The Facts on Faminism 柳暗花明女权路

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The word feminism conjures up a variety of images for people. A lot of misunderstanding and hyperbole have surrounded feminism, but according to the dictionary, feminism is simply a movement for the social, political, and economic equality of men and women.

While feminist theories have surfaced from time to time in history, the modern feminist movement's roots are in the Age of Enlightenment with its principles of individual justice. In the United States, these ideas were put into action by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and others who issued a Declaration for Women's Independence in 1848. A central demand of their nascent feminist movement, women's right to vote, was achieved in 1920 after a 72-year battle.

Feminism reached the popular consciousness in the sixtieth with the leadership of women like Gloria Steinem, Betty Friedan, and Angela Davis; the passage of the Civil Rights Act prohibiting employment discrimination, and a lot of media exposure. Some primary issues of this time were equal pay, equal education access, freedom from sexual harassment, and the right to safe, legal abortions.

In the eighties, many feminists claimed that there was a backlash4 against feminism in the media, popular culture, and the political right.

The nineties saw some of this media-driven backlash, as well as the appearance of a new strain of youth feminism," Riot Grrrls", who emerged from the punk movement.


While many people agree with the dictionary definition of feminism, few claim to be feminists for a number of reasons.

They may feel that feminism is only for lesbians or women who hate men. Actually, a lot of feminist quotes have been taken out of context, and there are many different branches of feminism which espouse different ideals.

Instead of hating men, most feminists believe equality between the sexes will benefit men by unshackling them from traditional expectations. They welcome men into the ranks of feminists. And although there has always been a strong presence of lesbians and bisexuals in the women's movement, most feminists are heterosexual. Many feminists claim that homophobia and ignorance are at the heart of people's refusal to label themselves as feminists, even though they agree with the tenets of feminism.

Feminism has changed and grown with time and critical examination. There are currently about 17 identity-based branches of feminism including black feminism and Marxist feminism. These different offshoots sprung out of the belief that gender does not exist in a vacuum and must be examined in the context of race and class in society.

Feminism will likely change more in the future and have a larger international presence, although its reach and impact will vary greatly in different cultures. While controversy and misunderstanding regarding feminism will continue, so will the feminist movement in its many permutations.

The Colorful History of Billiards 台球的沿革

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Anyone who refuses to leave prison simply because they are having too much fun playing billiards would be considered something more than just a diehard fan. Yet that is exactly what a Captain Mingaud did during the French Revolution. Granted, Mingaud was not only playing billiards, he was busy revolutionizing the game.

Though billiards had already been popular for more than 100 years at that time, Mingaud was the first person to round the end of a pool cue with a file and apply a leather tip to it. After prison, Mingaud promptly proved his invention's superiority over its flat, club-like predecessor in exhibitions throughout France. What the captain had developed was essentially the cue in use today, but the game he generated interest in did not involve shooting balls into pockets.

Pocket billiards such as modern-day pool and snooker were around, but they were considered to be the ill-bred cousins of carom billiards, which used a pocketless table. The name pool was born during the 1840s when billiards was closely identified with gambling parlors, or "pool parlors" in the lexicon of the day. The name stuck, and with more than 40 million people playing in America alone last year, so has the game.

Despite its universal popularity and frequent airtime on ESPN with professionally organized tournaments, billiards has rarely enjoyed universal respect.

Before hitting America, billiards already had a spotty history thanks to the likes of hustlers such as Englishman Jack Carr. Carr, the first person to put chalk on his cue tip, made a fortune peddling his magic "twisting chalk" around France in the 1820s. The "magic" was actually in Carr's wrist; he was the first player to apply spin to a billiards ball, and the term "English" is still used to denote this move.


In America, billiards had a questionable reputation because of its association with gambling. The 20-year rivalry of American pool masters Michael Phelan and Dudley Kavanagh in the late 19th century, however, attracted attention and respect as tournaments became standing-room-only tuxedo affairs. Ironically, the two also started a tradition of conflicting associations governing the game, which now makes all titles suspect, and the Olympics an impossible dream.

Fortunately, legitimacy and success are not invariably linked. When The Hustler, a 1961 movie starring Paul Newman and Jackie Gleason, glamorized the shady underworld of pool sharks, business boomed.

