Plain cigarette packaging is not on the cards (note 2) anytime soon for Hong Kong, but there is to be a program for kids to help parents quit smoking (戒菸).
That was the word from Director of Health Lam Ping-yan as he explained that a watch (監察) will be kept on how Australia does with its world- first (全球第一) effort to see all brands of cigarettes in the same drab but alarming (note 3) packets.
The priority for Hong Kong just now, Lam said, is to introduce more quit-smoking clinics (戒菸.診所) and increase efforts at the ones already in operation.
The Department of Health currently runs six clinics on its own or through joint efforts, and funding will be increased for more services in clinics at Tung Wah and Pok Oi hospitals. "We'll also involve the Po Leung Kuk for a school-based (以學校為基地) program so that children can go home and ask their parents to quit," Lam said.
In addition, "there is a program for ethnic minorities (少數民族), and we will finance a hotline (熱線) service run by University of Hong Kong professors."
On Australia's packaging program, the head of the country's Department of Health and Ageing, Jane Halton, noted that legislation on packaging has yet to clear (note 4) the Senate.
"Obviously, the tobacco companies are not happy with this, but the legislation has passed the House of Representatives," she said.
"It's our belief that we have the numbers for it to pass the Senate. So this will be implemented (實施) in 2012."
The packaging plan, she added, is a major step (note 5) "in making sure that smoking is in no way glamorized (美化) or promoted in Australia - and particularly for young people."
From good to better English:
(note 1) kick habit=戒掉嗜好〔尤指毒癮〕。Habit=習慣，癖好。Habit is second nature=習慣成自然。the habit of getting up late=晚起的習慣。break off a bad habit of=改掉壞習慣。
(note 2) on the cards=在時間表上 (on schedule)。例句: Bo Bo’s first baby arrived right on schedule= Bo Bo的第一個嬰兒準時出生。 a train schedule=火車時刻表。on schedule (time)=準時。
(note 3) drab but alarming= drab (單調，乏味); alarming=使人驚慌的；引起驚慌的。the drab of country life=蟄居鄉間的單調生活。Alarm=警報, 鬧鐘, 警報器, 驚慌, 恐懼, 擔憂。alarm bell =警鈴, 警鐘。alarm clock= 鬧鐘。
(note 4) has yet to clear=還沒有批准。has yet to=還沒有。Julian is not home yet=Julian is not yet home=Julian還沒有回家。Clear=通暢的；開闊的，豁然的, 無疑的，的確的，確實的。Do I make myself clear？=你明白我的意思嗎？。A clear head=清晰的頭腦。A clear sky=晴空。
(note 5) a major step=重要的一步。Step=跨入，踏進。Step back=後退，後退一步。Step in=走進。
Victor’s View: It is great and useful to involve children to help their parents quit smoking. We should try all methods to turn Hong Kong into a ‘smoke-free’ society.
(Victor Fung Keung, director of HK Baptist University’s M.A. in international journalism program, has published 4 books on English-enhancement [the latest, titled <<學會演說、改變你的人生>>, was published on July 18] and plans to write 6 more by the end of 2012. Write to him: deanfungenglish@gmail.com)
2011年11月21日 星期一
2011年11月20日 星期日
Six years for sex fiend (魔王) who scared (恐嚇) girl with `evil spirits'
An unemployed man who used threats of hoodoos and magic spells (note 1) to force his girlfriend's younger sister into having sex with him has been jailed for six years.
Yuen Yuk-kin, 43, a self-proclaimed (note 2 ) fung shui master (風水大師), showed no emotion as District Court Judge Frankie Yiu Fun- che yesterday slammed (批評) him for using sordid (骯髒的) excuses and threats to coerce the victim - identified as X - into having sexual intercourse and even anal sex with him on multiple occasions (note 3)between September 2004 and January this year.
The judge said Yuen exploited (利用) the victim's trust at a time of innocence and weak health.
The experience has left the victim, now a university student, with post- traumatic stress disorder (note4), depression, low self-esteem and "difficulty in trying to have a normal sex life." The court heard Yuen first tricked X - then aged 15 - into having sex with him on September 24, 2004, so that he could "transfer chi" to cure a fever that plagued her for weeks. She was also asked to perform oral sex.
The judge noted the victim was below the legal age of consent (note 5) at the time.
The victim was told the "evil" came from her having sex with her former boyfriend, and that she had to swallow Yuen's sperm to seal "the entrance" to prevent it from returning after it had been expelled (趕出).
