Swiss Ph.D student’s dismissal spotlights China’s influence

Post by zahllos » Sun, Aug 08, 2021, 3:41 PM UTC

zahllos wrote: post #360

wolverine876 wrote: post #289

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> students are paid a salary at these universities and hold dual status as employees and students OT: How much? Undergraduates too?

Only PhDs are paid. I think the salary scale starts at around 51,000 CHF. That's a lot for other countries but it isn't for Switzerland. The exact amount is public knowledge and you can find it if you look. It is slightly higher for ETHZ, but not much. Bachelors and masters pay fees according to: https://www.epfl.ch/education/studies/en/rules-and-procedure... or https://ethz.ch/en/studies/financial/tuition-fees.html…

Post by wolverine876 » Sun, Aug 08, 2021, 8:49 PM UTC

datameta wrote: post #304

wolverine876 wrote: post #291

Earlier quoted context omitted.

While I find your perspective and suggestions are valuable, I think we need to retire this idiom (which I've used myself without much thought): > Now I am not saying he should not have done what he did We need to stand up and say, he should speak out, he should have spoken out, seeing injustice and oppression.

I do see how I could have worded my general approval of his goals in a better manner.

Post by wolverine876 » Sun, Aug 08, 2021, 10:51 PM UTC

s1artibartfast wrote: post #347

wolverine876 wrote: post #280

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I wouldn't want to be his sponsor either. It just shows either a complete misunderstanding of the power dynamics of an outsider doing research in China, or poor judgement. If your priorities are power dynamics, that would make sense. But there are other priorities, such as freedom of speech and open inquiry, which are more important, on which research and knowledge and freedom itself are based.

Ideally yes, but there are practical reality to working with the Chinese government, taking Chinese government grants, and going to Chinese schools. If you choose to persue these opportunities, you must understand there are tradeoffs and conditions.

Post by nickik » Mon, Aug 09, 2021, 9:14 AM UTC

guerrilla wrote: post #354

nickik wrote: post #339

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Fighting in the Middle East is literally the exact opposite of what Neorealists believe. John Mearsheimer opposed to these idiotic middle east wars and has been for a long time.

You're confounding descriptive and persctiptive theory. Such conflicts are an obvious consequence of the setup despite deeper strategic analysis advising against it. In his book, Mearsheimer > readily acknowledges the inherent pessimism of offensive realism and its predictions because his world is one in which conflict between great powers will never see an end. [1] 1. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Tragedy_of_G…

Post by ipnon » Thu, Aug 12, 2021, 2:07 AM UTC

ak_111 wrote: post #133

ipnon wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

But nominally, you can be a political fool in Switzerland without professional consequence.[a] It seems he is being forced to play by the social rules of China in Switzerland. It's fair to say his tweets could jeopardize his ability to return to China and secure a professorship or research position, but to suffer professional consequences in Switzerland, in the heart of Europe, for Chinese political incorrectness is…

you most certainly lose your professorship in the US for tweeting mild stuff: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.nytimes.com/2020/01/11/us/B... also, renowned foreign professors in the US are sometimes bullied and treated as badly as they are in China: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020... Chinese government is of course far more authoritarian but it is wise to point out that things have been…