Vicious cycle

Poverty to a nation is like a disease to a person.  A poor society must be a sick one with all kinds of symptoms of illness.  For instance, there will be more crime and also more social instability.  Once there are a large number of poor people in a country, their children can seldom be well educated.  When they grow up, they cannot be very competitive and therefore become poor again.  This is why the poor usually get poorer.  A vicious cycle is thus created.  And we say that poverty is inherited from generations to generations.

道德教育及國民教育

道德教育及國民教育

我認為道德教育比國民教育更重要。在我看來，道德教育是基礎教育，尤其是面對參與國家事務時的判斷。換句話說，道德教育與國民教育應該是有一個平衡能力。後者只被認為是補充能力。

     「論語」是中國的傳統知識，已超過2000年之歷史，存在於耶穌基督誕生之前，對中國人民有很大的影響。在中國歷史上，儒家的「論語」已蔓延到中國人民及他們的國王。他們遵循“尊重父母，友愛，忠誠，信任”的規則。他們基本上被接受是中國人民的優秀教育。許多中國人竭誠地遵循這些道德標準，實現他們的目標理想。

     在香港，很多學校展開道德教育。它包括德、智、體、群、美。經調查所得，我發現很多學生都喜歡有一個平衡的道德教育及國民教育課程。他們說，他們應該知道更多有關中國的歷史，尤其是中國近代史。

     然而，一些學生比較喜歡全國推行更注重道德教育的方案。他們的意見認為，如果推行及鼓勵國民教育，教師必須以正確的方式教導國民教育課程，而不是向學生們洗腦，讓後者知道歷史的真相。他們應該帶領學生有一個積極的態度來掌握國民教育。

     中國現正崛起中。國家教育包括世界各國間的兄弟情誼，民族團結，更多地了解我們的祖國，稅務，外匯事宜，實踐，文化，婚姻、經濟、對國家的歸屬感等。它們增加我們的一般知識，在這個現今世界是認為對我們有用的。

香港回歸中國，推行道德教育及國民教育是一個明顯的趨勢。具有良好的道德標準，更能導致我們的國家繁榮，有秩序和蓬勃發展，是有很多歷史真相在內的。

Mary 姐 

Moral & National Education in HK

Moral and National Education in HK

I think Moral Education is more important than National Education.  In my opinion, Moral Education is the basic education for everyone and national affairs involve judgement.  In other words, moral education is the foundation of national education.  The latter is being considered to be supplementary.

Confucian Analects, which is the Chinese traditional knowledge for over 2000 years, before the birth of Jesus Christ, has its great influence on Chinese people.  In the Chinese history, Confucian analects had been spread to The Kings and people of China.  They followed the rules of ‘respect to parents, brotherhood, loyalty, trust’.  They are basically accepted by Chinese people as the excellent moral teachings.  Many follow these moral instructions wholeheartedly and fulfill their goals.

In Hong Kong, many schools carry out the moral education.  It includes conduct, intelligence, social life education, physical education, appreciate to beauty.  Upon investigation, I discover that many students like to have a moral and national education curriculum in parallel lines.  They said that they should know more about Chinese History, especially contemporary Chinese History.

However, some students like to focus more on Morality Education than National Education.  In their opinion, National Education is being encouraged, provided that teachers should teach the curriculum in the right way, not brainwashing the students, let the latter know the truth of the history.  They should lead the students to have a positive attitude to master the National Education.

China is rising in the world nowadays.  National Education includes brotherhood among countries worldwide, national unity, knowing more about our mother country, taxation, foreign policy, codes of practice, culture, marriage, economics, people’s sense of belonging to their own country ...etc.  National education increases our general knowledge which is considered to be useful to us in this modern world.

Moral and National Education is a definite trend for students in HK nowadays because of HK's handover to China.  Having good morality can lead our country to develop well, orderly and prosperously, which has much truth in History.

Mary

The value of Maintaining Public Libraries as a Community Resource

The Value of Maintaining Public Libraries as a Community Resource

  

I fully support maintaining public libraries as a community resource.

Public libraries are assets of society.  They provide a place of study, a spot for searching information, a room for various purposes.  They are beneficial to the Hong Kong people and giving hope to the life of citizens.

