Expat Observations from a world traveler 2005 (WARNING: OT & Long)

[momopi_IHB]

I've been a fan of fellow blogger "Ladislav"'s writings since 2005, when he first posted to the Escape Artist forum. The postings on that forum are, unfortunately, long gone when the whole forum was purged. But he did save his work and re-posted them to his personal blog. I've also saved a collection of his writings, and would like to share them with those who might be interested. The author is originally from Mission Viejo, and spends a great amount of time working and living abroad.



Re-posted with permission from author.



<a href="http:// http://truthfulinsights.blogspot.com/2005_11_01_archive.html">http://truthfulinsights.blogspot.com/2005_11_01_archive.html</a>



Monday, November 28, 2005

FFF- Flip-Flop Foreigners



I have been struggling to coin a term for this group of people and it is not about tourists in flip-flops. By triple f?s I mean people who are caught in between cultures. In the nation of Flops they are Flips and in the nations of Flips they are Flops. How so?



Take second generation immigrants in some country such as say, Japanese in Brazil. People would call them Japanese there but if they went to Japan, the Japanese would call them ?Brazilians?. So they are Japanese in the land of thier birth and Brazilians in the land of thier ancestors . Hyphenated Americans or, especially, naturalized Americans also face a similar classification: George Soros and Arnold Schwarzenegger are often referred to as the ?Hungarian guy? and ?the Austrian immigrant?, respectively. However, if they go to thier native lands , they immediately become ?Americans? there. So, again in your old country you are an American, but you are not really an American in your new country. Kind of weird. Almost twilight zone-like.



Many people fall into this category. British Indians for one. Malaysian Chinese, too. A British Indian may have heard ?Paki go home!? numerous times but he cannot do so. If he went 'home', he would be a Brit there. Plus, he is not even a 'Paki'. But he is an Indian/Pakistani in the land of his birth; at least as far as common people are concerned. Something similar happened to African Indians. They are called Indians in Africa but they become Africans in India. Flip-Flop, Flop-Flip.



Malaysian Chinese are a similar group. As far as the majority of people in go, these are just ?Chinese?. However, if these land at the Beijing airport, they immediately become Malaysians. Why? Strange.



Arab-Americans are just Americans in the Middle East and African-Americans are just Americans in Africa.



I think being an FFF sucks! You do not have a real home and a place where you feel really comfortable in. The indigenous people in every culture will always see you as coming from another place no matter where you go.



<img src="http://images.google.com/url?source=imgres&ct=tbn&q=http://www.theage.com.au/ffximage/2006/04/10/suitcase_wideweb__470x340,0.jpg&usg=AFQjCNGbSMwZcpqeyLbxePbftHoZJDvrbQ" alt="" />

 

[momopi_IHB]

Different "Yous" in Different countries.



As you go from country to country and spend time in them, you will become aware of an interesting phenomenon- you will assume a new role, so to speak in every country you visit and your image and self-image will change. In some countries you will be a low class nobody, in other countries you suddenly become a shining prince, a playboy or a lurid intellectual.



How so? Well, most people see themselves the way society around sees them. For example a man who is 5'7" in the US will always feel short and be aware of that all his life. He may or may not care about that, but he will still be short. A man who is making $27,000 a year is lower middle class in the US. He may again not care but he will still be of that economic status and be aware of it. A man who is average looking in the US may not attract too many women, and again, he may not care whether he does or not. However, his social standing will remain what it is and he will be aware of it.



Once he goes to another country, an amazing thing happens. Say, he goes to the Spanish-speaking countries of the Caribbean. He will immediately cease being short and poor. He will also cease being unpopular with women. In many such countries an average man is only 5'6"-5'7" and much poorer than he is. His looks will also not be average anymore as he will look interesting and exotic to people around him. He will be invited to other people's homes and possibly introduced to women. A previously obscure person is now somewhat of a celebrity in a new land. Therefore, his self-image changes whether he wants it or not. He becomes rich, handsome and of normal height.



If you do a good research on economics, demographics and culture of different countries, you will be able to locate the ones where you will become somewhat of a hero and an object of fascination. Sometimes, it can become annoying, too but if it ever comes to that, the airport is never too far away.



Also, the environment you are in affects you in yet another way- the way you feel about your life and see yourself changes depending on whether you are in some industrial cold city such as Cardiff, Wales or whether you are in the subtropical Rome surrounded by many amazing architectural landmarks, refined and loving art and people sophisticated people dressed in fashionable clothes.



In addition to that, there is a saying that a person who speaks two languages has two distinct souls. I am fluent in several and I must say that it is true. The "me" that speaks Spanish, Russian, Thai or Tagalog is a different " me " that speaks English. Thought processes in languages are different, logic is different and ways of expressing nuances of emotions and shades of meaning are different. Once you master these, you will sort of acquire multiple personalities except that they will not be neurotic ones but natural, healthy and each one assigned to a particular place and time period.



I became even more acutely aware of how amazing the variety of "me" became during my trip to Argentina this past summer. When I appeared on the streets of Buenos Aires, a city decorated by splendid European architects with the most ornate buildings and delicate monuments depicting Greek and Roman heroes everywhere, I myself became kind of ornate and delicate inside. I became like Buenos Aires and its very dignified and classy people. The way people responded to me was also different. They did not see me as short or poor or naive. I was seen kind of like part of the crowd and treated just like anybody else. In addition to that, I spoke Spanish to everybody. I became for all intents and purposes a completely different person, not a variation of "me" but simply a whole other "me".



A flight to South Africa and then Malaysia and then Philippines again kind of created a new "me". And when I left those countries I could not help but feel that the other me stayed behind and continued an independent existence in that place. He still got up, went around the city continued living his life long after I had left the country.

Perhaps, if there are parallel universes, or universes that split up , a new universe was indeed created and an" Argentinean me" stayed there to meet some girl, get married, have kids and live a whole new life there. Maybe without being aware of it, as we choose to either return home or go to yet another country, numerous copies of us stay there, maybe not quite "there" but in some quantum replica of it. Somehow I feel that it is true but I cannot prove it.



I left Thailand in 1996 after having suffered a business setback there. After having lived in Bangkok for several years, I felt like I was part of it and it was part of me. Leaving Thailand was quite painful for me as I felt that I was leaving a whole life there which consisted of me and my Thai environment. Later, in the year 2000 I flew over Bangkok and I could not help it that the Thai me was still somewhere in that city. Perhaps I gave birth to it, created a shell of a personality that continued to live on, and maybe a whole new Thailand was created as well that forked off into some strange universe and now, in that Thailand there was the Thai speaking me, with a Thai wife, a condominium on Silom Road and a great CEO position. But another me was flying over Bangkok into Manila where I was going to become the Philippine variation of me.



A lot of things can be explained away by logical reasoning but I somehow know that even in spite of the fact that the new me has to do with a different environment, I still give birth to strange siblings of me that continue their respective destinies in those countries long after I am gone. When I return there, I may become yet another me while being aware of the fact that the other me is still in that place albeit we will never meet for it would contradict some quantum law.



Living in many countries adds many new facets to one's personality, true. It even creates different varieties of you. However, I still think that on top of that, something strange happens as well and it cannot be easily dismissed as a result of romantic imagination. Song lines such as "Still in Saigon" and "I left my heart in San Francisco" may mean a lot more than we think.

 

[momopi_IHB]

Friday, November 18, 2005

Are Americans Dumb?



When I was working in Saudi Arabia, a British co-workers asked me:" Can I sing you the national anthem of the country of dummies?" I said: "Go ahead" He then proceeded to sing "the Star-Spangled Banner" with the following lyrics: "Dumb-dumb-dumb dumb-dumb-dumb..". Another British co-worker said that Americans were the dumbest race of people on the face of the Earth.



I asked him why? He said that he once made a phone call using an ATT&T operator and inquired her if he could place a call to London. She asked him " Where is London? Is that in Europe?" Later he told him that whenever he switched the TV channel to see a rugby or a cricket match, American co-workers would simply leave the room, totally uninterested in the game. In his eyes, these incidents made Americans "dumb".



America is the largest economy in the world and Americans call themselves the richest country in the world. American leads the world in technology, space exploration in other such areas. So, why is this accusation of being "dumb"? And if Americans are so dumb, why is the country so rich?



America is rich, there is no doubt about it. And it owes its riches to many factors. The main factor is probably the culture built on Protestant work ethics and solid North European common sense. People work hard and they work smart. They know how to solve problems. While some may call modern Americans "wastrels", the past generations had been very thrifty. The country was built on free enterprise and for hundreds of years the government had a laissez fair policy towards business. The culture is forward looking with a "can do" attitude. People are enthusiastic and believe that they can achieve their individual dreams through discipline and never giving up. Add to this the fact that education is much more accessible to many more people than how it was in Europe and the fact that the society has a much less rigid class structure and you've got yourself a rich country. And don't forget the fact that the country has lots of natural resources and unlike the European countries there have not been any major invasions for the past 200 years or so.



So, where does this dumb thing come from? I think what is happening here is a classical case of intercultural misunderstanding. It occurs when foreigners visit the US and when Americans go to foreign countries. The people that call Americans dumb for the most part are Europeans. Latin Americans sometimes call US people uncultured, but not necessarily dumb. So, what is going on?



There seems to be a difference in education. Europeans believe in being informed about the world outside. Being a well-rounded person is seen as a virtue. In the US, according to Europeans, people are very good at their individual professions and a few of their hobbies. However, studying anything that does not lead to practical results, is seen as a waste of time. That for some reason seems to include Geography and World History. So, as long as a conversation between an American and a foreigner runs along a specific topic such as business or the American's chose field of expertise, everything seems fine. Problems start when a European wants to have a broader discussion on international culture or current world events ( the ones that do not cover America's involvement in some war). Once a discussion like that starts, an American tunes out. He gives his conversation partner a blank look and starts feeling uncomfortable. Some Americans will even say with pride " I don't know anything about ( insert the topic). You might be talking to a five-year-old for all one cares.



The neglected areas of Geography and any knowledge of the world outside the US- a subject that many Europeans take for granted and learn at an early age which seems to go largely uncovered in the US causes the impression of 'dumbness'. Brits complain that when they were in the US, MIT graduates would ask them questions such as : "Is there a bridge between England and Scotland or do you take a ferry? One Brit was fuming 'Do you know what that American asked me? He asked me " So what language do you guys speak in England?" Australian TV once ran a program where an Aussie went to some American city and stood there with a map, asking people to show on the map where Australia was and no one, allegedly, could do it.



And these are American reactions to people who come from fellow- Anglo-Saxon countries! Things get worse when other countries are involved. Numerous foreign students who go to the US to study complain that most Americans have never even heard of their countries to begin with. One Malaysian girl studying at a college in New York was almost hysterical " No American has even heard of Malaysia". They keep asking me " Where is that?" One Saudi Arabian official once told me this story: He was studying in the US in 1980ies and once he was picnicking with his friends when a man walked up to them and said " F*** you, Iranian!" They promptly left the place but later decided to go back and explain to him that they were not Iranians. Upon approaching the angry man and telling him that they were not Iranians, the question that came their way was " So, what the f**** are you?"." We are Saudis!" to which the man replied " Same f****ing s**t!" In Latin America tales about of US presidents calling Brazilians "Bolivians" and being surprised that Brazil had Black people. White South Africans are asked " You come from Africa, How come you are white?"



The other thing that aggravates the situation is that, because of geographical and cultural distances involved, even if Americans know about the existence a country, they have a very distorted picture of how life in those countries must be. Questions such as " Do you guys have electricity or TV?" or" Do you guys live in houses and are there cars in your country?" or "Are there big buildings in your country?" are asked of Thais, Nigerians and Singaporeans, people whose countries are quite modern in spite of poverty in some of them. Movies made in the US about Russia or Korea or Africa notoriously portray poor peasants and countryside devoid of any civilization whose people, nevertheless speak English and who all want to go to the US. Since most Americans have not been to those countries, they blindly believe the simplified Hollywood version of the world.



