校园悲剧原因探：中国何以更象美国？
[2627] (2010-05-03)
4月28日上午，举国震惊的福建省南平校园惨案凶犯郑民生，被依法枪决。当日下午3点左右，广东省雷州市雷城第一小学发生类似凶杀案：一名男子冲进校园，持刀砍伤18名学生和1名教师。仅仅一天之后，江苏泰兴一所幼儿园再现悲剧：32人被砍伤，其中29名儿童，另有两名教师和一名保安。又是一天之后，山东潍坊一名农民闯进当地一所小学打伤五名学生之后，自焚。
初看这一幕，仿佛这不是在中国，而是在美国。请看：2010年1月4日，一名手持散弹枪的黑衣男子在拉斯维加斯联邦法院枪杀了一名法院保安人员，并导致一名副检察官受伤。1月18日，费吉尼亚州发生枪击案造成8人死亡，凶犯甚至击落一件警用直升机。2月12日，亚拉巴马大学亨茨维尔分校一名女教师因没评上副教授枪杀三同事。２月２３日美国科罗拉多州首府丹佛市附近一所中学发生枪击事件，一名男子打伤两名学生。3月4日，五角大楼枪击案，1人死亡，3人受伤，出奇的是枪的来源竟然是田纳西州的警察和法院系统。3月9日，俄亥俄州立大学的校园里发生的枪击案，造成1人死亡、2人受伤。3月30日，美国首都华盛顿发生两起枪击案，9人受伤，4人死亡。4月4日，洛杉矶一餐馆发生枪击案4人死亡。4月19日田纳西州一家医疗机构发生枪击案，2死2伤。
中美两国制度不同，文化不同，宗教信仰不同（中国是无神论国家），种族不同，发展阶段不同，何以在频发校园惨案中出现了共同点？而制度、文化、种族、宗教同源而且发展阶段也相近的欧洲就绝少此类悲剧发生？
对于今年的美国枪击案，有分析认为和现在的经济危机有关，是社会问题的外化。但这无法解释何以美国年年频频发生此类悲剧。
中国的校园悲剧，有分析认为是制度问题，是国民性问题。可是制度和国民性相同或相近的美国和欧洲为什么皆然不同？如果中国是制度问题，以美国为鉴，我们还有什么制度再选择？
也有分析认为中国的校园惨案和中国处于转型期有关，但何以美国都进入后现代了，仍然无法避免同类悲剧的发生？
经过对比和排除，中美校园悲剧的共同原因应该是：中国和美国都是一个竞争十分激烈、社会保障体系相对不够完善的国家。中国是后发展中国家，激烈的竞争自然不可避免。而且国家也没有足够的财力建立欧洲几百年才完善起来的社会保障体系。而美国是一个年青的移民国家，富有朝气，鼓励竞争，社会保障体系也是发达国家中最不完善的。然而，激烈的竞争必然导致两极分化，贫富分化，社会心理失衡。中、美两国还有一个共性：衡量贫富差距的基尼系数都超过国际上公认的警戒线：0.4。这应该是中国今年、美国历年频频发生校园悲剧的原因。
不过，中美两国还是有不同点。中国由于社会转型过于迅速，传统与现代的冲突与矛盾难以象西方一样有化解和调适的时间。事实上，从农业社会到工业社会，中国只用了三十年，西方则往往少则上百年，多则数百年。政治上的演变也如此，法国从大革命算起，到实现一人一票的普选，用了一个半世纪，工人拥有合法的罢工权也是用了一个半世纪。然而，在以西方发达国家现在的成就为榜样的现实下，中国想慢可能吗？
悲剧的另一原因，还可从美、欧对比中找到一丝线索。和欧洲相比，美国是福利少、自由多。在美国持枪是天赋人权，企业的政治献金更是言论自由的一部分。在欧洲这都是法律禁止的。企业拥有政治献金这一言论自由权力，自然可以对政治施加决定性的影响，从而制订出有利于自己的国策、法规。而美国的福利少自然加大了国家的两极贫富分化。同时美国对各种自由又不加有效限制，枪枝泛滥，从而悲剧屡屡发生。甚至一国总统都不能幸免（如里根、肯尼迪）。
中国频频发生的校园悲剧，和美国一样，也是与不断扩大的自由有关。这一次可以说是新闻自由的代价（去年的新疆七.五骚乱就是由于网上一个谣言引发的）。改革开放三十年，中国社会整体日益自由和多元。然而任何社会的进步都不是“免费的午餐”。新闻自由也同样。自南平悲剧发生之后，曾有专家担心会出现大量的效仿作用。果然不幸而言中。只是社会的进步无法倒退，而代价也要有足够的心理来承担。不仅如此，我们有了自由，还要有自律，还要有对自由的驾驭能力（比如至少应该能够识破谣言、不相信谣言）。 显然，中国并没有准备好。
中国日益美国化，只是一个警钟，我们在积极拥抱现代化的同时，是不是也要从中国自己的角度反思现代化？
但不管怎么说，对问题的解决，我对中国的乐观要远远高于美国。原因在于每当此类事件发生时，全国无不激愤，无不反思（且不管反思的方向是否正确）。反观美国，无论发生多少起类似事件，整个社会似乎已经麻木了，已经丧失了反思的能力。这恐怕才是美国到现在为止枪击案愈演愈烈的原因了。
法国巴黎 宋鲁郑
《联合早报网》
While I agree you that some of the outbursts of frustration that cause what appear to be random attacks on the innocent are a direct result of individuals feeling abandoned by their societies, I also feel you have a skewed view of America & it’s problems with violence.
Most of the shootings & murders we experience here in the states are gang-related, they are nothing more than “turf wars” between groups of criminals that have decided the “gangster” life-style is glamorous or profitable, and our media seems to irresponsibly encourage this belief.
School shootings are quite rare here…whenever it is discussed in the media as a theme, they have to go back over 30 years of history to give even a handful of examples, but they always present each example as though it just happened yesterday, and present them as though they were a string of ongoing incidents, which they are not.
