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If I were the only exception
http://www.sina.com.cn 2005/04/15 18:18  上海英文星报

  "I am not the only one to ignore or break rules. If everybody else observed them, what I am doing would not affect the whole of society at all."

  That is a quite common thinking, reflected in almost every aspect of life. The soaring number of cars bears witness to our social progress and prosperity, but at the same time it brings about a host of traffic and environmental problems. However, full awareness of this has not curbed people's enthusiasm for car purchases. Convenience and a sense of individual success obviously outweighs the sense for social ethics. Also, wretched buses and old-style motorbikes, which should have been discarded a long time ago, fill the roads with thick, black exhaust, choking everybody (those in various vehicles not included) almost to death. In this case, economy and labour-saving seem to be the dominant factor considered. Any individual vehicle would not make much difference to the traffic, but today's heavy traffic jams and severe pollution still come from the prevailing thinking.

  Another case is sex-selected abortion. With the help of ultrasonic diagnostic equipment, the illegal operation has overtaken unplanned birth (which is against the family planning policy) to become No.1 disturbance to the balance between men and women in China. In spite of the fact that years of publicity efforts have awakened almost everybody to the need for equality between the two sexes, as well as to the consequence of such violations against nature, the idea is taking a long time to sink in and there are still a handful of people going through the diagnosis and then conducting the operation through various channels. According to the Xinmin Evening News, a private clinic in the suburbs of Shenzhen carries out 40 such diagnoses a day. "My son alone won't affect the sex ratio of the whole country. But he is extremely important to our family."

  My third example here is a famous film director who established his fame through a series of adaptations of kungfu stories written by a well-known Hong Kong writer. The director is also known for his complacent saying "All my works are shot in realistic settings!" To shoot a minor romantic scene, he and his team trampled a precious stalactite pond that took shape over many thousands of years, polluting water renowned for its magic colours and purity. Later, he apologized casually, but the footprints are left and damage is irreversibly done.

  People concerned here adopt the same assumption by placing hope in others observing the rules. If everybody else obeyed the rules, what they had done would be too insignificant to be noticed. In fact, however, the "If" condition is a poor excuse invented to justify their misconduct. On one hand, they don't object to these rules, they even hope that other people will be disciplined by them. But on the other hand, they themselves wish to escape these rules, to take advantage of others' observance. The philosophy behind such an assumption is pure egotism.

  Three measures may contribute to resolving the problem. Further development of overall national strength would lead to better qualities of our citizens. Severe punishments might also prevent such deeds. But personally I prefer the third solution, that is, to improve public information and education.

  In our education, collectivism and individualism are mutually exclusive and we are always taught to sacrifice individual interests for those of our team. Models we get to know from newspapers, radio or television all seem larger than life, thus too perfect to learn from. Such ideas worked several decades ago, but they no longer satisfy modern appetites. Too high a moral standard is no standard. People are more likely to reject than to accept it. I think that might account for the lack of social ethics.

  Then what is a more suitable approach? I can only answer this question with a story that I read in a magazine the other day. Some youngsters often swam in a reservoir and therefore the water was in danger of being polluted. Quite a few warning signs were placed near the reservoir reading "Cherish our water resources", "Save water for our country", "Don't swim in the water", "Swimmers will be fined", but they all proved ineffective. Several days later, a new sign was added which read: "The water you drink every day comes from this reservoir!" From then on, no one swam in the reservoir again. As you can see, there is more to public information than the deliberately sloganized equipping of the mind.


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