Comparing Legal Systems

Disclosure: The views expressed herein are that of a young, eager, green-thumbed American male that is probably experiencing culture shock and who seeks to explore and understand the world. I reserve the right to void any exaggerations, misstatements, ambiguities, and anything else that could help in accomplishing future self-serving pursuits (no sarcasm intended).

Law Group. Today I met with 3 Chinese law students, of which 2 attend EF, and our discussion topic was the American jury system, which is quite unique in the world. In China, like many other countries in the world, there is not an adversarial judicial system pitting the prosecution against the defense. Judges in China, if my friends recall correctly, are both the “judge and jury,” yet they are not the final say because they are accountable to the Communist Party officials whose authority reigns supreme.

This was fascinating to learn about and it highlighted one of my key arguments for the jury system: that is helps to maintain a balance of power between governors and the governed, a cornerstone of democratic ideals. China doesn’t adopt this system for a variety of obvious reasons, one of which is the impracticality of putting others’ fate in the hands of peasant farmers who makeup a large portion of the 700 million people living in China’s rural areas.

Another key piece of the puzzle has to do with thousands of years of developing a culture that frowns upon direct argumentation and one that has a detached parent-child relationship with government. Civic participation, in the Western sense, is basically non-existent and people having neither the interest nor the ability to do so. As a result, there appears to be a large focus on materialism—or perhaps I am just living within the isolating and consumption-focused confines of Shanghai’s complex urbanatomy.

The two hours we spent debating legal systems flew by quickly and my friends’ perspectives were enlightening. This is what I live for! Meaningful and intellectual conversations where I feel connected with others remind me why life is worth living.

On a related note, the discussions I’ve had with these friends and my friend Palmer, who is a senior partner at a corporate law firm, are inspiring me to explore a law degree and perhaps a career in the field. Palmer, for example, has taught me about the evolution of corporate law in China and about his case history involving mergers & acquisitions, equity disputes between multi-national business partners, privatization of state-owned enterprises, corporate structuring and governance problems, IPOs, contract disputes and many other fascinating topics.

I’ve been turned-off to law in the past, frankly, because I wrongfully thought it was mundane and unfulfilling. Like most things in life, however, I learned that it depends on what area of law you practice. So, in addition to study for the GMAT that I take in February, I will also aim to take the LSAT in June. I will obviously be busy, but some sacrifices in life are necessary in order to have the options you want in the future.

Salsa Classes

Playing board games can get boring sometimes, so I decided to spice things up a little bit in my games Life Club at EF and I started teaching a salsa class (inspired by my roommate, Shanghai dance class). The past couple of weeks have been a blast and a constant source of humor as students break the ice and cut a rug together.

As I clap my hands together, "1,2,3...5,6,7," the class of 16 people start shaking their hips and moving their feet -- sometimes in sync and sometimes not. The music's beat and mass movement of bodies draws onlookers to the glass windows that shape the room. Perhaps their jealous of the smooth moves, or perhaps they just pity our collective ineptitude at dancing. Either way, after 50 minutes of cultural adventure into Latin culture, we leave the room sweaty and smiling!

Consulting Case Study Class

Although it was a difficult decision, I decided that it was best to shift the focus of my Life Club away from entrepreneurship to consulting case studies about business. The fact is that it's difficult for the students to consistently attend the same classes every week; thus, it was difficult to have any continuity with the course content for the entrepreneurship class.

The change to consulting case studies has been a great success! In a typical class, I will present a case about pricing strategy or profitability, for example, and I will have the students break into 3 teams of 5-6 people to crack the case together. The language is difficult--sometimes using MBA-level concepts--but the students are truly engaging the material, absorbing both the language and concepts. What I found is that the students have accelerated learning of new vocabulary when 1) they are focusing on a business problem instead of the words, and 2) they are doing activities that are relevant to their interests, require intellectual thinking and creativity, and encourage teamwork.

Teaching is the best way of learning for me. So, by teaching classes on consulting case studies, it helps me to learn analytical frameworks, for example, and to prepare for the consulting interviews that I hope to have within the next 6 months.

Overall, this class seems to be a breath of fresh air for a lot of students and it allows me to engage the students in more quality discussions than we have in other class formats.

Thoughts on the November election and Sarah Palin

Ever since I was able to vote, I have supported the Republican Party. Things may be different for me during this election, however. I vote for the whole package, simply, and part of the McCain-Palin package is severely lacking.

After watching the two prime-time interviews on TV and the vice-presidential debate, my impression of Palin is that she lacks the experience and, most importantly, the knowledge to lead this country at the national level.

Supreme Court decisions. She couldn't articulate a coherent thought about Roe v. Wade, and lacked the knowledge of any significant SC decisions.

Foreign Policy. No explanation is necessary. Watch the video and see what I mean.

Bailout Package. After reading the transcript to her answer and watching the clip numerous times, I'm still confused about what she is trying to say.

Publications. When Katie Kouric threw a soft-ball question, "what newspapers and magazines did you regularly read before you were tapped for this [position] to stay informed and understand the world." She did not name one publication.

Any intelligent individual plugged into the greater-American reality could have said New York Times, The Economist, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, or at least USA Today. But, seriously, not one publication? Ridiculous.

She spins her answers to tough questions not because she has a bad record to spin-off, but because she does not have the appropriate knowledge or experience. A conservative columnist, Kathleen Parker, wrote on the National Review's website, "My cringe reflex is exhausted," and "If BS were currency, Palin could bail out Wall Street herself." I could not have said it better myself.

Moreover, Palin is unable to articulate a coherent thought when she is not rehearsing a Pavlovian-conditioned soundbite; her answers to tough questions remind me of the spin I dislike in politics and they make me feel uneasy; she has no legitimate experience on the national scene; and she lacks an understanding of the fundamental issues important to sustaining America's success both today and in the future.

I vote for someone because 1) I agree with them on a majority of the issues that are important to me, and 2) because I trust in their ability to lead. Although she may have been successful governing Alaska, Palin is not ready for the position of Vice President of the United States of America. I think I should repeat that title again, Vice President of the United States of America.

The bottom line: I am not voting for the McCain-Palin ticket and I must decide whether to vote for Obama or abstain from voting.