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Dear,

Thank you so much for hosting this show. It is truly enlightening to hear Dr. Thurman speak. I have spent living in West China for more than a decade of which I spent up to two years living in Kham where I followed the late Jigme Puntsog Rinpoche. I have experienced China's grip on these remote areas both physically and emotionally.

At the end of the day I must conclude that the Chinese government's motivations for controlling any minority within its borders, in my opinion, are purely political and not personal, or guided towards any people in particular. They still, and I say this with great pain in my heart, continue to suppress as many of their own kind, i.e. Han minority, as they suppress other minorities. Due to my own karmic ties, the suffering of the Tibetan people is more near to me, but I try not to take it personally.

Thank you Dr. Thurman for your continued support of the Buddhist cause of peace for all.

Regards,
Arnaud Versluys, PhD

posted 4 years, 7 months ago
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Dear,
I entered university in China right after high school. I ended staying there for twelve years completing both my undergraduate degree as well as my Masters and my PhD degrees. I had to learn the language both spoken and written to achieve this. I have authored book-length manuscripts in Chinese as well.

In my opinion, in the coming 20 years China will start offering some of the better graduate programs in the world. Some of its most prestigious universities are already doing so. Knowing Chinese thus opens up new worlds of opportunities for prospective undergraduate and graduate school students.

Lastly, I speak 5 languages in total. It is my opinion that as a second language, one should always choose one of the official languages of the Unitied Nations since they represent the largest slices of the world demographic. In the case of Oregon, if one has no intention to travel or work overseas, then Spanish would be the most logical and useful choice.

Respectfully,
Arnaud Versluys, PhD

posted 4 years, 9 months ago
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