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SCMP Reporter

What do you think of the nude-photos scandal?
I totally disagree with Ho Long-sang (Talkback, February 19) - he is too harsh on the celebrities. Mr Ho blames the stars involved for a negative moral impact on society.
True, this scandal has had a huge moral impact, but are the celebrities involved responsible? I doubt it. Perhaps Edison Chen is guilty for not keeping his photos properly, but what about the female celebrities? They are just the victims. Some of them may have lost their futures as a result; but most important of all, they lost their dignity.
I think the person  who should be blamed is the one who stole and uploaded the photos. If he hadn't done this, the scandal would never have happened. Of course, people who downloaded and circulated the photos are also responsible because they caused the photos to be widespread.
The celebrities involved are innocent. They did nothing wrong but trusted the wrong people. We should stop blaming them and give them our support. Since we have created the problem, it is our responsibility to stop the scandal. It is high time we stopped downloading photos from the internet.
Leung Ngai-ting, Wong Tai Sin
What do you think of the police handling of the nude-photos scandal?
The law governing our cyberspace freedom requires an urgent revamp. This is evident from the differing interpretations by senior police officers and lawyers concerning the right to possession of obscene materials, and the right to 'distribute' or 'publish' the materials on the internet.
One senior police officer said that even possession of obscene materials for personal use could be a crime. Another then said it would require an act of 'publication' to be considered breaking the law, with the 'public' being the receiver of the information. Sending obscene information to friends might not be considered an act of publication. Furthermore, the police interpretation seems to suggest that sending the materials by e-mails or a messaging system would be acceptable.
Is this a correct interpretation of the current laws governing the control of circulation of obscene materials on the internet? If this is so, then I will be truly disappointed with such a low standard. I can agree that possessing obscene materials is not and should not be a crime, but distributing them by e-mail to friends is certainly an act of publication.
Some balance must be found. The Justice Department must immediately clarify the law, and the Law Society must hold discussions to identify defects in the system. Our legislators should also contribute. It is important that cyberspace is regulated, and the doubts of millions of people clarified and satisfied.
H. C. Bee, Ho Man Tin
How much are you prepared to pay to rent a DVD?
Watching DVDs is one of my hobbies. I love renting a DVD and enjoying it at home. I just need to spend about HK$20 for my DVD, drinks and potato chips, then that's my weekend.
But now I fear my life has been shattered. I cannot believe distributors want shops to pay up to 100 per cent of a video disc's wholesale price each time they rent it out. This implies the rental fee will rise too. If this happens, consumers will suffer.
I prefer paying HK$10 to rent a DVD - that's about 20 per cent of the ticket price if I went to see the film in a cinema at the weekend. I believe HK$10 is enough for the copyright of the distributor, and that is an acceptable price for citizens, even students.
May Yuen, Sheung Shui
Should the marathon be held on the Island Eastern Corridor?
The race last Sunday was significant for promoting healthy lifestyles in Hong Kong, where many people seldom exercise. I think most people will agree with me.
However, we have to consider the location. Compared with previous routes, the Eastern Corridor is a relatively flat venue for participants, especially beginners running the 10km race. This will encourage more people to take part in future.
The rising number of 10km runners this year is a reflection of the preference of the new route. Some people living across the Eastern Corridor, such as residents in City Garden, complained that it was very noisy to hold the event at dawn.
This shows that the organiser has to think about the event's timing, not the location.  Announcements by the organiser through loud-hailers and the chit-chat of the participants is very annoying. I  think many people living nearby  would find it very hard to sleep.
Therefore, the organiser has to reschedule the starting time of the event. Postponement to between 7.30am and 9am would not only reduce the disturbance to those living near the Eastern Corridor, it would also attract more people to participate. Some people, including me, find it is too early to get up for only about a one-hour competition.
If the starting time  were delayed it could be a win-win situation for residents and racers.
Peter Yu, Yau Tong
At first I was really excited to know there would be a marathon on the corridor. I even pasted the poster 'Go Go Go' on my window the day before the race. It was really compelling to see out of my window the athletes and participants running on the highway.
Running per se did not and does not cause any noise disturbance. But the cleaning truck at 2am, and cheers and announcements during the event caused much annoyance. I would suggest something be done to: (1) reduce the noise from the vehicles during the preparation; and (2) locate the cheering teams in some proper spots on the highway.
Ant Tsang, Shau Kei Wan
At what age is it OK to leave children home alone?
Children should not be left home alone until they have reached the age of 10. Parents in Hong Kong pay most attention to work, sometimes ignoring their children. These parents should be blamed for not taking their responsibilities seriously.
Do you think work is more important than your kids? If you do, you should not have children. Being mothers and fathers is not an easy job. Some people think that it is OK to leave children home alone if they know how to prepare lunch and look after themselves, but it is difficult for me to agree, as children also need love and moral education.
Home safety is important. However, the most essential element for children's growth is love and care from their parents. I don't think children being left home alone are happy. They are likely to feel lonely and helpless.
Children meet difficulties easily, so parents should always be ready to handle their emotional problems and give them support. In this way, children can have a healthier and happier childhood. Moreover, moral education is another mission for parents. As children are easily affected by others, they are immature and naive, and cannot determine rights and wrongs. That is why parents should always accompany them and teach them the right attitude towards different issues and moral concepts.
Parents should strive to seek a balance between their work and family.
Li Pui-ying, Tseung Kwan O
Obviously, a kid of five is not capable of being home alone, but normally a 16-year-old is capable of taking care of himself/herself.  It is difficult to know when kids are ready to handle being home alone, as different people face different situations. Only the parents can decide whether their kids can be home alone, since they are most likely to understand their degree of maturity.
But even if parents know they cannot leave their kids home alone, they often still do it as they think there are no other choices, especially poor single parents. They clearly need help.
Guardian centres should be established for such kids. Subsidies could also be allotted to allow parents to employ a babysitter. The government should also appeal to neighbours to give a hand to these families and teach parents how to deal with the problem.
Wong Lai-fa, Kwun Tong



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