I began reading this article without any prior expectations or thoughts. I don't know much about the Hsinchu Science Park because neither of my parents work there and I rarely get the opportunity to converse with employees of the Science Park. Another reason I might not know or hear much is because I am foreign and don't speak Chinese fluently. HSIP has to be a big deal. I mean, its considered the Silicon Valley of the east, which is pretty important. I'm curious to know whether or not HSIP gets mentioned on the news often or if things stay behind the scenes.
After reading this article a few things stuck with me. We were asked to pick a topic from the article that most impacts us (as an individual), and I'd have to say the thing that impacts me the most is the amount of pollution these companies are creating outside of the factories. I honestly don't know too much about the science park so there aren't too many things that could affect me personally, probably because I am just unaware. Everyday we must travel outside to get to where we have to be, whether its school, music lessons, downtown, etc. This means that we breath the air that is in the atmosphere at that given time.
After reading this article I finally realize that the air we breath isn't all that clean and fresh. There isn't much we, the people outside of the companies, can do to prevent this either. I mean we could petition and try to get the government to do something about the way these companies are running their businesses but that is hard to do. The government and managers of these companies are all about the money. They want to market their particular cause the best way possible, hoping to make themselves look good. What most people don't know, unless you've read this article, is that these companies are not as good as they may "seem". The 1997 fire at UMC is a great example. The article states that the community overheard that the fire chief purposely chose to deny any sort of toxic chemicals for the sake of looking good, and environmentally friendly. A week or so later the guy was in the hospital, because of those very fumes that he denied being present at UMC. Its amazing to see what lengths people will go just to try and look good. I guess I'm sort of straying from my main idea: what impact the environmental wastes and pollution have on me.
Almost every time I go downtown I have to look into the canal, which is full of filth, trash and who knows what else. I've never actually thought about WHY the canal looks the way it does. Could it be because of these big companies and corporations? I'm really not sure. The companies put far too many toxins and far too much waste into the atmosphere, which we happen to be surrounded by. I think this is one of the biggest problems we face today, Pollution, and its affects on the community. So many people get sick and are sent to the hospital because of this pollution, and who gets blamed? No one! Companies continue producing their products regardless of how much waste they emit and the number of people admitted to the hospital continues to grow. Until the government decides to do something about these problems, we will be breathing in insanitary air. This article really opened my eyes to what is happening around me. Since being in Taiwan I have lost touch with the news and media world, mainly because I cannot understand what is being said. This article, being that it is in english, was very beneficial and I hope we can continue to promote awareness on this very important issue!
James Baldwin, throughout the essay, expresses the anger or "rage" that he feels because of white supremacy. During this time period, in Switzerland, blacks were considering "exotic rarities", and when seen were treated as if they weren't human. Baldwin talks about how the children and sometimes even adults would touch his hair just because it was a different texture and wasn't seen everyday. I feel that Baldwin's intent for writing this essay is to express his feelings and beliefs about the way whites once treated blacks. In paragraph 25 of the essay Baldwin tells us that, "This worlds white no longer, and it will never be white again." Black men are no longer considered rarities and are finally accepted into society, as human beings. Baldwin talks about the rage he feels sometimes of the way he is treated.
