1. Do you think that developing the western areas of China is a good or bad idea? Why or why not? (Most people are going to write that it is a good idea but also consider the amount of resources required to do so)
2. What plans should be put in place to give children in poorer areas a fairer chance to get into good universities.
3. What are the negative and positive things about the resort in Yellow Sheep River?
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18 comments:
I went to china and Taiwan recently and i am pretty surprised that there are so many areas that are still living in such poverty and technological isolation.
I think its a good idea to develop the west, but i think it should be taken much slower with a larger frame of time to accomplish. The resource cost and manpower would probably be very costly. With the resort in Yellow Sheep River, i think it is important that the west sort of help develop by itself. The two friends tried efficiently to bring the west out of its isolation but, in my opinion, they were too ambitious. I think that the technology will be too great of a revolution that this drastic change will fall quickly or cause the country to be worse off than before. Like establishing anything new in history, it takes a lot of time and effort to get used to it.
My friend went to Thailand a couple of summers ago and told me its living conditions were crazy. The children had so little and the towns were extremely impoverished. Developing the western areas of China is a really good idea. I'm aware that doing so will require a lot of time, labor, and resources, but it isn't fair that they have to live in such poor conditions just because they don't have the opportunity to make money to do better. While it's inspiring that the two friends are trying to help people from western china, it's just too big of a job.
To give children in poorer areas a fair chance to get into good universities doesn't revolve around their community. Instead, it is based on the quality of their schools and curriculum. I think that schools should be the first thing built in the impoverished areas. They should work on finding teachers who will give the children a proper and respectable education.
Developing the west will take a lot of resources and time but in the long run it will definitley have a good impact. If no one tries to develop the west, then yes money will be saved, but the children won't have a fair chance at a good education and people will be living in poverty. Without developments, western China will not grow technologically advanced like it should be and they cities won't have resources neccessary to improve.
It's going to take a lot of time to do, but the if you take a look at the big picture it will be worth it.
What do you guys think of this issue when coupled with the idea of international economics? For example, China holds a great deal of the US debt right now...so they are lending out a lot of money, but how do they decide to spend it within their own country? Are there any econ fanatics out there? I admittedly have limited knowledge in this arena, but find the world's finances fascinating.
It is interesting to see that china is not exactly how we see it in tv and that certain parts are still so underdeveloped. But when we see this, it becomes more clear why the cities are so overpopulated: no one would want to live in China's Wild West, completely isolated from the world. If new technology was gradually introduced in the villages, it might improve their life, create more jobs and ultimately help distribute the population and better live quality more evenly throughout the country. This, of course, would take a long time and money, but it could help improve the lives of so many people who live in terrible conditions
I think it is weird how separated from the rest of society Western China is. However, bringing the Internet and other developments to the West might not be beneficial unless they know how to use it and use it properly. Otherwise it could be distracting or complicated.
I think it would be a good idea to develop in Western China, but maybe internet connection isn't the first step towards doing that. In this underdeveloped region I doubt that many people own computers. I think big businesses in the East should try to spread their wealth to the West by branching out their companies. By providing more jobs and bringing economic stability to the West, this will set up the foundation for further developments. The resources and money that will be needed for this advancement will be undeniably costly, but in the end I think that they will be making a profit if they decide to invest in the West.
The government should promote programs and scholarships that help children who come from poor families achieve their full potential. Education is too important to be ignored. I mean if they were able to win that many medals at the Olympics by pushing their athletes to succeed, providing education for everyone shouldn’t be impossible.
I remember watching a NBC special during the Olympics contrasting the grandeur of Beijing city life to the difficult, demanding lives of Chinese living in rural areas.
I’m no foreign economics junkie, but I was interested in seeing if the Chinese government itself is putting in any money to “save” the West. Apparently, in 2000, the Chinese government laid out the "Great Western Development Strategy," a plan to allocate money and resources for this area. The main areas in which the government hopes to work on include improving infrastructure development (highways power grids), improving the environment (using water efficiently, planning large irrigation projects), developing local industry, advancing technologically, investing in education, and attracting foreign investors. (source: http://www.chinabusinessreview.com/public/0011/sims.html). According to Wiki, the government has allocated $ 20 billion for this project.
