This morning I saw my college friend online. He is an Asian now working in US and I told him nowadays most engineering jobs are gravitating to China because China has both the market and eco-systems for engineering.
He made a remark of "hoping to see no angmo in China". 'Angmo' is a derogatory term in Chinese, referring to Caucasians/Westerners. He said nowadays China is strong and (relatively) rich, so he doesn't want to see Westerners to 'snatch' the wealth away.
His remark left me in silence for sometime. I was quite shocked. To me, the western country that I am most familiar is US, and I had spent some of my happiest and saddest moments there. On top of that, the college that I attended gave me decent education and adequate exposure to the world. Though some people will argue that the foreign students did pay a hefty out-of-state tuition fee and therefore are entitled to the education, I beg to differ. The value that I got out is far far higher than the tuition fees I threw in, and I was glad I was educated in such fine university. To that end, I highly appreciate the opportunities given to me, though I am neither a Caucasian nor an American.
My stand on foreigners working in China is: it is a good use of human capital, and as long as the processes are fair and transparent, there is nothing wrong for somebody to earn a living in other countries. I really dislike people who cry discrimination at the slightest hint of difference in treatment, but with such deep-seated belief in protectionism.
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