Each year, Heep Yunn School holds an essay writing competition, which involves writing about newspaper articles. This is one of the top three of the senior section.
Selfie-taking is popular with teenagers and even adults around the world, but it should be regulated in some places.
These days we often see people taking selfies with people that they are not so familiar with. It is not because they want to show that they are good friends or that there is something memorable for them to capture at that moment, but but because it has become a social practice, and everyone is blindly following this trend. People take selfies whenever, wherever and with whomever they like, and no longer consider whether it is appropriate or not.
Recently, there was a teenage girl taking selfies during a funeral, and even posting the photos onto Facebook afterwards. The girl was then criticised by many people due to her rude behaviour. Her attitude is why people want rules about selfies, since some people really do not know how to behave, and cannot understand the appropriate attitude or behaviour they are expected to have in social situations.
Secondly, not only does taking selfies seem impolite, it can also be dangerous. Many famous sites, including museums, sports stadiums, and even Disneyland, have banned the use of selfie sticks. In some countries, selfie sticks are even defined as offensive weapons considering their size, weight and the ways they are used. This is especially true during some sports events in stadiums where it is easy to stir people’s emotions. If selfie sticks were allowed in, they would likely be used as a weapon by fans who are not satisfied with the final score. Those people might even attack opposing fans out of frustration.
Museums have banned selfie sticks because people might lose control of them and destroy some valuable cultural relics.
To read the other op-eds by Heep Yunn School students:
- Arthur Li and the HKU council need better excuses for blocking Johannes Chan’s appointment
Western education vs Chinese: which creates more successful young people?