Reminiscences

  I contemplated writing In Defense of Free Speech in Universities: A Study of Three Jurisdictions, which was published last fall,   in the summer of 2018, a few months after the Lindsay Shepherd incident in Canada. Living in Canada at the time, I became increasingly aware of a free speech crisis on many of its university campuses. I listened to the recording multiple times, each time becoming more angered, until I became fully committed to writing the book. Nonetheless, it did not dawn upon me how serious the whole situation was, until something happened to me later that year. That October, I travelled to a Canadian university to interview for a teaching job.   The interviewers, all lawyers, expressed a very keen interest in my book project that was already taking shape. “It is highly relevant to law school,” they affirmed smilingly. They then inquired about its contents and arguments. Their inquiry was reasonably expected, though, in hindsight, quite sneaky.   I...

About the author Privacy policies, terms, and conditions It is time to write about Jordan Peterson, given that he was recently ordered by the court to undergo "social media training" to retain his license to practice as a psychologist. This post, which contains solely my views on his calling Yumi Nu "not beautiful" in one of his Twitter posts in 2021 rather than my thoughts about "social media training," is indeed long overdue. However, I did not have a blog then, and no media outlet was willing to accept my pitch.  Since his Twitter post went viral, countless responses have appeared on various forums most of which are, as one might expect, driven by simplistic perspectives, e.g. it is unkind to call a seemingly overweight woman "not beautiful"; "the woman is not overweight: she is only big and I found her hot!"; "beauty standards are subjective: who is he to judge?" I do think Twitter/X...

About the author Privacy policies, terms, and conditions In recent years, an increasing number of scholars believe that the embrace of Western civilization reinforces a white supremacist worldview. To the extent that Western classical education has a history that promulgates racism against non-white people and cultures, they argue that classics—a discipline involving the study of Greek and Roman literatures and cultures—needs to be reinvented, decolonized, or worse still, abolished altogether.  In my opinion, this trend must not be taken too far given the abundant values that many classical plays hold to different cultures and nationalities around the world. *** Ancient Greek playwright Sophocles’ play Antigone serves as a great example of how a “white” classical play is still tremendously relevant to contemporary world. Introducing it in a post-imperial/colonial classroom does not at all reinforce white supremacy. Rather, it exposes students ...

About the author Privacy policies, terms, and conditions (I wanted to get this piece published in March but could not find it a home in the radical leftwing media channels catered to the "woke" crowds) Malaysia-born actress Michelle Yeoh became the very first Asian woman to win the Best Actress Award at the Oscars .  Currently, her success is widely celebrated in Asian American communities, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and even China.    Many deemed her win as one of those historical moments when East-Asian actors, or actors of Chinese descent, finally gained the recognition that they rightly deserve in the Hollywood . My first impression of Yeoh was that of a martial artist who performed her own stunts in her early movies such as Royal Warriors (1986) and Wing Chun (1994).   In Tomorrow Never Dies (1997) , which heralded her entry into Hollywood, she fights alongside James Bond. In doing so, she not only defies the stereotypes of Asia...

About the author Privacy policies, terms, and conditions Ideological possession is dangerous and it happens among the radicals on both left and right ends of the political spectrum. To put it in a layperson's terms, it refers to the blind and uncritical embrace of any ideas or beliefs, which leave no room for disagreement or even discussion. This phenomenon is commonplace in democratic as well as authoritarian societies.  Radical individuals resort to name-calling and other forms of insult whenever they are challenged. In even more extreme scenarios, it escalates into violence. I don't know how much you know about Hong Kong politics and what happened in the past 4 to 5 years. If "colors" still matter, I belong in what is known as the "yellow" camp. I value freedom of expression and freedom of thought.  However, that doesn't mean that I am friends with whoever with similar politics, or that I would condemn all people ...