What a relief to see Zhang Ying's (張穎) fraud exposed on TV. At the risk of sounding arrogant and self-righteous, I have to say this: the woman's claim that she possesses the "supernatural power" to "conjure up medicine pills out of thin air" (隔空抓藥) is so ridiculous and absurd, that anyone who falls for it must be capable of believing that pigs could fly as well.
On a deeper note, in difficult times, people are especially likely to believe in the supernatural. Maybe it is because they cling to the hope that the supernatural will be able to help them out in difficult times.
It is precisely for this reason that the fortune-telling industry has been doing extremely well, while all other industries suffer miserably as a result of the economic slump. Nowadays, many people go to fortune-tellers to seek advice on career and business opportunities.
No wonder we are seeing so many individuals, animals, and even inanimate objects with supposed supernatural powers. Before Zhang Ying, I recall seeing on TV variety shows a cat named "Mei-mei" with the supernatural ability to predict the future. Then there was a table that had supernatural power on another TV variety show. Supposedly, you could ask the table questions, and if its answer was "yes," it would turn toward the right. If the answer was "no," it would turn left.
Haven't people learned from the harsh lessons of the Boxer Rebellion and The Heavenly Kingdom of Peace? Placing your hope in the supernatural in time of desperation will only push you into the deep end.
As for the saga of Zhang Ying, I wonder why no one ever thought about checking out her background before she was exposed by the press. She claims that her supernatural power is certified by the PRC government. Why hasn't anyone checked out whether this claim is true? Instead, the media reports appeared to assume that she was legitimate until she was exposed by a magician during a press conference.
Zhang certainly faces some difficult legal issues right now. Even if she is able the prove her supernatural power, she may nevertheless be prosecuted for practicing medicine without a license.
It is to be hoped that the incident will serve as a wake-up call to all of us. Don't count on the supernatural to give you a helping hand in time of need. You have only yourself to count on.
Grace Chen
Chungli
Animals are important
As the owner of an endangered species of iguana, I would like to question the methods the government has adopted to deal with endangered animals. With a view to stopping people from keeping illegally imported animals, the relevant authorities make great efforts to report smuggling rings. But they always put to death the animals they retrieve because they don't want to pay additional money to send them to the zoo.
I think it would be better for the animals if they were well cared for. As far as I know, many experts are willing to keep these animals. The lives of these animals are important. Eusden Tsao
Taipei Medical University
Remember the bears
Have you ever heard of Formosan black bears? Or have you just heard of koalas and penguins? Do you know how much the two eucalyptus trees in Taipei Zoo cost? NT$4,000,000. Do you know how much our government spends on funding research on Formosan black bears every year? Only NT$1,000,000.
I was totally shocked by this fact.According to a research report, there are only 15 wild Formosan black bears in the forests of Taiwan, and nobody cares about this.
Not only were the researchers depressed about this, but I was too. I hope that we Taiwanese and the government can cherish and protect our own treasures, the Formosan black bears and of course other precious indigenous animals.
Lin Pei-I
Taipei
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