Hi Kaur,
Thanks for posting this! I just finished the first half of it and, despite my many reservations about Hofstede's national culture model, I think it's quite good.
Marc
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Tervist Kaur !
A good and simple read. Great post. I would love your thoughts from an Estonian point of view. But then, we are both in Tallinn, and can freely ramble at a local watering hole over a brew :p
I had said this so many times in Africa. Don't take a local translator for anything other than a shopping trip. They will only paint the picture that they see fit. They will also translate your English into a much softer local tone and any significant content will be generally lost. Conversely, when they translate back to you, it will be harsh and filled with an antagonistic attitude.Quote:
American forces entering Iraq with Kuwaiti translators encountered an unexpected negative Iraqi response due to animosity between Iraqis and Kuwaitis, of which many Americans were unaware. Tribal rivalries have also come into play due to the need for US forces to rely heavily on locally hired translators, some of whom may cause interference with US objectives and operations or even gain a disproportionate influence.4
It's time to get our folks up to speed and become better translators.
Regards, Stan
The author of the study--as indicated in the preface--came through JRTC a couple of years ago and gave some excellent classes. I have tried to continue that since then with some but not total success.
I am glad that CSI got this out; we tried to do one via ALSA and it bogged down in an inter-service discussion about depth. I wrote a chapter and other portions; it is still not out. The Marines said it was too simplistic. The Air Force said it was too complex. The Army liked it. I figured we had bracketed the target and should fire for effect. Ohh well.
In history lessons regarding this subject, I turned the WWII Soldiers Culture Guide on Iraq (1943) into a PDF. You can find it on CALL's web site. Great little read and interesting historically. It is 4 MBs so I cannot upload it here.
is the opening sentence.Quote:
YOU HAVE been ordered to Iraq (i---RAHK) as part of the world-wide offensive to best Hitler
I "liberated" it from the empty office of the Naval Attache in Kinshasa where it had probably been languishing since WWII. Then the Belgian Congo was an way station on the air routes across Africa into the Middle East as well as a fueling station for Naval operations in the South Atlantic and headed around the Cape to the Indian Ocean. My Dad's minesweeper refueled at Matadi and we have an elphant statue carved from ivory as a souvenir from that stop.
Best
Tom
Hi Tom,
It's available in hypertext format at http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USA/...ide/index.html
Can you post the CALL link for the pdf?
Marc
Marc,
CALL has a new site; I don't see it on there. I will email it to you and Dave.
Best
Tom