“Super Girls” can coin money overnight, so who is willing to be a common worker.

[studentyoung]

(Studentyoung’s notes:

A: “An soldier who doesn’t want to be a general is not a good soldier.” Napoleon said. But what if most of the solders want to be a general?

B:“Super Girls” are the competitors, especially the winners in the singing competition named “Super Girl’s voice 超级女声”.)

“超女”一夜暴富了谁来当普通劳动者

“Super Girls” can coin money overnight, so who is willing to be a common worker.

gzdaily.dayoo.com 2006年05月18日来源：广州日报

Originated from Guangzhou Daily on May 18, 2006

http://gzdaily.dayoo.com/html/2006-05/18/content_42730.htm

侯宁

by Mr. Hou Ning

资深财经记者

Senior Financial Reporter

著名财经评论家

Famous critic in financial and economic field

Translated by studentyoung

最近，有关“超女”一夜暴富的争执中，有评论在为“超女”辩护时引经据典，说一夜暴富没有任何罪过。当然，合法的有积累的一夜暴富当然无罪，但是我想也并没有谁会愚蠢到说一夜暴富都是有罪的。

Recently, in an argument about the “Super Girls” coin money overnight, some defend for the “Super Girls” by quoting some authentic classics that there is nothing wrong to coin money overnight. Of course, to coin money overnight lawful doesn’t violate the law, but I think no one is too foolish to say that it is guilty to coin money overnight.

　　真正“有罪”的是非法的一夜暴富，真正有害的，是让一夜暴富成为社会价值观的引领者！这才是问题的要害。没有人指责比尔·盖茨，没有指责沃伦·巴菲特，也没有对李嘉诚的发家史说三道四……为什么？因为人家走的是一条能让人学习，能给人借鉴，靠智慧、靠劳动发家致富的路子。而“超女”呢，除了一定的唱歌实力外，背后却充斥着商业运作、人为拉票，乃至打压异己！“何如学取超女秀，说唱就唱红个透”，这就是“超女”选拔这场“超级秀”给国人尤其是给青少年最大的“启示”！

What is really guilty is not to coin money overnight, but those who make it to become the social value. This the key point! No one will criticize Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, or gossip about Ka Shing Lee’s experience of getting rich. Why? Their experiences all can be studied and referred how to get rich with wisdom and hard work. How about the “Super Girls”? Besides their singing skills, the competition itself is full of commercial operation, artificially bidding for votes and even depressing dissidents. “I wish I could imitate the “Super girls” and get my popularity in this singing show.” This what the biggest “enlightenment” for us Chinese, especially for our youth in the “Super Girls’” “super show”.

　　当然，“超女”引发的问题，只是当代经济大环境下青少年价值观畸形嬗变的一个突出案例。而事实上，在20多年的市场经济改革过程中，我们在正确的人生观、价值观教育方面的失落已经到了让人触目惊心的地步。

Of course, what problem the “Super Girls” trigger out is just one outstanding case for our youth’s values become abnormal under the contemporary economic environment. In fact, the education concerned with the values on world and life has been degraded to a startling extent in the twenties-year market economy reform.

　　笔者在1993年元旦前后便因为“价值真空”的烦恼而在中青报上发表过《如何索解人生的意义》一文，彼时便引发了为时一个多月的“丁越现象”大讨论。而时间过去13年，近日辽宁省社科联、辽宁省青少年研究会举行的一次大型联合调查却已显示，“在年龄为10~20岁的青少年之中，最受青少年青睐的职业是老板或者商人（19％），其次是政府官员或者公务员（17.5％）。 另外，影视明星、自由职业者等也是热门选择。普通劳动者则备受冷落，仅有3％的青少年愿意做一名普通劳动者”。

I once published an article named “How to understand the meaning of life” on “China’ Youth” (a newspaper) on about the New Year’s Day in 1993, due to the troubles caused by “the vacuum in values ”. In those days, it caused a big discussion on “Ding Yue’s Phenomenon” for more than a month. 13 years passed so far. Recently, a big survey done by Liaoning Province Social Scientific Union and Liaoning Province Youth Study Organization, shows that “… among those between 10 ~ 20 year old, the most popular careers are boss and businessman (19%), next to the governmental officials or civil servants (17%). Others, like movie stars, pup stars, professionals, are hot choices. Common laborers are given cold shoulders, and only 3% of them are will to be a common laborers.”

