News Reponse 27-7-2013

Title: Dressed to thrill, cosplayers bring fantasy to life at comic expo
Date: 27th July
Source: SCMP

Feedback: This news is about the annual Ani-Com & Game Hong Kong fair. Like the past years, there are a lot of cosplayers showcasing the characters of different comics, animations or computer games this year. The majority of the cosplayers are teenagers and they love cosplay because they love the characters they are dressing and want them known to others by bringing to life. Also some of them said that cosplay can make them meet new friends and have a kind of nice and feel likeable. 
In recent years, cosplay becomes a hot topic on teenagers in Hong Kong. Many people believe that cosplayers are lazy and have academic failure, there is not many parents supporting their children to be cosplayers due to the stereotypes. 

In fact, cosplay has certain benefits to teenagers. 

First cosplay can help youngsters build up confidence. Most cosplayers are shy and introverted who always stay at home and afraid of socializing with others. However when they dress up, they are different people, they become confident and extroverted. It is because they love the characters they are cosplaying and they think they become the characters, having a new identity so they have courage to interact with others. The heart of cosplay is their source of confidence. Besides cosplay needs to face lots of people as they need to join the competition or be taken pictures by many photographers. Therefore in some ways, cosplay can help teenagers become confident because they can have a new identity which is stronger than their original identity which only stays at home all the time and afraid of interact with others as most of the characters they love are heroes who are powerful.

Cosplay can also increase the creativity of teenagers. Since the teenagers need to make the clothes and crops by themselves, they need to create wonderful clothes and crops for example, they need to think how to make the clothes are exactly the same in the animation in order to get all people's eyes or win the champion. Creativity is increasing while they are making their clothes and crops.

Social skill can also be improved through cosplay.  As the cosplayers will meet lots of other cosplayers from different districts or even countries, so they can improve their social skills as they have the same interest and they may discuss it together like the favourite comic character, the plot of animations, the process of making the clothes etc. Hence social skill is developed and social circle is enlarged.  

Nevertheless cosplay does have disadvantages to teenagers. 

Teenagers may waste a lot of money. As they need to make the clothes and crops, they need to buy lots of materials to make it, for instance, the girl spent $600 to buy the materials to make the clothes which is expensive. Cosplay requires much money and this is wasting lots of money of teenagers.

Furthermore the self-concept of teenagers may be twisted. Since most of the cosplayers identify themselves as the characters in the comics, animations or computer games, they are away from the reality and refuse to accept their real identity. As most of them may get failure in real life like academic, love and familys relationship etc, they try to escape from these by identifing themselves as the strong characters in the comics, animations or computer games. Soon they can not remember who they are actually and the self-concepts are twisted. 

Except the self-concept may be twisted, the teenagers may receive wrong values. It is because nowadays many comics, animation and computer games obtain lots of wrong concepts like violence, sex, brutality etc. Once the teenagers identify themselves as the characters in those comics, animations or computer games, they are brainwashed to be violent, brutal and have wrong concepts like sex, for example there was a news about a boy raped a woman like the main character did in the animation or in the past weeks, there was a parent killed by their son as the son thought the parent are the enemies he played in the computer game. These show that teenagers easily absorb wrong concepts through cosplay as they may identify themselves as the characters in the comics, animations or computer games which obtain violence, sex or brutality etc.

To sum up, cosplay does have benefits and drawbacks to teenagers. However this is up to the teenagers'chioces of the comics, animations and computer games and their attitudes towards cosplay. If they choose the right comics, animations or computer games, they definitely will not be able to obtain wrong concepts; If they have a right attitude towards cosplay like it is a kind of entertainment and study is more important than it right now, they will not become addicted to it and have academic failure. Therefore it is the choice for the teenagers whether let cosplay become good to them or not.