A similar phenomenon occurs in the Philippines, a country that was once a US colony and that adopted an American system of education. Many foreigners visiting the Philippines or who work with Filipinos often say that Filipinos, even those with BA degrees have not heard of many countries unless they are those from which most tourists to the Philippines come and where Filipinos work : USA, Canada, Japan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Italy, etc. Having a worldy discussion with many a Filipino is quite difficult in spite of the fact that they are a well-educated nation.



Hollywood, too , plays a role by putting America in the center of the world with other countries somehow being "run-away provinces" of America, who one day will want to join the Union and become another state of the US. They think that the world speaks English ( because on the screen most people do) and if some people don't ( actually 75% of people do not) then they should and soon will. Even the National Geographic channel covers only the very modern or the very exotic countries leaving a huge number of countries unmentioned. All these factors contribute to the international "uninformed-ness" of an average American and makes him or her appear "dumb" when a meeting between an American and a person of another culture takes place.



In all fairness, Americans also see some other nations as "dumb". For example, the "Polish jokes" seems to be a uniquely American phenomenon. Few people in Europe think that Poles are dumb. Countries surrounding Poland actually think of them as astute, discreet and highly cultured people. In Russia, for example, a Pole is highly respected as being intelligent and even aristocratic. Possibly, the Polish immigrants to the States were originally poor and appeared "dumb" to Americans since they did not function well in the American culture in the beginning. French Canadians whose English was often poor and who also acted clumsy when they first arrived as immigrants in the US, were described as "dumb". But these adjusted to the country, learned the language and the culture and are no longer referred to as such. However, the "dumb" American image persists, especially in Europe.



(cont.)

 

[momopi_IHB]

(cont.)



Being uninformed about the rest of the world does more harm than earning the title of being "dumb". People who think that they live in paradise while unaware of the many social and technological improvements that are always taking place in other countries will eventually fall behind in many areas. They will not be able to adopt many exciting innovations that are being introduced around the world all the time. Japan had video- cellphones as early as late nineties and Sigapore solved its race problem once and for all by very ingeneous quota systems that seem to benefit rather than harm. Many countries, such as Slovenia ( Where is that?) have small per capita prison populations and have much better programs to rehabilitate prisoners. However, if Americans do not know about them, how will the country improve?



They will not be able to elect good leaders and will support international campaigns of dubious usefulness which drain US resources by diverting money from home to some overseas ventures in which patriotic Americans always die. They will believe myths about how the rest of the world is a God-forsaken place and if they become just like the US, they will be OK.



Such ignorance creates suffering and death and stalls progress at home and abroad. And changing that requires improving the education at home and creating a new generation of highly intelligent, worldly citizens. Such Americans will probably be the world's most perfect human beings.

 

[momopi_IHB]

Reputations, Fathers and Sons and Overhyped Countries.



Reputations



Governments of countries often tell their military or athletes that they represent their country abroad, and that the natives will judge the country based on the behavior of these groups in the host nations. This is only true if the host nation is of a similar physical appearance as the guests. In all other cases, you will be representing a "race" or "all foreigners". Or even a group of people that you have nothing to do with. If an American disgraces his country in Japan by loud , obnoxious behavior, the reaction of an ordinary Japanese may not be " I do not like Americans anymore", but " I do not like "gaijin"- foreigners anymore". If a Brit misbehaves in Mexico, he will be dishonoring not the UK, but the very general group called "Gringos"- light skinned, English speaking "John Smiths"- which is how an average Mexican will perceive you. In the Middle East, your bad behavior will earn "Khawajas" an ill repute. " Khawajas" is a very general "Frankish" group that all, lighter than Arab, Western people belong to. So, if you are treated with suspicion or hostility in a foreign land, it may not be because your compatriots did something evil, but because someone that roughly looks like you ( to the host that is) did a booboo there.



A twisted example of how these things can happen is what befell my Puerto Rican friend who was studying in Wisconsin in 1980. He was walking home from school when a bunch of thugs started running after him while uttering racial slurs against Iranians ( of all people). He was told " to get out of the US" for Muslim fanatics were not welcome there. He eventually got out of the continental US and returned peacefully to San Juan after completing his studies. So, the taking of the US Embassy hostage in 1980 marred the prestige of all slightly darker people with moustache. So, next time in a strange land, please behave yourself. You will be earning a good name for a much larger group than you'll ever know.



Fathers and Sons.



People from former colonies often forget who the "father" of their country used to be. I remember an American guy in Saudi Arabia who was saying that Britain was a Third World country and that the only reason that the Brits were arrogant was because they "looked like Americans". I tried to argue that it was possibly the other way around- Americans looked like Brits, at least, to the Saudis they did. He remained adamant and kept saying that Brits were walking around Saudi like they were kings and enjoying fear and respect that Americans earned for them simply because they looked like them. When again I tried to explain that in many ways Americans descended from Brits and it would be unfair to say that a "father" looks like his "son", he said that in the eyes of the Saudis, Brits were just "a bunch of Americans". A similar example given by him was that the reason Saudis were hiring so many South Africans was because they "looked like Americans" for there were white people and black people among them. That would put Saudi patients in hospitals at ease- "See? you will have an American doctor and an American nurse to take care of you". Heck, they wouldn't know the difference, would they?



I can understand that when one talks about South Africans, since partly they descend from Brits but saying that about Brits themselves sounded preposterous to me.



Once, my Filipino girlfriend and I were watching a Spanish TV channel. She could not understand Spanish but when a list of actors appeared at the end of a program, she exclaimed " Look, their names are just like those of Filipinos!" It was hard for her to see the Spaniards were in fact " fathers". This was another one of those cute misunderstandings that occur in the increasingly globalized world where many of us still unconsciosly see it as an extension of our own culture.



Over-hyped Countries.



With very few exceptions, when there is a popular rage about some foreign country that everybody is going to on vacation, to retire or to find friends or money, I take it as sign that the country is no longer suitable for any serious sojourn. When I hear about huge numbers of expats retiring in Costa Rica or Panama because one can live on "half the money" there, I try to give such countries a wide birth. Once they are on the net or in the newspapers as desirable places to live, they are best to be avoided. If they are in the news so much, that means that prices are going up, people are becoming less friendly to foreigners and women are becoming more and more demanding of men who go there- normal guys are no longer welcome- they want a guy with a red BMW. Such countries are on the fast track to becoming another plastic, materialistic local as the one I am trying to get away from. They are half the price? I know of places that are one sixth of the price of back home, and I hope these will not be in the news for a long, long time.



In over-hyped countries a new, starry-eyed tourist is a sheep ready for slaughter. He is a target for con games, rip offs and even open scorn. Many people there are getting sick and tired of so many insolent foreigners coming in and buying up their land and taking their women.



However, when people start making bad comments and wry faces about my next trip to Slovakia or Uruguay or Cameroon, instead of Thailand or Kenya, then I know that I am on the right track. The best country is the one that is never in the news, good or bad. Robert Frost once recommended that we take the road "less traveled by". I prefer to stick with his advice. I will find people there who will not see me as just another foreign face to be ripped off, where women will be conservative, where traditions hold strong and where I can have genuine friends who will invite me to their house because they just want to socialize and not because they want to sell me a condo.



The "Good Life" section in the "Newsweek" this week featured 3-4 bedroom luxury villas in the Bahamas that rent for $4500 a night. There was also an article about some luxury resort in Phuket. I am sure that rooms there would be within the same price range. However, a 6-bedroom villa in Oman costs some $360 a month from September to July, the beaches are just as great and the scenery is breathtaking. Oman is a safe and modern country but no one knows about such cheap villas in Salalah, Oman. Many people have never even heard of Oman. So, they keep going to such overhyped destinations, or worse, they will not go anywhere thinking that it may be out of their reach. Those who are in the know will go where they can have a good life at the fraction of the cost. Being rich does not always mean that you have a lot of money. It can mean that you have enough money to get the goodies you want .And if you know where you can get them cheap and live a luxury lifestyle at a fraction of the cost, then you are by all means, rich. Because you are smart.



A European vacation can cost you a pretty penny, too. And if you decide to spend a summer in Europe, it may turn out to be very expensive. So, why not head to Uruguay? Uruguay is for all intents and purposes 'Europe'. The architecture is a mixture of French, Spanish, Italian and other classical styles. The people are a mixture of various Europeans. The beaches are great and all services are available. And it is three times cheaper than the US. But people do not know about Uruguay. Who goes to Montevideo on vacation? Not many.



It is also worthy of being noted here that very often a bad rap that a country gets in the news serves as a protection for that country from the hordes of boorish tourists. Colombia and Philippines come to mind. These two countries are quite peaceful and the people are great, however, there are critical areas where foreigners ( or even locals) should not go to. If one knows safe places in these lands and stays there, one will have a much better time socially than if one went to a much-lauded destination such as Hawaii or Hong Kong where one will often be a nobody.



Often one can take advantage of very cheap deals in countries that suffer from a bad reputation because they are located in a dangerous part of the world. While there is a war in Iraq or terrorist attacks in Saudi Arabia, it affects the whole region as now people do not wish to travel to the Middle East, period. But Dubai is safe and modern. So is Abu Dhabi. So is Oman. But these get painted by the same brush because they fall within the miuch broader category of "Arab countries".



When there is starvation in Ethiopia or disturbances in South Africa, people do not want to go to Gabon or Senegal which are safe and peaceful countries. Those Americans who think that Mexico is too "third world" for them, refuse to go to Buenos Aires, Argentina, believing that it must be just like Mexico. They speak Spanish, don't they?



So, ignorance in the field of geography and a distorted view of the world, coupled with tourist and investment propaganda that people are being bombarded with at travel agencies and from the press, keeps millions from enjoying a luxury lifestyle for very little money. Something they could do if they only knew where to look.

 

[momopi_IHB]

Thursday, November 10, 2005

More Expat Notes



The Linguo-Racial Complex



The Linguo-Racial complex is a phenomenon that I (and many other people, I guess) discovered while learning foreign languages. It refers to how average people associate a language with people's racial characteristics and have confusing reactions to the speaker of the language if he/she does not have the appearance that a "normal" speaker of such language has. Here are some examples:



A White American took years of Spanish and is now fluent in it. He talks Spanish to some Mexican or Cuban immigrants in the US. They make a wry face and answer in broken English. He again speaks Spanish to them. They again answer in English (which is much worse than the white American's Spanish).



A Brit learns Japanese and speaks it very well now. He stops people on the streets of Tokyo and talks to them. They look at him like they have seen E.T. -with eyes wide-open and jaws dropped. Some smile sheepishly and walk on. Some look irritated and say in Japanese- "the language, I do not speak the language". Some answer in bad English, some walk by saying "I do not speak English", some asking him: "Do you speak Japanese?"(And what is he speaking now, Bantu?).



A European gentleman sits in a restaurant in an Arab country. He calls a waiter and asks for "thom"- garlic. The waiter looks shy and makes gestures at the customer- "One moment please, one moment please" and walks away. Thinking that he went to get garlic, the customer patiently awaits his food. Guess what? He brought another waiter who addresses the customer with "May I help you, sir?" "I asked for bloody garlic in Arabic, why are you here asking me again?" "Sorry sir, we did not realize you could speak Arabic". "But I was speaking Arabic to the first waiter!"



The first waiter's mind did not register the fact that in spite of the speaker's European appearance he was, in fact, speaking Arabic.



An American man who spent 15 years in the Philippines is with his girlfriend. He stops a taxi and talks to the driver in Tagalog. The driver ignores him like he does not exist and starts talking to his girlfriend about the taxi fare and all. People with high noses and white skin speak English. People with flat noses and brown skin speak Tagalog. People with high noses and white skin speaking Tagalog are absurd and probably unreal. Let's talk to the girl- her nose is flat and her skin is brown. She is a Tagalog speaker.



Here is another example: an Australian has spent half of his life in Thailand and speaks Thai fluently. He stops at a street stall. The hawkers look at him incredulously as he begins speaking Thai. One of them lights up and starts yelling out to others: "He can talk! He can talk!"



The Lingo-Racial complex can take ugly extremes such as people ignored at restaurants and not served. People not being rented apartments because the landlord is afraid that he cannot communicate with English speakers (who speak his language very well) and friendships and dates being denied because, you see, I can't speak English. "



"But I can speak your language!" A dull and incredulous look and silence are the answer.