　　看罢调查结果，笔者不禁感叹，如今的小年轻真是“雄心壮志冲云天”啊，都想出人头地，高人一等，都不想做普通劳动者。然而，这正常么？这现象是喜是忧？答案是不言而喻的。

After reading the survey results, I sighed, “Nowadays, the young guys are really extremely ambitious. All of them want to stand out and stand and to be superior to everyone else, without being a common laborer any more. However, is it natural? Is it should be glad or sad? The answer is self-evident.

　　可以看出，如今青少年的价值认知（10~20岁的样本是很有代表性的）早已不仅仅是当年笔者苦恼的“道德失范”、“价值真空”，而是已经赤裸裸地被扭曲了——“啃老族”厚颜苟且，普通劳动者无人愿做，老板、官员、歌星倒让青少年趋之若鹜！若此，那么我要问，将来谁去扫马路，谁去当车工，谁去教中小学，谁去治病救人，谁去开车驾机……谁去干那些普通劳动者才“愿意干”的活呢？

It is quite clear that the youth’s cognition on values today (the samples between the age from 10 to 20 are very typical) has been far beyond my worrying about “the absence of morality” or “the vacuum in values ”, but have been distorted nakedly, i.e. “the parasitical group to their parent ” living shamelessly, common laborers being nobody’s business, boss, official, pup star being crazily purchase! If so, I would like to ask, who will sweep streets, who will teach students in schools, who will cure patents, who will drive a car… and who take up all these jobs that common laborers “will” do?

　　而事实上，绝大多数青少年将来做的，都是这些普通劳动者的“差事”！如此，梦想与现实的巨大落差，他们将以何种方式填平？

Of course, most of the youth will have to take up these common laborers’ jobs. Therefore, there is a deep fall between dream and reality, in what way can they fill the fall up?

　　笑星赵本山的一个小品中，有个“村长”和裹纱巾、走猫步的“范师傅”“斗美”的急话：“范师傅，我觉得，劳动者是最美的人”。说完当然是满堂喝彩。但现在，我面对辽宁青少年研究会的这项调查，却无论如何也笑不出来——都追逐“超女”，谁来尊重“酒吧歌手”？都以走“猫步”为荣，谁来当“最美”的普通劳动者呢？

In the humor actor Zhao Benshan’s stage-skit, a village head argues who is the most beautiful with Ms. Fan wrapped in silk and stains and walked in a cat-walk style. He said, “Ms. Fan, I think the most beautiful are common laborers.” After his words, the spectators acclaim loudly. But now, reading the survey by Liaoning Province Youth Study Organization, I just can’t squeeze a smile., Who will respect singers in bars, if everyone pursues to be a “Super Girl”? Who is willing to be “the most beautiful” common laborer, if everyone thinks only “cat-walkers” deserve to be glorified?

[skylee]

完全不明白。

人望高處，有何不妥？難道連夢想都不可以嗎？

[gato]

谁来当普通劳动者

是挺奇怪的，中国难道还缺普通劳动者？现在的大学生们如果找不到其他工作，而且父母不富裕，也得考虑当普通劳动者。

[chenpv]

现在的大学生们如果找不到其他工作，而且父母不富裕，也得考虑当普通劳动者。

gato, 前几天新华网上好像有条新闻说， 教育部负责人已经要求大学生将自己定位为普通劳动者了。

[skylee]

将自己定位为普通劳动者了

How? Does it mean that one should simply call oneself a common labourer? Or one should not think about making progress and rising in the society?

[studentyoung]

完全不明白。

人望高處，有何不妥？難道連夢想都不可以嗎？

不是不可以做梦，但不要文革时代的那种大拔哄，一窝蜂，不问贤愚，不论美丑。更不是叫人用名利去麻痹神经，闭塞思考。

我记得王小波曾在信中对李银河（她后来成了小波的妻子）说过：你问我为什么这么反对热情。我反对的不是热情，而是肉麻！根据小波的理解，肉麻即是“人以降低人格为代价而得到的欢乐”。如果按这个标准看，现在很多所谓娱乐节目都是很肉麻的，包括“超女”。

人望高处走，没啥不妥。但一个社会的价值观过于单一的话，人们付出的代价往往会很高，而且不利于人们对历史进行反思和对文化的多视角理解。我举个例子，我国的那些个大导演们个个对奥斯卡情有独钟，好像只有奥斯卡奖才能像全世界证实自己的导演水平，结果一味讨好所谓的“国际口味”，大投资，大场景，大制作，大腕，大宣传，好像就真的“跟国际接轨”了，独独缺少了好的编剧，好的剧本和对人、人生和人性的独到理解。最后，《英雄》、《无极》无不落下一大堆笑话！

