Education to reduce jaywalkers

Two deadly traffic accidents occurred at the same cross street near Ma Hang Chung Road in To Kwa Wan within two months. One of the victims was a 79 years woman who was hit by a minibus while she was crossing the road with her little cart. She was dragged under the minibus and her legs were crushed by the rolling wheels, but the driver did not notice what happened until someone flapped his window after he had driven for another 10 meters from the accident point. The tragedy aroused my attention to road safety. I was wondering how the accident come about. Here are two possibilities: either the old woman was a jaywalker or the driver ran the red light. No matter which one is the fact, the accident is caused by regardless of traffic regulations. Residents have to realize the importance of following the rules in order to keep their life in safe. Education is the best way to reinforce people’s awareness of road safety.

A statistic from the Transport department reveals that there are 3840 cases of Hong Kong passerby injured or dead in traffic accident in 2011. Living in a hustle and bustle city like Hong Kong, not many people like to waste their precious time on waiting for traffic light. Tongji University of Shanhai had conducted a survey about the local passerby waiting time of traffic light in 2007. They found that the maximum time is 90 seconds. Comparing to German’s 60 seconds and British’s 45 seconds, Chinese seems to have better obedience; however, they will ignore the traffic light and cross the road as long as the maximum tolerance time passed. Apart from the waste of time, people think it is stupid that you stop walking yet there is no car passing by. Why do we have to observe them when it is not possible to be in danger? Moreover, the herb behavior of passerby encourages more people dare to break the rules. A popular term called the ‘Chinese-style of jaywalking’ digs at the undisciplined Chinese who share a common consensus that people can cross the road in anytime if there is a crowd of passerby. This situation is not specific to China as we can also see it in Monkok and other downtown in Hong Kong. It is obvious that people are lacking in the consciousness of crisis.

We can see that the most vital key to the disciplinary of people is exactly the decision of themselves. Their impatient, pride and herb behavior are the reasons of transgressing the traffic rules which are involving mostly the human factor. Hence, it is no doubt that changing people’s thoughts and behaviors towards the issue is the priority in solving the problem. The most effective way to change one’s mind must be education. It can be implemented in primary school and secondary school since kids are easy to be influenced so the education should be started in young ages. Nevertheless, the education should not be not just for students but also for their parents. A news from the internet said that a mother did not allow her little boy to wait for the green light and dragged him cross the road under the red light.  Professor Mei Zhi Gang of Sociology in Huazhong Normal University indicated that teaching by word and deed of parents is very essential to children. It is not convincing to child when adult cannot be a good example. It is necessary to enhance the education to the public for the sake of preventing accident.

Many people think it is no need to treat traffic rule seriously. It is a piece of cake as everyone knows it. Actually, we have over twenty thousands of people are accused of violating traffic rules in every year. Do you know you could be charged for 2000 dollars fine with breaking the rules? If no, stop saying you are well-educated! Besides, the aspects that are covered in the education should not be just about the rules and penalty, but also emphasize on what are the good manners of being a disciplined passerby as well as the danger of road. Also, People are encouraged to share their experiences through talks and gatherings. The government should publish more educational TV programs and advertisement so that people can receive such kind of messages in multiple ways. People should perceive the whole situation and consider more about the road safety thoroughly through education.

Someone argues that strengthen the penalty is more efficient in reducing jaywalking because it can make people scare to be punished. Yes, it does. However, the actual implementation is quite difficult. It is impossible to supervise all the people in anywhere and anytime which will need a huge number of man power. On the other hand, if there are plenty of jaywalkers that are crossing the road at the same time under the red light, should the police catch all of them or just part of the offenders? The former choice is not possible and the latter one will result in unfairness. In addition, over rigid regulation may cause resistance from people. In Zhejiang province, some people attacked the police because he asked them to pay for improperly crossing the road. Therefore the government should put more effort on educating people about the matter of disciplinary and how it protects our life so that they will observe the rules voluntarily. More importantly, education is the only way that helps us get to know more about the penalties.

How about improving the entire transport system and also installing monitoring devices? Expensive cost for installation and maintenance will create another a big problem. Do you think it is possible to set up monitors at all the traffic light? Even if it works, it still needs someone else to check through all the videos which seem like a kind of mission impossible.

 

Whether to follow the rule or not, it is very much depends on people’s will. That is why we should make efforts in education. People should interpret they have the obligation to obey the regulation. Of course they should understand the content of the rules including the penalties. We should also realize the reasons of following those rules. Precaution is the insurance of our safety, otherwise you will regret when the same tragedy happens to you or your loved ones.