On two occasions between 2005 and 2006, X was tricked (欺騙) into having anal sex which, she said, caused her pain and resulted in incontinence.
In later years Yuen exerted control (note 6) over X's social life, warning that her mother will have cancer if she did not continue to sleep with him.
From good to better English:
(note 1) hoodoos and magic spells=不祥之物, 惡運(hoodoos)和符咒，咒語 (spells)。be bound by a spell＝ be under the spell=給符咒鎮住。break a spell=破除魔力和吸引力。
(note 2) self-proclaimed=自稱的，自封的。Proclaim=聲明；表示，顯示, 公佈。Proclaim Victor a traitor=宣佈Victor為叛徒。 proclaim war=宣戰。 proclaim a victory=宣告勝利。
(note 3) multiple occasions=多次在不同情況下。Multiple=複式的，多數的，多樣的。Occasion=機會, 時刻。Bo Bo was the occasion of the trouble=Bo Bo是糾紛的根源。on great occasions=在大慶[盛典]時期。
(note 4) post- traumatic stress disorder=創傷後遺症, 簡稱PTSD。Traumatic=損傷的，創傷的。Trauma= (精神)創傷。
(note 5) legal age of consent=合法年齡〔尤指少女法律上達到可以自主的年齡〕。Consent to do=同意，贊成，應允，答應。consent to a proposal=贊同提案。 consent to give a lecture=答應演講。with the consent of Julian=得到Julian同意。
(note 6) exerted control=控制。Exert=行使, 發揮。exert an influence=施加影響。Victor exerts himself to the utmost= Victor已盡全力。
Victor’s View: People taking advantage of young girls’ innocence should be condemned and severely punished. Teenagers should always stay alert.
(Victor Fung Keung, director of HK Baptist University’s M.A. in international journalism program, has published 4 books on English-enhancement [the latest, titled <<學會演說、改變你的人生>>, was published on July 18] and plans to write 6 more by the end of 2012. Write to him: deanfungenglish@gmail.com)
Yuen Yuk-kin, 43, a self-proclaimed (note 2 ) fung shui master (風水大師), showed no emotion as District Court Judge Frankie Yiu Fun- che yesterday slammed (批評) him for using sordid (骯髒的) excuses and threats to coerce the victim - identified as X - into having sexual intercourse and even anal sex with him on multiple occasions (note 3)between September 2004 and January this year.
The judge said Yuen exploited (利用) the victim's trust at a time of innocence and weak health.
The experience has left the victim, now a university student, with post- traumatic stress disorder (note4), depression, low self-esteem and "difficulty in trying to have a normal sex life." The court heard Yuen first tricked X - then aged 15 - into having sex with him on September 24, 2004, so that he could "transfer chi" to cure a fever that plagued her for weeks. She was also asked to perform oral sex.
The judge noted the victim was below the legal age of consent (note 5) at the time.
The victim was told the "evil" came from her having sex with her former boyfriend, and that she had to swallow Yuen's sperm to seal "the entrance" to prevent it from returning after it had been expelled (趕出).
On two occasions between 2005 and 2006, X was tricked (欺騙) into having anal sex which, she said, caused her pain and resulted in incontinence.
In later years Yuen exerted control (note 6) over X's social life, warning that her mother will have cancer if she did not continue to sleep with him.
From good to better English:
(note 1) hoodoos and magic spells=不祥之物, 惡運(hoodoos)和符咒，咒語 (spells)。be bound by a spell＝ be under the spell=給符咒鎮住。break a spell=破除魔力和吸引力。
(note 2) self-proclaimed=自稱的，自封的。Proclaim=聲明；表示，顯示, 公佈。Proclaim Victor a traitor=宣佈Victor為叛徒。 proclaim war=宣戰。 proclaim a victory=宣告勝利。
(note 3) multiple occasions=多次在不同情況下。Multiple=複式的，多數的，多樣的。Occasion=機會, 時刻。Bo Bo was the occasion of the trouble=Bo Bo是糾紛的根源。on great occasions=在大慶[盛典]時期。
(note 4) post- traumatic stress disorder=創傷後遺症, 簡稱PTSD。Traumatic=損傷的，創傷的。Trauma= (精神)創傷。
(note 5) legal age of consent=合法年齡〔尤指少女法律上達到可以自主的年齡〕。Consent to do=同意，贊成，應允，答應。consent to a proposal=贊同提案。 consent to give a lecture=答應演講。with the consent of Julian=得到Julian同意。
(note 6) exerted control=控制。Exert=行使, 發揮。exert an influence=施加影響。Victor exerts himself to the utmost= Victor已盡全力。
Victor’s View: People taking advantage of young girls’ innocence should be condemned and severely punished. Teenagers should always stay alert.