现在的“超女”发展到只问名利，不讲艺术——活像文革那时人人都只要“肉麻”, 一口一个“文化大革命，就是好啊，就是好啊，就是好” （那时一个个还自以为那就是热情），不要反思，还有我国那些想奥斯卡想得发疯的导演一样。

是挺奇怪的，中国难道还缺普通劳动者？

当然缺，缺的是德艺双馨，有潜质，又能定得下心来磨练技术，又有责任感的普通劳动者！如像齐白石，没做画家之前，他是一名出色的木工（尤其善做梁、案、柱上的雕花），画画是他的业余爱好罢了。但现在能安心做个好木工的又能有几人？更别提他们的技术还能不能像齐白石那样好了。你在北京，想来皇城根下，啥高人都不缺了吧？算我眼皮子浅，见识不多，请问你在京城能找出几个手艺比齐白石好的木工啊？别的地方是啥情况我不晓得，要是好的木工真这么好找，广州和潮汕地区的木雕技艺就不愁后继无人了。

还有宋代五大名窑（即汝、官、哥、定、均）之首，汝窑烧制的天青色，均匀古拙、典雅大方。你现在在中国能找得了几个烧得出汝窑这种天青色的窑工来啊？

缺的还有字画装裱修复的裱工；会设计、制作藤家具工人；会设计、制作高继儿童玩具的工人或设计者；有责任心的建筑工人、监工（要是有这等人在，估计清华大学那个得什么“鲁班奖”的楼就不塌了），能够正确说出什么石质、木质的地板对什么清洗剂及该如何进行保养的清洁工；哎，诸此种种，不一一而述。

至于“缺不缺普通劳动者”和缺什么样的普通劳动者，你心里有底了吧，我就不罗嗦个没完了。

gato, 前几天新华网上好像有条新闻说， 教育部负责人已经要求大学生将自己定位为普通劳动者了。

这里还有一篇，叫：《大学生早已是普通劳动者》的文章，你有空的话可以看看。

http://gzdaily.dayoo.com/html/2006-05/24/content_48707.htm

How? Does it mean that one should simply call oneself a common labourer?

No, miss! It means that those skilled, responsible and talented common labors in every walk of life are highly needed in our society to make it develop healthily in the round, not just in show business.

Or one should not think about making progress and rising in the society?

Absolutely! But should teenagers and young adults narrow their choices and all jam in one direction, which has so many lessons from failure of their predecessors in similar cases at home and abroad?

谢！

————————————————

P.S. Gato, 我这里还有纪晓岚给一理发店写的对联，正好供你琢磨琢磨：“虽然毫末技艺，却是顶上工夫”。

[skylee]

I still don't understand.

If there is a demand for certain skilled labour (say for antiques restoration) and there is not enough supply, surely the remuneration for those skilled labour will rise and thus attract young people, no matter if they are interested or talented in that field, to work on that area. And if there is proper nurturing at the schools then the situation would be even better. But I think it is unreasonable to expect people to work without proper pay.

If a lot of young people want to join the entertainment industry because they like the lifestyle and think it is easy to succeed, I don't see why they should not do so or be condemned. A lot of people wanting the same thing means that the competition would be keen and thus would drive away those who perform less well (they would get less opportunities, earn less, be less famous or not famous at all), who would eventually have to turn to other fields that they are good at (or they may choose to remain there and rot, who knows) and become, perhaps, common labourers.

I think it is a matter of demand, supply and competition. And it is good when people have the aspiration to improve and to move upwards in the society. It doesn't matter if a lot of them will fail because they will learn from their failure.

I don't think there is a problem with those Chinese directors who want to win an Oscar award, as long as this gives them a drive to make good films.

Michelangelo, from what I've read, considered himself a sculptor and did not really care much about painting. I think this was his 自我定位. And if the vatican did not hire/force him to paint those ceilings, we wouldn't have that painting in the sistine chapel today. (well this may not be relevant or even true but it has just come up in my mind.)

[HashiriKata]

I don't think there is a problem with those Chinese directors who want to win an Oscar award, as long as this gives them a drive to make good films.