The students may go to the libraries to search for additional information outside the school curriculum.  They provide books, computers to assist in their studies.  They may surf the information from the Internet.  The libraries can be reading rooms for them.  They may not be able to find some quiet places to do their homework.  As an alternative selection, the libraries do.  It is also a wonderland for the children since there are many books suitable for them.

A library is also a place of refreshment for workers other than the working time.  There are newspapers, magazines provided.  They may borrow some books from libraries to read at home.  They may help them to cultivate a good reading habit.  This will certainly widen their knowledge of this modern world.  Some libraries have additional galleries beyond the public ones, where reference materials are stored.  The reference stacks may be open to selected members of the public.  It is an improvement scheme for the industrial and economic fields of Hong Kong.

Libraries are also a symbol of a well-developed society.  There are a lot of libraries in United States of America, China, Australia, Britain…etc.  Libraries increase the dignity of a country’s government.  Hong Kong has many libraries.  It is really a well-developed and bright metropolis.

In Hong Kong, some libraries carry out extra additional activities such as seminars, talks on various subjects.  They are inspiring.  Libraries are also visited by many tourists from various countries.  These tourist spots are attractive, especially to the students overseas.

Reading books is a good form of recreation activities as well as an excellent form of entertainment.  On the whole, libraries are valuable community resources.  They must exist.  We must treasure them. 

Mary Lau

美容治療的我見

作業3：為南華早報編輯寫的一封短信，表達你對美容治療的觀點（200 - 400字）;截止日期（2012年10月31日）。
 
                                                                                                Mary L
                                                                                                香港大x ，大xx苑

                 x 樓。

                2012年10月31日

                                                                               香香港南華早報

總編輯

編輯先生：
                                                      美容治療的我見

     我是一位香港市民。我的名字是Mary L。我閱讀了一段新聞，報導四名婦女因到DR美容中心接受療程而患了重病，那是感染性休克(敗血病)的消息後，我既傷心又生氣。故此，我想表達我對美容治療的看法。

   接受這些治療時，當事雙方應該熟悉條款。那兩方是香港特區政府和接受美容治療客戶。

   首先，有必要區分醫療或美容治療的分別。藥物治療是治療人們的疾病，減少他們的痛苦和不適，保持較少惡化或沒有惡化的結果，改善他們的生活質量，或者他們的生命可以存活下來。美容治療是提高個人的外觀。換句話說，醫療的必要性可能涉及到生死的問題，而美容治療則沒有。後者的例子是抗皺處理，美白護理，身體或臉部減肥治療，皮膚緊緻，平滑的治療...等。

   第二點，香港特區政府需要規管美容護理中心，在許可證控制下，才可以做療程，而“侵入性治療”一定是必須申請的。應由醫療專業人員定期進行檢查。手術應該由受過專門訓練合格的醫療人士才可進行的，而不是一般的從業人員。

  第三點，關乎承擔風險的客戶。侵入性治療（如靜脈注射）的風險比非侵入性治療（如按摩）更危險，更是當事人必須知道的。因此，用戶應該清楚地閱讀協議，在簽字前更應仔細地思量。在作出任何決定之前或者接受它之前，他們應該進行風險評估。

   第四點，政府應增加公眾對於需要接受美容治療的正確觀念；在外觀上的美未必是最重要的。政府應培養香港市民對年紀大了有光明的和正確的態度，也就是說，老是自然地產生皺紋，柔滑和銀色的頭髮等等；此外，當一個人變老時應該學會如何看自己，自豪是必需的。想自己年齡看起來年輕，這是徒勞的，因為老化是自然的過程，適用於每個人。

   鑑於上述建議，我相信當一個人要接受美容護理時，必定擁有最清晰重要思想，並提前作出適當的考慮。

謝謝。
此致，順祝金安。

                                                                                                                讀者

Mary L

                                           上

My view on Beauty Treatment

Assignment 3: Write a short letter to the editor of SCMP expressing your view on beauty treatment (200 - 400 words); deadline (31.10.2012)

 

Mary L.

X/F, Tai XXXX Court,

Tai X, H. K.

