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Letters and Blogs
(China Daily)
Updated: 2009-10-14 07:59
Officials' blogs are not decorations It is not such a new development for government officials to have personal blogs. It is still amazing, however, that more than 60 county magistrates in Jiangxi province have started personal blogs since July last year. It shows great progress in democratic politics that officials are opening personal blogs. The phenomenon has at least three merits: First, officials can better hear the voices of the people through their blogs; second, the officials' blogs can serve as a space where people's wisdom is gathered; and third, the blogs shorten the psychological distance between officials and citizens. Many officials' blogs have played a positive role in raising the images of officials. There are still some officials' blogs, however, that are empty, shallow and pretending. Some officials rarely update their blogs, and some leave it to their secretaries to post dull articles. These blogs do not make good use of the advantages of the Internet, and even give rise to negative influences. It is reported that Jiangxi provincial Party secretary Su Rong attaches great importance to the Internet. Hence, it is possible that some officials in Jiangxi opened personal blogs to pander to the provincial leader rather than to utilize the Internet to serve the people. If so, their blogs are not necessary at all. Zhou Peng'an http://blog.sina.com.cn National Day parade stirs pride The military parade on the 60th anniversary of People's Republic of China was an amazing event that greatly boosted the national pride of every ordinary Chinese. I was watching the parade on the National Day with passion and pride, and cannot help but write something on the magnificent celebration. The first brilliant feature was the precision. Thousands of soldiers in every phalanx practiced precisely the same goose steps in a perfectly synchronized way. It was as if they were one man. More eye-catching was the display of military equipment. The parade shows that the Chinese military possesses advanced weaponry including tanks and airplanes. A breakthrough in the military parade this time is that the narrators openly described the types of the weaponry. So the audience found it easier to know the types of weapons. It shows the openness of the Chinese military in particular and China in general. I enjoyed watching the military parade very much and would like to express my gratitude to everyone who participated in it. Mark Chen via e-mail (China Daily 10/14/2009 page8) |