I don't think life is as simple as this. For us the common people to know the existence of "good films", they first need to be recognized as "good films" by some authority. What if you are a good director but do not care a damn about those authorities (ie. their standards & practices)? How do people know that you exist??

[studentyoung]

If there is a demand for certain skilled labour (say for antiques restoration) and there is not enough supply, surely the remuneration for those skilled labour will rise and thus attract young people, no matter if they are interested or talented in that field, to work on that area. And if there is proper nurturing at the schools then the situation would be even better.

Indeed!

But I think it is unreasonable to expect people to work without proper pay

Is it reasonable to see young people (specially young girls) get jammed in “Super Girl’s Voice” and waist their prime time for study? I am sure you know what happened in the Great Cultural Revolution, right? In the Great Cultural Revolution, all young guys were so crazy about the “political” affairs and wandering around to practice all kind of “cultural revolutions”. Therefore, our country was lake of all kinds of talented young people in each business in a very long period after that terrible political disaster. In those days, not matter how much money you had, you would find it hard to look for a good teacher, a good doctor, a good nurse, a good civil engineer and so on. Why? All those should have been a good teacher, a good doctor, a good nurse, a good civil engineer haven’t done, for they wasted their prime time in those “revolutionary days革命岁月”. So China’s development is left almost 50 years behind the world. Aren’t the lessons in the Great Cultural Revolution painful enough for all Chinese people to remember?

If a lot of young people want to join the entertainment industry because they like the lifestyle and think it is easy to succeed, I don't see why they should not do so or be condemned. A lot of people wanting the same thing means that the competition would be keen and thus would drive away those who perform less well (they would get less opportunities, earn less, be less famous or not famous at all), who would eventually have to turn to other fields that they are good at (or they may choose to remain there and rot, who knows) and become, perhaps, common labourers.

That’s just the every thing we should let those teenagers and young adults understand!

I think it is a matter of demand, supply and competition. And it is good when people have the inspiration to improve and to move upwards in a society. It doesn't matter if a lot of them will fail because they will learn from their failure.

I am sorry miss, but I just wonder how many people nowadays have taken the lessons from the Great Cultural Revolution, though they all mihgt have learned it in history text book.

I don't think there is a problem with those Chinese directors who want to win an Oscar award, as long as this gives them a drive to make good films.

Excuse me, miss, but I just wonder whether the idea, to win an Oscar award, has given them any drive to make GOOD films, or just make films to please judges’ eyes in Oscar拍电影去讨好奥斯卡的评委?

Michelangelo, from what I've read, considered himself a sculpter and did not really care much about painting. I think this was his 自我定位. And if the vatican did not hire/force him to paint those ceilings, we wouldn't have that painting in the sistine chapel today. (well this may not be relevant or even tru but it has just come up in my mind.)

So you see, one’s achievement has nothing to do with his self-orientation自我定位, but depends on how well you can do at the end. Helen Keller once thought she was an idiot (her self-orientation in those days?) in the world in her childhood, because she could not see, hear or speak in those days. But surely you know how great she finally became, right?

Thanks!

_____________________

P.S. Skylee, 我只想表述自己的观点，并无意冒犯你。如果我言语之间有什么冒犯之处，还望你雅量海涵！

[skylee]

I don't think it is appropriate to compare a talent competition with the cultural revolution. And I don't think "making good films" is identical with "pleasing the jury of a film award".

And, studentyoung, you don't need to address me (it is me I suppose) as "Miss".

[skylee]

studentyoung, 我看到你的 PS 了。你沒有冒犯我，我們各抒己見而已。我是不同意 (老實說也不能理解) 你的觀點，但是我們都懂得“和而不同”這句話。

可能由於背景不同，我們的價值觀也不同。但是不打緊。

[studentyoung]

studentyoung, 我看到你的 PS 了。你沒有冒犯我，我們各抒己見而已。我是不同意 (老實說也不能理解) 你的觀點，

没关系！

但是我們都懂得“和而不同”這句話。

啊，要是人人都像你这么知书达理，这世界就没那么多动手动脚，动刀动枪的杀风景的事儿。

可能由於背景不同，我們的價值觀也不同。但是不打緊。

完全同意！

谢！

[Quest]

一夜暴富没什么，反正不是你想富就富得来，又不是随便一个人都可以赢。运气、命运决定一切。再加上社会应该是多元化的，行行出状元国家才兴旺。人生在世，难道就仅仅为了成为一个普通劳动人民吗？

[Ian_Lee]

If everyone is satisfied to be just a common worker, then there is no dream and no social mobility.

