Issue Topic 005
本帖最后由 fiona_young 于 2012-1-28 17:32 编辑Issue Topic 005
Claim: Governments must ensure that their major cities receive the financial support they need in order to thrive. Reason: It is primarily in cities that a nation's cultural traditions are preserved and generated.
With the fast development of the social and economic progress, large cities are emerging. Those major cities especially with geographical advantages which are in favor of transportation or as political or cultural center of one country attract tons of people from home abroad to pursue better life. Modern as those metropolis are, little native culture is preserved. We are losing our heritages. Some people so claim that governments must support the major cities in preserving the cultural tradition and make them thrive.
At the first glance, you may think it really make sense. After a second look and deep consideration, however, we may find some problems. If you have been to some large metropolises in different countries, you may find them surprisingly more or less similar in some aspects. For instance, extensive public transportation system which is very convenient for you to go to every corner of the city; clusters of highrises are standing in the heart of the city which account for a magnificent outlook; different colors of people from countries across the world working and living under the same roof most of whom speak very good English; high density of people and vehicles walking and running in the busy street which make the city full of hustle and bustle. What I want to emphasize from all the above is metropolises in the world functioned more or less the same, which make it especially difficult for us to maintain the tradition and culture. Firing cracks, which is the tradition since the existing of China in ancient time and regarded by people as a way drive away evils and bad lucks and welcome a new year, is forbidden in Shanghai and other major cities for its danger among residential areas with too much people. Although the government will arrange firework show every year, but the tradition is by no means the same.
In some rural and suburban areas, however, people who have huge enthusiasm in the cracks may lack enough money to do that. How about we invest our money in some minor and ethnical regions in preserving our traditions and culture? Since the metropolises enjoy a high vigor and more advantages in attracting capital and investment, plus the tradition and culture in metropolis may be deviated from what is original and heritage from our ancestors, we can give more financial support to the regions which really need our help. Actually the nation's cultural traditions really lie in ethnical and rural areas. What’s more, they are facing a more critical situation in preserving the culture left by our ancestors. Not long time ago, a farmer of An Hui sold his ancient house, which was a cultural relic built in Qin Dynasty, to an American Museum aroused a strong debate among the media. Some people accused the farmer betray the tradition and greedy for money, while the old told the journalists that he had no money to maintain the building. And there was no related governmental funding for the overhaul of this kind of private cultural relics. That was why he sold it to American Museum, hoping they will keep this relic, no matter how begrudged he was. That was not the only case. Many backwards ethnical regions have no fund in preserving the tradition, with most of the young men leaving for large cities. The customs and culture gradually disappear after the old die. They really need our financial support. Sometimes in order to preserve the tradition, we have to make some compromise in the economic development and modernization. Those regions, though backwards, help us maintain the national tradition, in the price of the modern construction. Since their culture is original and native, it is more wise for the governmental official to give them financial supports while large cities may get capital fund through other channels such as foreign capital or joint venture. Metropolises, full of people across the world, may help us spread the knowledge of our culture with its advantages of international status.
Anyway, different people may have different ideas on this controversial issue. The best solution is to conduct detailed and necessary convey before investment. After all, the fund of the government come from people, and should be used wisely for the well being of massive majority.
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