(Victor Fung Keung, director of HK Baptist University’s M.A. in international journalism program, has published 4 books on English-enhancement [the latest, titled <<學會演說、改變你的人生>>, was published on July 18] and plans to write 6 more by the end of 2012. Write to him: deanfungenglish@gmail.com)
2011年11月14日 星期一
Don’t coddle students who default on loans
Victor Fung Keung says we should name and
shame those who use the money to speculate
Officials at the Student Financial Assistance
Agency should feel
ashamed for proposing
unworkable solutions to clamp
down on student loan defaults. It’s
a no-brainer. The agency’s
suggestion to lengthen the
repayment period and lower
interest rates will help to increase
the number of defaults, not cut it.
Because the loan schemes are
non-means-tested, many
university students borrow the
money (which can be as much as
HK$400,000) to gamble in the
stock market or elsewhere. If they
make a killing, they repay the loan.
If they lose every cent, they simply
walk away. If push comes to shove,
they declare bankruptcy. They
seem pretty sure the government
can’t touch them.
The school year that ended in
August 2010 saw a 20 per cent rise
in loan defaults from a year earlier.
About 13,000 graduates failed to
repay loans totalling
HK$213 million, which, of course,
is taxpayers’ hard-earned money.
The relevant government
departments should shame these
irresponsible so-called elite of
Hong Kong by prosecuting each
one of them.
The student-loan agency
should also share the credit data of
these graduates with other credit
agencies so that all banks, and
perhaps their prospective
employers, would know how
selfish they are.
The agency’s current proposals
are a non-starter. They will only
worsen the situation. Indeed,
university students who plan to
speculate in the stock market with
the money would welcome the
news with glee that borrowing
rates will be cut to 1.674 per cent a
year from 3.174 per cent, and the
repayment period lengthened to 17
years (including a grace period of
two years), from 10.
Under the agency’s
misconceived suggestions,
taxpayers have to dole out another
HK$75 million a year.
Why should we subsidise those
immoral graduates who lose
money in speculation? Can anyone
reconcile the fact that Hong Kong’s
economy improved last year and
yet the number of student loan
defaults jumped by 20 per cent?
The rise in defaults underscores
the fact that moral education in
Hong Kong’s education system has
room for improvement.
It’s hardly news that a huge
number of university students sell
their rights to buy computers at a
discount to “professional traders”
to make a fast buck. The discount
scheme is offered to university
students at the beginning of an
academic year.
Naming and shaming the
defaulters is the only solution to
deter these irresponsible students.
They must be warned of the dire
consequence of not paying back
their loans. Deterrence is the only
weapon.
Victor Fung Keung, based in
Hong Kong, is a commentator on
education and political issues
shame those who use the money to speculate
Officials at the Student Financial Assistance
Agency should feel
ashamed for proposing
unworkable solutions to clamp
down on student loan defaults. It’s
a no-brainer. The agency’s
suggestion to lengthen the
repayment period and lower
interest rates will help to increase
the number of defaults, not cut it.
Because the loan schemes are
non-means-tested, many
university students borrow the
money (which can be as much as
HK$400,000) to gamble in the
stock market or elsewhere. If they
make a killing, they repay the loan.
If they lose every cent, they simply
walk away. If push comes to shove,
they declare bankruptcy. They
seem pretty sure the government
can’t touch them.
The school year that ended in
August 2010 saw a 20 per cent rise
in loan defaults from a year earlier.
About 13,000 graduates failed to
repay loans totalling
HK$213 million, which, of course,
is taxpayers’ hard-earned money.
The relevant government
departments should shame these
irresponsible so-called elite of
Hong Kong by prosecuting each
one of them.
The student-loan agency
should also share the credit data of
these graduates with other credit
agencies so that all banks, and
perhaps their prospective
employers, would know how
selfish they are.
The agency’s current proposals
are a non-starter. They will only
worsen the situation. Indeed,
university students who plan to
speculate in the stock market with
the money would welcome the
news with glee that borrowing
rates will be cut to 1.674 per cent a
year from 3.174 per cent, and the
repayment period lengthened to 17
years (including a grace period of
two years), from 10.