News Response 21-7-2013

Title: North Korea gets world in a panic, even without trying
Date: 18th July,2013
Source: The Times

Feedback: This is about North Korea hauled 240 tons of weapons to Cuba which caused an international uproar. Cuba's foreign ministry has dismissed international concerns and said those 240 tons of weapons are defensive which require repair. However there are 10000 tons of brown sugar used to cover the illicit consignment of weapons, the saying of Cuba's foreign ministry is doubted. This is not the first time that North Korea put the world in a panic, North Korea has helped countries like Iran and Pakistan develop a nuclear capability and fired missiles over South Korea and Japan. Many experts believe that North Korea puts the world into chaos in an attempt to obtain benefits and strengthen her international status. Andrei Lankov who is a professor of Korean studies at Seoul's Kookmin University points out that the major concerns of North Korea are her own political and physical survival. As in 1994, there were re-start talks between US and North Korea when North Korea threatened to withdraw from nuclear non-proliferation agreement and engulf Seoul. During the talks, US promised offering the regime half a million tons of oil, two free proliferation-resistant nuclear reactors and large-scale shipments of food aid. Therefore he believes that North Korea will be weakened if she is crippled by sanctions and hindered by dysfunctional economy, and if she does not threaten the world, the world will have more peace.

  Mysterious, selfish, aggressive, obsolete, these are the adjectives I think of instantaneously when I heard of North Korea. North Korea still does not open her country and keeps on her totalitarian rule which is so mysterious and obsolete as her development is so slow that there is no tall and modern buildings, people wear simple and old-fashioned clothes, old cars etc. There are many times the world is jittery because of North Korea's testing of nuclear missiles and other incidents like this news mentioned, these show North Korea is so selfish and aggressive that she only considers herself. In my opinion, I think North Korea can not put the world in a panic again because other countries may not be able to bear her again and relative to the developments of other countries, North Korea has no possibility to win in the war if North Korea wants to declare a war to other countries. It is because North Korea has slow development and relies on the food aid and there is no quick economic development to support her nuclear weapons projects, all these are her weaknesses and will hinder her much when she comes to war. Actually I really do not understand why North Korea still keeps her totalitarian rule even she gets so many weaknesses. I think she should act like China in the 1980s, opening her market and modernize the country, maybe North Korea can be the second China. Of course North Korea needs to give up her totalitarian rule and thought of putting the world into chaos then she can develop her country by doing trade with other countries, strengthening her country and the world can have peace.  

如果時間能停留，我會___________

  光陰似箭、時光飛逝、日月如梭......有許多字詞都是形容時間過得很快，當你察覺到想抓住它時，它已一溜煙跑走了。因此有很多人都希望將時間停留，讓他們有時間去實現，或是體會自己渴望已久的事。而我，就有多個願望......
  
  如果時間能停留，我會到書店取走各種各類的書籍回家。因為我們只從課本上汲取知識是不足夠的，知識是源源不絕、浩瀚的大海，現在教育亦提倡自學，所以我們不但要閱讀課本，還要上網搜尋資料、閱讀課外書，這才能擁有全面的知識。閱讀課外書除了到圖書館借閱，最好去的地方便是書店。因為書店會售賣最新出版的書籍，而圖書館購買新書的速度遠遠不及上出版商出新書的速度，往往只有年代久遠的書籍，內容有時會過時，特別是有關科學的書本。不過要購買各種各類的書本對我一名學生來說，未免有沉重的負擔。因此我希望在時間停留時，到書店取走書籍回家閱讀。當然看畢後，我會把它們回歸原處。這樣便能填滿我的知識庫，腦袋變得多采多姿。
  
  如果時間能停留，我會將它停留在爸爸感到疲累的時候。爸爸是家中的經濟支柱，他每日朝九晚六，即使前一天與老闆應酬到深夜，第二天仍然會早早起床上班，拖着沉甸甸的身體做體力勞動的工作，為的就是賺錢養家、賺生活費、書簿費、學費......無論有什麼工作，爸爸都不會拒絕，他會竭盡所能地完成工作，為的就是我們。爸爸是多麼的辛苦、多麼的疲勞，因此我希望可以將時間停留在他身體發出疲倦訊號的時候。這樣的話，我可以替他按摩肌肉、舒緩筋骨，讓緊繃的肌肉鬆弛，待時間回復正常時，他便有力氣、精力充沛地工作。爸爸便不會像被抽亁水分的海綿一樣，筋疲力盡地回家，第二天又要拖着虛弱、沉重的身體上班。
  
