Illustration by Trịnh LậpViet Nam News By Hoàng Hồ After an incredible fight, actress Mai Phương, who has been receiving special treatment for aggressive lung cancer, has been discharged from Military Hospital 175 into the loving arms of friends, family, fans and colleagues. Although the battle against cancer is not over, with Phương facing many more hospital visits and follow-up appointments, her journey has been remarkable and inspirational. Since the first days of her treatment, the hospital has welcomed visits from many celebrities to help and encourage Phương. With continuous updates on the media and thousands of messages from fans on Facebook around Việt Nam, everything seemed to be going well, until actor Gia Bảo – a close friend of Phương’s, spoke up and caused some ripples. “If you don’t have a close relationship with the patient, you can just … [Read more...] about How much does sympathy really cost?
How much wet food should a cat eat
How much is an Afghan life worth? That depends
'A man in Kandahar may get $4,000 for his damaged car while a woman in Gardez gets $1,000 for her dead child. Civilians deserve better.' In March 2014, the U.S. military paid an Afghan man just over $1,000 to compensate for killing his civilian son in an operation near the border with Iran, according to U.S. military records released to Reuters. Six months later, another Afghan father was given $10,000 by the U.S. military after his child, also a civilian, was killed in an American-led military operation in the same province. And 68-year-old Haji Allah Dad lost 20 relatives, including his brother and sister-in-law, in a U.S. and Afghan special forces operation near the northern city of Kunduz last November. Allah Dad said he received no money from the U.S. military, though he did get compensation from the Afghan government. Nearly 16 years since invading Afghanistan, the United States has no standardized process for making compensation payments to the families of thousands of … [Read more...] about How much is an Afghan life worth? That depends
How much do Vietnamese pilots really earn?
VietNamNet Bridge – Like colleagues in many other countries in the world, Vietnamese pilots are very well paid. According to the national flag air carrier Vietnam Airlines, a captain of the airline can receive VND200 million a month. Relate news Vietnam Airlines' pilots demand pay rise This salary, according to Sohanews, a website run by VC Corporation, is 11 times higher than the salary paid to the Prime Minister (VND17.1 million). The monthly salary is equivalent to a 14-month income of a Vietnamese minister (VND14.4 million). And it is 20-29 times higher than the salary of a Vietnamese professor or associate professor (VND7-10 million). A captain just needs to work one month to get enough money to buy the Indian car Tata Nano, two Rolex watches (VND100 million each), two 65-inch TVs, three Vespa scooters and 11 iPhone 6s. This sum of money would be a fortune for a poor family because it is enough to buy 13.5 tons of rice, an amount that could feed a four-member … [Read more...] about How much do Vietnamese pilots really earn?
Lawmakers move to restrict genetically modified food
A newly-proposed food safety law should restrict the amount of genetically modified elements in food, National Assembly representatives said. Most representatives agreed with proposals in the draft law that would require stricter management of genetically modified (GM) food, but they also criticized the law for not stipulating the maximum limits of these elements permissible in food. Genetically modified foods are those derived from genetically modified organisms that have had specific changes introduced into their DNA by genetic engineering. According to the draft law, foods using GM materials must be certified as biologically safe by authorized agencies in the country of origin. Dang Vu Minh, chairman of the National Assembly's Science, Technology and Environment Committee, said GM food is a "complicated and sensitive issue" and there should be restrictions as to how much GM food we use and eat. He was speaking on the sidelines of the current National Assembly meeting, which … [Read more...] about Lawmakers move to restrict genetically modified food
How much is the word “Vietnam” worth?
The Anholt National Brand Index, the first analytical ranking of the world's national brands, in a recent report valued the United States trademark at about US$18 million. In the top 10 national brands, the US was followed by countries like Japan, valued at US$6 trillion, and Germany, valued at between $3.5 trillion and $4 trillion. In a recent get-together for journalists hosted by Unilever Corp. in Ho Chi Minh City, a group of Vietnam experts in business, culture and tourism discussed a topic that gets some people quite upset. … [Read more...] about How much is the word “Vietnam” worth?