Under the agency’s
misconceived suggestions,
taxpayers have to dole out another
HK$75 million a year.
Why should we subsidise those
immoral graduates who lose
money in speculation? Can anyone
reconcile the fact that Hong Kong’s
economy improved last year and
yet the number of student loan
defaults jumped by 20 per cent?
The rise in defaults underscores
the fact that moral education in
Hong Kong’s education system has
room for improvement.
It’s hardly news that a huge
number of university students sell
their rights to buy computers at a
discount to “professional traders”
to make a fast buck. The discount
scheme is offered to university
students at the beginning of an
academic year.
Naming and shaming the
defaulters is the only solution to
deter these irresponsible students.
They must be warned of the dire
consequence of not paying back
their loans. Deterrence is the only
weapon.
Victor Fung Keung, based in
Hong Kong, is a commentator on
education and political issues
2011年11月13日 星期日
Alert on deadly polio (小兒麻痹症/脊髓灰質炎) outbreak (爆發 )
The toll (人數) from polio in Xinjiang is expected to rise beyond the 17 known cases, the World Health Organization warns.
The virus that claimed the health of (note 1) nine adults and eight children aged from four months to two years is linked to the wild polio virus type 1 circulating in Pakistan, said Oliver Rosenbauer, the WHO spokesman for the Global Polio Eradication Initiative in Geneva.
"My bet (note 2) is we will see more cases," Rosenbauer said. "Certainly it will not be surprising."
WHO director-general Margaret Chan Fung Fu-chun told The Standard earlier that the virus likely reached Xinjiang from neighboring Pakistan.
The Ministry of Health in Beijing informed the WHO on August 26 that wild polio had been isolated in four youngsters with the onset of (note 3) paralysis (癱瘓) between July 3 and 19.
But last month it reported 10 polio cases from three prefectures (縣) in the south of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.
A WHO team is in Xinjiang to help control the outbreak.
China was said to be virtually (幾乎) polio-free (note 4) by 1994.
The last reported wild polio virus case in the country, in 1999, was linked to India.
"Because of an ongoing endemic circulation in Pakistan you run the risk that a polio-free area becomes re-infected (重新受感染)," Rosenbauer noted.
But he does not think Hong Kong faces an obvious risk, given the high immunization coverage and surveillance (高度的防疫制度或監察) here.
As for Xinjiang, Rosenbauer does not expect polio to "spread like wildfire" (note 5) like it did last year in Takijistan, which saw about 400 people taken ill.
But it might be a year or more before it can be said to have been beaten back (擊退).
From good to better English:
(note 1) claimed the lives of=殺害 (kill)。claim =斷言；聲稱，自稱。claim expenses= 索取費用。claim for damages = 要求賠償損失 。no claims = 無權要求。claim a victory=聲稱取得勝利。claim a reward=要求報酬。Claim的同義詞有affirm, allege, argue, assert, asseverate, aver, avouch, avow, contend, declare, hold, maintain, say, state等。
(note 2) My bet=斷定, 我的意見是。My bet is that Julian won't come=我看Julian不會來了。A heavy [paltry] bet=大[小]賭。I'll bet my life=我敢用生命擔保；當然，保管沒錯。Do you ever bet? Victor asks Bo Bo= Victor 問Bo Bo, 你和人家打過賭嗎？
(note 3) with the onset of=出現, 病發作 (A beginning; a start)。onset的同義詞有 beginning, birth, commencement, dawn, genesis, inception, nascence, nascency, opening, origin, outset, spring, start等。
(note 4) polio-free=沒有小兒麻痹症。feel free= 無需拘束, 不要客氣。for free= 免費。free association = 自由聯想 。free from= 沒有, 免於。free from blame = 解除責備, 免責。 free love = 自由戀愛 。free rein = 完全的行動自由。 free speech= 言論自由 。free will = 自由意志, 自由抉擇。 give someone a free hand = 放手讓某人做。.
(note5 ) spread like wildfire=像野火一樣散播。
Victor’s View: Polio is a terrible disease. We must ensure that it won’t spread to Hong Kong from Xinjiang.
