Ma Ying-jeou Memes: How Internet Culture Reshaped a President's Public Image

30-second overview: From the "Death Grip" that spread across PTT in 2012, to the 2014 "deer antler velvet" gaffe, to Ma Ying-jeou's own 2016 self-deprecating "Mabrella Jellyfish" moment, the former president's words and actions have continuously fermented in Taiwan's online communities, producing a remarkable series of political memes. These memes are not only reflections of public sentiment toward his governance and persona — they have become a microcosm of how Taiwan's internet culture deconstructs and rebuilds the public image of political figures, showcasing the pluralism of public opinion in the digital age.

In 2012, Taiwan's online communities began circulating a new term: "Death Grip." This piece of PTT netizen mockery quickly became one of former President Ma Ying-jeou's most iconic memes, satirizing the supposed curse that would befall anyone who shook his hand.¹ From the "deer antler velvet" slip of the tongue to the contested "Haven't you already seen me?" exchange, the words and deeds of Ma's presidency were amplified and reinterpreted online, gradually evolving into a collection of widely recognized memes. These memes not only reflect public perceptions of his governance and image — they represent a unique phenomenon in Taiwan's internet culture that has profoundly shaped how political figures are perceived in the digital era. This article explores some of the most representative Ma Ying-jeou memes, analyzing their origins, development, and social impact.

Core Meme Analysis

1. The Death Grip

The term "Death Grip" began circulating among PTT users around 2012.¹ Netizens observed that individuals and groups who posed for handshake photos with then-President Ma Ying-jeou would frequently suffer misfortune or poor performance afterward — politicians losing their posts, athletes underperforming, even natural disasters in countries that had met with him. The phenomenon was humorously christened after the "Death Grip" ability of Death Knights in World of Warcraft, playfully used to describe Ma Ying-jeou's supposed talent for bringing bad luck. Classic examples included tennis player Hsieh Su-wei's meeting with Ma after her 2013 Wimbledon triumph, with subsequent performances scrutinized through the "Death Grip" lens. An Apache helicopter crash Ma had once boarded, and Gambia's President Jammeh breaking off diplomatic ties with Taiwan not long after shaking Ma's hand — with reports later emerging that Jammeh had a brain tumor — all added fuel to the legend.¹ Ma himself demonstrated a sense of humor about it, applying hand cream in a self-deprecating farewell video before leaving office in 2016, indirectly acknowledging the well-known meme.²

📝 Curator's note: When a political figure's "hands" are attributed supernatural power, it is not merely internet mockery — it reflects how the public constructs meaning through collective imagination when confronted with events they cannot explain, carrying a subtle irony directed at power itself.

2. Deer Antler Velvet

On March 14, 2014, during a meeting with the Maori King of New Zealand, Ma Ying-jeou made a slip of the tongue by describing "deer antler velvet" (鹿茸, lù róng) as "the hair inside a deer's ear," triggering an uproar.³ His exact words were: "New Zealand produces something very famous called lù róng — the hair inside a deer's ear." The comment immediately spread widely online and was widely mocked, as many pointed out that deer antler velvet is actually the soft, unossified young antler of a deer, not ear hair. The word "lù róng" became an enduring symbol of Ma's verbal gaffes, earning him the nickname "Ma-ka-rong."

📝 Curator's note: A simple slip of the tongue, in an era of rapid information spread, can be swiftly reinterpreted and amplified into a lasting label for a political figure. This tests the care with which politicians choose their words, and highlights the microscopic scrutiny that online communities train on public figures.

3. Two Lunchboxes

On May 4, 2012, Ma Ying-jeou visited National Pingtung University of Science and Technology for a student forum. When a student complained that rising prices meant "one lunchbox isn't enough to fill you up," Ma responded: "Well, did you buy a second one?" or words to that effect.⁴ The remark was widely interpreted as an inability to appreciate the hardships of ordinary people, compared to the historical quote "Why don't they eat meat?" — and it rapidly drew widespread criticism and mockery online, becoming a symbolic meme for his disconnection from the realities of everyday life.

📝 Curator's note: This incident highlights the gap between political figures and the lived experience of ordinary citizens. A seemingly offhand response, when it fails to resonate with public sentiment, can trigger powerful backlash and be sculpted into a lasting stereotype of being out of touch.

4. The Ten-Second Silence

On May 12, 2013, Ma Ying-jeou attended an event to observe a moment of silence for the fishermen killed in the Guang Da Xing No. 28 incident. After calling on those present to observe silence, Ma began audibly counting — "1, 2, 3..." all the way to "10" — completely undermining the solemn atmosphere that a moment of silence requires.⁵ The awkward footage was captured by media and went viral online, becoming a representative meme for his rigid and occasion-blind style.

