我的《信報》文章(2020年10月21日A17頁)
https://www1.hkej.com/dailynews/article/id/2612461
投稿(word count limit 2,000)前的第一定稿 (word count 2,343)，請留意後來被我自行刪除的最末兩段
《回應馬嶽: 誰活在假象中? 》
馬嶽(中大政政系副教授)在報章撰文，引述哈維爾(1936-2011，捷克作家及總統)的觀點，形容港府對7•21事件、三權分立的詮釋，是「政權企圖重寫歷史」的「權力操作」，營造一個「假象的世界」。但認為「香港由於有資訊自由」，信者廖廖，因此「生活在謊言中的人少，活在真象中的人多」(《明報》2020年9月18日)。
[Note 1]
碰巧10月3日，「…每年向近1億人提供食品援助的聯合國糧食計劃署，榮獲2020年度諾貝爾和平獎」，但不論是頒獎的挪威機構，還是西方媒體，均沒有提到亞非拉國家農業落後的深層原因。
早在2012年，樂施會以充分和必要的數據揭露問題的真相，指出全球農業穀物市場，被稱為ABCD的四大公司控制90％的買賣(分別是美國的ADM, Bunge, Cargill，及法國的Louis Dreyfus)，他們利用科技、財務等優勢，實現私利最大化，是造成非洲持續貧困主要成因之一。
聲稱保護人權、關懷非洲人民落後貧困飢餓苦況的西方民主國家，雖然清楚了解這種不公平的市場狀況，但不僅拒絕約束ABCD的壟斷性經營，還為其國內農業提供長期補貼，嚴重阻礙非洲農業發展與創新。
更糟糕的是，西方媒體絕少提及民主政府對ABCD的姑息，鮮有報導該項樂施會研究(讀者以Oxfam
Cereal Secrets 2012搜索，便知西方媒體有多齊心) ;而是一面倒報告其民主政府，如何向第三世界捱餓者，慷慨提供人道主義物品援助。誰活在真象中?
[Note 2]
另一個巧合，是《衛報》於10月3日報導英國教育界，受近月高漲的反種族主義運動影響，開始有聲音，要求在學校講解大英帝國時代對待黑人、奴隸的歷史，因為在過去百年，該課題近乎一片空白。
早在六月，當大量歷史名人雕像受損，已揭發民主國家，並未在其國內中小學講述於殖民較後時期(那時候西歐已有白種男性普選)的暴行 ，例如法國的1899 Voulet-Chanoine 屠殺、意大利的1937 Addis Ababa屠殺、 比利時的1885-1908 剛果屠殺，近兩代歐洲人大多數對此一無所知。法國在2005年騷亂後，才將小量阿爾及利亞殖民史加入教科書中。
[Note 3]
現在香港竟然有學者，把不符己意的觀點和論述低貶成「謊言」;簡單地以為身處自由社會，便能活在真象中云云。現在是時候要稍作檢視，在當代大量資訊知識流通的世界，「真象」、「假象」是什麼一回事?
自稱符合西方標準的民主日本政府，在1985年簽署損害自身國家民族利益的《廣場協議》，允許美、英、法、西德干預外匯市場，促使日元大幅升值，讓美國把日本的製造業及出口貿易優勢近乎洗劫一空。不明底藴的日本老百姓，在崇美的心態、「自由」的傳媒影響下，糊糊塗塗地迷失了十年又十年。誰活在真象中?
[Note 4]
民主的墨西哥聯邦政府，為了達成《北美自由貿易協定》，明知國內近十年乾燥少雨，仍然延續早已經不合時宜的1944年向美國供水協議。今年9月，當旱災中的農民意識到，博基亞大壩的大部分蓄水要轉運美國，不能流入農田，奮起抗議時跟國民警衛隊衝突，兩人死亡。誰能活在真象中?
