Support Our Technologists - Path to the Glorious Stage of Nations

Support Our TechnologistsPath to the Glorious Stage of Nations
By Nguyễn Ái Việt
The year was 2003 and it hovered two meters off the ground. This record will one day be solemnly remembered in history books as that of the first Vietnamese made aircraft. For the contemporary Vietnamese readers however, the news article below about its maker, a poor Vietnamese farmer, should be a cause for as much pride as sorrow.
Pride because one of our own has expressed not only such a passion for technology but also an unquestionably admirable ability and determination. Mr. Hai''s story reminds us of the American Wright brothers, who, at the beginning of the last century, did what he did and invented the world''s first powered airplane. With their first flight, which lasted only twelve seconds, the Wright brothers opened the door for men to defy gravity, and gave birth to modern aeronautics. Now, a century later, 14 flight-hours across the globe, in a smaller part of the world, on a smaller mission, but with no less a determination, one of Wright''s reincarnations is set out to be the first Vietnamese to fly on his own wings. Ironically, in this Internet age, the difficulties that he faces are seemingly much more daunting.
There lies my sorrow. What stands between Mr. Hai and his dream is neither his lack of a technical education though education he lacks, nor his lack of money though he is probably among the poor in one of the world''s poorest. During the last seven years, he has successfully overcome these formidable obstacles. That his biggest hurdle yet, to which he probably will lose in an uphill battle, is his own government is appalling. Had the same restraints been placed on the Wright brothers by the infantile government of America then, we now would probably still be months of sea travel away from that continent and Mr. Armstrong would probably never have made that giant leap for mankind.
This is not to brush away the government''s legitimate concern for the safety of Mr. Hai''s neighbors and Mr. Hai himself. For sure, aircrafts are inherently dangerous devices. The world''s first airplane did not fly off someone''s roof, nor should Vietnam''s first helicopter hover above a farmer''s backyard. But our land is vast and our inventor is sole. It is inexplicable that the government cannot block off some land where Mr. Hai can safely pursue his experiments. And why not have the government''s aeronautical researchers team up with him as well. We have always wanted to industrialize our nation, especially our agriculture. How often does such a passionate industrial talent come along to assist that effort? And he is a farmer too! Why suppress a man''s pursuit of happiness when we should accompany him?
Unless it is not safety that the government is truly concerned about, there is simply no reason why we should not be right now celebrating the birth of the first Vietnamese made aircraft and the discovery of a great national talent. Unfortunately, the ramification of today''s mistreatment of Mr. Hai and his invention will ripple far beyond the bond of Tây Ninh or the confine of aeronautics.
In their school chairs, the future owners of this country are watching our actions. Ho Chi Minh once professed his hope for the country''s youth: "Whether Vietnam will grow into a beautiful land, whether the Vietnamese people will ever step on that glorious stage to rub shoulders with the world powers largely depend on your academic efforts." One of those youths then has now heeded that charge. Mr. Hai said, "I have been dreaming of being able to fly since my family lived in Go Dau district which was next to an American military base. I often saw helicopters fly up and down, and wondered if only America was able to produce helicopters. The thought has been nurturing my wish to produce a helicopter of my own ever since." How noble is the thought of rubbing shoulders with the world''s strongest country. It may seem fanciful now but it is that thought which once compelled an Asian emperor to open his conservative island nation to modernism and eventually build an air force that overwhelmed even America.
What did we tell our youth by slamming our national aspiration with red tape and malignantly confiscating its product? Did we tell them to shoot for the stars or to be content with riding on Boeings? Did we encourage them to try new things, to be creative, original, and bold, or to blend in, and be submissive? Did we tell them that they would be rewarded by challenging the status-quo or accepting it? Thomas Edison did not accept the status-quo of darkness. The Wright brothers did not accept the status quo of gravity. Bill Gates did not accept the status quo of analog. Now, our own Mr. Hai does not want to live with the status quo that only countries like America are able to produce helicopters. To be sure, no people has ever stepped on that glorious stage of world powers by rewarding status-quo acceptors, and ours is not going to be the first.
My mother casually disclosed our country''s status to me when I was very young. However, the experience was so dramatic to the tender mind that I can still vividly remember it. That day, I was riding on the back seat of her old bicycle as always through a busy street of the city. Streams of bicycles, trucks, cars of all sizes and quite a few motorcycles traversed up and down the thoroughfare. Captivated as usual, I asked my Mom whether we could one day buy one of the motorized vehicles so she would not have to paddle anymore. It was then and there that she blurted out what would be one of my childhood''s most shocking discoveries: that we Vietnamese did not make motors, only foreigners made them. Street rides never felt the same to me ever since.
I do not propose that we should strive to produce everything we need. In today''s more and more specialized global economy, such proposal is foolish. However, Japan is no longer producing airplanes, not because they cannot, but because they choose not to. They still possess the necessary skills and the technologies. These stay with their Mr. Hais, who, armed with the knowledge and skills of older technologies, are best suited to venture into new ones.
There lies the cycle that makes the world''s rich richer and conversely leaving the world''s poor further and further behind. I do not suppose that we want to compete with the Hondas or Boeings of the world. But I do not think that the inventor of the world''s first viable hovercraft or the world''s largest producer of the next generation vehicle will ever come from a country where no one is already skilled in the art of car and airplane building. Then we will just have to continue to hope for foreign investment. Without contributing to mankind our own technologies, we will forever work at the mercy of others. Do you suppose that we can somehow rub shoulders with our bosses? I do not. We cannot even begin our path to the glorious stage of equal nations until we break out of the poor country''s vicious cycle, stop mentally subjugating ourselves to others, and start seeing ourselves as technologists instead of enthusiastic workers for other people'' technologies.
It is said that we have more basic needs to worry about now. It may be indeed a very long time before our country can have the kind of groundbreaking contribution that justifies our place on mankind''s glorious stage. But if Ho Chi Minh''s dream is ever to be realized, we must embark on the path to it now by first paying due respect and support to our fledging technologists, like Mr. Hai, if not for their present bold experiments, at least for the prospect that in the future as our industries mature, among them will come those who will elevate our homeland out of her current humble position. I hope that my grandchildren in their time will not be shocked at this country''s position as I was in mine. "All this," as J.F.K. would say, "will not be finished in the first one hundred days. Nor will it be finished in the first one thousand days, nor in the life of this Administration, nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet. But let us begin."
Nguyễn Ái Việt
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Home-made helicopter seized

