what has China learned from the Opium War?
中国人从鸦片战争中吸取到了什么教训? | ||
最近我去了一趟中国，看到历史正在重演！有为数可观的中国人中了外国 (欧美) 烟草公司的圈套，不知不觉缓步迈向死亡。许多中国人喜欢外国货，尤其是烟和酒。大约在一百五十年前，英国人诱使中国人上了鸦片瘾，宣称：上流人士一定要吸食鸦片，因为它可以使人忘却痛苦和烦恼。因此朝野高官富户群起仿效，以鸦片来作乐。到了1836年，鸦片遍布在中国，泰国，新加坡，马来西亚， 缅甸，柬埔寨和越南各大城小镇的旅店及餐馆，鸦片简直到了随手可得的地步。 1949年毛泽东主席领导的新中国关闭了中国所有的鸦片烟贩卖店，其它各国也紧跟其后，下达禁令纷纷关闭；可是仍拖延15年（到1964年）才全面停止。虽烟店关闭，英国人仍能从成千上万有毒瘾的人图利，而这些生命不断地被摧残，下场只是枯萎和早死；鸦片如古柯碱及其它违禁品一样都是危害最深的毒品，比起核子武器有过之而无不及。鸦片会破坏人的精神意志，毒瘾发作时，为了贪图吸食一口，便铤而走险；鸦片造就许多贪官污吏；鸦片使许多青春年华者沦为娼妓。英国在十八及十九世纪主宰了毒品的供应，是当时最大的运销国；而从事鸦片销售的英国人，在中国不被起诉，英国法庭也无罪开释。 到了2008年的今天，美国烟草公司，在全中国各地大小公开场所、俱乐部等，以免费试用的方式鼓励年轻人吸烟，并花百万钞票广告促销烟草。年轻人普遍认为吸烟会使他们更富吸引力；而残酷的事实是年轻人吸烟后成为苍老的吸烟群，烟瘾具有超乎想象的杀伤力！在上海，公共浴室，厕所，电梯，餐厅，医院，政府机关办公室，火车上，公交车上，到处可见人手一根烟，人们根本无视禁烟区的规定，不吸烟的人往往还被迫吸入二手烟。 令人伤心的事实是，百万中国人都不愿在家人面前承认他们具有这种自发性的自杀行为；不幸地却是，烟草公司不停地从他们身上赚取亿万钞票。这些瘾君子已成了烟草公司的奴隶！ 我们应该如何解决这个问题？我曾经认为烟草是问题的主要来源，但是我发现我错了，问题不在于烟草，而在吸烟者的思考过程；每次他们点烟时，他们向往烟的滋味，味道，和它可以给与情绪的疏缓，烟瘾掳掠了他们的心志。我要引发他们作深层的思考，并帮助他们体认，每次点烟时，他们是在使用毒品，在伤害家人，会导致高昂的医疗费用，并且会缩短寿命。他们可以选择不必走在这一毁灭的道路上! 在中国有三亿五千万人吸烟，比俄国，德国和日本三国的人口之和还多。每年有超过百万的中国人因吸烟而丧命，医疗支出每年高达五十亿美元。住在北京的烟民平均寿命从十年前的七十六岁降到如今的五十四岁(资料出处：上海市立社会科学研究院) 。 中国总人口占全球的五分之一，然而烟的消费却高居全球的三分之一；中国人应多想想医疗成本和烟草的销售间的经贸关系。据北京大学某研究中心的研究报导，2005年烟草销售带来税收达两仟四百亿人民币(折合三百一十亿美元) 。 位于广州的中山大学生物统计学敎授方继前说：“中国还落后于其它国家，当我们正处于医疗预算短缺时，为何不以控制烟草消费来解决?” 方敎授提出了一项反烟害建议，包括禁止作香烟广告，禁止在公共场所吸烟，并逐渐禁止香烟的生产。 中国正面临的最大挑战是如何解决健保、水污染、工业污染、交通空气污染及饮用水短缺等方面的问题。我所到的每一个中国城市都有严重的污染。 因抽烟和吸入污染空气，我经常看到人们随地吐痰，并到处乱丢烟蒂。中国人已有许多的污染问题，而烟害更是使人们所受之苦雪上加霜。 1836年大清帝国以鸦片为违法品而加以取缔。今日，中国政府也应视烟草如鸦片为害而忌烟如仇，倡导吸烟如毒瘾严重危害健康；吸烟必须受到约束，在会影响非吸烟者和孩童的场所，严格禁止吸烟；政府官员应该担当教育民众的责任并做全民的楷模；教育部、食品药物管理局、环保局也应与政府其它部门通力合作，规范烟草行业；地方性的种烟场，制烟厂应全面关闭。我们有责任敎育并拯救年轻人和子孙后代。让我们行动起来吧! 翻译：黄明辉（Jay Huang, jayhuang0131@hotmail.com） 校核：颜利平（Liping Yan, LYan_GE@yahoo.com） 原文：What has China learned from the Opium War? By Kim Lee On my recent trip to China, I saw history repeating!A high percentage of Chinese people are slowly being killed by foreign (American and European) tobacco companies.The Chinese love foreign products, especially cigarettes and wine.About 150 years ago, the English seduced the Chinese with opium; “The high class Chinese should smoke opium, it will eliminate pains and troubles.”Many high ranking Chinese government officers and wealthy Chinese people smoked opium for entertainment.By 1836, opium houses rapidly increased and opened side-by-side with hotels and restaurants all over cities of China, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Burma, Cambodia and Vietnam. In 1949, the New China let by Chairman Mao Zedong shut down all the opium houses in China.Other countries followed its lead and began shutting their opium houses down.It took about 15 years (1964) to complete shutting down the opium houses.Even with the elimination of opium houses, the English continued to profit from the opium addicts and millions of Chinese people continued to whither and die at young ages.Opium, like cocaine and other illegal drugs, is one of the worst forms of violence, more powerful and damaging than nuclear weapon.Opium corrupts the mind of people and can lead people to committing more crimes.Government officers easily accepted bribes and corrupted. Young girls are willing to be prostitutes for opium or drugs.The English were the biggest drug traffickers of the eighteenth and nineteenth century and in return gained control.The English people who sold opium in China were not prosecuted in China and the English courts set them free. Now in 2008, the American tobacco companies hand out free cigarettes to the young people at clubs and at any public place all over China.They spend millions of dollars in advertising and promoting cigarettes.Lots of young people think smoking will make them more attractive.The