Coin-operated pool tables were born just in time to meet the rising demand. Initially found only in bars and bowling alleys, the new, smaller tables have taken center stage at packed pool halls from Boston to Beijing.

Modern-Day Pirates 仿你千遍也不“赝”倦

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Tired of paying $2000 for a Louis Vuitton handbag? Snatch up a replica of the designer's work in Hong Kong's street markets for only a thousand, and it will take a leather expert and a microscope to tell it apart from the real McCoy. Such sophisticated counterfeiting only scratches the surface of a problem that is plaguing corporations around the world.

In Asia, this business draws everyone from powerful underworld organizations with ties to politics and the military to husband-and-wife teams who brew fake Coca-Cola in bathtubs. The prevalence of and demand for these rip-off goods accounts for approximately US$200 to 300 billion in annual global losses for multinationals such as Nike or Yamaha.

Look at a typical illegal CD plant based in Malaysia. After bribing key officials and plunking down cash for CD duplication machines and such, the plant can expect to take in about US$1 million each month. Sometimes, the profit margins are better than in trafficking narcotics.

Corporations, increasingly frustrated with ineffectual efforts by governments to crack down on piracy, have either turned to private detectives for help or have even built their own antipiracy squads in hopes of stemming the avalanche of bogus merchandise.

Unlike law enforcement agencies, however, piracy profiteers play by no rules, and arrests and convictions are few and far between. Consequently, corporations point out that without better cooperation from governments, their war has already been lost.

Tuesdays with Morris 相约星期二

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Anyone who has benefited from the advice and experience of an older and wiser person is likely to immediately identify with the author of the American best seller Tuesdays with Morrie. A true story, it recounts the subject matter of a series of meetings the writer, Mitch Albom, had with his college professor of 20 years earlier. The old man taught Albom valuable lessons about life and death while at the same time fighting a losing battle with Lou Gehrig's disease.

Albom was already a successful sportswriter when he by chance saw a television interview with Morrie Schwartz, his spiritual mentor and advisor in his college days. The two men quickly resumed the regular discussion sessions they used to have, and with Schwartz's condition visibly worsening from one week to the next, Albom listened enraptured as the old man put him straight on what is important in life.

Tuesdays with Morrie has been praised for its accessible style. The writer presents Morrie's uplifting take on depressing topics such as death in a down-to-earth manner while managing to steer clear of tear-jerking sentimentality. There are no profound new insights to be discovered in this book, but perhaps its best achievement is its propensity for reminding readers of the basic truths they have always known, but may have forgotten or have simply chosen to ignore, in today's cynical world.

Wake up and Smell the Coffee 饮咖啡也要思源

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Some people cannot imagine starting the day without a cup of coffee. From the most fashionable cafes of Paris to the breakfast stands lining the streets of Taipei, coffee has firmly established itself as one of the world's favorite beverages. For such a well-loved drink, however, few people are aware of its curious origins.

As legend goes, coffee berries were first discovered in 850 by an Ethiopian goat herder who noticed his goats were much friskier after having eaten the red berries of a local bush. After trying the berries himself, the goat herder felt much more energetic than usual. He disseminated the news about the wonderful berry, and soon monks were hailing it as an elixir and drinking the brew to stay awake during evening prayers.

Although coffee originated on the plateaus of Ethiopia, it was the Arabs who first cultivated it around 1100. They were also the first people to roast it and boil it. By 1475, people in Constantinople were enjoying a cup of coffee in the world's first coffee shop. Coffee spread to Europe around 1600 and to the New World seven years later.

These days, it seems you can get a cup of coffee just about everywhere you go. Every year, coffee lovers consume more than 400 billion cups of one of the world's biggest commodities-second only to oil.

The Rough,Tough World Of Rugby 敢冲敢抢橄榄球

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To the uninitiated, rugby is a game in which a bunch of powerfully built men throw themselves at one another in pursuit of an oval ball. In fact, this ancestor of modern American and Canadian football can seem more like an organized brawl than a highly technical sport with a complex set of rules. Apart from its sometimes chaotic demeanor, rugby is also unusual among modern sports in that its origins can be traced back to a single, seminal event.