[Note 5]
憑創立「帕累托最適」(Pareto Optimality)及多項數理經濟分析定律(「主次因素分析法」、「80/20 法則」、「帕累托分佈」…等)，被尊為現代「福利經濟學」奠基者的意大利哲學家帕累托(Pareto 1848-1923) ，年青時曾熱衷支持民主。但經過多年以工程公司高層身份，與政黨、議員談判基礎設施合同的親身經歷，帕累托發現，民主制度所說的資訊自由、人民當家作主根本是假象。
在各種各樣活動
(包括盜竊) 中，總是有少數人的表現較其他的大多數卓越。而實際上管治社會的人，無論政治制度是什麼類型，永遠都是來自「菁英」(帕累托自創許多獨特的術語，最著名的是le classi elette 來形容鶴立雞群的優秀者，英文轉化為elite、中譯菁英; 其他包括
Residues classes I-VI and Derivations, Speculators and Rentiers...)。
源於不同的情操性格、收入結構…等，菁英一方面在統治及非統治階層之間循環流動，另一方面會帶領各界別，達到某種均衡狀態;並以「社會成員的總量效益最大化」(Maximum Utility of Society) ，或「社會的整體效益最大化 (Maximum Utility for Society)為目標。
一生貫切主張自由市場的帕累托，運用海量實據，論證「代議民主」的本質，是「嘩眾取寵的金權政治」(Demagogic
Plutocracy) ，且在運作層面中是最惡劣的政治制度。因為菁英和選民 的關係，會演化成「恩庇者」（patron）及「侍從者」（client）的狀態。
其眾多劣果之一，是導致正常的貧富差距(參考「帕累托80/20法則」)變成貧富極度懸殊;另一是為求選舉成功，政治菁英的「狐狸性格」(「剩餘物I型」)會過度擴張，濫用自由，頻密利用諸如「真理」、「正義」等含糊口號或曖昧資訊(「派生物」)，贏取宗教水平的信仰或信任，使普通百姓不知自身利益被犧牲了(例見上述日本及墨西哥的情況) 。
這兩項劣果最終會摧毀「總量效益最大化」的基礎(見帕累托《社會學1916》:2025-2307段) 。
[Note 6]
無論何種制度，政治菁英都會使用各種宣傳手段、政策措施，盡力獲得非菁英的支持。在非民主制度下，審查制度確實存在;但由於媒體信息具該特徵乃眾所周知(包括受馬嶽表揚的哈維爾)，故此會相應地判斷、行動。
反而在民主制度下，媒體總是聲稱堅持言論和新聞自由原則，信以為真的群眾對隱含性偏見往往掉以輕心。
麻省理工語言學教授Noam Chomsky早在1988年指出，西方自由媒體的報導，實際上通過五層過濾，篩選新聞、檢擇事實，保護既得利益集團(例見上述樂施會的ABCD研究) 。情況迄今沒有改善，今年10月9日，倫敦King’s College 的期刊Strife Journal發文，譴責英國主流媒體存有「內在的偏見…根深蒂固的雙重標準」。
[Note 7]
帕累托把社會發展比喻為沿着斜坡在亂石堆上行走，須尋找穩定的石塊(均衡狀態)一步步移動，而尋找方法以邏輯實驗考證為較優。此論既類似我國「摸着石頭過河」的格言，亦符合科學求知求真的態度。
[Note 8]
想當然地以為，有所謂「資訊自由」便活在真像中的教師，似乎不僅脫離現實、武斷自欺，還誤導學生。恐怕持這種觀點的公共知識分子，才是活在假像中的人。
香港中文大學近期被嘲為「暴徒大學」，學生會領袖甚至自稱為「暴大人」。身為鑽研政治科學(Political Science) 的政政系老師，應該保持中立、開明的態度，教授多元的思想流派，鼓勵學生平衡閱讀不同理論、廣泛了解全球事件，不宜輕易判斷真假對錯，盡快離開仇恨的沼澤。
歡迎來稿，不吝賜教。
Notes
[Note 1]
《明報》:《又再重讀《無權力者的力量》》,2020年9月18日
news.mingpao.com/pns/觀點/article/20200918/s00012/1600366594520/筆陣-又再重讀《無權力者的力量》-文-馬嶽
wiki, Václav Havel 瓦茨拉夫·哈維爾
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V%C3%A1clav_Havel
[Note 2]
Nobel Prize Organization, ‘The
Nobel Peace Prize for 2020 announcement Press Release’, 2020 Oct 9.
https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/2020/press-release/
… The World Food Programme is
the world's largest humanitarian organisation addressing hunger and promoting
food security. In 2019, the WFP provided
assistance to close to 100 million people in 88 countries who are victims of
acute food insecurity and hunger. In 2015, eradicating hunger was adopted as one of the UN's
Sustainable Development Goals. The WFP is the UN's primary instrument for
realising this goal. In recent years, the situation has taken a negative turn. In 2019, 135 million people suffered from acute hunger,
the highest number in many years . Most of the increase was caused by war and
armed conflict.
