首页
外语
计算机
考研
公务员
职业资格
财经
工程
司法
医学
专升本
自考
实用职业技能
登录
考研
This month Singapore passed a bill that would give legal teeth to the moral obligation to support one’s parents. Called the Main
This month Singapore passed a bill that would give legal teeth to the moral obligation to support one’s parents. Called the Main
admin
2020-08-17
42
问题
This month Singapore passed a bill that would give legal teeth to the moral obligation to support one’s parents. Called the Maintenance of Parents Bill, it received the backing of the Singapore Government.
That does not mean it hasn’t generated discussion. Several members of the Parliament opposed the measure as un-Asian. Others who acknowledged the problem of the elderly poor believed it a disproportionate response. Still others believe it will subvert relations within the family; cynics dubbed it the "Sue Your Son" law.
Those who say that the bill does not promote filial responsibility, of course, are right. It has nothing to do with filial responsibility. It kicks in where filial responsibility fails. The law cannot legislate filial responsibility any more than it can legislate love. All the law can do is to provide a safety net where this morality proves insufficient. Singapore needs this bill not to replace morality, but to provide incentives to shore it up.
Like many other developed nations, Singapore faces the problems of an increasing proportion of people over 60 years of age. Demography is inexorable. In 1980, 7. 2% of the population was in this bracket. By the turn of the century that figure will grow to 11%. By 2030, the proportion is projected to be 26%. The problem is not old age per se. It is that the ratio of economically active people to economically inactive people will decline.
But no amount of government exhortation or paternalism will completely eliminate the problem of old people who have insufficient means to make ends meet. Some people will fall through the holes in any safety net.
Traditionally, a person’s insurance against poverty in his old age was his family. This is not a revolutionary concept. Nor is it uniquely Asian. Care and support for one’s parents is a universal value shared by all civilized societies.
The problem in Singapore is that the moral obligation to look after one’s parents is unenforceable. A father can be compelled by law to maintain his children. A husband can be forced to support his wife. But, until now, a son or daughter had no legal obligation to support his or her parents.
In 1989, an Advisory Council was set up to look into the problems of the aged. Its report stated with a tinge of complacency that 95% of those who did not have their own income were receiving cash contributions from relations. But what about the 5% who aren’t getting relatives’ support? They have several options: (a) get a job and work until they die; (b) apply for public assistance (you have to be destitute to apply); or (c) starve quietly. None of these options is socially acceptable. And what if this 5% figure grows, as it is likely to do, as society ages?
The Maintenance of Parents Bill was put forth to encourage the traditional virtues that have so far kept Asian nations from some of the breakdowns encountered in other affluent societies. This legislation will allow a person to apply to the court for maintenance from any or all of his children. The court would have the discretion to refuse to make an order if it is unjust.
Those who deride the proposal for opening up the courts to family lawsuits miss the point. Only in extreme cases would any parent take his child to court. If it does indeed become law, the bill’s effect would be far more subtle.
First, it will reaffirm the notion that it is each individual’s—not society’s—responsibility to look after his parents. Singapore is still conservative enough that most people will not object to this idea. It reinforces the traditional values and it doesn’t hurt a society now and then to remind itself of its core values.
Second, and more important, it will make those who are inclined to shirk their responsibilities think twice. Until now, if a person asked family elders, clergymen or the Ministry of Community Development to help get financial support from his children, the most they could do was to mediate. But mediators have no teeth, and a child could simply ignore their pleas.
But to be sued by one’s parents would be a massive loss of face. It would be a public disgrace. Few people would be so thick-skinned as to say, "Sue and be damned". The hand of the conciliator would be immeasurably strengthened. It is far more likely that some sort of amicable settlement would be reached if the recalcitrant son or daughter knows that the alternative is a public trial.
It would be nice to think Singapore doesn’t need this kind of law. But that belief ignores the clear demographic trends and the effect of affluence itself on traditional bends. Those of us who pushed for the bill will consider ourselves most successful if it acts as an incentive not to have it invoked in the first place.
What does the author seem to suggest about traditional values?
选项
A、They are very important in preserving Asian uniqueness.
B、They are useful to require the young to be responsible.
C、They help to remind people of their past.
D、They are effective in maintaining the social order.
答案
A
解析
事实细节题。第九段首句提到,议案提出的目的是加强传统美德,正是这些美德让亚洲国家避免了其他富裕社会所遇到的问题,故A项为答案。
转载请注明原文地址:https://kaotiyun.com/show/1Sra777K
本试题收录于:
翻译硕士(翻译硕士英语)题库专业硕士分类
0
翻译硕士(翻译硕士英语)
专业硕士
相关试题推荐
显性翻译(overttranslation)和隐性翻译(coverttranslation)是由()提出的。
Generallyspeaking,theRenaissancereferstotheperiodbetweenthe14thandmid-17thcenturies,whoseessenceis().
世界军人运动会(MilitaryWorldGames),简称“军运会”,是国际军事体育理事会(ConseilInternationalduSportMilitaire,缩略为CISM,英语名称为InternationalMilitaryS
Mytutorfrequentlyremindsmeto______myselfofeverychancetoimprovemyEnglish.
Falseconflict,alsoknownasillusoryconflict,occurswhenpeoplebelievethattheirinterestsareincompatiblewiththeother
Acloserobserverofthesmallscreenoncecalledita"vastwastelandofviolence,sadismandmurder,privateeyes,gangstersa
NATIONS,likepeople,occasionallygettheblues;andrightnowtheUnitedStates,normallytheworld’smostself-confidentplac
Somebelievethatintheageofidentikitcomputergames,massentertainmentandconformityonthesupermarketshelves,trulyin
Scienceisadominantthemeinourculture.Sinceittouchesalmosteveryfacetofourlife,educatedpeopleneedatleastsome
随机试题
下列选项中,债权人不得行使撤销权的情形是()
癫狂的表现是痫证的表现是
气相色谱法和高效液相色谱法常用于进行鉴别的参数是
带状疱疹应尽早用抗病毒药,首选()。
下列社会经济活动表现中,体现房地产市场功能的有()。
重大死亡事故调查组可邀请()参加事故调查。
改性沥青混合料压实作业除执行普通沥青混合料压实要求外,还应做到()。
甲公司是一家知名的IT企业,主要业务为硬件生产和IT服务。2002年,该公司敏锐地发现在互联网快速发展的背景下,电子商务会有很好的前景。决定进行业务全面转型,出售硬件业务,变身为电子商务整体解决方案提供商。该公司根据宏观环境分析中的哪项因素做出这个决策(
根据域名代码规定,GOV代表
A、Beforesummervacation.B、Duringsummervacation.C、Aftersummervacation.D、Inclass.A根据原文(8)处可知,女士说:It’salmostvacationti
最新回复
(
0
)