Forbid!? - []2000-08-05
编自王晓波《从Internet说起》(for Ruralarea.126.com, August)
Forbid!?
As you know, South Maoming Rd. has been closed by the government. I don't have enough energy to complain about that. Such things are happening everywhere in China. Ok, now I'll talk about those forbidden things. Let's change a tone, use a peaceful way. Young people should not be so aggressive, right?
I would like to start this topic from internet. I use internet for mailing. I heard that some bad guys put a lot of pornographic stuff on internet, and someone even complain about the policies made by Chinese government.
I was really frightened when I heard that. The official of government who is in charge of the management of internet suggested to restrict and keep watch on internet. I definitely agree. How dangerous it is if any infomation can be sent freely on web!!! However, I know a little about internet. Except to close it, there is no way to restrict it completely. Internet is too fast, too dangerous. So much bad infomation is being spread, how to restrict them all? The best solution is to forbid it, easy and efficient.
Anyway, it's not so important for me. Though the email is damn fast, I can still use paper mail, and another adventage is, except your house is burnt down, you don't have to worry about your mail will be erased by something called virus, isn't it?
But, wait a minute. Didn't we forget some thing? Yes, the computer, the carrier of infomation. Without internet, harmful infomation still can be transported by diskes. Zip, CD-ROM, VCD, DVD... So, forbid the computer, this is the key...
Oh, but that could hurt. My major is design, and I love computer graphics and digital effects. How complicate it will be if I do works without computer. But anyway, people like hand drawing more now, isn't it? Ok, I still can use brushes and paper, and my works will be accepted. So go ahead, forbid the computer, no big deal for me.
Beside the computers, the movies and TV programmes are also dangerous. I have a firm attitude in this case. They should be controlled well. At first, those imported movies don't fit the situation of our country, best to forbid them all. Second, not every local directors is good. Some of them are always against our government. For example, Zhang Yimou, the poison maker. Look what a movie he made, Lifetime, only offer the audiences reality. The reality is not beautiful. Don't show the fact, show people the hope, the light in the end of the tunnel, that's the right thing for directors to do.
But if it's hard for them, maybe we can close all the cinemas. Yes, that's better. There were only eight movies on show during 10 years in culture revolution, didn't many people survive? Since I can survive by reading books, it doesn't matter for me if the cinemas are forbidden.
Oh, I talked a lot, but I ignored the music! Big mistake. For my opinion, western music is really harmful for Chinese youth. Too hard, too aggressive. For example, Rage against machine. What will happen if the young people hear that? We will even want to destroy something! Violence, crime will come after that. Rage, what do we need rage for? Young people should be calm, be nice, as Chinese tradition.
Some soft music is enough for us. The rhyme should be slow and mellow. Give the teenages some soft guys as their idols, then, everything will be ok. Hard rock, no doubt, forbid!
But, maybe I have to think about myself after all of that. Forbid this, forbid that, one day it will happen to me. I'm a designer, I can't sure every design I make doesn't contain anyhting that the government will say it's halmful. When it happen to me, I don't think I have the energy to defend for myself. Any media can be forbidden, why not me?
Ok, I can give up my profession, I like writing, maybe I can be a writer...oh, I forgot, even my books might be forbidden... Scheisse!...
I approve to compress the space for free mind, if they won't compress mine. But the result might be out of my imagination. Hemingway wrote in his book "For whom the bell tolls" : All the human beings are a whole part, other people's misfortune is also yours. Don't ask "for whom the bell tolls", it just tolls for you. Is he right? I have no idea yet.
50 years ago, a German priest of Protestant said, at first, they sent the communists to jail, I didn't say anything, because I'm not a member of laber union; then they sent the Jews to jail, I didn't say anything, because I'm an Arian; then they sent the Catholics, I still didn't say anything, because I'm a Protestant... At last, they came to catch me, but there is nobody left to defend me.
Perhaps he was right at that time, but as you know, things changed today, and here is not Germany. So, as a student in the sunshine of Communism, I don't want to think about this, not yet at least.
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