Dreamland!
I wish I could say that I was always interested in learning how things worked while growing up and that my superior understanding of math and sciences naturally led me to study engineering—but, truth be told, I became an engineer to avoid Vietnam. -- 'An Einganeer's Tale', page 18
In retrospect, I don’t know if all my lessons on Western capitalism were such a good thing. Everyone was so happy before. -- 'An Einganeer's Tale, page 66
I've seen this play three times; the first time while on a business trip, by myself, in London, the original cast. I cried. No other play has ever touched me like this one. My favorite line in the play is 'Christ, I am American! How can I fail to do good?' In my opinion, this one statement sums up why our involvement in Vietnam was such a mistake. And it pains me to see us make the same mistake, over and over again.
One thing I learned from my many travels, especially to Asia, is that we Americans have little understanding of other cultures, We go in thinking we know what's best for others. We assume that our knowledge, technology, politics, education, indeed our way of life is superior to theirs and something they aspire to. Somehow, we have been raised to think in this manner. Moreover, the people there do nothing to dispel this way of thinking. In fact, they enforced it.
I have never been treated better than when I visited Asian countries. I was treated like a king. They had me stay in the best hotels. I was chauffeured wherever I went. I was the honored guest at all lunches and dinners. And although I'm sure they did not understand a lot of what I said, they seemed to drink in every word I uttered.
As our relationship matured, I learned that many of my Asian clients were the smartest people I would ever know. Their ability to understand, dissect, and apply the software I offered was truly phenomenal. While they may have not understood much of what I said, they understood my technology, as well as other technologies existing at the time. I'm embarrassed to admit that it was a Taiwanese engineer that asked me why I was not using the internet, before I even knew there was an internet!
A major character in the play Miss Saigon is a character simply called “The Engineer.” He is a brash, contriving, individual who is always smiling and always planning his next steps in his mind. He is in control of everything in his world, and can make almost anything happen. "Dreamland" is what he calls America, and where he longs to be.
“The Engineer” is indeed a product of the Asian culture. I am proud to say that I have known several of them.