  如果時間能停留，我會選擇將它停留在貧富懸殊嚴重的時候。由於政府未能推出有效解決和協助貧困問題的政策，導致富裕的人越來越富裕，貧窮的人越來越貧窮，貧富懸殊的情況越趨嚴重。據日前的研究指出，香港的堅尼係數達0.537，是亞洲第二個貧富懸殊嚴重的地區。堅尼係數是由1至0，0代表每個居民收入平均，每個居民的收入都是類似的，而越接近1則代表每個居民收入不平均，一個居民的收入可能高達於五個居民的收入。有見及此，我希望時間停留在貧富懸殊嚴重的時候，政府可趁機推行多項扶貧政策，如:資助貧窮家庭醫療開支和學費、為貧窮者提供職業培訓以獲取就業機會、 增加工作機會讓貧窮人士投身職場以賺取收入、加重富豪的稅收以減慢富者越富的速度......然後在時間繼續流逝時，貧困的人能變得富有起來，能夠與富裕的人並排一列，貧富懸殊的問題能夠得以解決。
   
  如果時間能停留，我會將它停留於第二次世界大戰期間愛因斯坦發明原子彈的時候。愛因斯坦發明的原子彈威力浩大，造成成千上萬的死者，並影響深遠，如:受過原子彈洗禮的地方的居民日後所生的孩子會有可能畸形、輻射會影響農作物的正常生長、居民會有癌病......而且原子彈的發明開啟了核武的時代，俄羅斯、中國、北韓、日本等多個國家研發核武，核武散佈世界各地。核能泄漏帶來的後果十分嚴重，並且影響深遠，如在上年日本福島核電廠泄漏核能事故，至今仍對當地居民、食物造成影響。另外發展國家會將研究核武時產生的垃圾棄置於發展中國家，影響當地生態、環境、居民健康。還有核武的出現讓世界陷入動蕩之中，因為有國家研製多個核武，企圖威脅其他國家，成為世界之首，引起戰爭的導火線。因此我希望可以阻止到原子彈的誕生，從而阻止核武的出現，世界和平。
  
  如果時間能停留，你又會怎樣做？

這個字才是最美麗？

  當你翻看雜誌時，總會有許多頁是宣傳瘦身療程；當你閑逛時，總會經過形形色色的瘦身公司；當你等待播放劇集時，總會有五花八門的瘦身廣告。這個字存在着我們生活中每一個角落，無處不在。它，就是瘦。
  
  現今社會，傳媒大肆鼓吹瘦就是美麗的風氣，如女士們要有一對筆直的，宛如竹竿的長腿，才代表漂亮。十個女人中，便有八個都視瘦身減肥為終身事業，因為她們想變得漂亮，而剩下的兩個，一個是健康地生活，均衡飲食；一個是視瘦身為浮雲，因為她已找到碼頭泊岸。大部分的女性都認為瘦就是代表美麗，只有極少數會認為瘦並不代表美麗。
  
  美麗的定義改變了，讚美的說話也同時改變了。“你變得漂亮了“這句話已不能一定讓女性感到愉快，因為它可以含有不同的含義，例如諷刺、讚美、反語......會引起她們的揣測和疑心，甚至會和讚賞或諷刺(她們認為)她們的人變得疏遠。那應說什麼才能使女性一定心花恕放？那就是“你瘦了。“
  
  但是瘦就一定等於美麗嗎？瘦到瘦骨嶙峋、皮包骨、有厭食症、精神受影響、身體機能變差......這些還可以稱為美麗嗎？正因為傳媒鼓吹錯誤的觀念，導致數以百計的女性因過度減肥引致昏厥、多種病痛，甚至死亡。新聞曾報導有女生因過度節食減肥，在上體育課時暈倒。專家亦曾指出過度減肥會使身體機能變差，器官衰竭，嚴重者會死亡。另外瘦身風氣在演藝行業最為盛行，多間著名的時裝公司要求模特兒要瘦得像紙片人一樣，沒有任何丁點兒脂肪，甚至他們到醫院邀請患有厭食症、皮包骨的病人做他們的模特兒。這些都不是一個健康的人應該有的身體，也不是正確的道德觀念。為了美麗的瘦，令到自己身體虛弱、要接受辛苦的康復療程、甚至離開人世，這還是否美麗呢?這值不值得呢？
  
  要美麗其實有多種方法，並不一定是瘦。我便在這裡舉例幾個:在外在美方面，化妝可以使女性有美麗的臉龐、神采飛揚，又或者配搭適合的衣著，能讓女性給予別人賞心悦目的感覺。在內在美方面，保持心境開朗，精神奕奕，皺紋減少了，人自然漂亮，又或者吸納各式各樣的知識，擁有豐富的內涵能吸引別人，散發一種知性的美。
  
  美麗有很多方面，瘦並不是唯一的辦法。擁有曲線優美的身體、傾國傾城的容顏，最重要的是要有自信、燦爛的笑容和知識淵博，這才稱得上真正的美麗。所以女人們，何苦難為自己呢?