31^st October, 2012

The Editor,

SCMP,

H.K.

Dear Editor,

My View On Beauty Treatment

     I am a Hong Kong Citizen.  My name is Mary L.  I was sad yet angry to read the news of the DR Beauty Centre which had made four women seriously ill with septic shock.  I wish to express my view on beauty treatment.

There are two main parties who should be familiar to the terms of receiving these treatments.  They are the HKSAR and customers.

First, there is a need to differentiate beauty treatment from medical treatment.   Medical treatment is to cure people's illness and diseases reducing their sufferings and discomfort, maintaining with less or without deterioration; by improving their quality of life, or their lives can be survived.   Beauty treatment is to enhance a person’s external appearance.   In other words, medical treatment is of necessity and may involve a matter of life and death, while beauty treatment is not.   Examples of the latter are anti-wrinkle treatment, skin whitening treatment, body or face slimming treatment, skin firming, smoothening treatments..., etc.

Second, licensing control by the HKSAR is a need to regulate beauty treatment, while ‘intrusive treatment’ is a must.  Inspections by medical professionals should be carried out regularly.  The surgery should be done by specially trained, well-qualified medical professionals instead of general practitioners.

Third, the risks should be made known to the customers.   Intrusive treatments (e.g. intravenous injections) are more risky than non-intrusive treatment (e.g. massage).   One must be made aware of the down sides.  Therefore, customers should read the agreements carefully before signing.  They should assess the risks before making any decisions to undergo it.

Fourth, the government should increase the public awareness on what constitutes a need to undergo beauty treatment, and that beauty in appearance may not be of the most importance.   The government should cultivate the Hong Kong citizens the bright and right attitudes towards getting old, that is, it is natural to have wrinkles, silky and silvery hair, etc., when one gets old.  Moreover, one should learn to be proud of getting old.   It is futile to look young while one ages.   The process of aging is natural and applies to all.

In view of the above suggestions, I am sure when a person going to have beauty treatments will have the most important ideas and proper consideration beforehand.

Thank you.

Yours faithfully,

Mary L.

Environmental Pollution in HK

Composition : 

Title : A letter to the Editor for the subject of “environmental pollution in HK”.

*          *          *          *          *          *          *                         
                                                                                      Ms Lee P.S.
                                                                                      Flat xxxx, Block 1,
                                                                                      Tsz Wan Shan Estate,
                                                                                      Kowloon.
                                                                                      16^th October, 2012

The Editor,

The Orange Press

Shop No. xx, Richness Mansion,

Gold Street, Hong Kong.

Dear Editor,

Environmental Pollution in HK

    

       I am a Hong Kong citizen.  My name is Ms Lee P.S.  I’m going to launch a complaint about the awful environmental pollution in HK.

     As you know, air pollution and tall buildings are probably the worst parts of life in Hong Kong.  Every morning there are TV programmes on the environmental pollutions in Hong Kong.  The poor air quality is harmful to our health.  We cannot escape from the very poor polluted air.  Smoke-belching factories, ceaseless construction, and large number of diesel vehicles have made for further dangerous levels of air pollutions matter and nitrogen dioxide.  As a matter of fact, air pollution also cuts off the solar radiation resulting increased night time inciting the Hong Kong Citizens to use more domestic air conditioning which further compounds the problem.  There are also many tall buildings with high density in Hong Kong which restrict air flow.  The examples of the areas are Mong Kok, Causeway Bay.  It is noted that the room temperature difference between the coolest areas and the hottest areas of Hong Kong are at least 4 degree centigrade.

     Therefore, these are the prominent problems affecting Hong Kong people’s health and quality of life.  In my opinion, the government and the non-profit making organizations should solve the problems hand-in-hand.  For example, the SAR government should develop more area in the New Territories, outlying islands to gain more land, etc.   The coastline should be expanded to gain more area for building houses.  The non-profit making organizations should try to co-operate with the government to make it a success.  In this way, the air pollution will be, to a certain extent,  solved.  Lastly, may you transfer the suggestions to the HKSAR, please.

Thank you.

Yours faithfully,

Ms. Lee P.S.

(326 words)                                                                                         .