📝 Curator's note: A moment of silence is a solemn, self-initiated act. When the head of state personally counts out the seconds, it not only strips the silence of its meaning — it exposes his inadequate grasp of the nuances of public ceremony, reinforcing the public impression of someone who "doesn't read the room."

5. Raincoat Over the Face

In October 2012, during a disaster inspection tour, Ma Ying-jeou was photographed by media wearing a raincoat with the hood pulled down or otherwise obscuring his face.⁶ The comical visual spread rapidly online and was widely remixed by users, becoming a meme that satirized his poor image management or awkward conduct. The incident highlighted the intense public scrutiny political figures face at disaster scenes, and the amplifying effect that online communities apply to any incongruous image.

📝 Curator's note: A picture is worth a thousand words. At a disaster site, a leader's image is subject to intensified scrutiny. This "face obscured by raincoat" photograph inadvertently captured Ma Ying-jeou's flustered state when handling a crisis, and through its spread online became a concrete symbol of his "bumbling" image.

6. Revealing the Horse's Hoof

During the 2008 presidential election, Ma Ying-jeou's campaign featured a promotional video of him riding a bicycle. A close-up shot of his feet in the advertisement was mockingly described by netizens as "exposing the horse's hoof" (露出馬腳).⁷ The meme cleverly exploited the Chinese idiom "lù chū mǎ jiǎo" (to reveal one's true colors / literally "expose horse's hoof"), which simultaneously referred to Ma Ying-jeou himself (馬, mǎ, meaning "horse" or his surname) and hinted at potential flaws or deceptions lurking beneath the surface. It became an entertaining internet joke during the campaign.

📝 Curator's note: The details of political messaging are often interpreted by the public in unexpected ways. When an advertisement attempts to project a perfect image, any seemingly incidental detail may be imbued with new meaning and turned into fodder for satire — reflecting the complexity of symbolic interpretation in the internet age.

7. "I Treat You as a Human Being"

In December 2007, then-KMT presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou made a controversial statement during a meeting with indigenous residents of the Zhonghe Tribe in Xindian. He reportedly said: "I treat you as a human being, I educate you, your genes are fine, I give you opportunities — you just need to play by my rules."⁸ The remarks were criticized as carrying serious Han supremacist overtones and disrespect for indigenous peoples' culture and autonomy, provoking widespread social outrage and becoming a negative meme symbol in his public image.

📝 Curator's note: These words revealed the latent arrogance embedded in power relations. Even if the intended meaning was equality of opportunity, the underlying posture of "bestowing" and the framing of "my rules" touched a sensitive nerve around ethnicity and culture, resulting in a severe crisis of trust.

8. "Haven't You Already Seen Me?"

During the 2009 Morakot typhoon (the "August 8 Floods"), Ma Ying-jeou visited Taitung for a disaster inspection. When a victim, in tears, said she couldn't get to see the president, Ma replied: "I didn't know you wanted to see me... haven't you already seen me?"⁹ The exchange, perceived as lacking empathy and offering a bureaucratic non-response, sparked fierce public indignation and was seen as evidence of his disconnection from ordinary people — becoming one of the most controversial memes from the Morakot disaster period.

📝 Curator's note: At a disaster site, a leader's presence is not only about practical assistance — it is spiritual solace. The controversy of this reply lies in reducing the victim's longing to "be seen" to the physical act of "meeting," ignoring the importance of emotional connection and empathy, which deepened the public impression of governmental coldness.

9. "Fend for Yourselves"

In 2009, Ma Ying-jeou visited the "Shengyang Water Plants" leisure farm in Yilan, where he inscribed the phrase "自求多福" (fend for yourselves / literally "seek more blessings on your own") on a "biosphere ball" made by the owner.¹⁰ A biosphere ball is a closed system where living organisms survive through internal cycling — Ma's inscription likely referred to the organisms within. However, in the political context following the Morakot typhoon disaster, the inscription was widely interpreted as coldness and irresponsibility toward disaster victims and citizens, drawing broad criticism. In 2015, Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je visited the same farm, saw the inscription, reportedly burst out laughing, and said, "He really should fend for himself" — bringing the meme back into public attention.¹⁰

📝 Curator's note: A single inscription can be read in entirely different ways depending on the temporal and social context in which it is encountered. When a political figure's words are disconnected from the prevailing social mood, even an innocuous phrase can be imbued with negative connotations through collective emotion, becoming a symbol of satire.

10. "Take Down the KMT"

On January 7, 2024, while campaigning in Kaohsiung for KMT presidential candidate Hou Yu-ih, Ma Ying-jeou accidentally said: "This is how we can take down the KMT."¹¹ This obvious verbal reversal, thanks to its dramatically self-defeating effect, immediately went viral in online communities and became a richly ironic meme that was widely shared and remixed by netizens across the political spectrum.

