Some disclaimers: I have quit watching news programs, and have been off west mall for like 3 years, so I am less informed on “current events” than most. My post was about the fairly noncontroversial (but true) things that could be said, which a hyper sensitive person could take as propaganda. My German teacher in high school was from Germany. She was a sweet plump hausfrau. She was timid against the harsh energy of American teenagers in the mid 70s, so about 1/4 of class time was the class just out of control; 1/4 was spent learning German culture ( which at the time I thought was fabulously uninteresting—dumb costume fashions from the past, festivals they have, traditional dances they do, famous German composers). Somehow, in the other time, I learned enough German in two high-school years to place out of 14 hours of class at UT—-but I digress.
I don’t really remember specifics, but I do remember that she loved Germany as her homeland in a completely nonpolitical way. I have now been to Germany many times, and whatever else can be said, the kinds of things she loved in her homeland I can verify to be true. The geography, especially the alpine regions, is often pure glory; the people are mentally lively, inventive, capable. The beer and sausage are better. I bet if I had a few years to poke around in China, I would come to experience geography that exceeds what is in Germany. If I spoke native Mandarin and were Chinese in heritage, and could run around over there for a couple of years, some of the biographies lived, personal accomplishments made, family stories to be told—mental liveliness, inventiveness, and capability——of who is alive in China in 2023 as we speak—-all I am saying is that when I read this article, I wonder whether people who are stressing about China for some reason (like some PAC put together for the purpose of being concerned about China) might hear the same kind of thing as my German teacher said and call it propaganda.
Then, once a group is up and going like that, yeah, if I’m China, I’m going to have someone meet with the exchange teacher ahead of time and say, “look, watch out for what you say, or you are going to make a public international incident and you are a dumb high school teacher and we can’t trust you with international commentary, so don’t say anything about A, B, or C. If you want to talk about geography or festivals or how amazing China is, knock yourself out, but stay away from A, B, and C. We good? Have fun in America and we rest assured you’ll be coming back!”
I don’t really remember specifics, but I do remember that she loved Germany as her homeland in a completely nonpolitical way. I have now been to Germany many times, and whatever else can be said, the kinds of things she loved in her homeland I can verify to be true. The geography, especially the alpine regions, is often pure glory; the people are mentally lively, inventive, capable. The beer and sausage are better. I bet if I had a few years to poke around in China, I would come to experience geography that exceeds what is in Germany. If I spoke native Mandarin and were Chinese in heritage, and could run around over there for a couple of years, some of the biographies lived, personal accomplishments made, family stories to be told—mental liveliness, inventiveness, and capability——of who is alive in China in 2023 as we speak—-all I am saying is that when I read this article, I wonder whether people who are stressing about China for some reason (like some PAC put together for the purpose of being concerned about China) might hear the same kind of thing as my German teacher said and call it propaganda.
Then, once a group is up and going like that, yeah, if I’m China, I’m going to have someone meet with the exchange teacher ahead of time and say, “look, watch out for what you say, or you are going to make a public international incident and you are a dumb high school teacher and we can’t trust you with international commentary, so don’t say anything about A, B, or C. If you want to talk about geography or festivals or how amazing China is, knock yourself out, but stay away from A, B, and C. We good? Have fun in America and we rest assured you’ll be coming back!”
