主题：【原创】西人对募捐的想法 -- 建筑师

俺的英文文章，供大家替中国人占领道德高地

I am so thankful that China is not the US

At 2:28 Pm May 12, a 7.9-magnitude earthquake hit southwest Sichuan province of China. The epicenter was in Wenchuan, 154 kilometers from the province capital Chengdu (my family there is Ok, thanks to those friends who asked). The massive quake could be felt through a large part of China, and even as far as Thailand. Around 10 million people in the province were directly affected and so far the casualty estimate is 50,000.

For the last few days, I have been glued to the phone and computer screen. As someone who also followed the aftermath of Katrina, I can only say: I am so thankful that China is not the US. The prime minister was on a plane to the province within 90 minutes. Tens of thousands of soldiers sprung into rescue efforts almost instantly. Though most of the100-kilometer road to the epicenter was totally destroyed and was under constant threat of mudslides and aftershocks, some managed to get in within 24 hours. Once again, the People’s Liberation Army lives up to its name: they are the ones people can count on during time of crisis, even though many soldiers themselves are mere 17 or 18 year old kids. Very few cases of looting have been reported so far. In all major cities, people lined up to donate blood, sometimes being told to come back later because the blood station has filled up all the storage. In Chengdu, thousands of taxi drivers and car owners have organized themselves to ship supplies into the disaster area and ship the wounded out, without anybody paying them a penny or giving them an order. So many ordinary people perform extraordinary deeds in the face of disaster: A 21 year old kindergarten teacher shielded a toddler from tons of falling concrete, saving the kid with her own life; a low level cadre spent 24 hours on a collapsed school coordinating the dig, while his own 78-year old mother was buried under some rumble, presumably dead; an entrepreneur organized a whole fleet of construction equipments for the rescue; an old grandma made 3,000 breads over night to feed the need. Everyone pitched in to help each other.

I don’t know how many times tears welled up in my eyes in the last two days: tears of sadness, tears of sorrow, tears of empathy and many other emotions. This is the China I grew up with; this is the China I once knew so well and have been missing about. Yes, it has been in the retreat in the last twenty years, under the relentless attack of extreme individualism and money worship promoted by the “holy free market” and the “more superior” western civilization. Yet, it springs back into life when the people are in dire need: rich or poor, men or women, old or young, we are all in this together.

Like many other places in the world, China has many challenges: corruption, environmental degradation, growing gap between the rich and the poor, to just name a few. Not to the mention the global triple crisis: resource depletion, peak oil and global warming, which may manifest themselves more severely than average because of the high population density there. I have to admit that while dealing with these topics, sometimes I cannot help feeling a sense of hopelessness, for both China and the world. Now, in this time of great distress and sorrow, seeing the huge natural disaster brings out the best of people in my own city, my own province and my own country, I am being humbled and have a renewed hope for humanity.

谢谢你为灾区人民募捐

恭喜：你意外获得【西西河通宝】一枚

鲜花已经成功送出。

此次送花为【有效送花赞扬，涨乐善、声望】

么？！大难当前，她有没有捐出她的1000块啊？！

实话说我是没有什么触动的，那是一群生活在丛林里的人，没受过教育，离文明世界如此遥远；还有贫穷和毒品。

我自认为是个公平理性的人，还有这样的偏见。那么西人对中国的看法呢？不会好到哪里去吧？对华人的固有印象（stereotype)，贫穷，人-权，共产主义，童工，官员腐败，非洲石油等等等等；他们会多大程度上同情我们呢，或者说在乎我们呢。芭芭拉就是个典型代表。

指责杜克大学对她保护不力

没人理她了，所以她只能找洋大人下嘴了

这就是自然规律，把心放下吧。好好干自己的事情。

有意外收获，谢

质疑她的时候，要切中要点，行家一出手，就知有没有的状况。