 

Sources of examples/statistics:

 

Transportation Department

-Road safety-Road user’s code

http://www.td.gov.hk/en/road_safety/road_users_code/index.html

South China Morning Post

Cracking down Jaywalkers in Zhejiang province in China

Daniel Ren

06 April, 2013

http://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1208119/crackdown-jaywalkers-zhejiang-province-china

 

South China Morning Post

Who will police the idling ban, and why is the penalty so small?

31 March, 2012

http://www.scmp.com/article/713662/who-will-police-idling-ban-and-why-penalty-so-small

South China Morning Post

Barry Chin

24 February, 2013

Social etiquette a global problem

http://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/1157214/social-etiquette-global-problem

The Sun

2010- Residents were set up by the “green light trap”

http://the-sun.on.cc/cnt/news/20100618/00410_011.html

Sina.com

2013- Mother didn’t allow her boy to wait for the green light

http://dailynews.sina.com/bg/chn/chnlocal/sinacn/20130405/22074418383.html

About the ‘Chinese-style jaywalking’

BBC Chinese

2013- How to punish people

Liu Suan Hang

http://www.bbc.co.uk/zhongwen/trad/comments_on_china/2013/03/130322_coc_china_cross_road.shtml

Sina.com-2012

http://news.sina.com.hk/news/20121202/-1-2837928/1.html

CNN Focus-2012

http://cnn-focus.blogspot.hk/2012/10/blog-post_850.html

GE1401Assignment3 Causal Analysis --My One Piece fever

Think of a problem. It doesn't have to be a major, earth-shattering problem like the dwindling ozone layer or inequality of the sexes. It can be a common problem in your everyday life.

I have been incurably obsessed with One Piece, which is a super famous Japanese comic authored by Oda Eiichiro, since I was 12. It is an adventure story of Luffy, who is the captan of a pirate team named ‘The Straw Hat’, and his company traveling from island to island, helping people to solve problems, fighting against evil spirits and competing with other pirates in order to get the highest price—One Piece. To be frank, I own a whole set of One Piece manga as well as a great quantity of its figures and its related products. My family has never understood why I am so crazy about it. “Girl’s not supposed to read teenage boy manga and more importantly you’ve grown up so you shouldn’t be too childish!” my mum claimed. Some of my friends are also curious of why a quiet and shy girl like me would be attracted by a violent story. May be it is because of its straightforward style and pure spirit of characters which are really different from my reality.

 One Piece lives up to the slogan of ShonenJump, the best-selling Japanese manga magazine, as friendship, striving and victory. It is a typical ‘hot blood’ story that is appealing to me. Every time when Luffy encountered difficulties, he would never give up and burn his life for achieving the goal. Also his friends would try their best to help him for nothing repaid. In the chapter of Alabasta, they made the maximum effort to aid princess Vivi in conducting the revolution of her country and to save people from the violent domination by a criminal organization. Their struggling processes are extremely encouraging that I truly appreciate. Somehow it gave me the energy to pass through many uneasy situations such as the endless examinations and the assignment pressure.  

The innocent friendship between the main characters is definitely the most catching element of the story. Every member of the Straw Hat was not joining the group for no reason. Luffy offered the biggest helping hands to his dear friends whenever they needed. Helping Nami to defeat and expel the ruffian Arlong is one of the typical examples. There is a spiritual connection among the company so that they would never betray each other. They are united as one because everyone is willing to devote themselves to the committed friends. They also persistently shared the constant and consistent goal—the One piece. The passions they have is actually lighting up my boring routine. Perhaps this kind of relationship is exactly the thing that I desire but it is difficult to be achieved in real life.

The beautiful and vivid drawing style together with the well-designed setting of each island and characters make up a wonderful fantasy One Piece world that contrasts with our dull concrete jungle. It is a direct and simple world that the boundary of black and white is clear. I enjoy following the characters to chase the big dream with the profound friendship and seeing the wicked guys to be punished by justice.

The answer of why I love One Piece so much is quite obvious now. People, who are living in the reality, are lacking in the pure depicted in the fancy world. The competitiveness is keep increasing in different ages, careers, business, and even countries in my living place. In such a cruel world, it is hard to let people trust the others without hesitate. One Piece is like the Utopia amid the concrete world and like a medicine for healing readers’ wounded minds. You may think that I am escaping from the reality and letting myself to immerse in the illusion. One Piece is, in fact, a reflection of what I really want in my sub-consciousness. It is the representation of the deep desire of pure love and relationship among people.