📝 Curator's note: A political figure's slip of the tongue at a critical moment is often amplified exponentially and can become a powerful political symbol that transcends its original meaning. This "take down the KMT" gaffe not only became a top online topic — its dramatic, self-satirizing effect profoundly shaped voter impressions and demonstrated the enormous power of language in political communication.

11. "I Welcome American Pork"

In 2009, while sharing his experiences studying in the United States on his "Governing Weekly" program, Ma Ying-jeou mentioned that because pork knuckles were cheaper than beef, he ate them every week while abroad.¹² When Taiwan opened its market to American pork containing ractopamine in 2020 and the issue became controversial, netizens dug up this clip to mock the inconsistency of Ma's position on American pork — or to suggest his comfort level with it — giving it a politically satirical dimension.

📝 Curator's note: The past statements of political figures are inevitably re-examined and reinterpreted in new circumstances. When a policy issue intersects with a personal anecdote, the public tends to scrutinize the consistency of the figure's positions. This remark about pork was given new satirical meaning within a specific political climate.

12. "I Have Experience with Broken Arms"

While consoling a police or firefighter injured on duty, Ma Ying-jeou reportedly said: "Your arm is broken — I have experience with that too. 'Broken bones grow back stronger.'"¹³ The comment, possibly intended as encouragement, was criticized for lacking empathy and failing to appreciate the suffering of the injured person. It struck many as flippant and inappropriate, sparking online controversy and becoming a meme.

📝 Curator's note: In a consolation setting, a political figure's choice of words is paramount. An ill-chosen "sharing of experience," even when meant as encouragement, may be read as dismissiveness and a lack of empathy when it fails to connect with the injured person's situation — triggering negative public emotion.

13. Flooding

During the 2001 Typhoon Nari, Taipei suffered severe flooding. Multiple Taipei MRT stations and sections of the Bannan and Tamsui lines were inundated, paralyzing the system for months.¹⁴ Ma Ying-jeou, then Taipei mayor, subsequently attributed the disaster to "natural forces," saying "there was nothing to be done with that amount of rainfall." The incident became a lasting focal point for skepticism about his flood management capabilities, and a representative meme. When Typhoon Kong-rey threatened Taipei in 2013 and Ma, by then president, toured an MRT station and demanded the transit authority guarantee against flooding again, the head of the MRT bureau reportedly joked in response, "Jumping in front of a train would be faster" — once again highlighting the meme's lasting power.¹⁴

📝 Curator's note: In the face of natural disaster, the public expects not only post-hoc remediation from government, but prevention and a proactive attitude toward crisis management. When a leader attributes responsibility to "natural forces" rather than examining human error or response mechanisms, it easily leaves in the public mind the impression of blame-shifting — and becomes a long-term symbol against which executive competence is measured.

14. Mabrella Jellyfish

In 2016, Pokémon GO swept across Taiwan. Netizens connected Ma Ying-jeou with the Pokémon "Tentacruel" (瑪瑙水母, Mǎnǎo Shuǐmǔ), mocking his supposed traits of being "brainless, spineless, and toxic," and coined the portmanteau "Mabrella Jellyfish" (馬腦水母, Mǎnǎo Shuǐmǔ, substituting 馬 for 瑪).¹⁵ The meme spread rapidly online, and Ma himself humorously responded: "Baby is not a Mabrella Jellyfish" — demonstrating his acceptance of internet culture and making the meme even more widely known.¹⁵

📝 Curator's note: The intersection of popular culture with political figures can produce unexpected meme effects. When a political figure is able to respond to these memes with humor, it not only bridges the gap with younger generations — it demonstrates flexibility in the face of online opinion, transforming a negative label into an alternative kind of public memory.

15. "You're Amazing — You Held Your Breath for Two Minutes"

During the Morakot typhoon disaster in 2009, Ma Ying-jeou visited Chiayi to inspect the disaster zone, where he met a young girl who had been buried under debris for two minutes before being rescued. Ma picked up the girl in her hospital room and praised her: "You're amazing — you held your breath for two minutes!"¹⁶¹⁷ The comment was criticized as profoundly lacking in empathy, treating a disaster victim's brush with death as some kind of trick or achievement. It became one of his most notorious "dark-comedy-level" remarks.

📝 Curator's note: When speaking to disaster victims who have endured severe trauma, a leader's language should carry comfort and shared feeling. Reducing survival in a disaster to a "breath-holding" technical feat not only stripped the moment of its gravity — it left the public with a sense of near-absurd coldness, which in turn evolved into a symbol of satire on the internet.

