[itvnetop]

Originally Posted by SirClintonPortis

I still think that collectivism has less to do with it than just plain old indifference for "non-issues". Take care of yourself, then engage in beggary and faux philosophizing.


And oftentimes entrepreneurs have acquired certain skills that those pansy subjects do not foster and require. They likely could enter a job market that requires specialized knowledge or skills that usually are obtained through an education

Well, it's obvious from certain words you use that this conversation may devolve into something less than academic. Or what I consider academic, you consider "faux philosophizing" and "pansy" subjects. I don't fault you for your perspective... Most AAs have similar beliefs as it were. You said it yourself- Most AAs are raised to view social activism as a waste of time.

The problem with your first statement is history, itself. When you say "take care of yourself first", the statistics show the social group has done just that (high SES, top education, etc). Yet none of this "beggary" you speak of has come to pass. AAs have taken care of themselves. The question then becomes, "Why haven't we seen the next step?" Naturally, a man has to take care of him and his family, first and foremost. But when a strong number acquires that success multiple times over, the community doesn't evolve one iota. Monetary success within a social group isn't necessarily a negative- But when an entire social group places such a high priority on a singular aspect of existence, they miss the big picture.

Aside from the fact that AAs often remain (by choice) to live in ethnic enclaves, such areas never grow beyond cheap Asian restaurants, cell phone shops and boba houses. In Los Angeles, the AA population pretty much resides in the San Gabriel Valley... a few pockets home to wealthy families and expensive houses. The actual community? Everything is still cheap, minimally kept and status-quo. OK, there's a Chinese New Year's festival every year... whoop-dee-do.

Can't piss away money if you don't have it in the first place. If they're burning away renminbis at such rates with the high ass interest rates they charge in Macau, I think it's safe to assume that portion of the population is relatively well off. They still might treat non-gambling transactions differently because humans behave irrationally like that.
Penny-pinching is pervasive. Practically every boy and girl from China knows how to cook and they will do so to save that extra 5-6 dollars a day from getting a $6 fast food meal or 10.50 dinner at a restuarant. The "savings rate" of China is pretty high as well.

I can't argue there. Except we live in a country with Western values, so again this old country mentality is disconnected with the current station of most AAs.

Essentailly, it's about the perception about how strong the "sink node" for money over time is in a particular industry. If the job at hand does not suck in money strongly and consistently enough, committing resources fully(i.e pursuing a degree in Theatre, Political Science, or Journalism) towards a career track in that industry is discourage.

Entertainers are essentially beggers if they cannot capture a wide enough audience. And after capturing market share, the market is extremely fickle. Unless you're monstrously skilled like Yundi Li, you are going to live off of subsidies and/or struggle to make a large amount of income.

Media people do not require much "hard skill" acquisition, which means if you're out of a job, you're dead as a dodo. Writing for a paper? Unless you're damn good, you're not going to strike it big. Reporter? Good luck in that market. Hot chicks and old, established vets, established folks dominate. It's a competition you're not likely to win.

And politics, the very subject matter is absolutely a waste of time in which you essentially become a viewpoint monger unless you're into that stuff.

You're forgetting a huge portion of the industries I used as examples. You don't have to be a lotto-chance actor in order to be part of the entertainment industry. You don't have to be a writer to mandate programming within the media. Working your way up to an editor, producer or executive follows a similar script as some low-level analyst working up to CEO. Producers choose what films and shows get made. Editors choose what gets printed and what stays on the floor. Executives decide what teeny-boppers get to hear on the radio. Advertisers construct images that shape viewer opinion. These are the entertainment and media positions that curry both monetary success and huge influence on a societal level. They're also filled by those with communication, PR, journalism, creative writing, philosophy and psychology backgrounds. Unfortunately, these career paths are prematurely curbed because Asian parents think they're merely fluff industries. I also find it absolutely terrifying that Asian parents don't place a high emphasis on communication skills (an integral success factor in America).

I won't argue the nefarious nature of politics, itself. But if you're saying it's a fruitless endeavor for AAs, I strongly disagree. Faces in positions of leadership affect public perception.

Although I'm accustomed to your widely-shared views, I'm still a bit saddened. We'll continue to limit the potential of future generations if we constrict their educational choices to "hard-skill" majors like business and engineering. In a few parts of Asia (China, Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan), I observed students learning the exact same way- rote memorization, numbers, calculations... rinse and repeat for their entire educational experience. Guess what? The American educational system (while not perfect) is starting to change for the better- The aim (after learning the basics) is to teach students how to think critically, how to problem solve, how to reach a decision through authentic activity. Pigeon-holing your kids into one of three career choices runs antithetical to this paradigm shift. Innovation and elegant solutions are not exclusive to certain job sectors.

What's the point of immigrating to this country if our kids aren't afforded the opportunity to carve their own paths and achieve success doing what they want? The American dream isn't illustrated with a "sink node" bar graph.