After experiencing the benefits of democracy and freedom of expression, Taiwanese are unlikely to want to settle for anything less than the open society that they have today. Indeed, with increased contact between Taiwan and the mainland, ordinary Chinese could begin to envy the modern democracy that the Taiwanese people have built – and spread the idea of an open society to the Chinese mainland.
但经济整合是一回事，政治整合又是另一回事。在经历过了民主制度以及言论自由的好处之后，台湾民众不会接受一个比当前开放程度更低的社会。事实上，随着两岸接触的日益增加，大陆普通民众将开始羡慕台湾人所建立起来的现代民主制度——并将开放社会的理念在大陆散播开来。而马英九在其第二任期间所扮演的角色则应当是一个像大陆传播民主的传道者。