So, the Chinese government IS doing something.
I think that such an investment is a great act on the part of the Chinese government--it is an overdue start (but a start, nonetheless) on helping its own impoverished citizens.
However, an interesting (and unfortunate) aspect brought up by Wiki is that by attracting Han Chinese from wealthier, more populous parts of the country to “traditionally non-Han cities,” ethnic tensions in the region have increased. Hmm.
Just something to think about.
Developing the western areas of China is a good idea but there will be lots of work and effort to try to make "the west wired." Just having been to China this summer, I've visited one of the most poorest villages and also the well-off places that China tries to present to the world. It still surprises me how many different standards of living are present in one country. Also, I find it surprising that there are areas in China that are still so undeveloped and isolated from the world, but I also find it amazing how China has changed and developed over the past years. Because of the changes that have occurred in China, it is possible to develop the west and allow children to have an education. But doing this takes huge amounts of time, effot, and support from the people. Every child should be given an opportunity to get a good education and go to college. These people who have recieved an education can in return help the world and other less fortunate people.
I disagree with John (Huang). I don't think that this "wiring" of western China would be too much for them to handle. I believe that the brilliance of the internet and computers and whatnot is that it can be simplified and made user friendly. And it doesn't take a lot of time. If the Chinese government helped out by providing technology experts or teachers for the people living in those rural areas, it could be modernized even faster.
Of course, if you think that modernization is the problem (or could become the problem), that's a completely different argument.
I visited Korea, Japan, and Taiwan recently and I think that technology is a necessity that needs to be available accross the globe. Technology is essential for communication, expedited labor, and for progress. I think that the western areas of China need to be fully technologically developed. Without technology, they have limited communication to the oustside world, and cannot economically prosper like its eastern counterpart. For example, when Li visited the Yellow Sheep River the sight of a girl being pulled out of school because her parents cannot afford it was devastating. If technology had been available to the village, then the girl's parents and the other villagers could use the technology as a tool to view the weather so that they can prepare for whatever calamity that might occur. For children who inhabit financially poorer areas, scholarship programs and financial aid can be given to them so that they have a fairer chance to get in. Also, technology would affect them. If children who live in poorer areas had the technological resources, they would be able to interact with the schools so that they do not miss anything important. The resort built in Yellow Sheep River has many positive insights. The inhabitants of the village would be able to work more stable jobs and receive a more adequate salary-opposed to the $10-15/month that they normally live off of. There would also be exposure to foreigners that might lead to sucessful economic prosperity. However, a downside of a resort in Yellow Sheep River would be the clash of different cultures and ethnic groups. Also, having been to many countries, I have noticed that different places have different attitudes towards foreigners. Since, the inhabitants of Yellow Sheep River have not been fully exposed to foreigners, tensions might arise between groups.
I do think it is a good idea to help develop teh western areas of China, however i do not think it should be a all at once as some huge American project. (Our country has been known to overstep is boundries before). Also, right now considering the amount of resources it would take and money, and we are already indebted to China, I think it would only create more problems with our economy. Unless, somehow, the U.S. could make a deal with China to help with our tools in exchange for not paying back a certain amount of money?
I think there needs to be available education and that it needs to be mandatory. People need jobs all around the world, so there shouldnt be such a teaching shortage. Also, I think if western China starts using computers, it will open a whole new world of education because so much can be done on the internet.
I think the resort is a good way to spread or introduce newer technology and ways of thinking to those from Western China, and might be a good start to blend the culture with developing China.
1. I believe that it is a good economic development, but yes, as mentioned in the question, it might take a huge amount of resources to deal with all the rural areas in China. However, the technological annexation of western areas of China might negatively impact the culture in the area, and that in my opinion is not good.
2. Start from local elementary school and then go to middle school, high school, so on. An educational system must be established in this area so they don't lose people to the outside world.
