Tag: Canada

Fools ignore facts

In all my stops in London, Zurich, Cote D’Ivoire, Monrovia, Ghana, Hong Kong, Manila, Mexico, Montreal, I formed good impressions of each locality and people. When I came back to Vietnam in 2000 and on subsequent trips, I did the same even in the worst of scenes e.g. how could that guy without legs drag himself on the street selling lottery tickets!

But this kind of lens Joel Brinkley did not wear on his trip to Vietnam last month (I was still there then). He came back, and wrote that Vietnamese ate anything that moved “birds and domesticated animals are rarities on city streets” and that he saw one lady in Da Nang sell field rats..” this rich in protein diet drove the Vietnamese to attack peaceful neighbors e.g. Cambodian whose diet had less meat.”

Now he made me paranoid! With the same observation, his steady Big-Mac diet could turn out to be a threat to his journalist students at Standford (who could be 100 per cent sure what’s in the “rich in protein” fast foods).

Our Canadian neighbors to the North love eating quails. French, horsemeat. Even in IKEA products.

Regionally, people responded to scarcity and starvation differently. If he had read Guns, Germs and Steel, he would have known that it’s the lack of anti-bodies (against invaders’ germs) in the native population that killed them more than all the aggressors’ guns put together.

I know what Vietnamese drinkers do and look for. They call it “moi”. It could be appetizers such as roasted peanuts or fried tofu, from escargo (French) to eel (Korean). Vietnam explores and incorporates many strands of culture and cuisine (recent article showed wider adoption of wine, but still not the cheese – due to lactose intolerance).

On the day Joel Brinkley published his opinion piece on the Tribune Media site, by a stroke of luck, the editorial oversight was asleep at the wheel. I was saying goodbye to a friend over a beer (E European) and fish. Luckily, the joint did not serve dog food, or else I wouldn’t be writing this piece of cultural defense in good conscience.

I helped circulate Mr Brinkley’s piece to a network of friends, but did not sign the petition as many did (petition for his removal from post). It said he should have practiced what he preached i.e. fack checking before forming an opinion, observe before conclude, and learn the difference between cause and correlation.

People in Korea, China, Vietnam country side did eat field rats in hard times. Perhaps they want to go back in times (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) bonding over beers (therapeutic more than ritualistic). I once shared a meal with Filipinos over the weekend. We ate without utensils, the native way. It’s their “letting the hair down” time, away from the monotonous rhythm of the Western style cafeteria. And I was glad to be included. Felt like Margaret-Mead then.

I would not fall into a trap to argue that, yes, I saw rats and heard birds in the city while I was there. It would not be cool if I am pressed about where (in the alley, because I took a short cut to shield myself from the scorching sun).

But for someone who wrote a scholarly piece on Cambodia, then to make a 10-day stop in Vietnam, all the while living in a group-think bubble (expat cocoon riddled with colonial jargons) just to write-up a piece that stirred up controversy and resentment, was uncalled for. I remember my Communication professors at Penn State. They earned their stripes and their respects. Joel has to earn the prizes he had already received. In the beginning, was the Word. Noble and enabling word, that builds up not tears down. He probably is tasting a spoon full of his own medicine these days, and wishing he did not make those comments. Teachable moments for both prof and students. Just as we thought we could put Vietnam to rest. BTW, a friend in Ghana who took me to his home offered me foods full of tomatoes and hot chillies. And their dark skin was quite shiny and healthy. I don’t think Ghanaian attack any of their neighbors either. Most wars I read about involved McDonald eaters. Or hit and run  Or drive-by shooting. Want me to open the box? P.S. In Talk Vietnam, there is a parody in which the author took a tour in the US and couldn’t find any livestock here either. All eaten!

Social dynamics

Like aerodynamics,  social dynamics involve working with conflicts, not avoiding them.

Since we are all made differently, we accept change at various speed.

That’s why some ideas are voted down immediately.

Others might take some arm-twisting.

For instance, it took a while for some emerging countries to introduce the condoms. Used to be a cultural taboo to mention the subject of sex.

Now, you can find Condom Store in Vietnam.

Years ago, people there were rushing abroad to seek better life.

Now, they would rather see returnees marry them and settle there: best of both worlds.

The West has lost some of its luster.

Besides, “Western” draws have made their ways there: KFC, Carl’s Jr, Domino Pizza, Hard Rock Cafe, Starbucks and LV handbags.

Why not stay home and wait for it (the West) to come.

I came back to SF airport and found on my flight mostly of Asian origins. Are there any Westerners touring Asia these days?

In Asia, people tend not to disagree with you out right.

They accumulate the points of differences, and give them back to you in one fell swoop.

Ouch!

You thought silence was consent.

People skilled in diplomacy anticipated opposite reaction and worked that into their presentation. It’s called getting the buy-in.

But in the end, it’s all in the relationships.

People-people bonds are stronger than idea-idea boundaries.

Let’s build more bridges than barriers.

Knowing in the absence of conflict, we don’t have real dialogue.

Differences define us and strengthen us as people living in a pluralistic society. Like aerodynamics, social dynamics need to face some headwinds and opposing ideas to rise.

Less is more

In reading Steve Jobs, a theme keeps emerge: less is more.

He cut out the fat and all its distraction.

(being a veggie, he stayed true to form).

His closet was full of the same long-sleeve stretch shirt that defined his personal brand.

His take on wealth and money was also consistent with his 60’s philosophy.

Steve could be nice when he chose to, but working for him must have been a nightmare.

His current replacement was quoted as saying “someone must take charge and fix the problem in China i.e. suppliers”. Half an hour later, he turned to see the man in charge still sitting there “why are you still here?”. That man drove to SF airport and bought a ticket flying East.