In a place that has many tourists and foreigners of a particular "stock" people form a stereotypical reflex about how a person who looks like that should talk and behave.



In places that are excessively provincial and or/nationalistic people cannot even conceive of a person who is clearly of another race being able to speak their language.



In some Latin countries particularly in the Caribbean and Mexico the speakers see Spanish as "their" language and become shocked and even insulted if a person of "another (non-Latin) race" speaks it.



Anglo-Saxon countries such as the US , UK, etc. do not have that complex but the opposite of it- in their cultural view the whole world speaks English and if they don't they should and soon will. So there is no surprise if a Japanese person speaks English- he should.



Argentina, being an immigrant Spanish speaking society will have a similar attitude and will lack the Complex. So, I guess, would Brazil.



Good news? Well, not everyone has the complex. There are many people who are happy to see that you speak the language and many people who will not even be surprised that you do. Many will treat you as an equal especially after they got to know you. However, when one studies languages of nations where the majority of people do not look like you, one has to get ready to face the awkwardness of it.



It's all in the expat's day's work. What's to do?



"Ey Jinsiya"



If you have a long layover at Dubai airport and are tired of shopping, reading and do not want to spend your money on expensive lounges, kickback and play a solitary game called "Ey Jinsiya". "Ey Jinsiya" in Arabic means: "What Nationality?" People from all over the world fly through or out of Dubai. Just sit down and try and guess what they are.

Can you tell Filipinos from Indonesians?



Filipinos have a certain European skin color because of the Spanish mixture which the Indonesians do not have- they look "purely native". Filipinos also try and "look American"- many wear jeans and T-shirts that say "USA", or "USA sports." They have big round eyes and are relaxed in the way they walk. They like to make eye contact with other people and observe what is happening around them. Indonesians walk in a tense manner and with more determination, so to speak. They are not interested too much in what the other people at the airport are doing.



Can you tell Americans from Brits? Brits are usually skinnier and have sharper features. They all dress in solid colors usually denim and black and do not look around much or try to have an eye contact with anybody. Americans also dress in subdued colors but are generally fatter. They turn their heads more and make eye contact with others more than the Brits. Can you tell Canadians from Americans without listening to their accents? Can you tell the Irish from the Brits? If you can't, keep trying, soon you will pick up on that certain something that will make you say- "Oh, a Canadian!", "Oh, an Irishman!"



Can you tell a Pakistani from an Indian or a Bangladeshi? Pakistanis are mixed with Iranians- their skin is whiter and they are taller than Indians. If you cross an Indian with a Persian, you get a Pakistani. They also wear these long shirts that go down below their knees. Indians are darker for the most part and they all walk like Gandhi. The look on their faces is strong. Many wear glasses. Most look like traveling businessmen. They are officious in their demeanor whereas Pakistanis look much more humble and less formal. Bangladeshis are very short and have round faces.



Can you pick out Sri Lankans? They are very dark for the most part and short with a certain "Sri Lankan face". I can't even begin to describe it. Sort of Indian but not quite.



Can you tell different Arabs from each other? Actually it is not that hard. Gulf Arabs may be harder to distinguish if by facial features- to an unpracticed eye, at least- but you can tell them by their dress and mannerism. Emiratis wear white headdress and they look very polite in the way they move. Kuwaitis dress the same way but have different expressions on their faces- either they look crazed from a night of wild partying and have that devil- may-care mien of an unruly teenager, or they look arrogant, like they own the Gulf (and the world for that manner). Saudis and Qataris are very hard to tell apart as they both wear red headdresses but Saudis seem to look like they are poorer- they walk like peasants lumbering along in a somewhat insecure manner. Qataris appear to have more class and move with a certain spring in their step that is uniquely Qatari.



Egyptians stand out by their aggressive walk and their oily skin, a special way their hair curls and the Arab/Nubian/ Pharaonic racial characteristics.



Can you tell an Ethiopian from a Sudanese? The Sudanese look like dark Semites but Ethiopians look like Africans but they have thin European features. Many have big teeth.



Anyway, "Ey Jinsiya" is a great game that you can play solo or with a friend. The problem is checking your guesses for correctness. Short of running after these people and asking to see their passport, there is really no way to do it. You may follow them to the departure gates and hope you will get a peek of the passport. But then you can get a punch in the eye.

 

[momopi_IHB]

Double and Triple Expats

Saturday, October 15, 2005 (03:09:33)



There is new and growing group of people whom I will call Double Expats. These are people who are from country A, who immigrated and became naturalized in country B and now are living and working in country C. There are also triple expats, those who after working in country C have decided to retire and live in country D.



An example- a Lebanese engineering student who emigrates to Canada, receives Canadian citizenship and dgrees and goes to work in Kuwait as a Canadian engineer. After he makes oodles of money in Kuwait, instead of retiring in Canada or Lebanon, he goes to Indonesia, marries a local beauty, buys a house and stays in Indonesia forever.



There is also a growing group of people who when faced with the simple question of "Where are you from?" or "What is your nationality?" in casual conversation feel confused, put on the spot and don't know what to answer.



Take one friend of mine- He is half French and half Italian but he grew up in Hong Kong. Basically he is almost Chinese in thinking and in manners. He then left for the Philippines and settled there. What will he say to people when he travels to another country?



Such people were not so common in the past when international travel was lengthy and expensive and working overseas involved only one country at the most. Nowadays, however, they are growing in numbers and we will be seeing them more and more often in the future.



Richer or Poorer country



If you move to a country that is richer than yours, you may run the risk of being looked down upon as someone less civilized.



If you go to a country poorer than yours you will get lots of admiration but also jealousy and will run the risk of being ripped off and cheated.



It is usually desirable if you can move to a country that is on the same level with yours economically to feel socially comfortable with the people there.



Distance Decay and Ethno-Cultural Differentiation



The farther away a group of people is from you geographically or culturally, the more they fuse into a blurred whole sometimes even becoming a completely new category.



To illustrate: A Brit can tell different accents of English in his homeland. However, he often cannot tell different American accents. To him they all sound just "American". Same with Americans- they oftentimes cannot distinguish different accents of the UK but they can easily tell a New Yorker from a Bostonian.



To a non-traveling Westerner, all East Asians will look the same while he could probably distinguish a Scandinavian fron a Souther Italian or a Greek. In East Asia, people will easily distinguish a Korean from a Chinese or a Japanese but to them a Greek and a Scandinavian will look roughly the same. They will all be just Westerners.



The same with the average Westerner's view of Africans, Arabs or South Asians- people from E. Africa and W. Africa, Jordan and Egypt and Indian, Sri Lanka and Pakistan will look roughly the same.



However, they themselves immediately know who is who but they cannot tell Westerners apart.



Interesting, isn't it?



Expatriate Observations



The friendliness of people ( and women )of a certain country towards you depends on several factors:

1) The difference in GDP between your country and theirs. The formula is this: Your country's yearly GDP /Her Country GDP= friendliness factor. I.e. $24000/$2400= 10. That means they will be ten times friendlier to you than women in your own country. Before you choose the place to go to, check out the GDP there and you will be able to calculate the friendliness factor with relative accuracy.

2) Similar religion- the more similar the better.

3) Race: the more similar, the better and/or the lighter the better.

4) With very few exceptions, the money factor will override all the other differences. If the factor 2 and 3 is any problem, more cash thrown at the situation will normally sway it in your favor.



The degree of scorn piled upon you, by the same token, will also be in proportion to how many times the GDP of the host nation is greater than that of the nation you come from.



***

Many things that your parents taught you about " That is the way the world is" are actually about the way things are in the country you are living in. While many social laws are universal- such as "nobody likes poor people"- (and even that is not true in all places- Communist countries, in fact, deify poor people), many other social laws vary from country to country and culture to culture. Conversely, many things that we think are proper of our country and only happen here, actually happen in other places, as well, and are just inherently human. So, when they tell you that "people are like that" or " society does not accept that" they are often talking about people and society in your country. A few hours' flight and things are as different as they can be- people are no longer "like that" and "society now accepts" whatever it did not accept back home. The same goes for ways to attract the opposite sex. What is considered to be a sure-fire- ( or imperative) way to get women in your country is no longer required. I for one, do not need to be spending three hours a day in the gym, have a Mercedes and buy elevator shoes to get a date in the Philippines.



(cont.)

 

[earthbm_IHB]

The Irvine me felt bitter about missig out on the housing boom and somewhat relieved after the bust, but my other me's think it is not a big deal either way.

 

[momopi_IHB]

(cont.)



***

International travelers often confuse hospitality towards a guest with acceptance, and politeness towards visitors, with friendliness. They also confuse good customer service given to a ( perceived) rich foreigner with sincere admiration. If you really want to see how accepting a certain culture is, try settling down in that country and doing business with the local people. Often, the countries that are the most hospitable and polite to guests are the ones that are extremely hostile to those who want to stay in them for good. By the same token, countries in which people seem to be mean and inhospitable to visitors turn out to be fairly accepting to those who want to settle down and assimilate. It is as if hospitality and politeness were exact opposites of acceptance and friendliness.

***

Fanatical patriots, cultural snobs, "my country is the best" arrogant nationalists, isolationists, ethnic and religious fundamentalists, racists and other such types miss out on huge opportunities to avail themselves of all the great wonders that an international lifestyle can provide. With 200 countries in the world, they think that only one country is the best and " has it all" and they do not take advantage of what the other 199 can confer upon them. They miss out on job opportunities, great natural sceneries, unique products, low prices, delicious foods and great friendships, romance and exquisite sexual delights that they can taste/obtain/partake in. However, because they do not know what abundant treasures are out there, they will still be happy in their country with what little they have for they do not know just *how* little they have. Ignorance truly is bliss. All that suits us just fine since we do not want them to compete with us for all these great jobs, women and other such foreign treasures, anyway.

***

No country has it all, and most countries are heavily weighed in one direction and are severely poor in another area. Countries that are materially rich are poor spiritually and socially. Countries with best jobs opportunities cannot usually provide too many gorgeous dates. Countries with most beautiful women have bad economies and rotten politics. It, therefore, stands to reason that in order to have it all, living in more than one country is often a necessity.

***

Jobs and women are some of the most untouchable treasures of a nation. Nobody likes a poor and/or not very ed.ucated foreigner looking for jobs and/or women in a richer country. He will get bad or no jobs and most probably, no women at all. Everybody, though, likes a rich tourist/ investor coming to the country with money. In the case of the investors, women will be available for marriage and other things depending on how much money he has. Rich tourists will have to avail themselves of less permanent love arrangements.

***

The richer the country, the colder, more arrogant, and unfriendly are its people. It also seems that, the richer the country, the lonelier, less sociable, more self-absorbed and less happy most people are. Beautiful, clean and prosperous, highly advanced countries have huge numbers of zombie-like inhabitants who are extremely unhelpful and selfish. It seems that money, good cars, good clothes and technological progress make masses of people less happy. It does not mean, however, that poverty is what makes people happy. It seems that countries that have* just enough* rather than * too much* or *too little* have the healthiest, happiest populations.

***

Media propaganda and stereotypes of how people in certain countries are, are almost always untrue. Not only they are untrue, the people in those countries often turn out to be the exact opposites of what you were taught they were. For better or for worse. Nationalities that were supposed to be unfriendly turn out to be very friendly and the ones that we were taught were friendly, turn out to be very hostile, indeed. That goes for other supposedly national characteristics as well.

Not only that, but once you start traveling, you will see that many things that you thought were true about your own country turn out to be untrue. They always taught you that your country was the best, the freests with the friendliest, most generous people. Maybe even the best girls. As you discover freeer countries with better people and more beautiful girls, a shock sets in.



Most views of other countries through the media are either completely false or are wild exaggerations. If you think that in Africa people live in trees with snakes around their necks and eat grass, you will probably not go there and will not take advantage of getting to know great, prosperous people, see their modern cities full of cars and skyscrapers, will not make new friends and learn about a beautiful culture, music and diversity that exists there. If you think of the Philippines or Brazil as a dangerous and violent countries, you will not travel to them to meet their high quality women. If you think of the Middle East as a camel- riding, terrorist-infested society, you will not go there to work and make your tax- free fortune. Which is fine with me as I will have less competition.

