Everything's all right now in China...

Manic Moran

but somehow I felt that this would not be their primary thoughts at the moment

Different culture. Family legacy may be very big over there.

NTM

Burko

kbannon wrote: »

The USA is nowhere near as civilised as it likes to believe!


I'm aware of the situation in China.
My reasoning for the thread title was that I find it a little insensitive of the Chinese Government come out and effectively say "OK your kid is dead but listen, you can go and have another to replace them"
People are burying their children and yes, maybe some people were concerned about their family line, old age, etc. but somehow I felt that this would not be their primary thoughts at the moment - maybe in a few weeks but not now!
Furhtermore, there are suggestions that the high child fatality rate is down to substandard school construction. (Allegedly) had the government ensured that their own standards were being enforced, then less kids would need to be replaced by grieving parents!

So the main problem is that its insensitive.
I agree, it is.
Should they not bother letting them have another child at all to avoid being insensitive?

The area is not prone to earthquakes. (I'm aware that the highest death-toll from an earthquake was in China, but it was the other side of the country)
Places that are prone to quakes like Japan have cities built with this in mind.

These towns have been there in one form or another for a very long time, certainly before modern engineering....though I'm not saying thats the case for the individual buildings.

Earthquake proofing the cities in China would be a monumental undertaking for a 'what if' scenario. It may take more money than even the Chinese have and if they had started 10 years before this earthquake it still wouldn't be done.

Are short-cuts taken in China?....yes, no doubt about that. I see it all the time. And hopefully people will learn from this disaster...and no doubt some deserve punishment.

But lets not loose sight of the fact that people always want someone to blame for these kinds of things.
It wasn't actually a city planner that killed those children....it was an 8.0 magnitude earthquake.
A force of nature that no building or road in Ireland would withstand.

CtrlSource

Burko wrote: »

I agree it plays nicely.....but why exactly is that an issue?
Are there rules regarding these kinds of situations that other countries follow?

Is there a government that wouldn't milk it?....I mean obviously most wouldn't be as obvious but subtlety isn't a strong point of the Chinese.

It's not really an issue, just an observation

Burko

well, you're right.

It's handy that this came along to distract the foaming masses.
Perhaps it was "Karma" as Sharon Stone might say..

biko

Some images from a Chinese wedding that took place during last week's terrible earthquake in Sichuan Province. Unbelievable how the scene changes so quickly, and how the photographer keeps documenting. Terrifying.








http://blog.photoshelter.com/2008/05/a-wedding-in-sichuan.html

LostinBlanch

Manic Moran wrote: »

Different culture. Family legacy may be very big over there.

NTM

It is. Two words, ancestor worship.

But I agree with what you're saying, the OP seems to be viewing it through the prism of western culture if you will. Not slagging the OP but this seems to be an emotional response to the statement by the Chinese Government. I think Burko has it right when he says do they not make the statement to make sure they don't come across as insensitive?

Remember this is a country that has had people die from famines* in the 1950's and 60's (we have only recovered from our famine in the last 15 to 20 years or so, 140 years after the fact). The Chinese are being pragmatic, and that's one thing they are is a pragmatic people.


*I'm equating famines with earthquakes here in terms of disaster that irish people can refer to historically.