Should I have made some friends online first before going there? If so, through what websites? Is there a social networking site for NA's that allows non-NA's?
It just happens. You can't go somewhere and except someone will become your friend online.
Winston, what would you think if someone joined a website and wrote this sort of stuff: "Where can I meet some white people in New York? I really like white people. I'm coming to New York and would like some white people to hang out with. Hi, white person, you're white so I want to learn about you. Can I come over to your house for dinner? I've heard white people like to have dinner. I've seen a lot of white people on the street but none of them have invited me to dinner. Can you take me to temple with you and introduce me to all your relatives?"
What about, "Can I take pictures of you and put them on my website? Will you introduce me to your priest and have him baptise me into your cool religion while I'm there? What did you say it was, again? Jewish? Mormon? Islamic? I really admire your culture. Is Yentl an accurate portrayal of White culture? What? Why did you stop answering my emails? You must be racist."
What would you think of someone who did that?
It would be fine with me. Honestly. I am very inclusive and joined up with
www.couchsurfing.com, a place where strangers host each other out of hospitality and sharing. I have been to 12 countries and found most countries to be very open and inclusive. Some nations are more reserved (e.g. Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong, etc.) but the majority are pretty socially open and inclusive and easy to meet strangers in.
If I get an email to my Couchsurfing profile, I usually will host the person and show them around. But that's me. I'm not reserved nor do I like an isolated existence.
That being said, I do apologize for not introducing myself here first. I came here because I was mentioned by educatedindian in the thread about William Two Feather in this forum. So since I was already mentioned, I felt it was ok to just show up and tell everyone that I am Winston, the guy who had the blog page about William Two Feather and forum thread about him, that was mentioned here, and that would be enough.
After I posted in that thread, I came here to ask a question about DWW that I was curious about. I did not mean to seem rude.
I did not come here and say "I am the best. Everyone listen to me!" I merely ask questions and share opinions. That seems the civil and intelligent way to communicate. I do listen to answers too and consider them. So I don't understand how I can seem loud mouthed, arrogant, or nonlistening here.
But alas, I grew up in California, where loudness and aggression/assertiveness and being upfront is seen as strength, and humility seen as weakness. So my personality is not that of a reserved meek Asian. I am a Chinese American with a Western white personality inside. And as such, I've always had a problem fitting in, cause white Americans will see me as Asian, and Asians will see me as a freak, having an Asian face with a "white personality".
In Taiwan, some consider me rude too, for being direct and upfront. They can accept white Americans being that way, cause they are foreigners. But they do not like to see Chinese faces of their own kind acting "white". So I am not well accepted or liked there, even though I was born there and came to the US when I was 3.
I do best in socially open and wild camaraderie countries like Latin America, Russia, The Philippines, and some parts of Europe. There I don't need to be quiet and reserved.
What's funny is that in California, I was considered timid, weak, and a pushover who needs to get a backbone. But in Asia, I am considered too aggressive, too assertive and direct. It seems I can't win. lol
Like I said, people can accept a white man acting like a white man, or an asian man acting like an asian man, but they are uncomfortable with asian men acting like white men. In the modern US society it's ok and normal now, as American culture expects immigrants to assimilate. But in Asia, it's seen as freakish and not expected.
People like to categorize things. So in Taiwan and in the Philippines, people assume that I can read and write Chinese fluently, and speak better Chinese than English, even though I grew up in the US, simply cause I'm racially Chinese. There is no logical reason why I should read and write Chinese, or speak it better than English, since I was educated completely in the US. But people still assume it cause they expect every person to act like their race/ethnicity.
Anyway, as to DWW, no film is perfect, but at least it made ndns look like the good guys whom people sympathize with, for once. And brought a lot more genuineness to ndns. And it portrayed the greedy white settlers for what they were.
The History Channel also has many great programs about ndns history.
Btw, I don't see how Dunbar saved the tribes. If anything, he caused them trouble cause the army would use him as an excuse to look for them, after that battle in the river.
One question: In DWW, a guy in the tribe took Dunbar's hat and said it was his cause he found it. So we take it that if you drop something or leave it somewhere, and someone else finds it, then it's theirs. Is that accurate of ndns mentality and ways?
Speaking of eye contact, I hate how some white people get mad if you don't look at their eyes while they are talking, and will scold you for it. This is worse when they talk for hours about one thing, blabbing on about nothing, and get mad if you interrupt them, so you are basically told to look at them while they blab on for an hour and not look elsewhere and not interrupt. I hate people like that. But they exist. Just one question and they talk on and on and never stop, never coming to a point.