***

What people call you and how they see you, and even your race and nationality/identity changes as you go from country to country. A person who was known as "Black" in the US all his life discovers that he is now "American" or even "white" as he moves to Africa. Very few Italians, Puerto Ricans, and Poles from the US are seen as such when they go back to 'their countries". They are just referred to as "Americans". People who were "Chinese" in Malaysia all their lives become "Malaysians" when they go to China. People who thought of themselves as short become tall as they go to a society where average height is lower. Men of average looks become handsome in the Philippines and handsome men from the US become average in Italy. Average girls from E. Europe and Asia become "gorgeous" in the US. Popular American women become unsighly nobodys and unneeded white elephants in Asia and E. Europe.



By knowing how the perception of you will change, you can find places where people like yourself fit in better or are afforded more admiration and higher status. You can even use many things that were disadvantageous socially in your country to your advantage in another. A Spanish-speaking person in the US, for one, will not get as much admiration there as he would in Quebec, Canada, where Spanish language is seen as extremely romantic and a sign of status. A man who is 5'7" in the US and who is pumping iron to make up for his short stature in America, will not be called a "shorty" in Japan or Vietnam and will not feel insecure as he often would back in the US. Actually, it will be to his advantage not to stick out like a sore thumb. He will have all the dates he wants once he goes to the right country. If Collin Powell wanted it, he could move to Sudan and become a white man there. He is one to the Sudanese according to the African culture. One drop of Black blood in the US makes you black but 25% white blood in most African Americans make them "white" in Africa.

***

What is good or bad varies from culture to culture. What is normal, accepted and legal behavior in one country will land you in jail in another or even get you killed. While the "Fahreneit 9/11" movie is legal in the US, such a movie made about a president of some other country will not be released and its author ( and all his crew) will be imprisoned or killed. A Dutchman who is used to being able to buy marijuana at any time, will feel that the US is very repressive when it comes to such things. A Kenyan may not criticise his president openly but he can have twelve wives and build a village for his one husband- twelve wife family. In the US, he will be jailed for poligamy-a separate sentence for each wife above one.

As an international traveler, one should be aware of such legal and cultural freedoms and restrictions and be very careful and discreet. Coming back home and bragging about things that you did abroad where they were legal or trying to do things that were legal at home but not legal abroad may prove to be your undoing. Extreme discretion is therefore highly advised. Most people (and judges) are not travelers and will not understand your international view on such things.



(cont.)

 

[momopi_IHB]

(cont.)



***

Contrary to the Hollywood image of how things are, most of the world does not treat Americans as heroes. Most people in the "non-white" world cannot even tell an American from a German or a Russian. You may think of yourself as such ( an American) but they have their own name for you ( such as White Ghost) and will dump you together with the above groups just like you would often dump all people that you perceive to be of one race into one group. It is called "distance decay". A Korean would not put himself into the same category with Mongolians, Japanese and Aleuts, but he would put all white Americans, Canadians, Brits, Iranians and Czechs into one blurred " nationality". A Black African would go even further: he can distinguish different people and tribes in Africa with amazing clarity and sees it as a very diverse place, but a Japanese and a British tourist look exactly the same to him and he cannot tell them apart- they are not Black, the skin is light- they are, therefore, of one nationality. Westerners, of course, cannot tell different Africans apart at all but can probably tell each other apart quite easily.



***

According to Hollywood, all people in the world speak English with perfect grammar but with slight foreign accents. If the country is "bad", then the accent is sharper and more unpleasant. If the country is good, then the accent is barely audible. But the grammar is usually perfect. All the tenses are in place, the irregular verbs are used perfectly, the conditionals are immaculate, the vocabulary is copious.



Actually only some 8% of the world speaks English as the first language and some 20% speak it as a second language- which means imperfectly- past tense is not used, conditionals are of the variety : "If you come yesterday, I have the food, but you come today, I no have food".



About 70+% of the world does not speak English at all. And they have no plans to. If you are a brief tourist in a country whose language is not English, it is OK to get around using an interpreter or an English-speaking guide. If, however, you are planning on going to another, non-English-speaking country to live and work for an extended time period, and you are not making an effort to learn their language you are committing a serious act of disrespect.



People from the "Anglo" countries have a particularly big psychological block when it comes to learning foreign languages- for one, many natives want to practice English with them. Second, culturally, they have been taught that the world "kind of" speaks English and if it does not, it soon will. Plus, in the US, UK, Canada, etc. people have been taught to be practical- if it is not absolutely necessary, then one should not waste his time doing it. English is enough.



I, therefore, while traveling and speaking local languages to the natives hear one thing every time I open my mouth and talk to them in their tongue : " Oh, you can speak ( put the language in here). My neighbor is an American. He has been living here 20 years. He cannot speak a word of (put the language here). "



I was once in Puerto Rico and I would always hear about some Gringo who had been living in Puerto Rico for 30, 40 years and who cannot speak a word of Spanish. There is a word for people like that...



"a##-oles!"



While the natives will not tell you this openly, in their hearts and among themselves they will say:



"Oh, what an a---ole! He has been living in our country for so long and he does not think that our culture warrants that he at least make the minimal effort to speak the local language. He is just another #$%&^%$^arrogant foreign a---ole, just like the rest of them who have no respect for the host nation". I am sure you do not want people to think this about you in their hearts.



If you plan to live in a foreign country whose language is not English,the importance language learning is not to be underestimated. Two hours a day for one year will do wonders and most people will be happy to see you try.



However, do not make the mistake of thinking that just because you speak the language, your acceptance will be guaranteed or that you will become " one of them". But you will win many hearts- "he respects us, he is not an a----ole, like the other ones". Still, most people will want to hear the most melodious language of all - the rustling of fresh dollar bills. Most girls' parents would still prefer someone with money who does not speak the language to someone without it who speaks it. The best would be someone with the langauge skills and a pocket full of money.



A multilingual, multi-cultured, well-traveled American ( with money) is probably the world's most perfect human being.

***



Discrimination, bigotry and prejudice based on race, sex, class, caste, profession, economic status, religion, national origin,political view, nationality, citizenship, skin color, family status, etc. etc. are universal things and exist in every society. There is no getting away from prejudice. It is part and parcel of human thought, or even animal thought- most cats do not like dogs and will not distinguish a good one from a bad one. Dogs are not to be trusted.



The difference between prejudices as you go from country to country is the degree and extent of each one. For example, Germanic, Protestant societies as well as Confucian societies have a high incidence of racial prejudice but less class prejudice. Spanish colonies have much less racial prejudice and much more economic prejudice. Some countries have mixtures of various prejudices in various degrees. One thing always holds true in most societies- if you have enough cash, and your social status is high, you will be able to overcome most prejudice and live a semi-normal life. If you do not have huge amounts of cash, one should choose a country where there is not much prejudice against people of 'your kind'. I think that white people should not go and live in Thailand or Korea. Black people from the US would be very welcome in Ethiopia and treated fairly well in Brazil and the Dominican Republic. Asian Americans can go and live in Thailand and expect a fairly smooth integration into the society there. A Western woman should not expect to enjoy full rights in Saudi Arabia or Japan. An E. European man has no business going to the US and hoping to find a great girlfriend.

By knowing which countries have which prejudices against which people, one will avoid traumatic experiences in the future.



(cont.)



<img src="http://www.impawards.com/1993/posters/last_action_hero_ver2.jpg" alt="" />

 

[momopi_IHB]

(cont.)



***



Countries in the Americas are immigrant countries- basically children of various immigrants mixed together. A birth in one of such countries makes you an automatic citizen and a national . Countries in Asia and Europe are indigenous. A birth there does not make you a national. A child of two Chinese parents born in the US is a Chinese-American. A child of two Chinese parents born in Russia is not a Chinese-Russian. Just a Chinese. Germany does not care if your family spent 200 years in Poland. You are still a German and always will be.





***



In the Third World, the richer, the more arrogant, and the poorer, the friendlier. In the first world, the truly rich are relaxed and quite friendly, but the poor look mean and nasty.



***



The so-called Third World is probably what we call "the real world". It runs a full gamut and represents the full spectrum. It has a high top and a deep bottom. First world countries do not have a deep bottom. Middle class people are struggling to make ends meet in the First World. In the Third World they are much happier lording over the 60% of the population that belongs to the working class.



What does it all mean in practical terms? It means that in the third world you can start a business with very little capital and have a family with very little money. It means that middle class people enjoy great respect, high status and can have servants and a great choice of wives from the poorer classes. It means that you can live in a house on the beach for next to nothing. It means that you can eat out every day. Third World is cheap and affordable world with lots of great wonders to be enjoyed. Most important, as long as you are in the third world, you will never be lonely.





***



The best place to live in most countries is the second or third largest city. It is hard to get to know the country and its people if you live in the capital- its people do not really represent it.

***



Whether a country is rich or poor is not determined necessarily by the people's monthly income in US dollars. One has to keep in mind the income/price ratio in local currency when calculating if people are rich or poor.



You may want to pity a Burmese worker whose salary is $30 a month but a meal there costs a few cents and the Burmese worker probably has his own land and a house out in the country- free and clear and usually he pays no tax, either. Not many 1st worlders are this lucky.



"Poor countries" are "cheap countries". So, before you feel the temptation to become smug about your income, think about the PPP- purchasing power parity- i.e. how much your money can actually buy in products and services in your country and how much it can buy in their country.



Mexican and Central American illegals who risk their lives to cross the Rio Grande are not necessarily doing that because they have "The American Dream"- they are often coming to capitalize on-



1) the huge purchasing power that the dollar has in their country.

2) the very high interest rates that their banks pay- $20,000 can already be used as a deposit to generate a significan peso income at a Mexican bank and even enable one to retire.

3) Very cheap real estate there. One can buy a farm for peanuts in many areas where tourists do not go.



So, before you smugly curl up your lip when you see a Guatemalan waiter in your city working his buns off for $30-50 a day and feel so very proud of the opportunities that America can provide, remember- he can (and will) buy a house and a lot back home for $5000 but you can't (and probably won't).



*** Most countries have an overinflated view of themselves and their role in the world. In Thailand they think that the whole world knows their king and that he is some great world leader next to Kofi Annan ( sp). In the US, they think that events in the US, especially the 9/11 "changed the world forever". Also, that every human being on the face of the earth would rather be living in the US than back in his country.



In Arab countries, they think that the entire world is looking to them to be taken out of darkness and to be converted to Islam.



The Russians think that the most important event of the 20th century was the October Revolution of 1917.



Again, the countries, their media and educational systems confuse "our country" with " the world". Most people do not know Thai king's name and have never seen him. Most people like to live in their countries and 9/11 changed *the US* forever, but people in Bhutan, Lithuania and Mali were not changed by the 9/11 events which took place in a country very far away from theirs.



Most people do not want to be converted to Islam and the Russian revolution of 1917 was an important event for *them*. Not for the world.





In the US a 16 year old is considered a child and 22 year old is referred to as a "kid". In other countries, a 16 year old man is not a child but a working adult and a 22 year old is a fully married member of society taking care of a wife and kids. When an immigrant from such a country arrives in the US, he has to travel back in time as he is treated by society as a "kid" and gets little respect. He is even told that he is too young to get married. 19 year old US girls treat him as a kid and themselves, behave like what a 10 year old girl would behave in his country. He feels completely disoriented and unable to fit in in the new society.



Immigrants are shocked when 26 year olds among them are told- "Oh, you are just a baby!" 20-24 year old, fully-formed , mature and intellectual men coming from the Third World cannot fit in with swaggering, spitting and "cool" stateside 20-24 year old "kids" .



Conversely, a 56-year old man in the US is a middle-aged man while in most 3d world countries he is an old man at the end of his rope.



***Whether you are rich or poor is determined by only one thing- what your money can buy within the society you are in. That's all. By finding cheaper societies, you can multiply your worth manyfold.

You may not be poor. It is just that products and services around you may just be too expensive.



