Thank you for the comment Peter.  It allowed me to do some reflection.

Whatever he did was fine, his successors have made what he did an an
excuse to scream "racism" and "oppression"  when there is none. 
They've made his legacy into a monster.

Have you faced racism from "African-Americans" or
"Hispanic-Americans?"  I have.  Especially in the field of public
education.  The people I have had the pleasure of encountering use what
MLK has done as an excuse blame the White Man and don't think that we
as Asians are exempt from that blame either.   Here are a couple of instances:

I had been told, by my master teacher, when I was student teaching,
God bless her African-American heritage, that "All 'em y'all Asians,
think you're white!  You're The Man's bitch!"  I asked both my master
teachers, whom were black if that's generally what black people think. 
They answered yes.  I trust their answer since they're so active in
their "awareness" groups.

Another stinging encounter, years later, with a parent, of the same
heritage, who adamantly demanded that his child's "rights" had been
trampled by all his teachers--not admitting the fact his child could
not read beyond a 1st grade level.  He turned to me during one of the umpteen
conferences and said, "my son, is African-American, he doesn't have all
the support that you had growing up and it's not fair.  You have to
pass him."  How can he assume that I had the support?  Did he know I spent my
elementary years as a penniless child in East LA?  No.  Did he know that my mom worked the graveyard shift in the hospital to support me and my dad as he went to Computer Learning Center for years?  No.  Did he know that I didn't know how to read until the 3rd grade because I went to school in East L.A. and they only did the "bilingual" thing and that wasn't in my lingo? No.  He assumed, in
his own racist ignorance, that, because I'm Asian, I'm in on it with
The Man.

I have no problem with what MLK did.  I believe in it.  What he did was
good, what his successors did with it is perversion.  His goal was for
ALL minorities to be on par, not give them a golf club to beat each
other and the White Man with.

So far all I've seen is a lot of beating.  A lot of fear, not respect. 
Just fear of "minority" people and what they'll do to you if they think
you're "oppressing" them.  And if you think for a jot that you and me,
Peter, are part of it the "minority", we're not.  To many of the people I've
worked with (coworkers, students & parents), us Asians are just as good as The Man.

From my perspective it has everything to do with the "Model Minority." 
Our African-American and Hispanic-American brothers, in many, many,
instances don't see us as the "model"  but as  some sort of twisted
reflection of The Man that oppresses them.  And that that is what we strive to be.  I think many don't think of
us as oppressed as they.  That we don't understand or cannot understand
or even empathize.  I don't think they like us very much because of
it.    And so they treat us accordingly.

It hurts me to think that MLK has become the symbol or even the launching pad for them to feel
so.  Well, that's how my discussion is related to MLK.  I hope you
understand where I'm coming from.

No.  It's just another day off. 

What's there to celebrate?  Affirmative action?  That kept me from getting a job because I'm the "wrong" minority.  In fact, last time I checked with education textbooks, I'm not even a minority.

I think that if us Asians took a serious stand we'd be able to show the type of muscle we do have in this society rather than cower as we do now to save face or not make waves.  Sure, as minorities go, we are liked better because of our stereotype of being yesmen, katos, or technical workhorses.  We're treated better for it too, though there still is hatred and suspicion mostly from the other minorites.

I tell you as sure as I am an American if we Asians did a protest or boycott you better believe people will pay attention and not make a joke of it like the "Atzlan" protest a few years back when they boycotted coming out of doors or doing business or driving on the street.  Let me tell you there was no loss of business; everyone I ran into in L.A. was bemused by it and everyone, everyone, commented on how good the traffic was.  Boy that made a difference just not the one organizers thought it would.  Have they boycotted since?  No.

I think if all Asians denied their services for one day, you'd see a difference.  If all Asians, stopped practicing medicine, doing taxes,  practicing law, technically supporing, making food, etc.  You'd see it.  Heck if we all, for one day, DO IT WRONG on purpose, contrary to what is EXPECTED,  you'd see the difference too.  They'd be out for our blood, but we'd have taken a good chunk with us if we did.

By why do we need to?  There's NO stigma for success.  No oppression for skilled.  Unless it's from the unsuccessful and unskilled.  But then the proles have always complained, always harangued, always rioted.  Just give them their bread and circuses for a day or two and they'd shut up.

Heck give them a national holiday.

