Social Morality Should Not Be Out of Date

Chinahas long been known as “the land ofceremony and propriety.” Today, however, people often complain that publicmorals are no longer what they used to be. A family, for example, likes a cellof society, which also mirrors the general mood of a country. As we know, theChinese have very strong family ties. But with the emergence of a “modern”concept to families, people find that problems like high divorce rate andextramarital affairs become more serious than ever before.

中国长期以来一直被称作“礼仪之邦”。然而，现在人们常常抱怨公德已经不是过去的样子了。例如，一个家庭就像是社会的一个细胞，反映着一个国家的情绪。我们都知道，中国人有强烈的家庭情结。但是，随着现代观念渗入到家庭，人们发现高离婚率和婚外情的问题变得比以往更严重了。

Another example: the name of Lei Feng who was alwaysready to lend a helping hand to others, used to be known by almost all Chineseas a model to learn from. But today, some people claim that “the spirit of LeiFeng” is outdated. Fashionable ideas say money talks. In the early stage of themarket economic development, the appearance of some evil phenomena is notsurprising. But we should not sit passively by and let it run rampant. Instead,active measures should be taken to improve morals and ethics of the public.

又如，雷锋—一个随时准备伸出援助之手，曾经被几乎所有的中国人当做学习榜样的名字。但是，现在人们却声称雷锋精神已经过时了。时尚的想法认为有钱能使鬼推磨。在市场经济发展初期，出现一些邪恶现象不足为奇。但是，我们不应该坐以待毙，任其猖獗。相反，我们应该采取积极措施以提高公共道德。

Personally, the media should play a leading role inthis regard. They should spare no effort to praise the good and criticize theevil. They should guide people how to tell the truth, goodness and beauty fromthe fault, ugliness and evil.

就个人而言，媒体应该在这方面起关键作用。他们应该不遗余力地赞扬美好，批判邪恶；他们应该引导人们如何让辨别真善美与假丑恶。