Salvage morality after coal mine collapse
- Source: Global Times
- [03:41 November 24 2009]
- Comments
Western economist Adam Smith could not have foreseen that his first masterpiece The Theory of Moral Sentiments would be translated into Chinese and recommended to a large audience by Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao.
Smith's compelling argument is of immediate significance to China, which is undergoing dramatic transition from a traditionally agricultural society to a modern, market-oriented one.
As he wrote in this book as well as The Wealth of Nations, the "wealth" rests upon the well being of people, and it is morally risky if the fruits of economic prosperity cannot be shared by all individuals in a society.
Numerous incidents, crises and disasters in recent years underscore the significance of Smith's arguments for reinforcing society's moral basis. Unfortunately, their importance is yet to be grasped in spite of the Chinese government's efforts calling for a return to morality and building a people-oriented society based on equality and justice.
Saturday's mine disaster in the Xinxing Coal Mine in Hegang City in China's northeast Heilongjiang Province, which claimed over 100 lives, is merely the tip of the iceberg.
Although the accident is under investigation, one general cause of the tragedy is already clear: The number of mine accidents soars whenever there is a growing demand for coal, such as in winter. Given the loopholes in mine safety, profit-driven mining companies are putting the lives of coal miners at grave risk year after year.
The little value attached to human lives so easily lost in the interests of corporate profit implies a moral failure.
And, this is not the only such situation. Recently, China experienced an acute shortage of natural gas after the unexpectedly sharp drop in temperature. The shortage, at least partially, was attributed to the monopoly of the two State-owned petroleum companies.
Moral failure was no less evident in tens of thousands of Chinese children being sickened by tainted milk products last year; and, in some Chinese companies' emission of pollutants beyond stipulated limits.
While administrative negligence is often to blame for such incidents – and even an effective administration has its blind spots – society as a whole has a critical role in providing a solid moral foundation for the market economy.
Profitability with morality is not paradoxical but achievable as a balanced social order.
The old problem of "economic man" and "moral man," as Smith put it, is being tested by the new realities of a China in transition. In the interests of social stability, material prosperity should be balanced with social good.
A society where everyone enjoys "free and all-round development" cannot be built and sustained in a moral vacuum.
China's rising global profile calls for a return to morality stressing human values.
As Smith said, a nation can rise only when human lives are given full honor and respect.
