29、The change of culture starts from elites

In fact, Chinese Property Law is just a kind of prelude of the cultural revolution, and it is a symbol which lays a foundation for the new round of cultural revolution in China.

It is just because culture has a kind of acquiescent and hidden property that culture is usually in a condition of the true face of Lushan is lost to my sight, for it is right in this mountain that I reside. Usually people are not willing to think about the right or wrong of existing facts, because the change of existing culture will involve the interests of many people, which is nothing else than removing mountains and filling seas for common people. It is impossible for a person to remove or change anything on his own, and blind confrontations will only lead to cruel sufferings or death for justice.

But I think to change culture is not unreachable or as difficult as reaching for the sky. The key issue lies in methods.

Though people have some bad habits such as selfishness, scholasticism and satisfaction with things as they are, they still have the nature of pursuit of brightness and success as well as unwillingness to lag behind. No matter how selfish and greedy a person or a group or the social elite class in power is, they will think it over when it concerns the overall national interest, welfare of descendants, and their own achievements or ruling status.

If a country or a nation’s culture needs to be changed, it will be a fruitless approach to start changing from the common people by calling on them through obscurantism by means of the so-called democracy.

The reason is that people at the bottom of society are more likely to have the narrow and extreme thinking mode. Actually, though democratic society seems to be fair and just, it is unscientific after all. If people at the bottom of the society and people in the leading class have the same political rights, the narrow and extreme ideas and thoughts of the people at the bottom may completely submerge rationality, scientificalness, and advancement.

The reason is that they cannot realise culture at all, and they cannot realise the constraint and control of this subconsciousness on their words and deeds. All their words and deeds are the servant and megaphone of culture. However, a major cause for the success of the elite class is that their brains comprehensive analysis and logical judgment ability are generally superior to the common people. Thus, they are able to achieve the leading position and advantages in the field of politics and economy etc. Besides, the real elites of society are the first to understand and accept the advanced culture and thought. The social progress is essentially the cultural process led by elites, and the social change is actually the cultural change led by elites. Therefore, I think an excellent social system should let elites who are capable of representing people’s interest hold power and administer state affairs.

1. A country’s prosperity and development needs elites to hold power and establish national policies. And such elites should be a group rather than several individuals.

2. People in power must truly represent people’s interest, their fundamental and long-term interest, and so to speak, it refers to the spirit of three representatives. However, if elites can’t represent people’s interest, it will lead to a disaster.