In 1823, during a soccer game at the prestigious Rugby School in central England, one of the players impulsively picked up the ball and ran with it. The way soccer was played in those days, William Webb Ellis' rash action was practically suicidal. But his novel approach was taken up by other students, who went on to develop a new style of football. Known as Rugby football, it mainly involved throwing and running with the ball rather than kicking it.

The game grew in popularity, and in 1871, the Rugby Union was formed in London. It drew up the modern rules for a 15-a-side game using an oval ball. Nowadays, rugby is played in more than 80 countries around the world. As for William Webb Ellis, his spirit lives on. His name has been given to the trophy awarded to the winners of the quadrennial Rugby World Cup tournament.

For young men in New Zealand, the pinnacle of sporting achievement is widely reckoned to be donning the famous black uniform of the national rugby team. Ever since 1905, when the first officially sanctioned New Zealand touring team swept aside all opposition on a tour of Britain, the fearsome All Blacks have retained an aura of invincibility that has rarely been overcome.

Such is the reputation of the All Blacks that some believe they gain a psychological advantage over their opponents the moment they step out onto the playing field. If such an advantage really exists, it can only be enhanced when, as tradition dictates, the team performs the celebrated haka before the match kicks off.

Haka is the generic term for a traditional dance of the Maori people. Its connection with the game of rugby goes back to the late 19th century, when the New Zealand Native Team performed one on an unofficial tour of Britain. Nowadays, the haka is still led by a player of Maori descent whenever and wherever the All Blacks take the field.

While recent years have seen the All Blacks struggling to match their past successes, the emergence of skillful professionals such as Tongan-born winger Jonah Lomu ensures that the famous black jersey with the silver fern on the left breast is still able to instill awe in opponents and spectators alike.

Following un Ancient Footsteps 长相“丝”守：丝绸之路话从头

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One of the world's most ancient and historically important trade routes, the Silk Road conjures up exotic images of camel caravans, windswept deserts, and such legendary figures as Genghis Khan and Marco Polo. Extending as far as the Indian kingdoms in the west, to present-day Xian in China in the east, the Silk Road was already a crossroads of Asia by the third century B.C.

Skirting the edges of the harsh and inhospitable Taklimakan desert, the Silk Road actually had several different branches, each passing through different oases. All roads began in Changan (Xian). The northern route wound its way through places such as Turfan and Kuqa before finally ending at Kashgar. The southern route followed the lower fringes of the Taklimakan to eventually end up at the same destination. Numerous other routes were also plied throughout the ages, reaching all the way to Samarkand, Tashkent, India, and the Caspian Sea.

Silk was not the only commodity traveling the Silk Road. Other goods such as exotic animals, ivory, and gold were also transported along the route. It was silk, though, which fascinated the Romans. Agents were sent from Rome to explore the route and to obtain the material at a lower price. The Romans, however, did not give the Silk Road its name. The term was actually coined by the 19th-century German scholar Baron Ferdinand von Richthofen.

In spite of its name, silk was not the most important commodity traversing the Silk Road. That honor fell to religion. Along the northern branch of the route, Buddhism made its way from India to China in the fourth and fifth centuries. Christianity also made an appearance in the seventh century, when merchants carried the faith from northern Iran to Changan.

Not long after the Tang era (618-907), when trade along the Silk Road had reached its height, the fearsome Genghis Khan and his Mongol armies conquered a vast area spanning much of Central Asia. Accordingly, the Silk Road became an important communication route between different parts of the Mongol Empire. During the rule of Kublai Khan, more Europeans began venturing towards China along the Silk Road. The most famous of these travelers was Marco Polo, whose thoughts and adventures were later recorded and embellished by an Italian romance writer.

During the 14th century, with the disintegration of the Mongol Empire, the isolationist policies of the Ming Dynasty, and the development of the silk route by sea, the Silk Road was forced into decline. Renewed interest in it emerged only among Western scholars near the end of the 19th century. The existence of ancient cities excited them, and an archaeological free-for-all began. These days, those seeking out treasures of the Silk Road can find what they are looking for in such far-flung places as London, Delhi, and Berlin.