秋日隨筆: 黑与白 ∕ Fall 2008: Black and White

Being a HK resident in my younger days and having been educated and brought up in the Canadian culture and work environment, I come to realize that society values are very much a function of time, space and people(s). What we define as self-righteousness may be considered by some as bullying and imperialist aggression; and "being nice" can be interpreted as stupidity, vulnerability, or simply a "kick me" sign on the derrière. So, if good guys always come last, where is the incentive for being nice? More importantly, is there such a thing as absolute right and wrong?

It is true that when we see what is currently happening to the global economy, the cruelty and atrocities people do to each other, and the daily bad-news stories reported by journalists, we tend to lose faith in ourselves and others and give up our values of right and wrong. However, I cannot accept the notion that "if you can't beat them, join them". As suggested in the movie "Blindness", I believe there is right and wrong. One does not need to blindly (excuse the pun) follow someone who claims to see better than us, especially evangelists who trade our donations for tickets to heaven. In the end, each of us will need to develop and use our own moral compass to navigate while respecting the norm of the society we are living in.