Sibling Dynamics on the Amazing Race

Last Sunday's Amazing Race episode was interesting. Yeah, it showed the usual breakdown of relationships under extreme duress. But this episode was interesting, because it showcased more of Tammy and Victor Jih and their slightly dysfunctional sibling dynamic. Here's a brief recap from Entertainment Weekly:

"On paper, Tammy and Victor are one of the smartest teams we've had on the race, and yet they made a huge blunder by aimlessly climbing a mountain while following the wrong markers. Victor simply refused to listen to Tammy. He'll have to change his approach pretty quickly if they want to stay in this race."

Victor was adamant that they were following the right path, while Tammy felt it was the wrong path, but just went along anyway with her brother's stupid and costly decision. They fell from a commanding first place lead to second to last place, which is really last place (since the team that comes in last place gets eliminated).

I hate to say this, but I think a lot of Asians are like Tammy: they aren't confident enough in their beliefs or decisions to intervene when they need to. What good is being smart if you don't act on that intelligence? Tammy knew she was right and her brother was wrong, and yet they trekked nearly half the episode up the wrong path.

Perhaps I'm being too harsh with Tammy, because many people (not just Asians) just go with flow and don't stand up for what they believe to be right. Like the saying goes, "Bad things happen when good people do nothing."

Racism happens, because "good people" do nothing. If a racist act was perpetrated against Black people, then most people would denounce it, because they were taught to do so. If a racist act was perpetrated against Asian people, however, then most "good people" (white, black and Asian) would not say anything or do anything. They simply were not taught how to react to such a situation. They may know it was wrong, but they just weren't confident enough to articulate that it was wrong.

So Tammy's lesson is a lesson for all of us: go with your convictions. If you recognize that you or someone else is going down the wrong path, then nip it in the bud. Don't wait until it's too late, and you've paid a hefty price.