Has the devil got hold of their hearts?

Russell Peters, the Canadian stand-up comedian of Indian origin, said during one of his talk shows: "Terrorists hate Americans. Indians hate each other". He might have spared Indians the ridicule had he known the depth of hatred among Chinese, as manifested in regional discrimination and sentiments.

Such discrimination, aimed at inciting hatred against people from certain parts of the country, is ubiquitous in our daily life and on the internet. Sometimes subtle but most often blatant, such discriminatory attitude tramples on the dignity of the victims and tears apart the fabric of society.

Sociologists believe this type of discrimination stems from a sense of superiority that some people have as a result of the wealth gaps among different regions. As the saying goes, "Guangdong people consider all outsiders poor, and Shanghainese see all non-natives as country bumpkins". But there are factors other than economic, such as ignorance, prejudice, stereotype, or just hate for hate's sake, behind such discrimination.