likely results are that the young men and women who smoke become old men and women who smoke.The addiction is overwhelmingly powerful.In Shanghai, people smoke everywhere whether confined or not.People smoke in bathrooms, in elevators, in restaurants, in hospitals, in government offices, inside the trains and inside buses.Even the people who choose not to smoke end up breathing second hand smoke. The sad facts are that millions of Chinese don’t want to admit they are voluntarily committing suicide in front of their family members, while the tobacco companies continue profiting billions of dollars from the smokers.The smokers have become slaves to the tobacco companies! How do we solve this problem?I used to think that cigarettes were the main cause of the problem, but I was wrong.The problem is not the cigarette itself but the thinking process of the smokers.Every time they light up a cigarette, they think of the taste, smell, and relief of the cigarette.The addiction takes hostage of their minds.I want to direct them to think deeper and help them realize that every time they light up their cigarettes they are consuming poison, they are hurting their family, they will have to pay heavy medical bills, and they will die early.Smokers do have a choice and can regain control to make the right choice! China has 350 million smokers, more than the entire population of Russia, Germany, and Japan combined.The habit kills about a million people a year in China and costs an estimated $5 billion annually in medical bills.The life expectancy on average for Chinese people in Beijing dropped to 54 years of age from 76 years when a decade ago (Shanghai Municipal Academy of social Science). China, which consumes a third of the world's tobacco with a fifth of the world’s population, must mediate between cutting health care costs and its financial stake in tobacco, which generated 240 billion Yuan, or $31 billion, in taxes in 2005, according to a study at a Beijing University research center. "China is lagging behind the world," said Fang Ji-qian, a biostatistics professor at Zhongshan University in Guangzhou who put forward one of the anti-smoking proposals. "We face a budget shortage for medical services, so why don't we take measures to control smoking?"Professor Fang proposed a ban on advertising, smoking in public places, and eventually tobacco production. China is facing the biggest challenge in solving problems in health care, water pollution, industry pollution, traffic air pollution, and shortage of drinking water.Every city I have been to in China was heavily polluted. Due to smoking and breathing the pollution, I constantly saw people spitting to clear their throats and dropping their cigarette buts everywhere.Chinese people have enough pollution problems as is, but smoking is one problem in which the Chinese people have more direct and immediate reign on. In 1836, the Qing Emperor ruled opium as illegal.Today, the Chinese government must regard cigarette use as detrimental as opium and as an addictive drug that is extremely harmful to people’s health.Smoking restrictions need to be implemented, particularly in areas that affect non-smokers and children.Top government officials need to educate and set good examples for the country to follow.The Department of Education, Food & Drug Administration, Environment Protection Agency, along with other government agencies must team-up together and regulate the tobacco industries.Local Chinese tobacco farms and factories need to be terminated completely.We have the responsibility to help educate and save the lives of the young and the future generations.Let’s do something! | ||
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