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Excerpt: Backed when I lived in Toronto, there were areas in the city where you would see veiled women. I feel the same way about veils as I do, well, Mormons in full Mormons dresses, or Jews in full Orthodox gear. The light bulb that goes off is: these are some pretty religious people, and they are probably fairly segregated from the community at large. And most likely, these not people I would end up fraternizing with, nor am I someone they would want to hang out with anyway. But if they can navigate and do well within their own communities, what…
From the category archives:
Cultural Comparatives
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Excerpt: Image by matt.hintsa via Flickr Escaping the mediocrity, sometimes unfathomable bureaucracy, and a general lack of opportunities in their home countries, many European economists have stayed in the US after pursuing a degree. This is not exactly shocking news. But it reminds me of my own. So allow me to indulge for a minute. While in university, some of my friends went on exchange, and many to Europe. While getting B-ish grades in our own universities, many came back with A+ from schools in Europe while maintaining a party schedule the rest of us could only dream of. Not too long…
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Excerpt: Image by The Library of Congress via Flickr NPR did a couple of podcasts, touting the “awesomest” economy in the world, Denmark, here, and here. I thought it was going to be another piece of hoopla on the wonders of Danish happiness derived from their unthinkably high taxes. But luckily, Danes interviewed in the program didn’t go into PR mode, so some real questions and real concerns were addressed. I do not think the low unemployment number (at 1.8% versus 5.8% in the US, on average) in Demark is indicative of its economic success by any means. Whether they like to admit it…
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Excerpt: The vampire-genre used borrowed heavily from Slavic folklores and rules, or at least tried to claim some kind of European bloodline. Remember the mythical creatures named Vlad out of Transylvania, vampires of Byron, Bram Stoker, Bronte, and later Anne Rice, and even the ones out of Blade? Not so much anymore. In recent years, with shows like Buffy, Twilight, True Blood, the vampire theme has morphed from a sub-genre of horror, to an entire class itself. In recent years, its depth has risen from merely terrorizing humans and dueling with other creatures of the night, to expounding on hot-bed issues like abstinence,…
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Excerpt: Is there anything the French does not try to plan? Its oppressive education system aside, and in a clear showing that French politicians need some real crisis to lose sleep over, here’s what’s on the French agenda this week. The French elite is united in their desire to ban the burka, citing its divine mandate and unique French imperative to free those women from the “prison” those items of clothing create. What’s more ironic than throwing legal tricks around to render a previously harmless act illegal? That less than 0.06% of French’s Muslim population dons the cursed thing! Women wearing the head-to-toe…
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Excerpt: Image by Wolfgang Staudt via Flickr Time’s tough, so it’s no surprise that everyone’s a bit nostalgic. Old(er) and poor(er) Russians miss a time when the word “oligarch” had yet to invade their vocabulary, and things could be bought with kopeks (cents). Many say they also miss being citizens of a huge, sprawling multiethnic superpower that seemed to command respect in the world. “I used to travel all over the USSR, and was welcomed everywhere,” says Inna Lepneva, a retired TV sound engineer. “Now the country is split up, no one likes Russians anymore, and good relationships are ruined. Nothing has changed for the…
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Excerpt: The tiny Armenia, with a population of 3M, has 27 chess grandmasters (out of 1,200 in the whole world), proving repeated exposures to an activity will create the cluster of “geniuses”, as posited by Tyler Cowen here. As for Armenia’s monopoly in chess, much of it can be attributed to a nation-wise obsession with the sport, connecting the sport with nationalistic pride, materialized by an outpour of both prestige and financial rewards for winners, and the infrastructure to replenish the stock. A sophisticated structure is in place to develop the next generation of Aronians. Down the road from the match venue is…
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Excerpt: In a classic example of how we internalize outside events through our own experiences, however incomplete, and how our opinions about “them” say more about us than anything else, consider this. China executed Briton Akmal Shaikh December 29. It’s a relatively straightforward case, the guilt of the executed was never in dispute. Various human rights organizations, along with the British government protested, citing his mental state, and asked for clemency. And netizens reacted. The British audience, as seen in the Daily Mail’s comment thread that counted 1,650 in total, with little exception, fiercely supported the Chinese decision. It says quite a bit about…
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Excerpt: Image via Wikipedia Last weekend was Sinterklaas in the Low Countries. I can hardly explain why a thinner version of Santa Claus would want to takes off from sunny Spain to the cold and wet Netherlands by boat while dressed like the Pope, then once transferred on horseback, manages to deliver presents to adoring Dutch children and adults alike. Long story short, Sinterklaas and all the gift-giving activities take place beginning of December, whereas Christmas is de-coupled from more shopping, and is celebrated without too much more fuss. Sint does not come alone, but with helpers. Not with elves, because that would…
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Excerpt: Some random observations and the going-ons of life in the Netherlands. An era of liberal backlash Over the past half year, the Dutch government has reduced the number of legal prostitution businesses in the Red Light District. Amsterdam city officials see their duty to deliver their city from sleaze, even as they scrap a 100-million euro business. The official line is the concern over human trafficking and illegitimate operations linked to prostitution. But skeptics see the sudden enthusiasm for gentrifying Amsterdam as nothing more than greed, where the city is buying up real estate with public fund, and will most likely…
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Excerpt: Many rich (and some not so rich) countries are watching the train wreck that is their demographic profile, heading for the cliff. Japan is the obvious case, Germany and some southern European countries are doing almost as badly. A number of surprise entries – South Korea, Russia, and even China, are facing rapid changes in their population make-up, thanks to rapid growth and a number of previously unforeseen second-order social changes. There are two ways to slow down an ageing population. The most obvious one – immigration, means you can cherry-pick the young and taxable coming in the door. The…
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Excerpt: I’ve followed this US versus Europe discussion with some interest, as I get asked a similar version of the question occasionally (substitute US for Canada). Having read the comments here and here, I agree with some of the more measured comments made. There is no short, one-size-fit-all answer to the question. Because it depends on so many factors: why you are there, who you are with, what you do and what you really, really believe in. Self-anointed cultural gurus that jump in those debates with unwavering points of views and sweeping generalizations rub me the wrong way: a few…
investoralist: Chuck, Thanks for not giving up on it! 
Chuck: Glad to see you posting again. 
ParisGirl111: This is so true. All this time I thought my smarts were my ticket. I realized its... 
jasoncornish: I have been interested in North Korea for many years, it is the... 
Scott: Actually this article is misleading. The Danes are a very closed society of... 