***You can become rich and famous practically overnight- that is after an overnight flight to Indonesia or another such place.

A Westerner appearing in a small village in the so-called Third World may become an overnight celebrity and lauded as a great hero and treated as a president of a country. If Indonesia, your money can just dextuple- a $100 will become $1000 and your $20,000 is savings will become $200,000 within their economy. You can buy a house for your fiancee for $8000 free and clear and virtually become her "king".



I once did one thing just for kicks. I took a bus across the island of Mindanao in Southern Philippines. Mindanao is the size of Florida. The bus from the top to the bottom of the island cost me some $4.



But the uncanny thing was this: no Westerners ever travel by that bus and the people in that remote part of the world had never met a white man, and as it went through the jungles, we would pass by small villages along the road. I would stick my head out to look at villages and the inhabitants, upon seeing me, would cheer, clap and shout with joy. Some people would start jumping and virtually dancing.



It reminded me of President Kennedy riding through Dallas. All that was missing was little flags in their hands.

 

[momopi_IHB]

Poems on Expatriation

Saturday, September 24, 2005 (20:54:31)

National Pride





My great country, they said, was the best in the world

Every time in the school yard its flag was unfurled.

I was told to be proud of belonging to it

And that other lands, nations and countries were sh*t.



So, I 'd count my blessings each time I'd wake up,

And look out the window at the mountain top

Over which morning rays would their light softly shed,

And exclaim: " What a country!" while still lying in bed.



"We have mountains, valleys and rivers and lakes,

Our forests have wolves, moose and deer and snakes.

In the skies, there are stars, so pristine and divine.

How beautiful is this great country of mine!



How lucky I am to be living in it;

I would die for my land if it ever were hit

By the enemy bombs or missiles or bullets.

May forever its leaders continue to rule it!"



For as they often said, full of vim, pride and zest:

"Our country is great!-in this world, it's the best!"



Then one day, a misfortune my homeland befell-

Its economy suddenly plunged into hell;

Our rulers were toppled and new ones emerged.

On the blood of the people, the new rulers gorged.



Many people, including myself, were exiled

And in faraway lands, wretched, poor and reviled,

We began to rebuild our sad, trampled lives

With no glory, no pride and no snappy high-fives.



And in those new lands I began to behold

How in them their leaders the same stories told

To the countries' small kids, women, men and the rest

How *their* great nations were simply "the best".



Only they had green woods filled with sumptuous game,

Only they had big weapons that kill, wound and maim.

Only they had deep skies with bright starlets all lit.

All the other lands, nations and countries were sh*t...





No Perfect Place.



Around the world I 've traveled far and near

And this advice I have for you, my dear-

Since our world is populated by Mankind,

A perfect place or country

You will never find.



We, unenlightened humans, everywhere are the same,

In language we may differ and in name,

But pretty much the same old habits we display,

No matter whether man or woman, straight or gay.



And what is thick in one place, in another will be

thin-

A pretty country will be rotten from within.

'Though people may be friendly, the economy is bad

Corrupt officials there will just drive you mad.



And other countries cleaner, more efficient will

appear,

Advanced and, technologically, in gear,

But rude, unhappy people in such places dwell,

Which make them as hospitable as Hell.



And in the countries where pretty girls reside,

There are also goons aplenty who by law do not abide.

The girls may like you, but the hoods have other

views-

They'll make your face one big and bloody bruise.



And then you have some countries that are so nice,

About going home you' ll be thinking twice.

But Communist or Fascist governments they host-

Just one wrong move and you are toast.



And if abroad you are, you'd better not be broke-

Nobody likes a needy foreign bloke.

The smiles that were, will quickly disappear,

And in the gutter you'll end up, my dear.



And when back home you again return,

For those screwed-up places you'll begin to yearn...

The world may be unbalanced and askew

But there will never be a better world for you.



Without injustice and stupidity in it,

It won't be interesting, not one small bit.

There will be fewer contrasts to explore;

Living and traveling in it will be a bore.



No heros such a perfect world will need,

No prophets to combat its dwellers' greed,

No poets to inspire them to act.

No harbingers of change it will attract.



Rejoice ye all that in a screwed-up world

You've made your nest.

For in this Universe it's probably the best.

If ever to a better one you will pass on,

Back to its fold again you will be drawn.





God Bless Arabia



God Bless Arabia

Kingdom Sublime.

One big oodle

Of tax-free boodle

I will stash in my bank every time.

From the Gulf waves,

To the Red Sea,

To the dunes where camels roam,

God Bless Arabia

My tax-free home!





The Language of Money





When I was young

I had a dream-

To fall in love

On distant shores.



My teachers said to me

"You need

To learn the language

-It opens doors".



If local cultures

You respect,

The people will

Appreciate it-



You will have friends

And go on dates,

And you will never

Be frustrated.



And then I bought

A Spanish book

To help me learn

That graceful tongue.



I then that project

Undertook-

I studied hard,

I studied long.



And then in Spanish

I became

A fluent speaker

In a year.



I spoke it well

And felt no shame

To make myself

To others clear.



And to a sultry land

I went.

To fall in love

I hoped immensely,



With swarthy maidens,

Hand in hand,

Walk on the beach

And kiss intensely.



But even though

In Espanol

I could converse,

I did not score.



If fact, I kissed

No one at all

And moped alone

Upon the shore.



"What was the problem?"

You will ask;

You see, it wasn't

My appearance



Or language. That

Was one such task

That needs no tongue

Or perseverance.



I saw some other

Tourists there

That spoke

No Spanish, not a word.



And they were fat

And had no hair,

Each one just looking

Like a nurd.



But boy, each one

Would have a girl

That made me boil

With jealous fury.



In Spanish dances

They would whirl,

Their noses

In their breasts

They'd bury.



Why, why not me?

I'm handsome,

Young,

And I speak Spanish

Like a native,



I 'm kind

And gentle, not high-strung,

And friendly, humble

And creative.



But that was not

What those girls

Would look for in

A Gringo tourist-



I had no job

No cash, no pearls-

In fact, I was among

The poorest.



And since no money

They could smell,

Down their noises

At me they sneered,



Although I spoke

The Spanish well

Like one big loser

I appeared



To most of them.

So I went back

And learned my lesson

Pretty well:



In poorer countries

It's your jack

And not the language

That gets the belle.



(cont.)

 

[momopi_IHB]

(cont.)



.................................................

One Earth



Six years ago to this very date

To work in Saudi Arabia became my fate.

I left my California town for the Middle East

Excited and disturbed I was, to say the least.



Just how would it be for me in such a distant land

Of camels, minarets and desert sand?

Would I feel lonely and forsaken there?

Would homesickness drive me to despair?



And when I landed at the air-port

And later to my place of work I would report,

I took a note of my surround-ings

And noticed all the same familiar things:



The desert looked just like the California desert looked

Upon whose beauty I was always hooked,

Around me, lush oleanders bloomed.

Why then I thought to homesickness I was doomed?



And there were lizards running all around

Just like back home in my California town.

And all the insects, birds and plants and all

Would help me Californian desert nature to recall.



And then, at night, I looked up at the sky

And saw the same old constellations looming high

Above my head just like back where I came from.

Hey, then I thought, this *is* just like back home.



Origa, Lepus, Aries and Ursa Minor

And Ursa Major, Pegasus and then Orion

And then I thought that I was just a whiner

And that I shouldn't leave my home crying



When to some distant lands my life calls me

Because while here on Earth I am, homesick I shall not be.



We like to think of our homes as countries only

And think that outside of them we would be lonely,

But on that night one great dicovery I made:

"The whole Earth is our home!" and now I am not afraid

To live wherever life requires me to live-

As long as it's on Earth, I shall not grieve.





Longing for my Tropical Girl.



As a soft summer breeze blows North from the sea,

And the palms stand caressed by a soft August shower

My heart longs for the East and my eyes want to see

The young maiden who looks like a tropical flower.



Lips uncurled, eyes amiss, our past she recalls,

With her hope almost gone as through void she keeps staring.

Gone the bliss of the kiss as another night falls,

And she stumbles on home, her sarong grandly wearing.



It was years ago when, in tropical lands,

As a soldier and sailor I happened to dally.

My adventurous spirit that pleasure demands

Never wanted to see any gala's finale.



Months went by, drunken sprees, fleshly nights and such things

Just created a feeling of drab satiation.

It was then when Good Lord so suddenly brings

To the cloyed groggy sailors his lustrous creation.



Yes, to me, she just was like a creature of Eden

Lost among earthly things, like a jewel in dirt.

To a sailor such feelings are almost forbidden,

But I felt them not caring whose heart would be hurt.



After notable times and great promises given.

I was ordered to sail my boat on to France

By superiors who, by officiousness driven,

Never cared too much for a sailor's romance.



And I left her alone, in a grimy old haven,

'Twixt old baskets and hawkers and scales of fish;

And she wore her sarong, eyes aflame, hair-raven

Pouted lips like a child who cannot get her wish.



It has been countless months, nights and days, moons and suns,

With her image all filled, her sweet presence reflecting.

Ocean waves that would dance in their endless reruns

Would forever be her dulcet name recollecting.



Wars have passed, decades-gone. Many changes took place

In my life as my hair got tainted with silver,

But I still can't forget her ethereal face

And my feelings for her in my heart gently linger.



And somehow I feel, in this life or the next,

We are destined to cross our footpaths "de novo".

I don't care if eternity gives me a test,

I will love her forever and many times over.



In the meantime, I yearn, overlooking the sea,

As the palms stand caressed by a soft August shower.

My heart longs for the East and my eyes want to see

The young maiden who looks like a tropical flower.





Long Distance Love Today



Long distance love affairs

Used to suck-

It would be rare

For them not to run amok.



Sometimes, they'd last a while

At the start,

But then

Few would

Withstand the trial

While far apart.





But now we're living in the golden Cyber Age,

And you don't need to be

A sage

To figure out

That you have a chance

To do a lot of things

About

Keeping your romance

Alive,

No matter how long

You have to be apart

Your love can still grow strong

And thrive

And keep on burning in your heart-

With daily messaging on your cell phone

You'll manage not to feel alone

And then you'll chat

In real time,

And that

Will also keep your love sublime

And even though

You're very far away,

In cyber space your love will not decay,

And with a WebCam

You will see each other

And distance then

Will never smother

Your feelings like it would before

In those pre-cyber days of yore.



So use email, text and chat online

If fate divided you, do not resign

To losing precious love that came your way,

And let technology its strength display

To make the time when you are separated

A time in which great value is created,



A time in which your love becomes so strong

That it don't matter that you have to wait so long

To meet your love again because you are in touch

By email, texting, WebCam and the such.



And when the walls of separation fall,

You'll feel that you have not been so far apart at all;

That with these modern means to stay in touch,

Ten thousand miles nowadays don't mean that much.



We praise the Internet for many things,

But, in my view, its greatest acquisition

Has been the fact that it can now bring

Two distant lovers in a good position



To keep their love alive

Across blue oceans,

Mountain creeks

Deep valleys, peaks,

And time and space,

Just like a magic potion

To keep two hearts in place

And help their love survive.

 

[momopi_IHB]

Expat Notes



To rent or to buy?



The rule of thumb seems to be this- unless you are seriously rich, if you are in a Third World country- rent, and if you are in a First World country- buy.

Renting can be very cheap in some Third World countries. Apartments that rent for $60-70 a month are common. Motorcycles can be rented for $ 2-3 a day in some places, too. The property does not 'control' you- all the repairs are the duty of the landlord. If you do not like it, it is much easier to relocate than if you had a your own place that you would now have to rent out. What about the fact that you are " throwing your money away"? you may ask. I do not see it that way. By renting in all these unstable countries with unstable polotics and currencies I invest in something called "peace of mind".



