issue 19-model essay

tesolchina_RAUID：3675555

Governments should focus on solving the immediate problems of today rather than on trying to solve the anticipated problems of the future.

Write a response in which you discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the recommendation and explain your reasoning for the position you take. In developing and supporting your position, describe specific circumstances in which adopting the recommendation would or would not be advantageous and explain how these examples shape your position.

Financially supported by the public through taxation and politically legitimized by the citizens through democratic election, the governments have to devote themselves to solving various problems facing the society.  Regarding the dichotomy of immediate problems vs. future problems, I believe that local government should focus more on immediate problems whereas federal government should be concerned with more long-term issues.  Of course, the local and federal governments have to work together to address both short-term and long-term problems, many of which are closely and intricately related.  

Local governments should commit themselves to solving immediate problems such as emergency relief and maintenance of public hygiene because they have more local knowledge and resources.  It is fair to say that most immediate problems occur at local levels that require solutions of local problems.  For example, when the earthquake hit Sichuan province in China in 2008, it is the local, provincial government who was responsible for providing emergency relief for the victims.  Local governments of Sichuan have better knowledge about the people and the places which can enable them to provide services more effectively and efficiently.  Likewise, people in Sichuan also have to rely on local governments to take effective measures to disinfect the affected areas and prevent the spread of epidemics after the earthquake.  Therefore, local governments should also consider addressing immediate problems as their priorities.  

Federal governments, on the other hand, should develop long-term solutions for the nation.  The Sichuan earthquake had highlighted a number of problems such as the quality of building, architecture code for earthquake and development of emergency response mechanism. These problems are not just about this earthquake, but relate to the entire nations as more natural disasters will hit China in the future.  Local governments would not have the resources or foresights to deal with such problems.  Federal governments should take the responsibility to develop solutions that can benefit not just Sichuan province, but any other areas in China, which might be affected by natural disasters.  Once the solutions are developed, they can be applied to similar problems all over the nation.  Therefore, it is more economically feasible and effective for the federal government to focus on future problems.  

Of course, the proposed division of labor between local and federal governments is not as clear-cut as it seems.  When facing severe natural disasters like Sichuan earthquake, local governments will definitely need help from federal governments in terms of financial and human resources.  But the local governments should lead the efforts to solve immediate problems because they are more knowledgeable about the situation.  Meanwhile, federal governments also need local government’s support and participation when developing long-term solutions for future problems.  Specifically, local government may help federal government to run pilot study to test if certain solutions will be useful or not.  

In conclusion, federal governments should focus more on long-term problems whereas local governments should be concerned more with immediate problems.  Governments at both levels should nevertheless work together to address problems of different natures.




issue范文与提纲目录(tesolchina)
https://bbs.gter.net/forum.php?mo ... amp;fromuid=3675555