Thang Nguyen 555

Cultures on Collision Course

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With some short-term relief work in Asia/Africa and long stint in Telecom, Thang also earned a B.A. at Pennsylvania State University. M.A. in Communication at Wheaton Graduate School, M.A. in Cross-Cultural Communication at Gordon-Conwell Seminary, Boston. In addition, he earned a CELTA – classes taken in Hanoi for cultural re-immersion.

Tag: tech and multi-cultural marketing

  • Enduring legacy

    Michael Crichton’s last work is currently on the market, although he has been long gone. So is “This is it” by Michael Jackson. I believe Patrick Swayze’s Christmas DVD is also available at the Red Box near you. E-Book, CD, DVD  belong to the digital domain, which lasts way beyond the grave. When I was…

  • Machine and Me

    Sir Chaplin showed it best in “Modern Times”. Jacques Ellul took a step further to analyze all things “technique”. The 70’s OPEC oil embargo triggered  cost-cutting craze, starting with the elimination of gas station full-service to Smart cars and EVs. I took a trip this past Thanksgiving. At rest area, the vending machine took my…

  • shopping frenzy

    Like you, I can feel the shopping tsunami coming. It’s been a slow built-up.  But it’s here. Amazon, Best Buy and even Kohl’s (the ad says it opens at 4AM this Friday). The industrial world produces. The consumers, with wages or not, shop. The system grinds along, and if lucky, gains traction instead of slowing…

  • strip tease

    A Canadian lady, on her insurance-paid leave for mental distress, walked into a bar. Not just any bar, but a male strip tease bar. And she posted her excursion in Facebook to share with “friends”. Among the uninvited  “friends” was the Insurance adjuster. So, her insurance checks stop coming. Reason: “we have joy, we have…

  • Going Broke

    I liked the ring of Going Rogue  (which is a media exploit of  a media victim’s theme) so much that I decided on Going Broke. Actually I am referring to Galileo who was under house arrest (telecommuting with the telescope) until the end of his life. He took Copernicus’ view as Bible, thus signed his…

  • Forced realities

    “the Network Effect of Nations”. Brazil, the “B” in BRIC, is on course to be number 5 by 2014 according to the Economist. http://www.economist.com/displayStory.cfm?story_id=14845197&source=most_commented So, it’s not just the International Olympic Committee which noticed Brazil Rising. Nor is it seen only as the  corn basket of the world (When I hear Brazil, immediately popped to…

  • One foot at a time

    The Subway $5 foot long sandwiches are selling like hot cakes. What began as a weekend test ended up as a week-long winner in spite of the Recession. http://finance.yahoo.com/career-work/article/108119/the-accidental-hero.html?mod=career-selfemployment This brought to mind pictures of 1929 Great Depression’s bread lines and unemployment lines. (at this edit, I just read about the 44 billion loss incurred…

  • Gatsby in China Beach

    I thought the USS New York was cool until I read about ex-refugee came back as US Naval Commander in China Beach. http://www.omantribune.com/index.php?page=news&id=58579&heading=Asia Same waters, similar vessels, but context and crew have changed. Just like what we read today about a school teacher walking students on a day field trip to former East Germany. What…

  • Smart brand

    Given everything that has been going on, recent news that Ford turned the corner on North American market was quite remarkable. Ford, as American as Coca Cola and apple pie, has done a number of things right: – it cross-pollinated ideas and markets (Smart in US vs Fiesta in Europe) – it stuck out while…

  • – thinking = + outcome?

    I was confused when I read about a study in Australia which discovered positive results out of negative thinking. http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20091102/lf_nm_life/us_mood_memory Research subjects were first induced with sad mood. And those who were in this group could ID quickly some urban legends as untrue , or could defend their position better etc… This brings to mind…