Print

Mail

wiki links

A-bian carrying a flat pole

Once upon a time, there was a farmer carrying two large empty baskets with a flat pole (or a shouldering pole) to cross a single-plank bridge. Walking to the center of the bridge, the farmer found a man (A) walking toward him. At the same time, there was another man (B) following the farmer. Both A and B would not go back to their original shores. How would you resolve this deadlock?

This was a problem used to cudgel one's brains in Taiwan in the mid-20th century.

The common suggestion at that time was that the farmer asked both A and B to ride on the baskets. Carrying the heavy burdens on both sides of the flat pole, the farmer turned his body by 180 degrees. A and B stepped out of the baskets and continued to walk toward their destinations.

The cross-strait problem facing President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) ("bian" meaning flat like in a flat pole) today is similar to the problem described above. However, the way A-bian handled this problem defies common sense. He asked only A to ride in the basket without telling B what to do. A jumped into the basket and A-bian lost the balance, causing B to fall into the river.

This is a new problem for Taiwan in the early 21st century. Taking the complexity of real life into consideration, how would you recommend solving this problem?

Charles Hong
Columbus, Ohio
This story has been viewed 2124 times.