2020 06 11
作者 Article by: #42A Sunny Wong
⺠主和自由
新冠肺炎袭击全球, 各国都经历不同程度的病情。政府尽力控制, 在无药无防疫针的情况下, 只能要求人们自我隔离, 保持社交距离及关闭商铺来控制病菌传播。个人生活受影响, 经济更是受到重创。 11
最近看到美国, 加拿大有人示威抗议政府的关闭及隔离政策, 要求全面开放, 令生活恢复正常。这些人不带口罩, 不保持社交距离, 在公众场所大叫大闹表示不满。我想为什么会有这种事发生? 因为我们是民主国家, 民众有充分的民主及表达己⻅的自由。
反观没有那么多民主自由的国家, 控制病情的政策比较容易实施。在中国上海的朋友告诉我, 每人都需在手机上下载一个应用程式, 上面有你的名字, 照片及新冠肺炎的身体状况。绿色是健康, 红色是带菌者, 黄色是新冠肺炎康复者。进入每个地方, 都需显示才能进入。韩国也这样做。这对控制病情有好处, 但在民主国家行不通, 因为这侵犯了私隐及人权。
太多的人权不好, 没人权也不好。太多的民主自由, 国家不易管理, 太少民主自由, 一党专制。任何的事物都需找到一个平衡点, 走极端无利反弊。在病情流行期间, 控制病情是大前提, 只有病情得到控制, 生活才能逐步恢复 正常
圣经里有犹大王亚玛谢的故事。
年轻的犹大王亚玛谢在登基后, 扩张了犹大王国, 击败东边的以东人, 但被自己的胜利冲昏头脑, 改拜异端神, 主动向北国以色列挑起战争, 最后战败被俘, 所累积的财富都被北国夺走。在他的晚年, 发生在他父亲身上的事, 也发生在他身上, 大臣叛变把他杀了。
以色列人出埃及的故事。
摩⻄带领以色列人出埃及后的两个半月, 众人发怨言说: 巴不得我们早死在埃及地, 在那里我们可以吃饱, 你把我们带来这个旷野，我们要饿死了。耶和华对摩⻄说, 我要将粮食从天降给你们。 之后所有的人都有了足够的食物。摩⻄坚定了信心, 众人看到了奇迹都相信了主的大能。
人生有很多未知数, 世界也有很多变迁, 这些都是我们无法预知和控制的, 只有信靠上帝的大能才能带领我们走出旷野, 渡过难关。
Freedom and Democracy
The new Covid-19 attacking the world, all countries experiencing different degrees of illness condition. The government tries it best to control, in the case of no medicine and no vaccinations, only way to control spread virus is self quarantine, social distancing and close businesses. Personal life is affected, economy is suffering.
Recently, I saw some people in the United States and Canada are demonstrating against government shutdown and social distancing, demanding a full opening to restore normal life. These People don't wear masks, don't maintain social distance, and scream in public places to 12
express their anger. Why this happened? Because we are democracy country, people have full freedom to express themselves.
In other hand, countries with less democracy and freedom, control the disease easier. A friend in Shanghai, China told me that everyone there needs to download an app on your cell phone, there has your name, photo and physical condition of Covid 19. Green is healthy, red is carrier, yellow is the recovered from Covid 19. You need to display it for get into any places. South Korea does the same. This is good for control of spread virus, but it doesn’t work here because it violates privacy and human rights.
Too much or too little human rights are not good. With too much freedom, country is hard to manage, with too little freedom it become one-party autocracy. Everything needs to find balance, go extreme always danger. During the pandemic, controlling the virus spread is the main goal, only the condition improved, life can return to normal gradually.
Here is a story of King Amaziah of Judah in Bible
After the ascension of the throne, the young king of Amaziah of Judah, expanded the kingdom of Judah and defeated the Edom to the east. The victory stuns his mind and he also forgot God. He provoked war against Israel in the north, and finally been defeated and captured, the accumulated wealth was taken away by the north. In his later years, what happened to his father also happened to him. His minister betrayed him and killed him.
Also a story of the Israelites leaving Egypt.
On the fifteenth day of second month after the Moses leads the Israelites out of Egypt, all the people against Moses and Aaron, they complained: we wish we died early in the land of Egypt, where we have enough food to eat. You bring us to this wildness, we are going to starve to death. The Lord said to Moses, I will give you food from heaven, and everyone will have enough food. Moses strengthened his confidence, people saw miracle happened all believed in the power of the God.
There are so many unknowns in our life, and there are so many changes in the world. These are things that we cannot predict and control. Only by trusting our almighty God can take us out of the wildness, go through the difficulties.