The mp3 player is not on this web page, like it usually is.

D'oh! Thanks for your reply. I restarted my browser and the player magically reappeared! Good catch, and sorry for any bother. I'll remember to try that next time.

If you like Dashan, you may like this lesson too : http://www.popupchinese.com/lessons/intermediate/a-bad-china-day-for-dashan . We all know he's super popular in China. He's always so polite and speaks excellent Chinese. This lesson is about sth you don't know about Dashan :)

--Echo

echo@popupchinese.com

I really liked Rowswell, he seems has a great understanding of Chinese culture and his role in it. Very good answers to his critics. I din't like Moser so much as he kept imposing his views instead of letting Rowswell speak.

Wow, such wisdom and promotion of unity between East and West and a focus on "the common human experience" --大山，非常感谢! Thank you for your perseverance in China learning the language, culture, and figuring out ways to harmonize human beings born in the Middle Kingdom and those born elsewhere.

It was a bit disappointing to hear Mr Moser trying to emphasize divisive issues and misunderstandings as well as just talking too much as the interviewer - the audience is not so interested in you saying "the point I'd like to make", they want to hear the interviewee's thoughts, and not you replying too often with the word "but"... it's just a bit self-centered on your part. It would have been nice to spend more time on Mr Rowswell's children and what they learned and aspire to from growing up in a multi-cultural environment.

Please consider one request to both principals in this podcast: stop using the word "foreigner(s)" and say instead "international" (people, visitor, teacher, student, etc).

The word "foreign-er" is false, simply not true in the new world, and promotes the "us vs. them" mentality so nicely neutralized by Mark Rowswell during this show. It is also simply not necessary to say, as most sentences are perfectly clear without these divisive, old-world words.

2008 brought the Olympics to Beijing and the most wonderful motto: One World, One Dream. As a teacher at 北京外国语大学 BFSU for 7.5 years, I ask my classes "If you really believe it is One World, then who is a foreigner?" ..... 没有人是老外。 :-) And yes, one day I hope my university will change its name away from "Foreign Studies" to "International Studies" to reflect the the world's new reality and truth.

Thank you to David and Mark for posting this podcast for so many to benefit from their experience and insights. Best wishes for your continued good service to unity and friendship between all peoples.

@huyilin

It's great you feel the same way, and eventually your Chinese friend(s) will get it, too. 同一个世界 is the truth, so let's be consistently with our language as well.

I'm from the USA (one of the "international" experts at the university), so my spoken English is good; grammar not so much!

Perhaps one day we'll also be able to persuade the folks at T3 in the airport (well, at all passport entry places, really) to get rid of the "Foreigners" greeting as the first thing people see when they enter China... and then they see all the banners for "One World" and "Friends" in many languages, etc - could be taken as hypocritical or an insincere welcome, which is too bad. Other countries at their passport control ask for lines of native residents and "Visitors" or "Other countries" --- there's just no need to call folks foreigners because it's just UNfriendly, and we know the Chinese people are really sooo friendly and helpful! :-)

I prefer the term "ofay," myself.

@huyilin,

Ofay shows up a lot in American jazz history--as you pointed out, usually refering to white people. It's used both as a noun ("this ofay in the club") and as an adjective ("ofay audiences"). Although the origins of the word are African, it was then commonly believed that ofay was pig latin for "foe".

What a shame Kaiser was not present at this podcast with Dashan. The long long defense made by Dashan on Quora was compelling to read and Kaiser's response was even funnier.