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Goodbye, Vietnam!
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Dordy



Joined: 05 Mar 2006
Posts: 4

PostPosted: Wed Mar 15, 2006 3:31 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Dordy wrote:
In fact, I was more often the benefactor of generosity.


..hmmm, I mean "less often the benefactor of generosity" .. and I fancy myself an English teacher? .. gulp!
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Cyan



Joined: 26 Mar 2004
Posts: 59

PostPosted: Wed Mar 15, 2006 4:16 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hey
ClaudeRains

MOD EDIT- "Poodles get frightened when they try to run with the coyotes." How damn pathetic is that. Its the old if you not tough enough you shouldn't be here routine.

It's a seriously unwelcoming place for a foreigner - treating people with respect is where this place fails i.e the failing the fundamentals of being civilized and treating others in a decent manner.

Do you even live here?!!?!?!?!?
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lexpat



Joined: 23 May 2004
Posts: 56
Location: Meh

PostPosted: Wed Mar 15, 2006 7:11 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Cyan wrote:
Hey
ClaudeRains

MOD EDIT- "Poodles get frightened when they try to run with the coyotes." How damn pathetic is that. Its the old if you not tough enough you shouldn't be here routine.

It's a seriously unwelcoming place for a foreigner - treating people with respect is where this place fails i.e the failing the fundamentals of being civilized and treating others in a decent manner.

Do you even live here?!!?!?!?!?


Yeah I thought that was a howler too. All of us preening Western poodles with paperwork or pensions hanging around being taken advantage of by the wily Viets. Not even. Actually, we're more like roadrunners (beep beep). Desperate, unsophisticated Viets try to take advantage of us again and again until in exasperation rather than desperation, we hit the road and they go back to their big bag of scams from the ACME corporation and wait for the next relatively rich foreigner to come down the canyon.

How many teachers here have had students say they too would like to leave Vietnam forever? For those who have also taught in Thailand, ever heard that over there?
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cameron.mayo



Joined: 13 Mar 2006
Posts: 81

PostPosted: Sat Mar 18, 2006 1:23 pm    Post subject: white mans' burden Reply with quote

The shoe is definately on the other foot. How do you think all the minority immigrants have been treated in all your respective home countries. All I can say is now we know how it feels...suck it up. At least all of you have the nads to put yourself in the minority groups by working in these places. This is the core of the challenge. White men simply aren't used to being in the minorty- enjoy!
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lexpat



Joined: 23 May 2004
Posts: 56
Location: Meh

PostPosted: Sat Mar 18, 2006 4:25 pm    Post subject: Re: white mans' burden Reply with quote

cameron.mayo wrote:
The shoe is definately on the other foot. How do you think all the minority immigrants have been treated in all your respective home countries. All I can say is now we know how it feels...suck it up. At least all of you have the nads to put yourself in the minority groups by working in these places. This is the core of the challenge. White men simply aren't used to being in the minorty- enjoy!


I 'definately' don't understand what this guy means. Is it because I'm from Cali and have never been in the majority as an Anglo? Now we supposedly 'know how it feels?' How what feels? And who is 'we'? Is this incoherent or what? What point is he making? Who is he replying to? wtf?

I'll guess at what this doofus is saying by replying that, by and large, it is much, much easier to meat a willing and able female in Vietnam than in any large city in the US. The relative wealth of teachers makes this a slam dunk. You are taking the disappointment of a segment of the teaching community here as being gospel. Ha ha. Many, if not most, of the guys here long term know their value vis a vis the opposite sex is exponentially higher here than it would be back home. They're just bellyaching because it isn't as easy in vietnam as they thought it would be, or as easy as it is in some other Asian countries. Don't kid yourself.
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Snaff



Joined: 20 Feb 2005
Posts: 142

PostPosted: Sun Mar 19, 2006 7:16 am    Post subject: Re: white mans' burden Reply with quote

cameron.mayo wrote:
How do you think all the minority immigrants have been treated in all your respective home countries.


1. Which particular minority groups? This is a factor.

How are minority groups treated in the U.S.?

Pretty darn well. I worked with the 'recent immigrant' community in the mid-1990s from East Asia, to Kurds from Iraq. Housing paid for, free education costs (initially), federal and state laws applicable to them to protect them like any other US citizen, and even some assistance down the road from the SBA - the Small Business Administration.

Quote:
All I can say is now we know how it feels...suck it up. At least all of you have the nads to put yourself in the minority groups by working in these places. This is the core of the challenge. White men simply aren't used to being in the minorty- enjoy!


Classic case of projection.

I have never considered myself a "minority," anywhere in the world.

I am foreigner because of my foreign citizenship, and because of this I often get preferential treatment, and honestly I feel a bit guilty about that at times.

Quote:
White men simply aren't used to being in the minorty-


White men have been the minority on Earth for a very long time. And it doesn't matter to me.

