I joined the cacophony of voices in this forum ten days ago when I decided to participate in a thread discussing fleeing, which is often called doing a runner in various ESL discussion forums on the internet.

Before, and since that time, I have reviewed many of the postings served up by Fish (also previously known as fish4esl) and believe me, there are PLENTY of them!

Fish often contributes long-winded posts which, while reasonably sophisticated are also usually quite condescending. If you take the time to examine Fishs litany of posts (more than 100 since the beginning of this year Guinness only knows how many prior to 2007) you will probably detect a general kill the messenger posture he more often than not, assumes.

That is his right, you argue? Perhaps, but I cannot stress to fellow readers/ESL educators enough that the next time you read and ponder one of Fishs sermons, please remain acutely aware that Fish is a RECRUITER.

Fish will be the first one to tell you that he has lived in China for a very long time (since 1979, I believe, right Fish?). No doubt that during these almost thirty years he has entrenched himself here, not only has he built tremendous guangxi (social-business-government relationship networks), but he clearly has lost the ability to know much (or appreciate) about the world outside of China anymore.

Instead, it seems he has fully embraced lots of contaminated notions about business and has become a doggedly-loyal mouthpiece for the local gentry in spewing forth excuse after party-line excuse to explain or justify (!!!) so many of the outrageous things that FTs encounter in China. The people that have helped him carve out his own little recruiter kingdom have found a great loyalist in Mr. Fish.

Upon first reading, Fish seems to be instructing most of us on how our accounts / documentations / posts regarding things we witness and experience here, are little more than the tragic result of our own, wrong-headed sense of Anglo-centric superiority.

As far as Im concerned, its all a smoke and mirrors show to deflect attention away from what is really going here, and to sustain his own, lucrative financial interests in the churning cycle of foreign teacher import/export business.

In the future, I urge you to always read Fishs posts with an acute awareness that more than anything He is a RECRUITER, first and foremost.

Xiaoxing! Xiaoxing! (Be Careful!)