Quote Originally Posted by jpdm View Post
Do I have to be a Chinese to know how they think?
In this case, yes you do because you just demonstrated that you have no clue how the filipino-chinese people think and feel.


Do I really have to "live in their shoes?"
What is better to know how someone experiences their lives? ... Can you experience "hardship" or "hardwork" by simple casual observation? Can you experience "motivation" by plain observation from random chance?

Of course not!

Do I have to believe in their traditions and beliefs to know them?
YES! This is part of a person's motivations and background on how and why decides in certain ways.

Are these the only methods of knowing them?

Do you know that there many ways of knowing things aside from what you are talking about?
No but obviously you don't know the other methods either because as I have mentioned, your previously posted statement demonstrates how clueless you are about the topic "filipino-chinese".