Look up the statistics on world-wide racial and ethnic percentages.
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buddy bradley



Joined: 14 Jul 2004
Posts: 89
Location: The Beyond

PostPosted: Mon Apr 03, 2006 4:45 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Cyan wrote:
Hey
ClaudeRains

MOD EDIT- "Poodles get frightened when they try to run with the coyotes." How damn pathetic is that. Its the old if you not tough enough you shouldn't be here routine.

It's a seriously unwelcoming place for a foreigner - treating people with respect is where this place fails i.e the failing the fundamentals of being civilized and treating others in a decent manner.

Do you even live here?!!?!?!?!?


Wow, you're still in Vietnam? Did the Europe thing fall through?
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Porlestone



Joined: 24 Aug 2005
Posts: 95
Location: Asia

PostPosted: Tue Apr 18, 2006 8:54 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Cyan wrote:

It's a seriously unwelcoming place for a foreigner - treating people with respect is where this place fails i.e the failing the fundamentals of being civilized and treating others in a decent manner.


Very true and agreed, Cyan!
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J-kun



Joined: 13 Mar 2004
Posts: 43
Location: The Hell of Pachinko

PostPosted: Sun Apr 23, 2006 9:24 am    Post subject: Re: white mans' burden Reply with quote

lexpat wrote:
cameron.mayo wrote:
The shoe is definately on the other foot. How do you think all the minority immigrants have been treated in all your respective home countries. All I can say is now we know how it feels...suck it up. At least all of you have the nads to put yourself in the minority groups by working in these places. This is the core of the challenge. White men simply aren't used to being in the minorty- enjoy!


I 'definately' don't understand what this guy means. Is it because I'm from Cali and have never been in the majority as an Anglo? Now we supposedly 'know how it feels?' How what feels? And who is 'we'? Is this incoherent or what? What point is he making? Who is he replying to? wtf?

I'll guess at what this doofus is saying by replying that, by and large, it is much, much easier to meat a willing and able female in Vietnam than in any large city in the US. The relative wealth of teachers makes this a slam dunk. You are taking the disappointment of a segment of the teaching community here as being gospel. Ha ha. Many, if not most, of the guys here long term know their value vis a vis the opposite sex is exponentially higher here than it would be back home. They're just bellyaching because it isn't as easy in vietnam as they thought it would be, or as easy as it is in some other Asian countries. Don't kid yourself.


And YOU talk about incoherent, lex. Who said anything about getting trim? wtf, indeed. I thought the poster you quoted was right on- welcome to life as a minority. btw, who is the "minority," and who is the "majority" is not a question of numbers - it's about power! The fact that there are more non-whites than whites in "Cali" doesn't mean s.

For everyone: Reading this thread, I've been astounded to hear complaints about the food in Vietnam. My question is: did y'all who don't like the food eat it before you went to Vietnam? I have Vietnamese all the time in LA and love it. I can't imagine that it's worse there. Crazy traffic and aggressive hawkers/touts I expect, but bad food!?
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lexpat



Joined: 23 May 2004
Posts: 56
Location: Meh

PostPosted: Mon Apr 24, 2006 7:40 am    Post subject: Re: white mans' burden Reply with quote

J-kun wrote:
lexpat wrote:
cameron.mayo wrote:
The shoe is definately on the other foot. How do you think all the minority immigrants have been treated in all your respective home countries. All I can say is now we know how it feels...suck it up. At least all of you have the nads to put yourself in the minority groups by working in these places. This is the core of the challenge. White men simply aren't used to being in the minorty- enjoy!


I 'definately' don't understand what this guy means. Is it because I'm from Cali and have never been in the majority as an Anglo? Now we supposedly 'know how it feels?' How what feels? And who is 'we'? Is this incoherent or what? What point is he making? Who is he replying to? wtf?

I'll guess at what this doofus is saying by replying that, by and large, it is much, much easier to meet a willing and able female in Vietnam than in any large city in the US. The relative wealth of teachers makes this a slam dunk. You are taking the disappointment of a segment of the teaching community here as being gospel. Ha ha. Many, if not most, of the guys here long term know their value vis a vis the opposite sex is exponentially higher here than it would be back home. They're just bellyaching because it isn't as easy in vietnam as they thought it would be, or as easy as it is in some other Asian countries. Don't kid yourself.


And YOU talk about incoherent, lex. Who said anything about getting trim? wtf, indeed. I thought the poster you quoted was right on- welcome to life as a minority. btw, who is the "minority," and who is the "majority" is not a question of numbers - it's about power! The fact that there are more non-whites than whites in "Cali" doesn't mean s.

For everyone: Reading this thread, I've been astounded to hear complaints about the food in Vietnam. My question is: did y'all who don't like the food eat it before you went to Vietnam? I have Vietnamese all the time in LA and love it. I can't imagine that it's worse there. Crazy traffic and aggressive hawkers/touts I expect, but bad food!?


The woman aspect was the subject of the thread before. I just meant that almost none of the teachers here are really immigrants who have to make it more than temporarily in the context of a foreign culture. I wouldn't call us a 'minority group' in any meaningful way. Western Culture is a big deal here, a huge looming presence in East Asia all the time. We have nothing to 'get used to.' We are quite priveleged to be able to come here make $1500 a month and pay $125 a month for apartments.