It’s true that our world is better and certainly more beautiful with technologists like Steve who also doubled as art lovers (I-pod).

If life consists of only 0’s and 1’s, we would all be automatons.

Lucky for us, we got both Bohr and Beethoven, Newton and Nicholas Cage.

Simplify, simplify, simplify.

Yet people keep acquiring, acquiring, acquiring.

And the longer I live, the more I see this isn’t going to end.

The pursuit of happiness has meant the pursuit of things (think of exercising equipment for home you saw on night TV).

All I can recall from a Hermeneutic class was “a priori “(we read into a text what we had already thought it would say).  We have consitently misinterpreted the meaning of happiness. In fact, advertisers have done this for us (driving a Cadillac is cool. Hence, to be cool, you must own a Cadillac).

Those text-book writers managed to make complex something very simple.

Urban gangs could say “yo man, m..f…is a racist”. That would say it all.

In the age of Wikipedia, if we want to go in-depth about a topic, just click it and scroll down. The spread of information will multiply even more quickly than Gordon Moore had anticipated (IBM has found a way to save space in transistors, call it magnetization, as opposed to polarization as traditionally used). Devices will get smaller with longer battery life (Acer’s thinnest laptop).

But convenience and comfort don’t equate to happiness. Life has gone on for centuries unassisted by today’s accessories. A tribe in India (island) is still functioning without modern amenities. (Tourists tried to bribe them to “pole dance” for YouTube , raising the issue of “human zoo”.)

The happy countries index often lists Costa Rica and other S American countries.

Yes, quality of life index listed Scandanavian countries such as Norway and Finland. They got the oil, but equally distributed unlike Lybia. But happiness doesn’t confine to just Costa Rica as opposed to Costa Mesa (where South Coast Plaza Mall is located). Perhaps Steve saw something while living in India (My Sweet Lord).

Perhaps we too should reexamine what are the core things that make us happy.

Beauty is found in wild lilies and the grandest scene recurs at every sunset.

Sometimes we missed those moments of happiness, only to recognize them after the fact. Would it be simpler to give happiness the initiative to seek us out. I bet you it work out better that way.

VINA MOUSE

Last week, an op-ed in the NYT lamented the death of Disney dream in America.

This week, they signed a multi-million dollar deal to build HappyLand in Long An, Vietnam. The dream doesn’t die. It simply moved offshore. Imagine you can tour both Cu Chi Tunnel and HappyLand in one full sweep.

The new Vietnam seeks to learn not only from neighboring Asian Tigers (Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan) but also from America and European Union. Many signed on with Fulbright scholarship for a year at Ivy League Schools (Yale, Harvard, Standford) to “reverse engineer” America’s secret sauce.

Vietnamese young population will have their Sputnik moment at HappyLand.

Build-and-they-will-come model. Modern cities and mindset. Planned economy. No legacy.

America on the other hand is weighed down with pension plan, health plan, and deficit reduction plan.

Every day, a bunch of people turn 65 in America. And not all of them move on to live in country clubs. Some already got condos in Mexico (warmer than Florida). Others to Canada to buy subsidized medicine.

The brave ones traveled as far as India, hence spurring up medical tourism.

I noticed an interesting trend lately: more American are getting work-permits in Australia, perhaps in construction related business. New Frontier.

To think that the Disney dream is fading out is to limit the scope of the argument.

It simply found new disciples elsewhere, in the land far away, whose name was known more for past conflict than future potential.

The change will happen so fast that by the time we emerge from our tour of Cu Chi Tunnel that we see the bright lights of HappyLand with Vina Mouse souvenirs and logo.

What happened in Vietnam stays in Vietnam. And a lot has lately. I hear the fade out music of “It’s a small world after all” somewhere in the background. Time to dream on.

 

The larger-than-life generation

Tom Brokaw‘s coined it “The Greatest Generation” those who preceded the Boomer Gen.

This weekend we remember many who fought those huge battles.

The way they carried themselves: smoking, shooting and even kissing in the streets of New York (celebrating victory).

Subsequent G.I. Bill made possible their going to college (many were into

engineering and management, having been exposed to the world beyond their immediate borders and compelled by much needed infra-structure projects). They weren’t the “Deer Hunters” of the later war.

Instead, they hit the books and started families, despite Post Traumatic Disorder Syndrome.

I was born later, but the previous generation seemed to have left some trails, very gentlemanly ones.

People tilted their hats, held the door, and smiled at neighbors.

I used to shine shoes for my dad, prepared his coffee and watched him interact with peers.

(I remembered seeing titles by Somerset Maugham, Saint Exupery and Ernest Hemingway around the house.)

They way he carried himself, the romantic incline and how he responded to crisis (w/courage).

Those were the times. I even secretly wished I had grown up much faster then.

Maybe deep down, I knew those happy times would be short-lived.

And true to form, history pulled a quick dialectic turn on me: I was tossed into the seas (literally) to stake out my life and time.

I “imagined” (all the people, living for today) while my hair grew longer than generation, before or after.

My counterparts in the US fled to Sweden and Canada,

while my upper classmates to Australia, US and France.

The Greatest Generation secured an industrial base strong enough to spill over to the next century.

Just try to have breakfast at one of those 50’s diners, and you will get feel for what it was like back then: sturdy counter,

pleasant hostess and  full breakfast. Hate to say, but it was manly. Just like their days in war.

In French, it would be “le jour le plus longue”, whistling and marching to their destiny with bravery and grandeur.

Propaganda discounted, I would say, they staked  out their places in history by living, fighting and rebuilding a society worthy of men.

We are all inheritors of their war-rebuilding efforts, and the least we can do is to salute and keep our shoes shined. Oh, and don’t forget to hold the door.