News Response 18-7-2013

Title: Senior Pakistani Taliban leader 'shocked' by Malala attack
Date: 18th July, 2013
Source: BBC news

Feedback: This is about a letter written by the leader of  Taliban, a terrorist organization, expressing his shock to Malala attack. Adnan Rasheed who is the Pakistani Taliban leader has sent a letter to Malala Yousafzai, and in his letter, he stops short of apologizing but says he hoped the attack 'had never happened'. He also said he felt 'brotherly' emotions towards Malala as they belong to the same tribe but he rejects to condemn the attack, saying the judgement on whether it is right or not should be left to God. Besides, he claims Malala was attacked because she campaigned to 'malign efforts to establish the Islamic system but not because his group is against education of any men or women or girls. At the end of his letter, he asked Malala to come back and adopt Islamic and Pashtun culture, join any female Islamic school in order to use her pen to reveal the conspiracy of the elite who want to enslave the whole of humanity.

  After I read this news, my heart is full of anger. It is because I think it is so ironic that the leader of Taliban saying he is shocked by Malala attack which the attack was caused by his group. And it is unacceptable that the judgement on whether the attack is correct or not should be left to God, because it is obviously wrong that an organization which is equipped with arms shot a bare-handed girl who only fights for the right of women on education. We all know that Taliban is against the rights of women as there are many news about the women were executed by shooting of the Taliban members or raped by them, for instance in 1999, a woman was executed by shooting of a Taliban member publicly in Kashmir. Therefore it is so weird that the leader of Taliban saying his group is not against education of any men or women or girls. 
  
  Now is 21st century already, I think Pakistan should progress quickly, she should realize the statuses of women and men are the same and the rights of women should not be suppressed as they maybe talented so as to help the whole country to have a fast development and be as strong as other Western or Asian countries. I really can not understand why women must be suppressed or controlled by men, why women must not be respected. Is it because women are physically weaker then men? But there are some women who are as strong as men like female weight lifters. Is it because women are not as brilliant as men? However there are lots of women who are as smart as or even smarter than men like Ada Lovelace, the first computer programmer. With lots of historical facts, they all prove that women are talented and even more capable than men so why there are countries suppressing the women, especially in Asia? I really hope one day the rights of women can be respected and they can enjoy the same rights of men have as women and men are the same, both of them are humans and live in the same planet, Earth, all people belong to the same family.

News Response 17-7-2013

Title: Inspiring lesson in true life

Date: 17th July, 2013

Source: The Standard

Feedback: This news is mainly about the special need students who got marvelous results in Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education Examination. Although one of those students, Tsang Tsz-kwan is handicapped by vision, hearing disabilities, lost of sensitivity of her fingers, she scored excellent results, getting level 5**s in Chinese, English and liberal studies and level 5*s in both Chinese and English literature. The reason why she scored excellent results of course is her efforts and determination to overcome her obstacles but also the teaching from her parents about the importance of appreciating the meaning of life which makes her become optimistic towards life. 

  
  This is really heartening and touching. It is unbelievable that a student who can only use lips to do the exam papers and has hearing disabilities when she is doing group discussion , getting remarkable results in the HKDSE. This once again proves that nothing is impossible and lets me have a determination that I can do as best as she did, my target is getting as much level 5**s as I can. Everything in the world is possible if you try your best and do not afraid of the adversity. Be valiant and wise so you can cope with the difficulties. Do not evade facing the problems as this is a chance of improving yourself. Have a clear goal as this can provide a plain pathway to success and you will not be at sea. Remember life is full of happiness and challenges so we must become optimistic towards our life and have determination to cope with the challenges which will make you have a great satisfaction if you overcome the challenges. Put your faith in the future. Nothing is impossible.