HANOI (dpa) - Police have confiscated the home-made helicopter made by a farmer and a retired sports coach in Vietnam, police officers said Tuesday.
Tran Quoc Hai, a 44-year-old retired sports coach, has been obsessed with building a home-made flying machine since he lived next to a US military base during the Vietnam War, he told Deutsche Presse-Agentur (dpa)

"I have been dreaming of being able to fly since my family lived in Go Dau district which was next to an American military base. I often saw helicopters fly up and down, and wondered if only America was able to produce helicopters. The thought has been nurturing my wish to produce a helicopter of my own ever since," Hai said.

Seven years ago Hai was approached by Le Van Danh, 44, a farmer who wanted to try aerial spraying of his crops and the two men decided to start building the aircraft.

They visited museums and searched the Internet for design ideas, and ended up using the engine from a Russian-made truck for their labour of love. In total, they spent around 2,000 dollars building their one-person, three-wheeled helicopter, Hai said.

"We applied for a permission to produce our own helicopter in 1998, but it was turned down by the department of science and environment," Hai said. "So we went ahead without a legal permission."

The first test run was eight months ago, and the 8.7 metre long helicopter successfully hovered two metres above the ground, Hai said.

When the two men tried to fly their contraption a second time last Tuesday, local police took action, saying that the machine was a menace to the local population.

"Hai and Danh don''t have a design and have used poorly produced spare parts, therefore it can''t meet all the safety requirements," said a police officer from Tan Chau district, 100 kilometres south of Ho Chi Minh City.

http://www.brunei-online.com/bb/wed/feb11w5.htm

Nguyễn Ái Việt ----------------- "The twentieth century resolved one big question, I believe, conclusively. Humanity's best hope for a future of peace and prosperity lies in free people and free market democracies governed by the rule of law." -  William Jefferson Clinton."Law will never be strong or respected unless it has the sentiment of the people behind it." - James Bryce.