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| Agence France-Presse — Getty Images |
While it seems a little strange, some people are encouraged by the fact that these rotting pigs were dumped in the river. Many of these pigs were found to contain diseases such as porcine circovirus. Previously, many of these pigs would have been continued to be sold and processed for consumers to eat, but recent crackdowns on selling diseased meat has made it so that whoever raised these pigs decided against selling the diseased meat.
Although it is unfortunate the diseased pigs floating in a river is a positive step in Chinese health standards, at least this is a step in the right direction. Investigations and at least one arrest are already underway and will continue to find the culprit, however the massive number of farmers in the area make it difficult for the authorities to track down the exact people responsible.
China just now seems to be catching up to the health standards we have been lucky to have since the early 1900's. Hopefully this small (and very strange) sign of progress will lead to more regulation and tighter control over the food market in China.
Does this seem like a positive step to you? Does this make you appreciate more of the heath standards we have in America?
5 comments:
While it is good that China is trying to make a legitimate effort to improve its health standards, they really should not allow should incidents to happen in the first place. I seriously doubt that the water is completely unharmed. From the way it is worded, it seems like China is trying to deny its health problems. Rotting carcasses are going to contaminate the water regardless of whether the Chinese accept it or not.
I am more appreciative of America's health standards after reading this. However, considering this is China we're talking about, that's not exactly the best standard we should be comparing ourselves to. In this health system study, China was ranked beyond the likes of Haiti and Sudan.
Hopefully, China was continue to improve on its health standards. I'm confused about the part where it was said that people were encouraged by the rotting pigs. That doesn't sound encouraging to me. I hope more information comes out about from this investigation because it is an odd idea to dump the carcasses. This has costs for the people using the water in the river.
In conclusion, I think this could be a positive step forward for China. But they'll have to put more effort into their health standards before a difference is made.
I agree with Matthew; though the intention of the act would certainly be beneficial to the public, dumping the diseased pigs into the river seemed to be extremely counterproductive to its purpose. The rotting pigs contaminating the water supply will probably harm a significant amount of people equivalent to the number of people that would be harmed by the contaminated meat. I also agree that many Americans unfortunately take our health standards for granted. In third world countries such as the Philippines, my family takes precaution regarding the water that we drink. One must even be wary of where the ice cubes are made in restaurants, for water from the tap may be contaminated; bottled water is perhaps the only reliable water source. On the other side of the spectrum, many Americans may drink tap water without a second thought. Sometimes we take so many things for granted that many other countries lack and/or are still striving towards.
While I am happy that China is taking a step in the right direction as far as health standards, this incident and the reaction of the government scares me. Like Matthew, I highly doubt that the water was not effected by the diseased pig carcasses. The Chinese government has a history of denying major health risks that are blatantly existent. For example, many waterways throughout China are so polluted that they have been known to cause cancer and birth defects among other ailments in the people that rely on the rivers for water. Such cases have been met with denial from the government, most likely because accepting the situation would require them to alter the methods practiced by the various industries that pollute the rivers. Because the authorities gave a similar response in this case, I am not quite sure if I trust that China is truly committed to improving public health.
I am happy to see that China is starting to recognize issues like this; the Chinese government needs to regulate health concerns for the citizens. However, I believe that it is scary to think that many places in the world, including China, lack the safety standards that we are lucky enough to have. I take it for granted every day that I have clean tap water to drink from. However, like Eli said, China's government needs to crack down on health situations like this. With the largest population in the world, the Chinese government should be more worried about situations like this, because it affects a very large amount of their population. Health concerns like this are horrible for any part of the world, however it could easily be more amplified with a massive population like China.
Well there is no question that a story like this makes all of us entirely more appreciative of the current health standards we enjoy in America. That’s a no-brainer. I think it’s amusing, however, that it takes nearly 8,000 pig carcasses floating in a river somewhere in China for us to come upon this realization. While I am glad Chinese authorities are investigating the incident, and that they have insured that the drinking water is safe for the citizens of Shanghai, I think the problem is less of assuring clean drinking water, than assuring that there is government action and regulation as to prevent farmers or any other random person from dumping waste at free will. To draw a parallel, this scenario is almost like me taking months of Aragon’s trash and ridding it in or by Crystal Springs Reservoir. In San Mateo, and in America, there is protection against doing so, and obvious consequences should I get caught, yet in China, I don’t see the same organization and control needed to crack down against such behavior, especially in rural parts of the country. It may seem as if I disapprove of China’s health standards, but I do support where they are headed.
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