(Victor Fung Keung, director of HK Baptist University’s M.A. in international journalism program, has published 4 books on English-enhancement [the latest, titled <<學會演說、改變你的人生>>, was published on July 18] and plans to write 6 more by the end of 2012. Write to him: deanfungenglish@gmail.com)
The virus that claimed the health of (note 1) nine adults and eight children aged from four months to two years is linked to the wild polio virus type 1 circulating in Pakistan, said Oliver Rosenbauer, the WHO spokesman for the Global Polio Eradication Initiative in Geneva.
"My bet (note 2) is we will see more cases," Rosenbauer said. "Certainly it will not be surprising."
WHO director-general Margaret Chan Fung Fu-chun told The Standard earlier that the virus likely reached Xinjiang from neighboring Pakistan.
The Ministry of Health in Beijing informed the WHO on August 26 that wild polio had been isolated in four youngsters with the onset of (note 3) paralysis (癱瘓) between July 3 and 19.
But last month it reported 10 polio cases from three prefectures (縣) in the south of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.
A WHO team is in Xinjiang to help control the outbreak.
China was said to be virtually (幾乎) polio-free (note 4) by 1994.
The last reported wild polio virus case in the country, in 1999, was linked to India.
"Because of an ongoing endemic circulation in Pakistan you run the risk that a polio-free area becomes re-infected (重新受感染)," Rosenbauer noted.
But he does not think Hong Kong faces an obvious risk, given the high immunization coverage and surveillance (高度的防疫制度或監察) here.
As for Xinjiang, Rosenbauer does not expect polio to "spread like wildfire" (note 5) like it did last year in Takijistan, which saw about 400 people taken ill.
But it might be a year or more before it can be said to have been beaten back (擊退).
From good to better English:
(note 1) claimed the lives of=殺害 (kill)。claim =斷言；聲稱，自稱。claim expenses= 索取費用。claim for damages = 要求賠償損失 。no claims = 無權要求。claim a victory=聲稱取得勝利。claim a reward=要求報酬。Claim的同義詞有affirm, allege, argue, assert, asseverate, aver, avouch, avow, contend, declare, hold, maintain, say, state等。
(note 2) My bet=斷定, 我的意見是。My bet is that Julian won't come=我看Julian不會來了。A heavy [paltry] bet=大[小]賭。I'll bet my life=我敢用生命擔保；當然，保管沒錯。Do you ever bet? Victor asks Bo Bo= Victor 問Bo Bo, 你和人家打過賭嗎？
(note 3) with the onset of=出現, 病發作 (A beginning; a start)。onset的同義詞有 beginning, birth, commencement, dawn, genesis, inception, nascence, nascency, opening, origin, outset, spring, start等。
(note 4) polio-free=沒有小兒麻痹症。feel free= 無需拘束, 不要客氣。for free= 免費。free association = 自由聯想 。free from= 沒有, 免於。free from blame = 解除責備, 免責。 free love = 自由戀愛 。free rein = 完全的行動自由。 free speech= 言論自由 。free will = 自由意志, 自由抉擇。 give someone a free hand = 放手讓某人做。.
(note5 ) spread like wildfire=像野火一樣散播。
Victor’s View: Polio is a terrible disease. We must ensure that it won’t spread to Hong Kong from Xinjiang.
(Victor Fung Keung, director of HK Baptist University’s M.A. in international journalism program, has published 4 books on English-enhancement [the latest, titled <<學會演說、改變你的人生>>, was published on July 18] and plans to write 6 more by the end of 2012. Write to him: deanfungenglish@gmail.com)
2011年11月11日 星期五
回到母校
我最喜愛的倫敦「地鐵」站叫Victoria（因為我的名字叫Victor）。在Victoria站附近有間叫Hesperia的酒店，每天房租1500港元，算是很便宜了。我對倫敦很熟悉。我在劍橋大學唸書的日子，每星期都要到倫敦的SOAS（School Of Oriental And African Studies）學院的圖書館做研究和寫論文。（我的題目是分析中國1978年後的開放政策，劍橋的資料沒有SOAS學院那麼新）。下午我到Kensington王宮參觀，這是戴安 娜生前住的地方。可惜王宮正在改建，要到2012年春天才再開放給遊人參觀。第二天我去參加一位親戚的婚禮，播出的音樂是「披頭四」的《Here Comes The Sun》。晚宴上一位親戚推薦我看《Half-Time》這本書，他說對我的靈性會有幫助。
2011年11月9日 星期三
好標題共賞:
[Slap happy] <<掌得很開心 >>; [Last stand] <<最後一檔>>; [The ball's in your court'] <<輪到你做決定>>
背景: 2011年香港報業公會的評委選出去年本地報章的最佳標題，共三則。
[Slap happy] <<掌得很開心>> A local judge has spared (note 1) the niece of a top Hong Kong judge a prison term (note 2) although she has been convicted for a third time of slapping (note 3) a police officer.