In many Third World countries, foreigners have no right to own property, except condominiums. Even if you buy a condo, the local money can be devalued. There have been people who purchased expensive condominiums in Bangkok and when the Baht went belly up, they lost fortunes. Those who were renting, did not. Plus, there is another thing- these countries can be quite xenophobic; if some nationalist leader comes to power one day and decides to appropriate all foreign-owned property, you may be in trouble. You can also rub someone the wrong way, completely by accident, and (s)he can bribe, or simply tell some immigration or police officials to have you thrown out of the country. And they can do that. You are not a citizen. There may be an extortion attempt against you or someone may not like you because of your skin color, accent or race/nationality/religion and start harassing you. You will then wish you had the mobility that renting a place provides. Also, some locals can feel jealous about a "bloody foreigner" coming to their country and buying up their land. Few people, though, would be jealous of a renter and such a person will be much more welcome.



So, if you get in any kind of a bind where some people are seriously against you and the law is not on your side, as is often the case in such countries, you can quicly move to another apartment or leave the city or even country altogether. So, unless you are a person who is very well-connected and wealthy, or someone who is seriously contemplating becoming a citizen of that country, you are better off renting.



The locals may not understand your stubborn decision to rent and will try to convince you to buy a place. Since they are citizens of that country and you are not, they may not be able to relate to your particular legal/civil status, the delicate complications that it provides and how it motivates you to be a tenant rather than an owner. Ignore them. Just rent! In many cases,it is better even not to buy furniture but to rent furnished apartments as that makes emergency exits much easier.



In some cases, you may however wish to buy something in your spouse's name if it is very cheap. In the Philippines or in Indonesia some locals can build a house for you for $2000-8000. And it will often be a decent house, too. If you have a steady girlfriend or wife and contemplate living with her, this may be worthwhile as it will pay for itself over say, 2-10 years. However, do not go to a Second/ Third World country and plop down $100,000-200,000 of your life savings to buy a place for your new sweetheart. That is a sure road to disaster. Tales of people who went to Russia or Thailand with such money and lost it to unscrupulous, and sometimes, locally-married girlfriends, or dishonest sellers, have become oft-heard stories in expat bars all over the globe.



The best thing is to buy property in stable places such as the EU or the US or even Malaysia, and get a tenant to pay off your loan while you yourself are renting cheap places in tropical Third World paradises or buying a $2000 house for your Filipina sweetheart.



Finding Countries of "Requited" love.



Some people who are interested in other cultures to the point of wanting to expatriate and go to another country to live, need to keep one thing in mind and ask themselves this question: "Will the country love you the way you love it?" Prejudice against certain groups is very strong in some parts of the world. Find out how you will be perceived in that particular nation or region, and whether you happen to be a member of a group that is not very popular in that country.



For example, an Israeli guy who likes Italian music and culture may not be making a wise choice when he contemplates moving to Italy long term. Prejudice against Jews in Italy is still quite strong. He may run into unpleasant incidents while there, and many people may not like him.



A Canadian guy who has always enjoyed Russian music and is fond of Russian culture and people, is contemplating a long trip to Russia. He is hoping to make new friends and, possibly, even to meet a great Russian woman and have a romance with her. The problem is, he is black. Now may not be a good time for black people to go to Russia. Skinheads are attacking people of color in many parts of the country. Black people have been beaten, stabbed and shot at. While he may love Russia, many people there may not like 'him'.



A Russian guy loves Cuban music. He is contemplating a trip to Cuba and a possible relocation there. He has always been fascinated by the sultry Cuban women, Havana cigars and, in his heart, he may even like Fidel. However, Cuba may not be a good place for a Russian to be. Anti-Russian propaganda is very strong there now. Since Russia became capitalist, many Cuban people feel that they have been betrayed by the Russians. He may feel resentment coming from a lot of people there. Therefore, planning to go to Cuba may not be a good choice for him.



The good news is that there may be a culture similar to the culture we like, but whose members are not nurturing a grudge against someone like us. An Israeli guy may want to go to Uruguay instead. It is a cosmopolitan society with not much prejudice towards the Jews. And the culture is very similar to the Italian culture.



A black Canadian may choose Croatia or even Slovenia- a similar culture to Russia but without much prejudice against blacks or black Canadians.



A Russian may do better if he goes to a place like Brazil or even Venezuela. People in those two countries have similar cultures to Cuba without much prejudice or grudge against the Russians.



So, choose wisely. Do not invest time, money and energy in preparing yourself to love a country that may not love you back. Unrequited love hurts. It hurts even more if it is accompanied by daily frowns, a beating or a gun shot.



If you want to expatriate, I can assure you that there is a country just for you where you will feel at home. So do your homework, research, ask around and you will soon find your true love which also returns your feelings.

 

[momopi_IHB]

Linguo Racial Complex -additional comments

Sunday, October 30, 2005 (23:15:59)



The LRC ( Linguo-Racial Complex) you speak to people in their language and they answer to you in English because you look different happens when:



1) You have large ethno-cultural groups of people who are socially and politically "pitched" against each other. The example would be the US, especially in large areas where Hispanics feel that they are oppressed by the "Gringo" and they want to preserve the purity of "La Raza".



That would probably never happen in Buenos Aires- people there are all of different backgrounds: British, Polish, German, Russian, Hungarian, etc. All are Argentines and all speak Spanish. There is no "Raza" there, meaning the mythical brown " Jose Rodriguez" who needs to "protect his culture and race" against a mythical blond John Smith- the case of the US, again. An Argentinian more often than not is a "Jose Smith" himself.



Some Asians ( except tourists and foreign students) after living in the US also develop the LRC. It is funny that after years of living in some Asian country you come to the US and want to speak Japanese or Tagalog to the people and they give you these squeamish looks. Really sad.



2) When you are abroad and places where there are large groups of tourists or military men whom the natives see every day and whose ways and behavior they think they already know and are trained to deal with- Mexican border towns, San Juan, Puerto Rico and the tourist areas in the Philippines, Thailand, and other such places. Cairo? Paris, maybe?



Places that are not like that at all:



1)Smaller towns- not necessarily very small but kind of like second biggest cities which do not get many tourists. One is far less likely to be treated with a Linguo-Racial Complex in Osaka than in Tokyo.



2)Places where all kinds of immigrants come to assimilate- Argentina, as I have mentioned, Brazil, I guess. And of course, the US, Canada ( with the English language) These people are used to seeing immigrants, not tourists. The attitude is- "this is Argentina, you are here now, you had better speak my language".



3) Remote areas where people can speak only one language and they will not answer to you in English simply because they don't know any English- rural Russia and other rural areas in E. Europe. Rural China, I guess? Small town Italy?



4) Places where the person you are speaking to is a foreigner as much as you are a foreigner. LRC does not happen much in Saudi Arabia or Dubai if you talk with Filipinos or any other such people there. I was very happy to be able to speak with Thais in Thai and Filipinos in Tagalog and even Puerto Ricans in Spanish when I was in Saudi. It was great.



It is the same if you travel in ,say, Costa Rica and you meet a German or a Japanese who is also traveling there. More often than not, they will not behave with LRC.

The Fallacies when Comparing Countries .



We have heard the new politically correct slogan- "There are no inferior cultures, we are just different."



There is also another slogan-" there are good and bad people/things everywhere". As you travel from country to country you become more and more convinced that the above two statements are simplistic at best.



Nations undoubtedly have different cultures but there are definite inferiority and superiority inherent in each of them. However, these do not exist in the entire culture, but in different aspects of it as compared to the same aspects in another culture.



Here is a case in point: Country A has very friendly people, delicious foods and great music. Families are strong, there is very little divorce and children are well- behaved. The country has a great number of wonderful artists and beautiful architecture. However, the streets are dirty, the infrastructure is backward, and the police routinely take bribes, not to mention the fact that they do not do their work properly. Jobs do not pay any good money, and services are also bad.



Country B has cold and unfriendly people, bland food and non-impressive music. Local art is also of inferior quality and could not hold a candle to that of Country A. The divorce rate hovers around 50%. Young people appear tough and disrespectful. Houses look like shoe boxes.However, the streets are clean, the infrastructure is superb, bribery is almost non-existent, and the police is efficient. Salaries are high and services are excellent.



So when comparing cultures we cannot easily say- "Country A is inferior to Country B". However, we can confidently state that, apparently, several aspects of each country do not compare well, and are inferior or superior to each other.



And yes, there are good and bad people everywhere. However let's take a case in point- a Japanese and a South African are talking about each others homelands. The Japanese says that South Africa is dangerous and there are many criminals there. The South African feels offended and replies:" There are criminals everywhere!" There are criminals in Japan, too".



A Thai is offended when someone mentions that there are many prostitutes in Bangkok. He shouts back "There are prostitutes everywhere!"



I can't count how many times I have heard similar arguments. What is wrong with them? Well, you see, it is true that every human society will have a certain number of good and bad aspects and various social goods and evils. No one denies that, say, both Bangkok and Riyadh will suffer from the scourge of prostitution, and that both Tokyo and Johannesburg will have criminals. However, they will vary from country to country in their numbers, degree, frequency of occurrence, and intensity. Sure, there must be prostitutes in Saudi Arabia, but what would their numbers be? I'd say rather small compared to Bangkok, where houses of ill repute are on the main street of town for everyone to see. Sure, there must be violent criminals in Tokyo, but what is the overall crime, murder or robbery rate per 100,000 of population per year?



So, if you say that South Africa has a much higher crime rate than Japan, or that Thailand has one of the highest rates of prostitution in the world, you will be making a much better statement. It is just that few people like to hear the truth about how screwed-up their countries are.



(cont.)

 

[momopi_IHB]

(cont.)



Love thy Former Conqueror



As you travel you will visit many countries who had been colonized by one or another colonial power. You will also probably become aware of a strange paradox- usually, if Country A was Colonized by Country B, and Country B was richer and more developed than Country A, many of the natives of Country A will continue loving and admiring it long after the independence; despite the horrors perpetrated by the colonial power on its soil. It does not matter that Country B was dictatorial and oppressive. It does not matter that it had killed and tortured the natives of Country A. Many people there will love and respect the culture of Country B and treat Country B tourists and investors with supreme welcome. On their vacations, they will yearn to go to visit the former overlords' capital city and brag to their family and friends of their travel to that place.



In Latin American countries, anything that is related to Spain is still seen as sophisticated and proper. Never mind that Spain destroyed so much culture of South America and so many natives died from deseases brought there by the Spaniards. They were masters and they were stronger than S. Americans. They were richer, too- through stolen wealth, but hey, it does not matter.



The admiration for anything Spanish is alive and well there. Being fluent in the Spanish language is seen as a sign of being cultured and "high-class". Listening to music from Spain is also seen as something very respectworthy.



In the US, a person with a British accent is seen as someone very intelligent, and one of the main destinations of American tourists is still Britain.



In the Philippines, after all the struggle for independence, the natives proudly display American symbols and wear bright T-shirts with letters "USA" on them. The dream of many a Filipino is still to go the States.



Malaysians also love going to London on holidays and British tourists are received with a big smile

and a warm handshake when they visit Kuala Lumpur. Tunisians and Moroccans look up to France. The dream of many a Ukrainian is to go to Moscow to live. Taiwanese teens go crazy about Japanese music and culture.



However, if the colonizers was poorer than the colonized, the former colonial subjects have nothing but scorn for them. The Balts discriminate against the Russians and do not want them in their countries but may look up to Germany in spite of what the Germans had done there. The Vietnamese have the same scornful attitude towards the former USSR while young people there adore anything American and marriage to an American is a desirable choice of many a Vietnamese woman. Go figure! But then again, who has got more money? The Russians do not kowtow to Ulaan Bataar or dream of visiting the Mongolian capital on their honeymoon. Few dream of emigrating to Lovely Mongolia or studying there. The Mongols were powerful militarily but they were not necessarily richer than the Russians when they put thousands ofthem to the sword. But many Russians adore America. While it did not conquer Russia physically, it won the Cold War. As a consequence you can now go and see all these gorgeous Russian women marrying many fat, bald and totally unattractive American men and going to live in the States with them.



I guess, it is human nature to kowtow and respect the strong and the rich, and those who beat you in battle, no matter what bad things they have done to you. So, after the revolutions and the wars, and the struggles for independence pass, the former "oppressees" are back to the business of adulating those who conquered them.

 

[momopi_IHB]

Take Me to Your Country!



