71．The writer’s attitude towards
solving the problem is _______．
A．positive B．negative C．puzzled D．tough
E
In a survey released on Thursday, more than
7,000 Beijing residents assessed the capital as average in terms of living
conditions．Most agreed
that it is convenient to live in Beijing as far as the facilities for shopping,
leisure time activities, education and medical care are concerned．But they do not agree that life is
comfortable here．
Such a survey sends a
message that how a city functions to provide its citizens with suitable living
conditions is a concern for many urbanites(都市人) although it will take some time
before this concern finds a place on the agenda(议程)of city planners and administrators．
In the past more than two
decades, economic development has always been considered as the top priority
for most cities．The focus on
economic growth has left almost no room on the agenda of urban planners and
administrators for attention to suitable living conditions for their urban
residents．
Economic development is
undoubtedly the important foundation for improving living conditions, and has
improved living standards considerably for most urban residents in the past two
decades．But when it
is made the ultimate goal of our life, and people are forced to give up their
living comforts for the realization of a certain growth rate, the quality of
urban life can be negatively affected．
There are instances of
development just for the sake of being considered development. Witness the
destroy of buildings still in sound quality to make room for new structures,
repeated change of bricks on pavements and the re- paving of roads．These economic activities lead to
noise and environmental pollution and traffic jams．They
worsen living conditions and even make it impossible for residents in many
cities to lead a normal life．
To a certain extent, some
part of a city’s economic growth is achievable only at the expense of the
living environment for urbanites．
It is high time the city
authorities gave a thought to the relationship between economic growth and
living conditions in the cities．Beijing, for example, as a capital city, may put more efforts into
developing its service sector, tourism and culture industry, which is not
likely to cause pollution．Precaution needs to be employed in the considerations for city
renovations and construction projects, which tend to affect the life of
residents negatively．
If the concern for making
life easier and more comfortable is always on the minds of the city authorities
and on their working agenda, economic development can be realized with suitable
living standards．