16. "Staying in a Permanent House Feels Like Being in Provence"

In August 2011, on the eve of the second anniversary of Typhoon Morakot, Ma Ying-jeou stayed overnight at the Rinari permanent housing settlement in Machia Township, Pingtung. The following morning, he praised the environment and fresh air, saying: "Staying in the permanent house is so refreshing — it feels like being in Provence."¹⁸¹⁹ The remark drew fierce backlash from indigenous disaster victims and broader public opinion, as it appeared to romanticize the plight of indigenous people who had been forced to leave their ancestral homelands and relocate to permanent housing — likening it to a French vacation destination. It was again seen as out-of-touch and lacking empathy.

📝 Curator's note: For indigenous people who have lost their homes, permanent housing is an unwanted necessity, carrying with it the pain of cultural rupture and displacement from ancestral land. Comparing it to the French tourist destination of Provence — however well-intentioned as praise for the construction quality — was seen as deeply ironic and ill-timed for ignoring the emotional context of those living there.

17. Red Bean Cake and Zhou Mei-qing's "Death Stare"

At the 2008 National Day banquet, Ma Ying-jeou was photographed enthusiastically devouring red bean cakes (wheel cakes), utterly unconcerned with appearances, while his wife Zhou Mei-qing (Christine Choo) shot him a furrowed-brow glare.²⁰²¹ The moment was captured by media and went viral, becoming a classic meme that simultaneously captured Ma's "everyman" side and cemented Zhou Mei-qing's image as the cool, composed "First Lady." Ma has since often joked about it himself, even sharing the photo on Facebook with the caption "This is happiness."²²

📝 Curator's note: The interaction between this political couple added a humanizing touch to a formal political occasion. Zhou's glare and Ma's single-minded devotion to the red bean cake constructed a relatable, down-to-earth public image, successfully converting what could have been an image crisis into a widely beloved internet joke.

18. "What's Wrong with You": Scolded by His Wife at the Inauguration

On May 20, 2012, Ma Ying-jeou was sworn in as the 13th President of the Republic of China. After stepping out of the car at the Presidential Office, he marched straight up the steps, completely forgetting to wait for his wife Zhou Mei-qing. Zhou immediately called out in full public view: "What's wrong with you! Can't you wait for me for a second?"²³²⁴ The phrase "What's wrong with you" (奇怪耶你, Qíguài ye nǐ) instantly became one of the most popular catchphrases of the year and reinforced the meme personas of Ma as "careless and inconsiderate" and Zhou as "frank and outspoken."

📝 Curator's note: At the nation's most important ceremony, being openly scolded by the First Lady shattered the solemnity of the political ritual. The phrase "What's wrong with you" not only reflected the couple's real dynamic — it became a key symbol that the public used to poke fun at Ma's style, illustrating how vernacular language can deconstruct political authority.

19. "No lah"

"No lah" (沒有啦, méiyǒu lah) is a verbal tic Ma Ying-jeou used with great frequency when responding to media questions, allegations, or compliments.²⁵ Whether at a press conference following his indictment in a special funds case or when asked at a banquet if he was drunk, he would often deflect with a characteristically toned "No lah."²⁶ The repeated phrase, with its distinctive evasive or embarrassed quality, was widely imitated and parodied by netizens and became a representatively labeled meme for his linguistic style.

📝 Curator's note: Verbal tics often reflect personality traits. In the public's eyes, Ma's "No lah" gradually evolved into a symbol of evasion or lack of accountability. Under the deconstruction of internet culture, this linguistic habit became a labeling symbol that affected the credibility of his communication.

Conclusion

The formation and spread of Ma Ying-jeou memes represent not only a chapter in the development of Taiwan's internet culture, but also a reflection of how closely the public scrutinizes and interprets the words and actions of political figures. Beginning as satire and mockery, these memes evolved into part of collective memory and even influenced political figures' public images and political careers. Analyzing these memes reveals how fundamentally the formation and spread of public opinion has changed in the digital era — every word and action of a political figure may be subject to amplified scrutiny and given new meaning within online communities. Understanding these memes is not only an entry point for understanding Taiwan's political culture, but an important case study in how the public participates in political discussion and constructs political symbols in the internet age.

Further Reading

• Ma Ying-jeou — The biographical article on the meme's protagonist: cross-strait bridge-builder, symbol of the 22K-salary generation, for understanding the political context behind the memes
• Taiwan Memes — A comprehensive overview of Taiwan's meme ecosystem: the evolutionary trajectory of different meme types from PTT's netizen encyclopedia to "elder photos" to VTubers
• Elder Photos — Another pathway for political meme transmission: the visual political language that spreads through LINE group chats

References