Letters and Blogs

Tread softly on this fragile Earth of ours

Our image of the Earth as having a fringe-tinged atmosphere is erroneous. The biosphere -10 km of atmosphere and kilometers of soil and rock - is metaphorically an apple skin, and hence it is fragile. And we are spoiling it. If we multiply the surface area of the planet by 10 km up and 10 km down, we get 10 billion cubic km. That is a lot of air and rock none of the world's 6 billion people will ever see. And we are pumping out 18 billion tons of fossil fuel a year into the air.

It is time we woke up to reality and leaders of nations stopped listening to economic jerks that increased consumption is the only solution to the financial crisis.

More than 2,500 years ago, the Chinese sage Lao Zi was accosted at the Western Gates of what the Chinese then called the civilized world in San Men Xia, and before clearing out dashed off a 5,000 character book called the Dao De Jing. Lao Zi knew the biosphere better than anyone else, and his message still holds true. It's time modern car owners, too, learned it and switched to bicycles.

Lao Zi's is soothing advise. I live on Qi Shen Road, Xi Ba He, walking distance from San Yuan Bridge and the China International Exhibition Center. It is a leafy street where walking is pleasant, and at times faster than cars. Qi Shen Road has led me to an unbelievable conclusion: God has put us here to be nice to other people, and other people have taught me that, too. The garbage recycling people, the staff of the restaurant that I never go to because I can't afford its bill, the smiling masseuse and even a few stray hoods all say "hi" as I pass by them.

This neighborhood has given me a new passion for life. Living is all about spinning off other people positively. It is not about consumption like economists have been saying. If we treat this world well maybe it won't subside. You know what it would be like if one of those tectonic plates that float on that molten iron core subsided.

So let's tread the biosphere softly.

John Coulter

via email

Driver alone not to blame for death

The death of Tan Zhuo, an "innocent and helpful young man" say his colleagues has been traumatic for the ones he loved and the ones who loved him, and also the millions of netizens who have followed his case so personally.

Many netizens have left heartfelt condolences for Tan's parents and girlfriend on online forums like Tianya. Others are angry with the man who is responsible for his death. Hu Bin, a 20-year-old, driving his modified red Mitsubishi, ran over and killed Tan in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, recently. But let alone trying to get medical help for the victim, the "killer driver" didn't even spare a glance for him.

Now that the tears have dried up, let us ask ourselves: Who should be held responsible for the accident? Not Hu Bin alone.

Just as some people in Hangzhou have complained, rich brats racing their cars through the streets have become a big problem. Every night, some youngster or the other is seen driving at breakneck speed through the city, endangering pedestrians' and other motorists' lives alike.

Hangzhou was once lovingly called "Paradise on Earth". The nomenclature sounds ironic today because rich brats have turned into anything but paradise and the local government hasn't intervened to end the speeding menace. Are the officials blind to such cars? As some reports have said Hu was driving far above the speed limit - twice at least. So why have police not cancelled his driving license? They may not be able to bring Tan back to life by seizing his license but they could save others from suffering Tan's fate.

Hu's parents are equally responsible for the incident. No child is born a brat. It's the parents and the lessons a child learns that determine its character. Or we can say, parents usually have the greatest influence on a child. Hu is what he is today more or less because of his parents and it's evident that they have spoiled him. The accident took place and a life ended in a few seconds, but the "seed of evil" had been sown in the youngster by his parents long ago.

Our country would be better off without such parents.

Li Shangyin

via email

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(China Daily 05/28/2009 page9)