Roger Musson, thanks for your input. I found your comments to be very interesting and well written.

Still, I cannot toss this idea until I find something that shows me it is wrong.

We have had bad storms over the last two days here in Taichung, expected to continue into tomorrow. Not a single flash of lightning though. As I have mentioned before, lightning here is very rare. I can't speak for Taipei though, I only know what I observe here.

It seems even by your last comment, that there might be a relationship there somewhere. Somehow mix it in with the often sudden change in atmospheric pressure before an earthquake. Even though you say lightning is atmospheric, doesn't the thread that the lightning follows to the earth first rise from the surface, or perhaps even deeper?

Do you have any links to discussions or data about earthquakes and lightning in Britain? Not earthquakes and storms, earthquakes and lightning. The M7.6 here in Taiwan ocurred after two days of extremely high wind. Could this cause static electricity in any way? I've noticed that we often have an increase in activity after a wind storm. After expecting an increase in activity last year during two typhoons, I was surprised that we had no activity. I should say surprised and relieved since I was not looking forward to running out of the building during a typhoon. I was so sure that the increase in wind and water to lubricate the faults would cause and increase that I even made a prediction on Syzygy that happily missed. Believe me I remember this well.

This stuff is no doubt way over my head, and, as you suggested, there really isn't anything out there to prove this one way or the other. Your comments are much appreciated.

I try to put it together in my head how this could possibly be related and all I can think of so far is that perhaps the earth in seismically active areas is somehow less conductive. Possibly not allowing the natural charges to release through lightning and building up??? Maybe I better take a nap.