Journal: 3-5

Tank Man

     Last week, I asked the question: What is the current status of education around the world? While doing research on this topic, I came across a very informative website which listed statistics about education around the world. Here are some of the statstics I found: 862 millions people around the world can not read or write, the literacy rate for young women in developing countries is 30%, 115 million primary school age children are not enrolled in school around the world, having to pay school fees is one of the leading causes as to why children don't go to school and also religion keeps most girls from enrolling in school in developing countries.

     To me, these statistics are devastating. However, there is much we can do to help the current status of education around the world. We can focus the majority of our attention to raising money to build better school and provide better teachers for those in need of a better education. The more schools we build, the more likely it is that more underprivileged children from developing nations will join and therefore increase the literacy rate in those countries.

     This past week, we learned about the incident that took place in Tiananmen Square in China and also the current status of the way people live in China in modern times. In the Tiananmen Square incident, thousands of Chinese people gathered in the square to protest against the government while they were ruthlessly slaughtered by the military. This occasion was best documented by a picture of a single Chinese man, given the name Tank man , standing in front of a row of military tanks in protest to the violent massacre they had just conducted on his people. In regards to the way people live in China today, we learned that the job situation over there is extremly different from that of our own. In China, job conditions are brutal and resemble the conditions American went through during the Industrial Revolution.

    In my opinion, China needs to learn from our American history in regards to the Industrial Revolution. Although their current way of doing things might seem to be working, it is horrible for people to have to work the amount of hours the government is forcing them to work and with such little pay and poor living conditions. China should establish a minimum wage that helps their people thrive and want to come to work without the burtal conditions. Also, they should establish work benefits that people get after working a certain amount of years at their job.

     China right now reminds me of a communist society in a way. Although instead of everyone benefitting together and sharing the wealth, there is no wealth to be shared by the people who work. Also, no one who works in China is benefitting at all with the amount of money that they are making from the amount of time that they put in. China is acting like a communist government that would rather see profits and let their people suffer than care about the welfare of their people over the amount of money that they make.

     I end today with a question: what are the current statistics of the labor force in China?

"11 Facts About Education Around the World | Do Something." Volunteer | Do Something. Web. 13 Mar. 2011. <http://www.dosomething.org/tipsandtools/11-facts-about-education-around-world>.

"Egypt’s Tahrir Square Is China’s Tiananmen Square Tiananmen-square-tank – Politicol News Politics." Politicol News. Web. 13 Mar. 2011. <http://www.politicolnews.com/egypts-tahrir-square-is-chinas-tiananmen-square/tiananmen-square-tank-2/>.

"Labor Rights | China Digital Times (CDT)." China News, Current Events & Headlines | China Digital Times (CDT). Web. 13 Mar. 2011. <http://chinadigitaltimes.net/china/labor-rights/>.