Do As We Say, Not As We Do I was checking my LinkedIn feed and noticed a Fulbright University Vietnam (FUV) post about its new partnership with Columbia University. The phrase that jumped off the screen was Understand the Past, which I happen to take seriously. Thinking about the ill-fated appointment of self-confessed war criminal … Continue reading Business as Usual at Fulbright University Vietnam
Commentary
Telling Truth in All its Complexity
When I mentioned to an acquaintance in the southern U.S. state of Georgia that I shared some strands of DNA with a family of slaveowners there, he replied that I am "living proof of evolution to a higher state of being!" While that simple truth put a smile on my face, it also offers a … Continue reading Telling Truth in All its Complexity
American University of Science Sets Up Shop in Vietnam
Gotta love the homepage video of an older white guy with a long flowing beard and three studs in his left ear dressed in a lab coat and goggles in one scene, young female assistant and all, and solo in a gray jacket in another. I guess he's supposed to represent a stereotypical intellectual and … Continue reading American University of Science Sets Up Shop in Vietnam
Public Urination: A National Embarrassment & a Misdemeanor
You're on candid camera! Photo taken in Hanoi by MAA When ya gotta go, ya gotta go, right? This is a common sight in Viet Nam's cities. It's a perennial issue that's frequently covered by the nation's media, usually accompanied by healthy doses of teeth-gnashing and breast-beating. What will the tourists think? What about Vietnam's … Continue reading Public Urination: A National Embarrassment & a Misdemeanor
Why we do what we do: A US international educator’s moral quandary
Stores that sell guns and related items are common in many US states. I took this one a few years ago in my home state of Delaware. Here's my latest article for University World News. (The editor shortened the title to Gun Violence: An International Educator's Moral Quandary.) It was inspired, so to speak, by … Continue reading Why we do what we do: A US international educator’s moral quandary
Fact-Checking a Recent PIE News Article About Viet Nam
Face-to-face key to recruiting Vietnam Gen Z This 8 July 2022 article by Helen Packer, which is essentially an advertorial for INTO, includes some facts and figures that are inaccurate. While I agree with the thesis, i.e., the importance of face-to-face recruiting, I feel compelled to offer these corrections in point/counterpoint fashion. Point #1: Approximately … Continue reading Fact-Checking a Recent PIE News Article About Viet Nam
A Trip to the COVID Capital of the World
Status: 2.7.22 (Mayo Clinic) It's deliciously ironic that I had to submit a negative COVID test result as a precondition for traveling to the country that is #1 in the number of coronavirus infections and deaths. I religiously wore my fashionable black mask on flights, a requirement on Japan Airlines but not American Airlines, in … Continue reading A Trip to the COVID Capital of the World
“We Are Not Okay”
I felt compelled to share this LinkedIn post about the recent mass murder in Illinois. It was written by Erin Gallagher, whose information is below, about Aiden McCarthy, the toddler whose parents, Irina and Kevin McCarthy, were killed in an act of domestic terrorism on July 4th in Highland Park. Erin Gallagher• 2ndFast Company's World's … Continue reading “We Are Not Okay”
They Hate US ‘Cause They Ain’t US!
For sale on Amazon During a recent trip to Boston, I saw this delusional expression screaming at me in large, red, white, and blue letters from the side of a passing cement truck. For the uninitiated, it’s a US cultural reference that has been transformed into a bellicose nationalistic war cry replete with t-shirts sold … Continue reading They Hate US ‘Cause They Ain’t US!
The Legion of Working Poor in the US
During a recent trip to my home state of Delaware, I noticed a sign outside a McDonald’s that was recruiting workers for up to $15 an hour. That's over twice as much as the US federal minimum wage, which stands at a paltry $7.25 per hour. While that is akin to modern-day slavery, the maximum … Continue reading The Legion of Working Poor in the US
An International Educator in Viet Nam 
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