In fact, the murder rate in general has been declining in the U.S.since 1993. There is no real consensus as to why, but it is interesting to note that Canada saw the same decrease, and the only verifiable factor that matched the possible factors in the U.S. was a decline in the number of youths as a percentage of the population. Personally & unscientifically, I conclude that the young, without the mitigating presence of adults in their groups, tend to violate social norms more easily and more frequently…but that is just my opinion.
As for attacks on schoolchildren, I see a number of differences between the historical attacks in the U.S. versus the recent spate of attacks in China.
The Chinese attacks were all incidences where a disenfranchised adult attacked elementary school children…in the U.S., for the most part, the incidences were teen-age children attacking schoolmates…the only exception I can recall was the Patrick Purdy attack, where an adult attacked elementary school children in Cleveland about 21 years ago, with an illegally modified AK-47, killing five, and wounding 29. All of the fatally shot victims and many of the wounded were Cambodian and Vietnamese immigrants. Purdy then took his own life by shooting himself in the head with a pistol. Purdy had carved the words “freedom”, “victory”, “Earth-man”, and “Hezbollah” on his assault rifle (ironically, a Chinese import), and his flak jacket read “PLO”, “Libya”, and “death to the Great Satin”.
Although the U.S. media tries to indicate gun ownership as the primary cause of Purdy’s violence, the truth is, he had a long history of criminal activity & mental illness, and was not even allowed to legally purchase a firearm…unfortunately, no legal method of doing a background check for mental illness exists here due to medical record privacy laws, and in each case where Purdy had committed a felony, the judges had reduced his crimes to misdemeanors in plea agreements, so he was not flagged for a felony, regardless of his actual criminal background.
In conclusion, I see no real connection in the school violence China is currently undergoing, and the incidences in America’s history. In fact, many of us in the States are confused by what has recently happened in China, and are trying to see a causal connection in the incidents as well, and cannot perceive any easily-defined pattern, with the exception of the obvious “copy-cat” syndrome, which we see here quite often, as well.
Hopefully, these occurrences are over, and will be seen in the future as an aberration, unusual & tragic, but not at all a normal expectation of societal factors.