There have been movies and books featuring the often hackneyed story of a handsome American ( or British, German, etc.)soldier or businessman who falls in love with a gorgeous Third World girl and saves her from the life of drudgery and hopelessness by bringing her to the States ( or other such country). Such a girl is forever delirious about her new place of residence, and grateful to her deliverer for rescuing her from what would otherwise have been a lifetime of poverty. They have a lovely family and cute, mixed kids, and they live happily ever after.



The less known story is that also, a very large number of American( and other Western) men does quite the opposite- they meet a beautiful Third World girl and stay in her country instead. Such accounts are not often brought up in the media or the movies since the public may not like to see such "traitors". They would also damage the stereotype that most of the 1st World public likes to hold on to- i.e. that it is so much better to be in the US, Canada or Germany than in some God-forsaken Third World sh-ithole. Why would anyone even consider such a thing? Everybody is trying to come 'here', so why on earth would you want to end up in a place everybody is trying to get away from?



I will tell you why. First of all, not everybody is trying to get out of the "sh-tholes". The rich in those countries and the upper middle class people do not. The very very poor would like to get out to make some money but they are not "everybody". There are also some opportunities there that ,while not apparent as such at the time, can prove to be quite lucrative in the end.



We may remember movies or books about Japanese war brides whom those handsome servicemen brought back home to Mom. However, not too many movies have been made about those Americans who had decided to stay with their sweethearts in Japan- a ?third-world? country by that time?s measures. There were many of those, by the way. Some bought property in Central Tokyo when a plot of land in Shinjuku could be had for a thousand dollars. Now, such plots are worth billions of dollars and the elderly American owners are still there living happily thereafter.



But back about the ?real? Third World countries- these, too, have many benefits, at least to the 1st Worlders that want to live there. The first one is this: They are three-tier societies with the tiny rich class, the small middle class and the vast class of the poor. 1st World countries are basically two tier countries- they have a larger class of the very rich, a huge, apathetical middle class and no real poor class. And the 1st World?s rather small "poor classes" are not the same as the down-to- earth, friendly peasants of the Third World. In the US for one, poor people can be quite unfriendly. They will also not wish to provide the various services at cut-rate prices that Third Word peasants gladly will.



By moving to the Third World, by the sheer virtue of relativity, an average American or other Western man will find himself jettisoned to the upper middle class category. He, among many things, will now be able to avail himself of the services that were very costly at home. He will have servants, cleaners, errand boys and even his own private drivers and guards. His money will multiply three to five- fold easily that is, if he uses American money there. Him and his Third World wife will be able to afford things that neither she nor he has been able to afford until now. She had been poor before she met him and he had also been "poor" because he had been living in a very expensive and cut-throat environment back home.



Another reason in favor of moving to "her country" is the fact that getting your wife through the US, Canadian or EU immigration can be a very costly, time- consuming and humiliating process. There will be interviews with immigration officials, oaths that will need to be administered, medical tests as well as the agonizing, nerve-racking time period of being away from your loved one for up to a year, while she deals with the grueling government procedures for new immigrants. Then, you will often have to sign Affidavits of Support and other such documents in which you promise to give the wife financial maintenance for years to come even if you two end up getting divorced in the end.



The politicians talk about "freedom" in the West, yet they run such young couples through the excruciating gauntlet of ruthless bureaucracy and humiliation which would make Gestapo proud. The whole message seems to be- "she is not very welcome here and we are doing you a big favor by even allowing her in".



Now, if you are the one going to 'her' country, you normally just walk through their immigration and proceed on to your destination with no delay or difficulty. With the right lawyers you can obtain permanent visas quite easily and live there for as long as you want for in many such countries an American tourist or resident is quite welcome. You can extend tourist visas quite easily, too. Eventually with the right amount of money ( which is not much) your legal status can be stabilized over time.



I would estimate that the number of American men living in their wives' countries should be about a million by now if you include those who shuttle back and forth between the two countries. That?s a big number.



It must be noted, however, that expatriating to the girl's country is not for everyone. If you are an average 9-5 Joe, it may not be your cup of tea, at least for now. Or, if you are a true patriot of your country and you are not really interested in relocating overseas or experiencing another culture and all you need is a nice lady, that's all. Some guys like to have the stability of a normal job with two weeks' vacation every year. However, if you can make money by freelancing in the Web or, if you have a 6-week on, 6-week off job in the Middle East, or have a military pension, Social Security or a monthly rent payment coming in from somewhere, it may be a worthwhile proposition. If you are not in the position to do so now but really want to, you will have to do some serious planning and research. Eventually, you should be able to accomplish that.



I was not able to do that for a long time but now I am at a point where every few months I fly out and stay with my girlfriend for a few weeks. I can now spend three months out of a year with her. It had not been possible several years ago. But I racked my brains over how to live this kind of lifestyle for years and it came true. My friend who makes over 100K a year is also saving money now to be able to retire overseas soon. So, if there is a will, there is a way.



Again, it's one of those "whatever jerks your chain" situations. And it is quite all right if you decide not to pursue it. But, even merely knowing that there is such an interesting option can be quite exhilarating, since it adds a very new, adventurous dimension to the sometimes boring procedure of planning one's future.

 

[momopi_IHB]

Jews, Zionism and the European Right of Blood.



The Middle Eastern conflict has been viewed from many angles in the media, and there have been numerous viewpoints as to who had caused it, why it has happened and who is at fault. It is kind of hard not to be partial or not to take sides in the debates surrounding it as the temptation to do so is very high. "Oh, those Arabs, they are such fanatics!" "Oh, those Israelis, they are baby killers!" "Oh, they are both wrong". "They are brothers, why can't they just try and get along somehow?"



I keep seeing all these commentators with respectable faces, experts, in their sixties, who are supposed to know about such things better than we do, but they never seem to give you the complete picture. There are just too many factors involved many of which even they do not know of- religion, tradition, the nationality question, and, most of all, lots of emotions pouring out every which way. The Arab-Israeli conflict seems simple to some and complicated to others, but even the most knowledgeable pundits of international politics cannot give you the whole truth. Some things simply seem to be missing from all of their explanations.



If you ask most people in the West about the Arab-Israeli conflict, they will probably tell you a very simple story- there was the Holocaust and then the establishment of the State of Israel as a kind of shelter for Holocaust victims. The Nazis persecuted the Jews; killed six million of them, and then the survivors went back to their ancient homeland and established an independent state there. Arabs would not accept these Jews and have been fighting them ever since. On the Arab side they usually talk about European imperialism, Western colonialism and how the Jews come to Palestine to take Arab land. They will also tell you about how they are killing Muslims who never did anything bad to the Jews. The Jews became Nazis themselves, and are racists, and are killers of Arab children. They took the place of other Western colonial powers in the Middle East in further oppressing the Arabs. They see Jewish immigrants as Europeans of Jewish belief that should be living in Europe and not in the Middle East. The see Jewishness as a religious thing only- same as Christianity or Islam.



Outside of mentioning the Nazis, or occasionally, Germans, almost no one ever mentions East or Central Europeans and how they treated the Jews as one of the main factors to cause the Jews to leave the countries of their birth, and go to a faraway desert land to build a new country there. Moreover, almost no one ever talks about a very important European nationality law called "Jus Sanguinis" which loosely translated from Latin means "The Right of the Blood" and which was one of the main causes of mass Jewish exodus from Europe in the 20th century. In this short paper I attempt to show how Russia and Poland and other Central and East European countries applied the Jus Sanguinis law to the Jews and put them in a situation where the only possible way out , short of emigration to the New World, was the creation of Zionism and subsequent exodus of hundreds of thousands of East European Jews to Palestine.



Central/East Europeans and Arabs see "Jewishness" in two different ways.



The Arabs do not see Jews as an ethnic nationality or a race of people who have the right to be in the Middle East. They see them as Europeans who should be residing in Europe. They also see them as merely a religious group, the same as Catholics or Baptists. However, many Europeans who had large Jewish populations in their countries saw and still see the Jews as non-Europeans who have no business being in Europe. These two conflicting views caught the Jews who moved to Palestine between the rock and the hard place. On the one hand, the Europeans (particularly Central /East Europeans) constantly told them that they were an alien nation and urged them to get out of their countries and go back to the Middle East, and on the other hand you have the Arabs who say that the Jews are just a religious group and most are Europeans that should go back to Europe. They say that Palestine belongs to Arabs and Muslims and that Jews have no right to be there. So, a Jew goes to Europe and they tell him to go to his country, and then he goes to "his country" and they tell him to go back to Europe. You just can't win!



One of the main reasons why so many Jews went back to the Middle East and established the state of Israel was because they could not obtain the ethnic nationality of Central and Eastern European countries in which they lived. Hence, they were persecuted there and were told to go back to "where they came from". And, according to East/Central Europeans, they came from what is known as Palestine/ Israel/Judea, etc. So, they went back there. It is about as simple as all that. The Jews were practically put in the midst of the Arabs by the Poles, the Russians, the Ukrainians, the Lithuanians and other such nationalities. So, why are the Brits and the Americans the only ones that feature in the long accusative harangues of Arab leaders as the powers guilty of causing Zionism to appear on the world stage? Before I continue, I would like to clarify some important logical premises that are often utilized in many an anti-Zionist rhetoric. The main one is: "Jews are not a nation but a religion only, hence they have no right to be in the Middle East".



Are Jews a Nation(ality) or a Religion?



It depends on what school of thought you adhere to. One can say that there are, generally, two methods of describing what constitutes a nation and/or a nationality. One is the German/Russian/Japanese method, which teaches that a nation is a group of people that is of common ethnic origin, a certain predominant physical appearance, descends from a common ancestor, and has its own language and traditions, but may or may not necessarily have its own independent political entity. So, according to this concept, Gypsies are a nation, Tibetans is a nation, Kurds are a nation and so are Basques and Catalans. Belonging to such a nation means having its nationality. Hence, Jews would be a nationality within this conceptual framework, and a Jew's nationality would thus be just "Jewish". The concept of "citizenship" would be different from that of nationality. Citizenship would mean "having paper documents from a particular independent state and thus, having the right of abode, the right to vote and the right to do business there and travel under that state's passport." So, citizenship would thus be political, but 'nationality' would be an ethno-racial/cultural concept.



Such "nationalities" would not be easy to acquire as they are transmitted genetically. For example, one can join a Gypsy caravan or be accepted into Judaism, but one will never be a true Gypsy or a true Jew. Only by intermarrying and having children with a spouse from that particular group would one's lineage become Gypsy or Jewish, but only after several generations of such 'racial' mixing.



One mainly belongs to such nations through something called "Jus Sanguinis" (Yoos-San-Gwee-Nis): in Latin, "the right of the blood". Let's take Japan as an example. One cannot "become" Japanese. One does not become Japanese by being born there, either. You need to have a Japanese face and lineage, a Japanese name, and you must speak Japanese. If two Germans go to Japan and their child is born there, the child is not Japanese. If two Japanese persons go to Germany and their child is born there, the child is not really German. One can obtain "paper citizenship" there, but one will never be truly German or Japanese to the people in daily situations in that country. And, in the past, even citizenship in those countries was very hard to obtain, let alone if one tried to obtain "nationality" there.



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The countries in Eastern/Central Europe have traditionally adhered to this "nationality by bloodline" concept and they strictly separated citizenship and nationality. That is why when you go to Poland or Lithuania or Latvia, you will see that most of the people there belong to one ethnic stock, look (kind of) similar to each other, and have the same language and the same kind of names. A Jew born in such countries would never be Polish or Lithuanian. He would just be a "Jew." Hence, millions of Jews living in those countries were always treated as foreigners, denied many fundamental human rights, and physically persecuted. They were told to "Get out!" "Go home" and thus, to counteract such persecutions, they created a movement called "Zionism" so that they could be "in their own country" , at last.