[Last stand] <<最後一檔>> The newsstand slowly fades out (note 4) in Hong Kong due to competition from chain stores (note 4), news online, declining newspaper sales, free newspapers and government regulation.
[The ball's in your court'] <<輪到你做決定>>A transsexual's (note 5) request to marry her boyfriend has been rejected (note 6) by a local judge and the judge tells the government to consider whether it’s time it changed the law.
好英文辭彙共賞:
(note 1) spare =使某人免遭(麻煩等)。Can you spare me a few minutes, Julian?=Julian, 你能抽幾分鐘和我談談嗎？spare no efforts =不遺餘力。(note 2) a prison term =坐監。(note 3) slap =一 巴掌, 一個耳光。slap Victor on the back=拍拍Victor 的脊背〔表示贊許〕。(note 4) chain stores =便利店。(note 5) transsexual =變性人。(note 6) rejected =拒絕。
短評共賞: 寫標題有不同的技巧，包括Exaggeration (誇張overstates the case); Tabloidese (小報化, 用Boob 而不用 breast); Pun (玩文字, play on words); Variation (多樣化); Rhetoric (加強語氣, language to persuade or impress); Litotes (低調處理, understatement); Metonymy (相關辭語, name of a related thing); Oxymoron (反語, contradictory terms); Alliteration (首字同音, same initial sound); Assonance (字彙同音, similar vowel)和Black humor (黑色幽默, make fun of people’s disability)。這三個標題很明顯用Pun (玩文字) 和Metonymy (相關辭語)這兩種技巧。[-happy]是很常見的英語用法，例如trigger-happy (愛開槍的人); Slap happy就像(愛掌刮他人的人)。另外，Last stand的stand 是newspaper stand (報攤)的簡寫。[The ball's in your court'] <<輪到你做決定>>這個標題最過癮, 法官判了變性人不能結婚, 然後叫政府去考慮改例，就是把皮球(ball)拋給政府。Ball也可以是變性人割下來的ball (睾丸)。
背景: 2011年香港報業公會的評委選出去年本地報章的最佳標題，共三則。
[Slap happy] <<掌得很開心>> A local judge has spared (note 1) the niece of a top Hong Kong judge a prison term (note 2) although she has been convicted for a third time of slapping (note 3) a police officer.
[Last stand] <<最後一檔>> The newsstand slowly fades out (note 4) in Hong Kong due to competition from chain stores (note 4), news online, declining newspaper sales, free newspapers and government regulation.
[The ball's in your court'] <<輪到你做決定>>A transsexual's (note 5) request to marry her boyfriend has been rejected (note 6) by a local judge and the judge tells the government to consider whether it’s time it changed the law.
好英文辭彙共賞:
(note 1) spare =使某人免遭(麻煩等)。Can you spare me a few minutes, Julian?=Julian, 你能抽幾分鐘和我談談嗎？spare no efforts =不遺餘力。(note 2) a prison term =坐監。(note 3) slap =一 巴掌, 一個耳光。slap Victor on the back=拍拍Victor 的脊背〔表示贊許〕。(note 4) chain stores =便利店。(note 5) transsexual =變性人。(note 6) rejected =拒絕。
短評共賞: 寫標題有不同的技巧，包括Exaggeration (誇張overstates the case); Tabloidese (小報化, 用Boob 而不用 breast); Pun (玩文字, play on words); Variation (多樣化); Rhetoric (加強語氣, language to persuade or impress); Litotes (低調處理, understatement); Metonymy (相關辭語, name of a related thing); Oxymoron (反語, contradictory terms); Alliteration (首字同音, same initial sound); Assonance (字彙同音, similar vowel)和Black humor (黑色幽默, make fun of people’s disability)。這三個標題很明顯用Pun (玩文字) 和Metonymy (相關辭語)這兩種技巧。[-happy]是很常見的英語用法，例如trigger-happy (愛開槍的人); Slap happy就像(愛掌刮他人的人)。另外，Last stand的stand 是newspaper stand (報攤)的簡寫。[The ball's in your court'] <<輪到你做決定>>這個標題最過癮, 法官判了變性人不能結婚, 然後叫政府去考慮改例，就是把皮球(ball)拋給政府。Ball也可以是變性人割下來的ball (睾丸)。
2011年11月8日 星期二
Extend mentor scheme to help community ills
Victor Fung Keung hails an initiative to involve former mental patients in the treatment of others
Nov 08, 2011
Castle Peak Hospital's management and staff are to be congratulated for introducing a recovery-orientated approach by employing former patients as mentors for those in the mental health system. In this way, the counsellors can help show the mentally ill that it's possible to enjoy a full recovery and lead a normal life.