If Bill Gates were just satisfied to continue his study in Harvards, then there might be no Microsoft.

If Li Ka Shing were just satisfied to own a small plastic flower factory, then there would be no CK/Hutchison conglomerate.

If Andy Lau were just satisfied to be an office messenger, then there would be no Andy Lau as of today.

IMO Everybody should have a dream -- nobody should just be satisfied to be a common worker.

[studentyoung]

人生在世，难道就仅仅为了成为一个普通劳动人民吗？

普通劳动人民说的是人家的工作岗位普通，不像“超女”那般“轰轰列列”罢了。齐白石当年还干木工的时候，也没啥人认为他的工作岗位有啥特别的，但他在干木工的时候，他的手艺已得乡亲认可，精于案、梁、柱的雕花。胜得过齐白石的手艺的木工，你找得出几个？木工不是普通劳动人民？大官不成？

台湾还有人能在垃圾里寻宝的，不少收藏家还托他帮忙寻找他们想要的收藏品的呢。拣垃圾这活够普通了吧？但就有人能干得出色，干得与众不同!

普通的岗位，平凡的人，就不能干出不平凡的成就？

要不，你再看看纪晓岚的这副对联：虽然毫末技艺，却是顶上工夫。意思够白的了，我不用再解释了吧？（难道只看到人家的“毫末技艺”，就把人家的“顶上工夫”给忘了？ ）

对了，你自己还说->

再加上社会应该是多元化的，行行出状元国家才兴旺。

既然你都这么说了，我也就没啥可说的了。

谢！

[studentyoung]

If everyone is satisfied to be just a common worker, then there is no dream and no social mobility.

Rightly so!

IMO Everybody should have a dream -- nobody should just be satisfied to be a common worker.

I think a coin has two sides. No doubt, Bill Gates, Li Ka Shing and Andy Lau have made great achievements, and it is just one side on a coin.

The other side? Please just think of what Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini did in their life! These two surely weren’t satisfied to be a common worker in their life and they had a “dream” (a nightmare if I can say) too. I remember the famous official in Tang Dynasty, Weizheng 巍征once said “Water can bear a boat, while it can also turn it over.水能载舟，亦能覆舟” Now we can say, “A dream can make our world better, or it can make it worse.”

I think the point here is how to guide people to think more calmly in an uproarious social environment.

Thanks!

[gato]

Please just think of what Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini did in their life! These two surely weren’t satisfied to be a common worker in their life and they had a “dream”

I think you're letting your imagination run too wild on this topic, studentyoung. A more apt parallel might be the millions of inner city kids in America who neglect their school work for the dream of one day becoming the next Michael Jordan.

[studentyoung]

I think you're letting your imagination run too wild on this topic, studentyoung.

Please check my word below again.

I think the point here is how to guide people to think more calmly in an uproarious social environment.

A more apt parallel might be the millions of inner city kids in America who neglect their school work for the dream of one day becoming the next Michael Jordan.

Ala, it sounds quite like students neglected their school work to join the revolutionary movements and got crazy about being “the Red Guards红卫兵”. A man needs all kinds of nutrition to make all his organs work well. A society needs all kinds of talents to make it develop steadily and in the round. One kind of nutrition can't support a man and one kind of talents can't sustain a society.

I remember some one says, “A hero is a big man, and a celebrity is a big name.” The problem in this world is too many children or even adults take someone with a big name as a big man.

Thanks!

[Ian_Lee]

Studentyoung:

Though I didn't mention it, I have implied that all those who have the dreams and made it like Bill Gates, Li Ka Shing and Andy Lau all strived their ways within the legal and moral cofines of the society.

But the examples that you cited like Hilter and Mussolinni apparently did not.

And I don't see the Super Girls have trespassed the legal and moral confines either (of course some may find their performances morally decaying -- but they didn't break the moral codes).

From what I see, a society must not be static. And a certain segment of the population must be willing to take risk. Only through social mobility can a society achieve progress.

[HashiriKata]

If I understand it correctly, I think what studentyoung was saying was that it is not dreams themselves but it is the kinds of dreams we are fed with that is the problems. In this interpretation, I'm with studentyoung.

To me, there seems no lack of people who are in the business of exploiting those who dream wrongly and on the other hand, we're no longer able to tell anybody - or even ourselves - how to dream well.