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Interesting quiz

Here's how I scored unsuprisingly:

If Democrat:

John Edwards (31 pt)
Hillary Clinton (16 pt)
Barak Obama (13pt)

This is where I stand on the issues.  But if voting, I would always vote against Hillary.  Because I think HE is shriller and faker than the other fakes.  As if I would every vote Democratic again.

As Republican
John Mccain (16 pt)
Ron Paul (22 pt)
Mike Huckabee (4 pt)
Mitt Romney (9 pt)
Fred Thomson (6 pt)
Rudy Giuliani (4 pt)

Well it looks like I'm more Libertarian that I though I'd be.  But then the Republican Party has changed with its neo-cons.  eww.  neo-cons.

Two things for sure.  No Child Left Behind has to go.  Illegal Immigration has to be dealt with severely. 

Honestly, I'm really an Imperialist at heart.  I believe we can solve all our problems by conquering weaker nations and stripping them of their resources, colonizing them by eradicating their populations and placing our own citizens where theirs USED to live.  We really wouldn't have too much of a terrorist problem if we forget about human rights and torture & execute anyone related to terrorists without trial and just burn their villages down and shoot everyone or take them to our labor camps.

We would do wonders for our economy if we can have a fresh population of "indentureds"  to do our menial labor.  We could reduce our prison population too.  After all, I've always believed that there no resource as renewable and eco-friendly as the "human" resource.  Who needs cars when we could have rickshaws and litters.  Who needs to worry about a busy schedule to do laundry, mow the lawn, dress, bathe, etc. when we could have our indentureds take care of it for us.

I've always felt that the American delusion of liberty, equality, and human rights have always kept the United States back
from being a real top notch nation and kept it's citizens from the real carefree pleasures, luxuries, and benefits of being the most powerful nation on Earth.  Look at what ancient cultures that have embraced this policy had accomplished:  Egypt, the Pyramids; China, the Great Wall; Rome, the roads, acquaducts, our western culture; Greece, philosophy & western culture too; Persia, the preservation of ancient knowledge; England, the English language and culture; Mayans & Aztecs, staying the apocolypse with blood sacrifice.  I could go on forever.

We really should take war seriously for what it is:  the tried and true, practical, method to acquire wealth and resources.  Wars for ideology, like "democracy " and "freedom," is as best infeasible and at worst dangerously romantic.  We really should be at war more often with our rivals (like the EU, Russia, China, Canada) to conquer them and take their  resources.  Plus, who doesn't like being called "master?"

At least then it would be an honest, undelusional, and un-hypocritcal foreign policy. 

Give birth.  I don't have ovaries.  Thank goodness I'm spared that experience.  The only hard part of being a male is having to initiate and receive rejection, after rejection.  In the end women have all the power--and the support of American society.

Keep crying Hillary.  Cry yourself into office you fake.

Bona Dea.  You know she never shed a tear after Katrina, yet when someone asks about her hair--tears.

Speaking of another thing that I'll never do:  be president of the US, but then why would I want to? 

As an Imperial I see democracy as an infernal waste of time.  Give us a Caesar, give us an emperor to make the decisions and be done with this sham--no--illusion of American liberty and the sovereignty of the body politic.

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I always have the butterflies.  Everyday I have to be up on stage.  Which is everyday.  But as my old TV and Radio professor and director used to always say before we went on air:  Everybody's got butterflies, it's your job to make them fly in formation.

So in short I have to suck it up: the fear, the jitters, the overwhelming desire to puke every second and just act.  Everyday I have to put on Mr. Chiang the teacher (the character is confident, moody, forceful, deliberate, rude, in-your-face, frank and honest to a fault, and a drill searjeant with a hint of heart).  Most things that I am really not or that I am in part, but not as exaggerated. 

It has been an interesting gig.  One of the most difficult roles I have ever had to play:  me, but not me, not really me.  It's as scripted as it can be, but mostly interactive theatre or as I've learnt to call it: confrontational theatre. Only a few students (or ex-students) have really seen me "off-stage" as really the introverted, insecure bookworm.

Like people have said before teaching is 3/4 acting and 1/4 actual teaching.  That's true, all true.

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I'd have to say the zipper is by far the most useful.  Everyone owns one.  I wouldn't even put it beyond the bushpeople in Africa owning one now they're being civilized because their habitat is divided among several nations and they're not allowed to cross borders.

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