The controversial issue
surrounding金美齡
has been debated ferociously in Taiwan recently.
Through the mass media, we saw people question Mrs. Jin』s attitude
toward the issue of the independence of Taiwan. Yet, we could also
notice that some people attacked Mrs. Jin』s unusual style of dress,
appearance and her action, instead of focusing on the really significant
issues. This is one type of prejudice, which is commonly used as a
strategy to tarnish one person』s credibility.
In cases where people realize that their
opponents are much more powerful and convincing than they are, prevalent
prejudices are invoked to change the subject or obscure the focus. In
that sense, it shows that these people are no longer confident to
compete equally; instead, they have to play some dirty tricks. By doing
this, they think it』ll make them become more advantageous. Such is the
case of Mrs. Jin. People did not want to debate why she supports the
independence of Taiwan. Instead, they criticized Mrs. Jin』s hairstyle
by calling her 「the White hair witch」. When she led the demonstrators
through the streets of Taipei and danced with the crowd, people
criticized her for doing such an unconventional thing in public.
This strategy is used not only in relation to political issues, but
also in our daily life. Teenagers have all had the experience of being
yelled at by adults who said they were too young to understand
anything. True, that is another typical prejudice used by adults to
keep the kids』 mouth shot, even though the juveniles』 comments may be
quite rational and reasonable. The adults simply do not want to admit
that they sometimes know less than those who are younger than them.
Such prejudices usually make us feel so frustrated that we will probably
get angry. However, if we do get pissed off, it will only serve the
rivals』 purpose. For in our anger and our desperate effort to argue,
the real issues are often lost and more misunderstanding sets in.
Therefore, the best way to face this sort of situation is to calm
ourselves down first and respond skillfully. We should not let our own
temper burst out even though we may be enraged inside. Our cool
attitude is the only thing that will keep the real issue alive as well
as keep us in our best condition. Just as when Mrs. Jin was questioned
during the talk shows on TV, sometimes she would say nothing but only
kept a secret smile on her face. At other times, She wisely skipped
those trashy comments without hurting her own self-esteem. We can learn
the same thing to safeguard ourselves when encountering this type of
unfair prejudice.