The British/French and American (including Latin American) concept of a nation is that of "a group of people having an independent political state that is recognized as such by the world community". How does one belong to such a nation? Usually, by being born on the territory of that independent state or having at least one parent born there. This is called "Jus Solis", translated from Latin as "the Right of the Soil". Hence, a person born in the US, or Britain, or France, or Argentina is automatically American, British, French or Argentinean. And such citizenship would be identical to "nationality". The governments of those countries recognize you as one of them and the people also consider you to be part of their nation. Therefore, a Jew from America is an American first and foremost. A Jew from Britain is British and a Jew from Australia is an Australian. And while there may be some prejudice against them in those countries, the position of the government and the general population there is: these people were born here; therefore, they have the right to be here. Thus, there has not been as much Jewish emigration out of these countries into Israel as there has been emigration out of Eastern Europe. Those who did emigrate, usually did so based on strong religious convictions and not because of 'national' aspirations, or because they were never considered to be part of the nations of their birth.



Poland, Germany, Romania, Ukraine and Russia, places where millions of Jews ended up living after centuries of migrations, were not like the US, Latin America or France. They utilized the Jus Sanguinis method of determining people's nationality. A Jew born in Russia was not Russian. Russia traditionally sees belonging to the Russian nation as a "blood" thing, not as a citizenship thing. Jews came from somewhere else. Russians did not. So, a Jew may have citizenship there, but he would not be considered a Russian by the hundred plus million ethnic Russians and by the government of Russia. You see, who is Russian in Russia and who is not, was always decided by the Russians.



They see Jews as a nation that came from the Middle East. Jews may live in Russia and have paper citizenship there, so much is true. However, they are not related to the Russian indigenous population by 'blood'- Russians called Jews ?Yevreyi" -"Ethnic Hebrews". Such "Hebrews" are basically seen as foreigners, and ,according to many Russians, they have no real right to be in Russia. They should "go back to where they came from" even if they came from there two thousand years ago. "Russia is for Russians". "Israel, Palestine, or somewhere else in the Middle East is for Hebrews". "They should get out of the Holy Russia and go back to their country." Such was the attitude of many Russian people and the Russian government in those times and it can still be found in Russia today. Laws were passed against Jews by the Czars stripping them of more and more rights and increasingly making them feel as unwelcome as possible in that country. Then, pogroms, or attacks on Jewish property and lives were effectuated by the Czars in various parts of the Russian Empire. Fantastic accusations such as that the Jews were killing Christian babies to make matzos were fabricated and circulated as rumors to whip up crowds into going out and killing Jews.



Most Arabs, on the other hand, follow the American model. Syrians, Egyptians and Jordanians in particular, see "nationality" as "belonging to an independent state by citizenship" and see citizenship and nationality as essentially one and the same. They practice the Right of the Soil- or, again, Jus Solis. They see the Jews living and having citizenship in Syria, Lebanon or Egypt as just Syrians, Lebanese or Egyptians, and as Arabs, too, since, traditionally, an "Arab" is a person who speaks Arabic as his mother tongue. Many Jews there did, consequently they were often seen as just Arabs, too, albeit of Jewish faith.



The Arabs saw Jews coming from such 'Jus Sanguinis' countries as Russia as simply Russians/Europeans because they did not understand anything about how the Jus Sanguinis- the "right of the blood", or more exactly, the absence of it, drove the Jews out of those places.



So, to stress my point again, you have a situation where on one hand you have the Arabs who see nationality as a citizenship concept and see Jews who ran away from Europe as just Germans and Russians and Poles of Jewish faith, and, on the other hand, you have East Europeans such as Russians and Poles who see nationality as a 'blood thing' and who have forced the Jews to leave their countries of birth because they told them that they had no blood right to be there. And who also made sure that they could not live a normal life there by persecuting them legally and by creating organized massacres against them.



Hence, the big conflict of the two nationality systems and the ensuing misunderstanding -the East and Central Europeans ( Germans for one) said that the home of the Jews is the Middle East and practically forced them to go there, and many Arabs who see Jews as Europeans have been telling them to "go back to Europe". It was and is an awkward situation for Jews to be in, not to mention that it has been causing tremendous bloodsheds for over a century now.



Conflicting Partial Cultural Perspectives Greatly Complicate the Situation.



A great deal of confusion has been caused by the misunderstanding resulting from how different cultural groups view what is happening in the Middle East and the consequent controversies that result from such differences. Let us examine how they view the situation and how it affects their attitudes and opinions towards the Arab- Israeli conflict:



I will roughly repeat what I have heard on TV and the radio, and read in various US, Saudi Arabian, Israeli, British and American press over many years:



Arabs and Muslims themselves: Rich Europeans of Jewish faith, with the help of American and British Imperialists, conspired to take place in the colonization of the Arab world by the West by establishing a non- Muslim stronghold from which the destruction and the exploitation of the Muslim world can be continued. Their goal is to bring into the Middle East all kinds of other Europeans who have nothing to do with the Semites living in the Middle East, including Russians, Hungarians, Germans and other such Khawajas. They want to become rich at the expense of Arabs, expand Israel, destroy the Arab Nation and Islam, and take possessions of the resources of the region. Zionists are greedy, rich Western imperialists who have no pity for the poor Palestinian people whom they expelled from their native homes, and on whose villages they built an illegal and evil so-called State of Israel. Palestinians who were expelled from their land should continue fighting against that evil colonial pseudo-country that should not be there in the first place.



Jews from Europe: Jewish people are a separate nation and nationality that has it own language and religion but did not have a country-they (the Jews) were expelled from their homeland, Judea, by the Romans and had to wonder around various countries in which they were not accepted. They ended up in Europe where they underwent horrendous persecutions because they were seen as an alien tribe that could never be assimilated. They were told to go back to their country repeatedly by the Europeans, as they could never obtain full nationality anywhere in Europe, and were almost completely annihilated. They suffered from anti-Semitism which was hatred against Jews as a racially-ethnic group, a foreign nationality. Europeans hated them and left them no choice but to form a Zionist movement to rebuild their ancient homeland. They started buying land in Palestine but the Arabs would not accept them even though the land was purchased legally. They attacked the Jews. The Arabs were not driven from their land but left it on their own free volition because other Arab countries were urging them to do so, so that they could invade Israel and kill all the Jews living there.



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Jews from the Americas (and other immigrant societies): Israel is a place where Israeli people live. People born and raised in Israel are Israelis. It is a place where people can practice Jewish religion in peace. There are two types of Israelis- Arabs and Jews. There are also Arab people in the lands that have to be allotted for Israelis of Jewish faith, but heck, if the Muslim Arabs want to live there and no Arab state should take them, and then maybe there should be a state for them. Israel was built by Russians, Germans and Hungarians and other nationals whose religion was Jewish. They had to go to Israel because they were persecuted in Europe, and many died in the Holocaust because of their religion. Muslims do not like for anyone to practice Jewish religion in that part of the world, so they are attacking Israelis and putting bombs on buses, at markets and other public places. Israel is legal and should stay there because it was recognized by the UN. If they want to give land back for peace, they may; if they don't , they don't have to. It does not concern us too much because we are just Americans and Canadians and we are comfortable living in our countries. Some of us are against Zionism primarily because we see it as something unnecessary as Jews can live well in America, Canada and other countries as their citizens of Jewish faith. Some of us who are truly religious and believe in Zionism sometimes like to go to live in Israel so that we could fulfill our religious aspirations. The rest of us can attend services occasionally but most of us enjoy living in the countries of our birth.



Other Americans: Jews are just a religion. Most are white people. Jews and Arabs have been fighting since the beginning of time (actually, this is not true). Arabs are fanatical Muslims and they hate the West. They hate Americans and they hate anybody who is not Muslim, including the Israelis who are Middle Easterners of Jewish faith. Where do Israelis come from? From Israel, of course. People who were born in Israel are Israelis. America is supporting Israel because we have many Jews in the government and they want to support their own. .That is why Arabs come here and bomb our buildings and kill our civilians. America should support Israel less and take better care of its people at home. Let those people in the Middle East sort it out among themselves.



Europeans (non-British):Jews and Arabs are two Semitic nationalities who cannot get along in some small country called Israel/Palestine or whatever. Palestinians are Arabs, too, but for some reason they want another state near the Jews. They keep killing each other there but it is so far from us, it really does not concern us. Nazis have killed many Jews that is why they went to live in Israel. We guess Jews have to have their country so it is all right for Israel to be there, but, maybe Palestinians should have their country, too.



Jews from Israel: We were born here so we are Israelis. We are surrounded by Arabs who want to kill us all. They hate us because we are smarter than they are and because we are not Arabs or Muslims. Palestinians are Arabs, too. Arabs have twenty-two countries but they are basically are nation. They all belong to one Arab nationality. There is no such thing as a Palestinian nationality or an Egyptian nationality. They are all just Arabs and they want to kill us all. They are crazy fanatics whose only thought is to kill, bomb and maim Israelis or anyone who is not a Muslim. They like building states of their own but having twenty-two states and so much land is not enough for them - they want a twenty-third one on the land of Israel. They are greedy and cruel. We did not take their land. There weren?t any Arabs here before. They keep making babies and these want more land and jobs and other resources. Why can't they go and live with other Arabs? - there is plenty of land out there. They need to ask Saudi Arabia or Jordan for more land. Maybe one day, we can allow them to have a state but they will still want to kill us because they are all just crazy killers- they can't help it- it's their nature.



The British: this is our former colony and it is populated by Jews and some Arabs. Jews used to be a race but now they are a religion only. The people living in our Palestine used to be our colonials but they are now called Israelis. Palestinians are not a proper nationality as they do not have an independent state. So, they are a stateless people without a nationality. Jews in our country are as British as anyone else. The race thing is long gone. Anyway, some Jews from Europe went to Palestine and we let them settle there. We divided our colony into an Arab and Jewish state and then, we left them alone. They started fighting between themselves and they still keep on fighting. All they need to do is divide the land again just as we have told them to do. No wonder they cannot get along- we should have never left the place to begin with. Those bloody w-gs!



Palestinians: We are Palestinians by nationality and we want to have our independent state. Some people who wish us evil say that we are just Arabs. However, there is no such thing as an Arab nationality. Arabs are divided into Egyptians, Syrians, Jordanians, Moroccans, etc. Arabs are a nation in the cultural sense, but different Arab countries have their own nationality. There was a Palestinian nation in the country and we all lived happily and were struggling to become independent from the Turks and the British, until all these weird people from Europe started coming. They were Khawajas- white people. Most were pale and many had blue eyes. They claimed to be Jews- same people that had lived here thousands of years ago. How preposterous! These were just Europeans, actually. They were Western Imperialists that called themselves Zionists who just wanted our land. Then, in 1940ies, huge numbers of new Westerners started coming and taking our land by force. These were just like the British and the French before. New foreign colonialists. The only difference is that the other Europeans were Christians but these Europeans had synagogues. They were of Jewish faith. What right did they have to come to our country and settle? Jews are just a religion, same as Catholics. It is like saying that all Catholics have the right to settle in the area of the Vatican and build a country there. These evil occupiers should go back to their own countries- they should go to Poland and Russia or wherever. It was the British and the Americans who brought them here so that they could have a military presence in our country and exploit the Middle East from here. These people are not Semites. They are Khawajas. What are they doing here? They are not supposed to be here. We will fight until our country is liberated. Well, maybe we can let them keep Tel Aviv and other such small areas, but only because we do not want any trouble with the United States. We need to have our own state just like Egyptians have their own state. We cannot get land from other Arab countries because they do not see us as their nationals. They are Jordanians and the see us as Palestinians. Even if we are born in other Arab countries, it is not easy for us to get citizenship there now. Plus why should we even try? We want to have our own citizenship.



As you can see from the above examples each party has its own, perfectly logical view of the conflict, but each view is severely slanted by each party's own unique cultural perspective. Where is the truth? That is the toughest question of them all.



Eastern and Central European Countries Are Also to Blame for The Middle Eastern Conflict.



There are numerous conferences always taking place around the Muslim world against Zionism, against American imperialism, Western "encroachment", etc. Somehow the Muslims see Zionism as an American invention, they see Zionists as Western allies, and Israel's presence- as an offshoot of America's expansion into their peace- loving and conservative domain. Today it may be so, but there are deeper causes that are almost never mentioned. Few seem to realize that Zionism started in Eastern Europe- Zhabotinsky and Hertzl and other such people were from the Russian and Austro-Hungarian Empires, not from "the West".



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