I would now urge the hospital's authorities and those from other hospitals with psychiatric services to go one step further to benefit hundreds of thousands of locals by extending counselling sessions to the community.
A small place in community centres across various districts could be rented or requested (with district councils' help), staffed with former patients who could act as counsellors. They should be known as "happiness centres" rather than "mental health counselling centres".
Several recent surveys have shown that about 17 per cent of Hong Kong people are mentally ill. That translates to roughly 1.1 million people. Consulting a private psychiatrist is expensive (the bulk of insurance companies don't cover such expenses) and getting an appointment to visit a government psychiatrist takes at least six months. And many people don't want to get help because of the social stigma attached to being labelled "mentally ill".
A lack of education, perhaps combined with taboos at home, means that most Hongkongers believe that if someone is mentally ill, they must be suffering from something serious, such as bipolar disorder, psychopathic illness or schizophrenia. The only picture people have in their mind is of screaming patients waving choppers in public places.
In fact, depression and anxiety, symptoms that many of us might suffer, are very common forms of mild mental illness. If former patients at Castle Peak Hospital can share their experiences about how they have successfully dealt with their problems, many others might be willing to visit such centres and ultimately benefit.
In fact, the money saved from treating serious cases in future could far outweigh the cost of setting up such centres.
Under a recovery-oriented approach, counsellors serve as a bridge between doctors and patients. The latter will definitely find inspiration from counsellors, who have shown it is possible to regain one's dignity, family life and the respect of others.
The Chinese talk of "treating an ailment while it is light". It would clearly be beneficial for people suffering from depression and anxiety to seek advice early before these symptoms become worse.
Medical authorities in Hong Kong should treat the idea of a recovery-oriented approach as a step forward, and embrace it.
Victor Fung Keung, based in Hong Kong, is a commentator on education and political issues
Nov 08, 2011
Castle Peak Hospital's management and staff are to be congratulated for introducing a recovery-orientated approach by employing former patients as mentors for those in the mental health system. In this way, the counsellors can help show the mentally ill that it's possible to enjoy a full recovery and lead a normal life.
I would now urge the hospital's authorities and those from other hospitals with psychiatric services to go one step further to benefit hundreds of thousands of locals by extending counselling sessions to the community.
A small place in community centres across various districts could be rented or requested (with district councils' help), staffed with former patients who could act as counsellors. They should be known as "happiness centres" rather than "mental health counselling centres".
Several recent surveys have shown that about 17 per cent of Hong Kong people are mentally ill. That translates to roughly 1.1 million people. Consulting a private psychiatrist is expensive (the bulk of insurance companies don't cover such expenses) and getting an appointment to visit a government psychiatrist takes at least six months. And many people don't want to get help because of the social stigma attached to being labelled "mentally ill".
A lack of education, perhaps combined with taboos at home, means that most Hongkongers believe that if someone is mentally ill, they must be suffering from something serious, such as bipolar disorder, psychopathic illness or schizophrenia. The only picture people have in their mind is of screaming patients waving choppers in public places.
In fact, depression and anxiety, symptoms that many of us might suffer, are very common forms of mild mental illness. If former patients at Castle Peak Hospital can share their experiences about how they have successfully dealt with their problems, many others might be willing to visit such centres and ultimately benefit.
In fact, the money saved from treating serious cases in future could far outweigh the cost of setting up such centres.
Under a recovery-oriented approach, counsellors serve as a bridge between doctors and patients. The latter will definitely find inspiration from counsellors, who have shown it is possible to regain one's dignity, family life and the respect of others.
The Chinese talk of "treating an ailment while it is light". It would clearly be beneficial for people suffering from depression and anxiety to seek advice early before these symptoms become worse.
Medical authorities in Hong Kong should treat the idea of a recovery-oriented approach as a step forward, and embrace it.
Victor Fung Keung, based in Hong Kong, is a commentator on education and political issues
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