CNN, ‘World Food
Programme wins Nobel Peace Prize for gith against ‘hugner as a weapon of war’,
2020 Oct 9.
https://edition.cnn.com/2020/10/09/world/nobel-peace-prize-winner-2020-intl/index.html
The Norwegian Nobel Committee
said the need for international solidarity and multilateral cooperation was
more conspicuous than ever. It said it wanted to turn the eyes of the world
towards the millions of people who suffer from or face the threat of hunger.
Oxfam
Research Report ‘Cereal Secrets: the world’s largest grain traders and grain
agriculture Aug 2012’.
Oxfam,
Press Release, 2012 Aug 3.
https://www.oxfam.ca/blog/abcds-global-grain-trade/
3
August, 2012—The world’s largest commodity traders are a powerful, unique and
poorly understood sector. The major traders, Archer Daniels Midland (ADM), Bunge,
Cargill and Louis Dreyfus, collectively known as the ABCD traders, share a
significant presence in a range of basic commodities, controlling, for example,
as much as 90 per cent of the global grain trade. Other emerging market trading
companies such as Olam, Sinar Mas and Wilmar are also quickly establishing a
global presence.
[Note 3]
The Guardian, ‘“Students
need to know the harrowing truth': teachers on black history in the curriculum’,
2020 Oct 3.
https://www.theguardian.com/education/2020/oct/03/teachers-on-black-history-in-the-curriculum
There is increasing pressure on the
government to make black history a compulsory element of the national
curriculum in England, not only something to be taught in Black History Month.
The schools minister, Nick Gibb, told a parliamentary debate recently that he
was not in favour because teachers needed the freedom to “teach lessons
that are right for their pupils”. What did he mean and is that
the best approach?
Wiki, The Voulet-Chanoine killings
in French Sudan (modern Mali) 1899
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voulet%E2%80%93Chanoine_Mission
Wiki, Addis Ababa massacre in
Ethiopia 1937
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yekatit_12
Wiki,
Killings in Congo by King Leopold II of Belgium 1885-1908
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atrocities_in_the_Congo_Free_State
The Conversation, ‘A decade
after the riots, France has rewritten its colonial history’, 2016 Jan 25.
https://theconversation.com/a-decade-after-the-riots-france-has-rewritten-its-colonial-history-50499
What is easily forgotten is
that the 2005 riots were part of a broader debate about how France remembers and teaches children about its
colonial legacy that has since sparked a re-writing of French history
textbooks.
The culmination of this debate
on “colonial memory” was a fierce backlash in 2005 against a new law to “show
the nation’s recognition to the national contribution of France’s repatriate
population”, more commonly known as the law on the memory of colonialism.
BBC, Leopold II: Belgium
‘wakes up’ to its bloody colonial past’, 2020 June 12.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-53017188
For decades, colonial history
has been barely taught in Belgium. Many classrooms still have Hergé's famous cartoon book Tintin in
the Congo, with its depictions of black people now commonly accepted as
extremely racist.
Belgium's education minister
announced this week that secondary schools would teach colonial history from
next year.
[Note 4]
Wiki, Plaza Accord 《廣場協議》
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plaza_Accord
《廣場協議》（英語：Announcement of The Ministers of Finance and Central Bank
Governors of France, Germany, Japan, The United Kingdom, and The United States，簡稱：英語：Plaza Accord）是美國、日本、英國、法國及西德5個工業已開發國家財政部長和央行行長於美國紐約的廣場飯店會晤後，在1985年9月22日簽署的協議。目的在聯合幹預外匯市場，使美元對日元及德國馬克等主要貨幣有秩序性地下調，以解決美國巨額貿易赤字，從而導致日元大幅升值。
[Note 5]
The Guardian,
“Mexican farmers revolt over sending water to US during drought”, 2020 Sep 25.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/sep/25/mexico-water-debts-us-farmers
Mexican farmers in the
drought-stricken state of Chihuahua are pitted against riot squads from the
national guard in an increasingly violent standoff over their government’s decision to ship scarce
water supplies to the United States.
The confrontation has already
led to bloodshed: earlier this month, a woman was shot dead and her husband was
wounded after guardsmen opened fire on farmers wielding sticks and stones.