GE1401 Assessment2 Descriptive Writing-- My Mother

My mother is 50 years old now. She has short and dyed-black hair. Her oval-shaped face looks pale and yellow, which is covered with obvious freckles as if hundreds of ants are crossing her face as well as shallow wrinkles that mainly spread near the outer corners of her eyes. She is also got a pair of small eyes and thin lips. She is just like a typical Chinese housewife we usually see in market. However, she had a pretty good looking in her early ages. She had light and soft complexion and her cheeks were ruddy. She was wearing perfect make-up on her face all the time. Her elegant smiley almond eyes made she looked like a classical Chinese beauty walking out from a traditional Chinese female figure painting.

As years passed by, she is getting gaunter and gaunter. Sometimes she seems to be exhausted. She claimed that she was okay as she had been used to working hard since she started to work as a little former when she was 6. Anyway, she collapsed once recently because of serious headache that caused by high blood pressure.

“I’m going to die because you guys piss me off all the time!” she grumbled at me and my siblings, “I won’t live long.” She often says something like that.

She seems to blame us that we are burdens to her but actually we know she loves us more than herself. Even if she is tired of being a worker and housewife at the same time, she still wakes up early in every morning before our alarm clocks ring and insists to prepare a hot and fresh breakfast for us. Struggling with her sore waist and aching back, she just takes a deep breath, swallows all the pain and pretends she is able to support the crushing sky.

Due to the difficult time of bringing up three children, especially we had ever lived in poverty when I was a kid, she tends to have a quite strong expectation of seeing us to became ‘dragon’ in the future, which turns she to be so-called ‘tiger mum’. This is also very much affected by her realism.

“You will be a sweeper if you don’t work hard now!” she frowned and said.

She has kept threatening us about how bad our future will be in case of not getting good academic results. Every time she wants us to listen to her words so desperately, she must shout at us loudly and we can see her face growing to be red and as fierce as roaring lion. I guess this is the major reason why she got high blood pressure. The others may think that she is having a bad temper, yet we all know that her fury is just one way of expressing her love.

When I was young, I used to believe mum was so tall and big. Two decades lapsed, I have discovered that she is so small and fragile, but her instinct of protecting her babies drove her to be strong and undefeatable. I think it is time for me to make her a better life.

Words counted: 524

GE1113~My self-portrait!!! XDXD

Let's see what I ve drawn! It's a just a pencil sketching which referred to one of my self-snapshots.
It looks really strange...isn't it? I feel sorry that I 've deleted the orginal photo thus I am unable to show the comparison of the photo and drawing.

 

In the week 3 tutorial, we were told to draw the "Mona Lisa" in reversed form which aslo referred to a reversed Mona Lisa black&white copy. It is actually testing us about the inpretation of the shape of image and the class drawing will be used for comparing with our self-portraits in order to define the difference of them.

 



GE1401--Reflective Writing "Why I don't write"

Why I don’t write

 

In secondary school teachers always said content must be the priority in whatever article we want to write. I totally agree with this saying. Writing is the most direct way to express abstract thoughts and concepts. I am happy to share them with the others through writing but there are many restrictions that disturb me from writing freely.

 

When we appreciate a painting, we may say that how it presents the “mood” of the whole picture is essential but the aesthetic evaluation is also an important issue for judging whether it is good. Writing is in the same situation. A beautiful essay should be both spiritually and technically beautiful. So called technique is known as grammar and vocabulary which are exactly my weakness. Incorrect use of writing techniques will cause the improper presentation of ideas that making me refuses to write too much.

 

Apart from the technical aspect, limited theme and format of writing is the bigger reason of why I resist to write. I, as a student, have no right to choose what I really want to write in school essay. We are usually given a topic and then do our job in a very limited time and words, as well as the format to be applied. Moreover, we also have to participate in role playing game too. Many topics are like this: Pretend it is twenty years from now and you are a famous writer. Write an essay like George Orwell's entitled ' why I write’. How do I act as a famous writer but my writing sucks indeed?

 

Still, I understand it is reasonable for student to follow the rules so that we can learn things more efficiently. Now I suppose the topic of writing is just my cup of tea and I am willing to do my best to make improvement on my grammatical problems. Nevertheless, I have to decide what is suitable to be written down on paper. Suitable contents are favorable to majority, school or even the government so you are able to receive a higher score, or else you may lose your way in jail as if Liu Xiao Bo, who wrote an ‘unsuitable’ essay which angered the Chinese official. It is better to give up writing instead of telling lies.

Word Count: 382

Mak Yi Fong