issue136 by Garfiled0818

Garfield0818UID: 2661872

TOPIC: ISSUE136 - "The absence of choice is a circumstance that is very, very rare."
WORDS: 620
TIME: 00:45:00
DATE: 2009-8-14 16:09:24

Whether we have the right and ability to choose as well as to make decisions has long been heated topic and debate in the academic circle and in society. There are those, of course, who claim that hardly is there any possibility for them to make a free decision, whereas others, like the speaker, argue that the fact is just the reverse. As I see it, although sometimes we are forced by kinds of external powers when choosing, I firmly agree with the speaker that the absence of choice is a circumstance that is very, and very rare.

The first reason for my fundamental agreement with the speaker is that common sense and experience tell us that the reason why many people complain about the absence of choice is that they only consider the good choices which will lead to sound results. However, there is no such a sound choice which will make everybody satisfied and has no negative effects. Therefore, there are always some choices we can choose, even if they may not lead to satisfying consequences but can be better than just complaining. What we should do is to evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of every choice and to make a better decision, not the best one.

Another reason why I agree with the statement is that usually we can try to change the situation and therefore increase the number of choices from which we can choose. Here, you must remember Helen Keller, who was deaf, blind, and mute from a very young age but made great contributions to the society. Faced with such hopeless condition, many people would say that they have no choice but to lead a poor and sad life, in which being discriminated by others and useless to the society. However, Helen has already used her great encourage and willpower to tell that even in such extreme and difficult situation, one still can work hard to better the future and increase the amount of choices one can choose from.

The third reason in support to the speaker's assertion is that at least we can choose our attitudes towards the difficulties or problems as well as life and world. For some sad cases in which one get a deadly disease, like leukemia, many will be pessimistic towards the life and think they have no choice other than waiting for death. However, one can choose to be optimistic and lead a happy life in the left few months, which will be much more colorful and meaningful than just waiting for death. In addition, you may remember some moving and encouraging stories in which one recover from the deadly disease, which is considered as a miracle, because he or she remains optimistic and positively participates in curing process.

Admittedly, under a few extreme circumstances, we indeed have no choice or should consider much before making a decision. Being a responsible citizen, one must consider the effects of his or her decision on the family, company, friends, and even the whole society and country. The more you consider, the less your choices may appears. Especially for a governor or a leader, sometimes a choice which will benefit the majority of the country or company will not be available. Similarly, in some urgent circumstances, like airplane craft and earthquake, one may have no choice but to give up something. However, such case is very, very rare.

From the above analysis, we can safely arrive at the conclusion that except for a few cases, we always have choices to choose from or at least we can choose our attitudes towards life. Therefore, we should be confident that we can control our life even change it thorough making wise decisions.