About the food. Sigh. I love Vietnamese food in San Francisco. But the food here is not the same, unless you go to very high priced places. Most teachers I know don't eat much local stuff. I do, but I'm not impressed. Remember, J-Kun, that many people here have recent experience traveling in Thailand, where the every day street food is absolutely superb. I think that affects their judgement.
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Tiger Beer



Joined: 08 Feb 2003
Posts: 778
Location: Hong Kong

PostPosted: Wed Apr 26, 2006 11:42 am    Post subject: Re: white mans' burden Reply with quote

J-kun wrote:
For everyone: Reading this thread, I've been astounded to hear complaints about the food in Vietnam. My question is: did y'all who don't like the food eat it before you went to Vietnam? I have Vietnamese all the time in LA and love it. I can't imagine that it's worse there. Crazy traffic and aggressive hawkers/touts I expect, but bad food!?

Yep, bad food.

Don't know what it is.. but I ate a lot of Vietnamese food all the time when I lived in New York City and San Francisco. Its my food of choice actually.

One of my dreams of finally getting to Vietnam was to have that right at its source. But, its not the same.

For one, the quality of rice and meat is 10 times better in NYC/SF. I was always extremely satifsied with almost any Vietnamese food I ever ordered in the US, but in Vietnam.. its good too.. no doubt about it.. but nowhere near the quality and nowhere near tasted anywhere as good as it did in the US.

The other problem is on the tourist menus in Vietnam.. they throw on stuff they think we might like.. so they have western menus with german food, french food, pizza, burgers, etc.. the rice and meat dishes are often sweet and sour pork and such. The Vietnamese food are often pho.. the real good stuff is hard to find.

One thing I was definetely thinking if I were back in the US.. its to get menus from those restaurants in SF/NYC.. and point to the VIETNAMESE words for their dishes. Half of the problem was finding those good food I liked in NYC/SF and getting the equivalent in Vietnam itself.
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Snaff



Joined: 20 Feb 2005
Posts: 142

PostPosted: Thu Apr 27, 2006 5:28 am    Post subject: Re: white mans' burden Reply with quote

Tiger Beer wrote:
Don't know what it is.. but I ate a lot of Vietnamese food all the time when I lived in New York City and San Francisco. Its my food of choice actually.

One of my dreams of finally getting to Vietnam was to have that right at its source. But, its not the same.


Of course the Vietnamese food in the U.S. will not be the same as in Vietnam.

This is the same for almost all national dishes that are made and prepared thousands of kilometers away, be it Greek, Chinese, Thai, Mexican food etc. The Mexican food served at Mexican restaurants in the U.S. owned and operated by Mexican families is NOT real Mexican food.
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KYC



Joined: 11 May 2006
Posts: 5

PostPosted: Thu May 11, 2006 9:08 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

^ditto, Vietnam has authetic Vietnamese food. Some of which I am not even accustomed to (and I am Viet -_-) Nevertheless, I LOVE THE FRUITS LMAO For 5 dollars I can get me a whole crapload of fruits...
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teflersanonymous



Joined: 06 Apr 2005
Posts: 9

PostPosted: Sun May 14, 2006 12:30 pm    Post subject: Goodbye Vietnam Reply with quote

Which Vietnam are some of our correspondents describing? For nosy neighbours who think that any man over 21 is probably a paedophile and cctv on every block, try living in a small UK town.

Mr Sphinx doesn't know the difference between Vietcong and North Vietnam so I do not think he can talk with much authority. Seen any real footage from Iraq lately? I am old enough to know about Pinochet and Suharto both considered good value by the American establishment and even old enough to know that the Republic of South Vietnam [ie the American half] broke all records for Amnesty International reports of human rights abuse.
Lots of frustrations about life in VN and a hell of a lot wrong with the country - esp. as mentioned the rather dubious and high number of executions but let's keep things in perspective. One of the sad things about Saigon has predominantly blue eyes and a misconception of his own importance. Sitting at the same table around backpackerblock badmouthing the people who allow them to stay in their country and marry their young sister and then treat her as half-maid, half sex-toy.

Indonesia is no better: Religious discrimination, shameful and growing inequality and blatant abuse of power by police and, especially, military and a similar level of the tiring attention one warrants by having fair skin. There is a lot to like about Vietnam and the Vietnamese. Furthermore, Saigon is not Vietnam. [and what is so bad about motorcycles? want to come here and sit behind a line of rich ethnic chinese driving their fat sons to private classes in their huge cars?]
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Mr. Kalgukshi
Mod Team
Mod Team


Joined: 18 Jan 2003
Posts: 6613
Location: Need to know basis only.

PostPosted: Thu May 18, 2006 9:17 pm    Post subject: Deleted Reply with quote

I've just deleted several postings for being offensive, inappropriate and insulting. If there are repeats, responsible members will be sanctioned. Please stay on-topic and off of the stuff that will get you in trouble here.
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