightclub than a major gateway. In a democratic country in the 21st century, how could a civil servant act like a despot while on duty? We don't know the answer, but it must be rotten culture of our government agencies or lax discipline engendered over many years that has led to the degradation of the bureaucracy. Taiwan's people are the unfortunate ones, because Lee was only removed from his supervisory post. When he retires, Taiwan's taxpayers still need to pay his pension until his death and the death of his spouse. Many average Taiwanese earn far less than Lee, so why aren't they getting angry? Could it be that we are even more contemptible than Lee? (July 10, 2010) 