3. Positive - economic development...
Negative - environment may be used for industrial purposes YET AGAIN and environmental damages will be done...
i think that on the most part, it is a good idea, but in the oveall scheme, this is a horrible idea. China, like the rest of the world, is going through some economic problems, because of the US's stock market problems. An idea such as this may seem...feasible on the most part, but the consequences from draining all the resources they could use to instead boost their own economy is a bad idea. Even so, the article said that the people had never left the valley besides for jobs. The sudden introduction would probably devestate and confuse their minds(BAMBOOZLE) and leave them in a state of confusion and chaos. Instead of rushing the introduction of modernization to the valley, Lin and Wen should instead just wait for time to pass, and to help along, spread the power of techonology throughout china, so not only that one part of china is modernized, the whole country of China can be all on the same page.
Regarding the children, however, this is all up to the parents. No matter how sad and poor the children's futures may be, it is their choice, or their parent's choice, to push their children farther and farther to reach the top. Resources SHOULD NOT be spent on children, as i mentioned earlier, the resources could be used for something more useful for the better of the WHOLE of china. Even though the descriptions and pictures of the kids are disgusting and may make you want to hit something because someone should do something about it, you have to think, "this is what they've been doing all their life, changing it could be negative to their lifestyle and 'rebellion' might form."
I'm from hong kong and all, so im basing most of this off of the thigns ive seen, and my first reactions were WTFBBQ, but when i talked to them about the way they lived, they discussed their lives in a very matter-of-fact way, disregarding the fact that they were surrounded by tons of towns with technological advances. Just as huang said earlier, time and effort is needed to get used to anything.
Although I've never been to China in my life, I believe it to be similar to situations in Taiwan. They both seem to share an area of poverty as all countries do.
I agree with Jonathan Huang in his opinion that "establishing anything new in history...takes a lot of time and effort to get used to". While the technological changes may take time for the people of the area to adjust to, I believe that China has the resources to do so. As the display at the 2008 Olympics showed, China has the man power and ability to evenly distribute its technological advances to the entirety of its land. However, the benefits of spreading the technological advances evenly versus concentrating them in key cities are far outweighed by the set backs.
People may say to use affirmative action as they did and still do in order to more diversify the schools , thus allowing students of all backgrounds to get a "fairer chance" at getting into good universities. This method, however, does not work. The people of different backgrounds will have different abilities and it would not make sense to put someone who has never learned past multiplication into calculus. A better way would be to bring the educators to them. The government could instill a mandatory period of time in which several of the "better" teachers normally teaching students in big cities who do "better" are obligated to travel to these poorer areas and teach for their salaries. This mandatory educating of the students would improve their understandings and help to enforce their knowledge. The school they would attend would be sponsored by the government and would run on taxes. Ergo, all children would be able to study.
The Yellow Sheep River resort allows the few visitors that it gets to view a different side of Chinese society - a poorer, more rural side. The negative points of this resort are the pollution that it will cause and the amounts of resources that will be taken from the people living around. The pollution will also take a toll on the environment.
This summer I had the opportunity to visit Egypt with my family and I found, similar to China, that once I traveled outside the main city of Cairo, all of the Egyptian people lived in impoverished areas in which a proper education, by American standards, was impossible to come by.
I believe that the development of Western China is in theory, a great idea. But when looked at realistically, it becomes a ridiculous undertaking. In order to accomplish such a feat, it is necessary that small steps be taken, the first being the development of schools and other resources for education, such as community centers. Once introduced to new technology in the early stages of childhood, a new generation of educated Western Chinese people will have been created who feel more motivated to improve others in their communities.
Technology is a necesity for globalization. However globalization often times leads to loss in many cultural traditions. It is a good idea to build up the west but it should occur over a long period of time in order for the citizens to become used to, and familarize themselves with new traditions. These new internet users would also need to take precuations to protect themselves from dangers such as hackers, and privacy issues.
I think that in the long run, it would benefit China to develop the West, even though it might take a really long time due to limited amounts of resources, but it would be better to start now and have new developments sooner. If the poorer areas were able to get internet access, children there would definitely have a much higher and fairer chance of getting into good universities, since there is so much information on the internet. Having internet access could also help people in poorer villages make more money through buying and selling various things online. I think the people themselves would appreciate having internet access because the internet provides a lot more opportunities for them. I think the older generations may not like or really be able to learn how to use computers or other technological advancements, but these new developments would probably really impact younger generations for education and money, once it becomes available to them. They would be able to connect with the rest of the world and be more exposed to what it has to offer.
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