[Note 6]
Wiki, Vilfredo Pareto 帕累託
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vilfredo_Pareto
Vilfredo Federico Damaso
Pareto, born Wilfried Fritz Pareto; 15 July 1848 – 19 August 1923) was an
Italian engineer, sociologist, economist, political scientist, and philosopher. He made several important contributions to economics,
particularly in the study of income distribution and in the analysis of
individuals' choices. He was also responsible for popularising the use of the term
"elite" in social analysis.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pareto_principle
The Pareto principle states
that for many outcomes roughly 80% of consequences come from 20% of the causes
(the “vital few”). Other names for this principle are the 80/20
rule, the law of the vital few, or the principle of factor sparsity)
帕累託法則，也被稱為 80/20 法則、關鍵少數法則、八二法則
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pareto_distribution
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pareto_analysis
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pareto_chart
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pareto_index
Major books in Italian and
those translated into English:
1896 COURS D’ECONOMIE
POLITIQUE
1902 LES SYSTEMES SOCIALISTES
1906 MANUEL D’ECONOMIE
POLITIQUE
Manual of Political Economy, trans. AS
Schweir, London: Macillan, 1971
1916 TRATTATO DI SOCIOLOGIA
GENERALE
The Mind and Society, trans. A. Bongiorno and A. Livingston,
London: Jonathan Cape, 1935
1921 TRANSFORMAZIONE DELLA
DEMOCRAZIA
Transformation of Democracy, trans. R. Girola and ed. C.H. Powers,
London, Transaction Books, 1984.
“Vilfredo Pareto: Sociological
Writings”, selected and introduced by S.E. Finer, trans. D. Mirfin, Oxford,
Blackwell, 1976.
[Note 7]
Wiki,
Noam Chomsky 諾姆·杭士基
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noam_Chomsky
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Propaganda_model
First
presented in their 1988 book Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of
the Mass Media, the propaganda model views corporate media as businesses
interested in the sale of a product—readers and audiences—to other businesses
(advertisers) rather than the pursuit of quality journalism in service of the
public.
Chomsky,
The Five Filters of the Mass Media Machine
https://prruk.org/noam-chomsky-the-five-filters-of-the-mass-media-machine/
According to Chomsky, media
operate through five filters: ownership, advertising, the media elite, flak and
the common enemy.
1 OWNERSHIP
The first has to do with ownership. Mass media firms are big corporations.
Often, they are part of even bigger conglomerates. Their end game? Profit. And
so it’s in their interests to push for whatever guarantees that profit.
Naturally, critical journalism must take second place to the needs and
interests of the corporation.
2 ADVERTISING
The second filter exposes the real role
of advertising. Media costs a lot more than consumers will ever pay. So who
fills the gap? Advertisers. And what are the advertisers paying for? Audiences.
And so it isn’t so much that the media are selling you a product — their
output. They are also selling advertisers a product — YOU.”
3 THE MEDIA ELITE
The establishment manages the media through the third filter. Journalism cannot
be a check on power because the very system encourages complicity. Governments,
corporations, big institutions know how to play the media game. They know how
to influence the news narrative. They feed media scoops, official accounts,
interviews with the ‘experts’. They make themselves crucial to the process of
journalism. So, those in power and those who report on them are in bed with
each other.
4 FLAK
If you want to challenge power, you’ll
be pushed to the margins. When the media – journalists, whistleblowers, sources
– stray away from the consensus, they get ‘flak’. This is the fourth filter.
When the story is inconvenient for the powers that be, you’ll see the flak
machine in action discrediting sources, trashing stories and diverting the
conversation.
5 THE COMMON ENEMY
To manufacture consent, you need an enemy — a target. That common enemy is the
fifth filter. Communism. Terrorists. Immigrants. A common enemy, a bogeyman to
fear, helps corral public opinion.
King’s
College London, Strife Journal
Strife is a dual format publication comprised of Strife academic
blog, as well as the peer-reviewed academic journal, Strife Journal,
which is published biannually. Strife is led by doctoral and graduate
researchers based in the Department of War Studies, King’s College London.
Our contributors come from a wide range of backgrounds including graduate and
doctoral researchers, staff and faculty at King’s, and leading experts from
around the world.
Strife
Journal, “Resistance to Extinction Rebellion’s Press Protests reveals Double
Standards in the UK’, 2020 Oct 9.
… this assertion neglects to acknowledge the inherent biases within the UK’s mainstream media and how it notably fails in its apparent duty to hold the
powerful to account. The responses to Extinction Rebellion’s protests have revealed a deeply ingrained double standard regarding what is and is not considered ‘democratic’.
[Note 8]
The rock to rock analogy can
be found in paragraph 585-7 of
1896 COURS D’ECONOMIE
POLITIQUE..
Quoted in p.32 of
“Vilfredo Pareto: Sociological
Writings”, selected and introduced by S.E. Finer, trans. D. Mirfin, Oxford,
Blackwell, 1976.
