urinating and defecating in public places — just name a few. Out tradition teaches us that “not paucity in provision, but unequal distribution, is the source of anxiety.” Does this blind faith in equal distribution, or feckless and torpid communitarianism alternatively, leave any room for self-discipline and a sense of responsibility towards others?
我们似乎一直在无意中铺设着迎接它到来的无障碍通道。然而，在公共领域里，“零距离”是有害的。距离便是“他人”，而“他人”即社会公德。因为在这个世界上，除了“你”和“我”之外，地球上更多存在的是陌生的“他”—“他人”，还有“它”—与人类共存的动物朋友们。正是为了“我”的安全与自由，请不要再“唯我独尊”，而多些对“他人”的关爱吧。“我”的自由是他人自由的终结。而他人的自由，最终才能成全“我”的自由。
In fact, we seem to have been building up, quite unwittingly, the royal road to the apocalypse. Nevertheless, “zero distance” is harmful in the public domain. Distance implies an awareness of others, which is the foundation of any public morality. In this world, besides “you” and “me,” there exist an infinite number of others, both human and nonhuman, including our animal neighbors. Therefore, for the sake of the security and freedom of all individuals, let us curb our egocentrism, and try to show your concern for others. Remember this sobering truth: the reckless freedom of one’s own leads to the destruction of the freedom of others, without which no real freedom is possible for all.
56
教孩子相信
To Implant In Our Children’s Young Hearts An Undying Faith In Humanity
今天，直率的年轻人对我说，你们50年代的人背负了“读书报国、以天下为己任”的十字架，但是我们新时代的人，对不起，不想背你们的十字架。我们唯一的十字架是如何在成千上万yahoo交友的照片中，找到一个自己最顺眼的伴。
Some blunt young people say to me nowadays, “You 1950s bunch bear this cross like martyrs — the entire nation always on your mind, every ready to serve it with your schooling. Us teens, however, don’t want to be squashed under that burden. The only worries we have are how to catch, from among the loads of singles’ pics on Yahoo, someone attractive enough to date.” 我哑然失笑。
Thus challenged, I can hardly hold back a chuckle.
谁说我们这一代人都是忧国忧民呢？大学时代，有那么多同龄人选择过自己的日子：整天打麻将的、通宵跳舞的、到处找顺眼伴侣的、出了国酒誓死不归的、吃喝玩乐无所不为的??不管哪个时代，认真地心怀家国社会的总是少数，那少数中学而有成的，又是少数；学而有成海对家国之思持之以恒而且加以实践的，更是少数中的少数。社会的进步，是这些少数执著的人锲而不舍的推动，发挥影响而造成的。大多数的人，就搭了进步的便车，顺势前行。
Who says my peers were only concerned about the country? Back in my university days, many of them also chose to live a cheerful, carefree life, playing mahjong all day, dancing all night, looking all over for a “presentable” boyfriend or girlfriend. Others, once abroad, swore never to return to their homeland. Still others acted on the hedonistic motto of “Eat, drink and be merry” and forgot all about life’s nobler aims … In any era, those who devote themselves to the good of their compatriots and society as a whole, are but a few to start with. Among them, those who have done well in their studies are even fewer. As for those who actually live up to that ideal, they are extremely rare. However, human society would not have made all of its advances without the painstaking effort or positive influence of such people — everyone else just muddles along.
不必谈社会制度的进步，即使只是一个灯光迷炫、乐鼓沸腾的酒吧舞场，也不会凭空而来。在舞场存在以前，有人努力过，使这样的狂欢文化被容许而不是被取缔。然后，在“狂欢”的背后，必须有人制定法规，有人做消防检查，有人处理噪音，有人组织音响，有人筹备乐队，有人清理垃圾，有人设计下水道??
Let’s brush aside for a moment the question of how to advance society in general. Even a brilliantly lit disco, a lot of fun with fast pulsating music, does not come out of nowhere. It’s
57
available because someone or another pushed real hard to permit rather than ban such “festive culture.” Yet behind the scenes, unsung heroes are called in to draw up rules and regulations, check the firefighting equipment, adjust he noise level, set up the sound system , organize the band, or simply dump trash or make sure the sewage runs.
现在的社会，是不是一个没有问题以至于年轻人无可发挥的社会？怎么可能？贫富不均、是非混淆、公平与正义不明、权力与责任的规则混乱??我看见的是一个更为复杂、更难理解、需要更高智慧去面对的未来。沉重的“十字架”，不管是哪一个年代，总是在的；愿意看见它而且去背负它的人，不管是哪一个时代，哪一个“世代”，总是少数人。重点是，那少数人不能没有。搭便车是容易的，但总得有人开车，而且是清醒地开，因为上车的可能是一群尽情完成自我、狂欢归来的醉客。
Is society today so bereft of problems as to leave no space for young men and women to play a role in it? Of course not. Take a look around, and you see the ever-widening gap between rich and poor, the blurring of the distinction between right and wrong, the diminishing value placed on justice or fairness, and the perplexity of rules governing power and accountability. What I see is a more intricate, bewildering future, which calls for higher wisdom before any solution is ever likely to emerge. A cross, heavy as it is, is always there — notwithstanding the fact that just a tiny bunch of people ever bother to see and hear it, regardless of their era or generation. The crux is that such a minority is at any rate indispensable. Though it is easy to catch a free ride, someone has to drive the vehicle, especially someone sober, because the passengers might be some self-absorbed drunks just back from yet another orgiastic frenzy. 要建立让孩子世世代代生长的信心。我们需要“相信”：相信政治人物有品格，相信文明的不可或缺，相信自己脚踩的土地有人灌溉，相信沉重的十字架有人背起，相信在翻来覆去喧哗浮躁的潮流中还是有一些恒久不变的东西，怎么颠倒都不被腐蚀，譬如责任、品格、道德、勇气。
It is essential to implant in our children’s young hearts an undying faith in humanity. We must develop our own trust — that political leaders are ethically and morally upright, that civilization is basic to our very survival, that the earth under our feet is amply irrigated and a heavy cross bravely borne. We must believe that beneath the clutter and chaos of this treacherous world lie things that never decay, despite constant erosion — matters such as responsibility, integrity, moral fortitude and courage
58